“MERRIE ENGLAND”

Dominion, Volume 15, Issue 195, 15 May 1922, Page 9

“MERRIE ENGLAND”

A FINE PRODUCTION

“Merrio England.” a comic opera in two acts. Music by Edward German, book by Basil Hood. Cast:—

Tha Earl of Essex A. Howett-Worster Bir Walter Raleigh Charles Mettam Walter Wilkins ... Charles H. Workman Silas Rimkins Victor Prince Lons Tom -' John Ralston Bif* Ben Tom Minogue The Queen’s Pool Herbert Brown A Butcher Fred England A Baker Gordon Ramsay A Tinker Jack Kinson A Tailor Stanley Al'.nn A Lord Harry Williams First Royal Page Rua Butler Second Royal Page Elsie Farrell Queen Elizabeth Ethel Morrison Miss Bessie Thrdckmorton .. Patti Russell Jill-All-Alone Byrl Walkely May Queen : Grace Crotty Marjory Eileen Dunn Kate Gladys Baker

, "Merriß England,”, produced by the Williamson Comic Opera Company at the Grand Opera House, was witnessed by an audience which filled every seat. “Merrie England,” thought written twenty years ago and played spasmodically in England ever since, had not been heard previously in Wellington. It is a work without a taint of anything that is not legitimate comic opera, all-. the more remarkable, for it was originally produced at a time when- the Englishspeaking world was flooded with flimsy musical comedy from the London hothouse controlled by the late George . Edwardes. Of the music one can say . that probably no living composer could have adorned the subject so aptly as Edward German. From the first bar In the overture to the final picture, the spirit of mediaeval England leaps at one out of the score, in the many beautiful solos, concerted numbers, choruses, and madrigals. Hero and there, too, may bo detected some clever contrapuntal writing that charms the musical sense by its intrinsic beauty of form and spirit. Whilst . the dialogue may . not be as witty as the best of English comic operas, it serves fairly well to meet the case. The subject is Queen Elizabeth’s alleged love for Sir Walter Raleigh, and the Earl of Essex’s determination “to beat him to it,” as the Americans would say. In the operatic story Raleigh is shown as altogether indifferent to Her Majesty, being very much in love with Bessie Throckmorton, a very nice, demure maid-of-honour, despite her name. The state of the case is divulged during the May Day reyels on the green below the classic shades of Windsor Castle. Here the audience is told that an important love- , letter from Raleigh to his Bessie has been lost. It is found by Gill-all-'Alone, a wild young thing of the woods, believed by the addle-pated villagers to be a witch. She is saved from being forcibly drowned by these good folk by the appearance of the Earl of Essex, to whom Gill hands tlirj lost letter. Essex at once sees in it a chance to advance his own suit with . the Queen by showing her the letter Raleigh has written to her maid-of-honour. Naturally, the Queen has to arrive to allow this to be done, and her entrance on the State barge, with proper pomp and circumstance, is seized upon as the opportunity for a brilliant spectacle. Essex, who is depicted as a rather unscrupulous person, hands the letter to the Queen, who in the enormity of her vanity at once assumes that the Bess mentioned therein is her royal self, and intimates to Raleign, who appears on the scene, that she is not in the least' offended; but that gallant gentleman determines that the Queen shall be under no misapprehension as to the object of his affections, at once declares his love for Bessie Throck-

morton, whereupon rhe Queen hag ® blind, jealous rage banishes Raleigh to the country, makes a prisoner <xf Bessie Throckmorton, and poor Gill-all-Alone, who tries to make merry of the occasion, she orders to the block. It is a splendidly dramatic scene, only marred by anti-climax (in the return of the Queen to re-enter the royal barge). In the second act the Queen shows that she is so incensed at Raleigh preferring another to herself that she actually contemplates finishing him off with poison, and consults an apothecary, to supply the deadly drug, but this fellow turns out to he the Queen’s jester and a friend of Raleigh’s, and stands to him in his hour of need. Essex, seeing that Raleigh’s love affair leaves him without a rival with the Queen; decides with Long Tom, the forester and Gill-all-Alone, to play upon her superstitious fears, by arranging for an appearance of Herne the Hunter, who only appears when Royaltv is about to commit a crime. So at Herne’s Oak, where all assembled, the mystic huntsman appears and winds his horn, and the Queen is so beset with fears that she pardons everybody, leaving the all and sundry to finish an eventful day in the jocund dance. . “Merrie England” is a fine production. No detail in mounting and costuming is wanting, whilst the romantic parts are well drawn; comedy rolls are not very strong. To those not bereft of a little imagination, the cast is not as even as it might be. In places it was notably satisfactory. The Earl of Essex, as depicted by Mr. A. Howett-Worster, is as proper a gentleman as one would see in a summer’s day—tall in stature, elegant in manners, with an air of breeding, and the best baritone voice heard hero in comic opera since the palmy days of the late Mr. Wallace Brownlow. It 'is a long time since' we have hoard a song so finely declaimed as “The Yeomen of England” by this cultured and graceful performer, who simply brought the house down. Miss Patti Russell’s flawless vocalism was heard to especial advantage as Bessie Throckmorton, whose song "She Had a Letter” was one of the gems of the evening, and the “Maid Marian” song was also most sweetly sung. Miss Beryl Walkeley, a charming mezzo, was artlessly artistic as Gill-all-Alone. and her two pretty songs, “Where the Deer Lie” and her cat song were notably well sung. Splendidly equipped dramatically for the important role of the Queen, Miss Ethel ■ Morrison looked every inch the Queen Bess of story, and held the audience firmly in her one big scene. Vocally, Miss Morrison was not so satisfactory. Mr. Charles' Mettain looked very well as Sir Walter Raleigh—he was historically correct in face and figure, but the performer’s tendency to flatten stood in the way of his vocal success, and his acting was mechanical and lacked intelligent concentration nnd sincere intent. Mr. J. Ralston was capital as Long Tom, nnd looked well tn his forester garb of Lincoln Green. Mr Charles Workman chattered confidentially as Walter Wilkins (a player), but neither in song nor dialogue was he consistently audible. His "King Neptune” song was made by the excellent business of the chorus. In broader comedy Mr. Victor Prince was eflective as Silas Simkins. Miss Grace Crottv was fitted as a rather spiteful May Queen, Miss Eileen Dunn was Mariory, a dancer, and -Gladys Laker appeared as Kate. Mr. Tom Minogue was Big Ben, and Messrs. F. England, U Kinson, S. Allen and G. Ramsay figured as the. butcher, baker, tinker, and tailor of Windsor respectively. Some of the best of England” lies in its choral work Notable among the choruses are “God Save Elizabeth,” Nc P' tune ” “Two Merry Men,” “The Queen of Mav,” and “The Sun is High in the Heavens.” The chorus is adequate, nnd a capital orchestra, under Mr. Bustavc Slapoffski, does justice to German’s interesting orchestration. ‘‘Merrie England” will be player, again this evening, and up till Wednesday evening. Gilbert and Sullivan s delightful opera “The Yeomen of the

Guard,” with Charles H. Workman in his original role of Jack Point, will be staged on Thursday for one night only, followed by Alfred Cellier’s tuneful romantic opera “Dorothy” on Friday, for three nights only.