THE POMEROY COMPANY. "CYMBELINE."

Evening Post, Volume XXII, Issue 108, 4 November 1881, Page 3

THE POMEROY COMPANY. " CYMBELINE."

Taking as our criterion tho previous performances of the Pomeroy Company, we expected to see " Cymbeline " placed upon the boards of tho Theatre .Royal last night in better style than it was. 1 here was a lack of proper preparation and attention to dress and details, which made the production of the play inferior to those which had gone before. The scenery was wretched, tho dresses were a onrious mixture of those of various ages, and the acting 1 , with occasional exceptions, indifferent. For the absence of proper scenery, not tho Pomrroy management, but the Publio Hall Company aro to blame, for the former hive perforce to nse the dingy, dilapidated Bets provided by the latter, or go to considerable expense in, having stock scenery prepared whioh would be useless to them outside of Wellington. No theatrical company could afford tho expense of carrying stock scenes about with them, and it is always understood that this shall be provided with tho theatre engaged ; but actors coming to Wellington invariably find they have rockonod without their host. The bed chamber scene last < night had more the appearance of a semi-circular dungeon than tho sleeping apartment of a princess ; and the idea of laohimo having to describe three dingy flats, and a shabby bed standing on a floor covered with a Maori mat, as '• Hanged With tapestry of silk and silver ;" and ' ' tho roof of the chamber "being fretted " with golden oherubims " does seem somewhat absurd. The time of the play is supposed to be tho ICth year of the Christian era — tho 24th of the reign of Augustus Cic3ar ; but .though Shakespeare drew the characters for many centuries later, one would scarcely imagine that Imogen and her serving women wore a description of costume which was fashionable but a few yeara ago, and is not altogether out of date at the present time. There were other apparent incongruities which wo pass over. Miss Pomeroy was not in her nsual form last night, and her acting seemed, to some extent, harsh and forced, but in two or three instanoes she "rose to the occasion" and displayed really fine acting. Mr. Holloway, as Posthumus, played ucevenly. At times he acted well, but he was frequently stagy, and at times he ranted dreadfully. Mr. Flemming'a aotingas lachimo was very creditable, though he has appeared to greater- advantage in other roles. Mr. Wallace was Cloten and Cloten was Mr. Wallace— a funnier character than Shakespeare dreamt of in writing " Cymbeliue." He, however, played with great spirit, though the comical lear of his low comedy eye and the peculiar twist of his mouth as he jerked out his sentences, set the audience in roars in the most serious parts. If Mr. Wallace played Hamlet or Maobeth he would win world-wide renown for extracting from Shakspeare such humour as no mortal ever drea med of in the works of the "immortal bard." Miss Arden's Queen was too stagy to be effective. Messrs. Hoskins, Holloway, and O'Brien appeared in minor characters. Cymbeline will be repeated to-night.