"BIG TIME"

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 79, 30 September 1924, Page 5

"BIG TIME"

WILLIAMSON VAUDEVILLE! WORLD-FAMOUS,ARTISTS ENGAGED I A NEW POLICY IN ENTERTAINMENT. Mr. A. R. Shepard, formerly of Musgrove's Theatrical Proprietary, Ltd., now associated with Messrs. J. C. Williamson, Ltd., in their new policy of vaudeville tours of the Dominion-, is at present in Wellington in connection with the visit of the first company of artists, now appearing at the Grand Opera House, and.to finalise arrangements for forthcoming visits, which will be made at regular intervals of four or five weeks.

In conversation with a "Post" reporter to-day, Mr. Shepard said that the decision of Messrs. Williamson, Ltd., to enter into the highly popular realm of vaudeville entertainment marked a most interesting development in theatrical Australia and New Zealand. Mr. Shepard recalled the negotiations entered into between the Musgrove Proprietary and the famous Rickards Tivoli circuit some little time ago, the.result of which was that the Musgrove Proprietary took over as its main circuit theatres in Australia—the Tivcli Theatre, Melbourne, the Tivoli, Sydney, and the Prince of Wales, Adelaide, and explained that about twelve weeks ago the control of the famous circuit was again changed and enlarged, Messrs. J. 0. Williamson gaining complete control by a transaction involving an immense sum of money. At the same time the firm took over , all the contracts vaudeville acts from all corners of the world which had been entered into by the Musgrove Proprietary, and this, added tactile fact that the firm itself, had definitely embarked upon vaudeville, gave the J. C. Williamson management what is practically, complete control in Australia avid New Zealand of "big time vaudeville." New Zealand, said; Mr. Shepard, would be in a happy and strong position as regarded this class of entertainment, for, as in the case of the company which was at present in Wellington, a choice would be made of the most attractive and most suitable acts from the Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, and Brisbane theatres.

THE TREND TO-DAY. ' "Unquestionably," said Mr. Shepard, "tlie Dominion is now over-cater-ed for in picture entertainments, and it is becoming increasingly difficult to get the big picture attractions which alone are now successful in filling the theatres to-day. It would seem that the trend of the amusement world is "back to the modern stage.' In New York to-day—and New York is regarded by showmen as the home of the very best picture presentation—in such theatres as the Capitol, the Rivoli, the Rialto and the Strand, New York's biggest and finest picture theatres, only one feature picture is shown and'with it are presented such attractions as numbers by grand opera eingers, Russian ballets, musical revue and bis vaudeville turns. This is the popular lorm of picturo presentation,' the faro which is .most acceptable to the picture fan in the United States at the present time.

"In Australia, particularly in Sydney, and Melbourne too, we find'thai t& big picturo theatre managements are now including such items and attractions as high-class vaudeville and musical revue, and it appears that somotlnng of the kind must come generally for the overhead charges inseparable from the presentation of feature attractions the expense of elaborate orchestral faro, and so on, are very great, and if pictures alone fail to fill the theatres dd d " y attractions must be

NEW POLICY AT TIVOLI THEATRE. On account of tho expense in bringing Npw 7Si T V? udeville companies' to iNew Zealand, said Mr. Shepard, it was essential that they should appear in The largest theatres in the centres visHed otherwise the returns could not be adequate, and for that reason the vaudeville season instituted by the Musgrove Proprietary at the Tivoli Theatre would not be continued under the Williamson conrol. During the past several weeks pictures had been the rule at the Tivoli but from Saturday next a new order of things would hold, a season of comedy and drama in its several forms, i T] le: fi. rs!i' company to appear would be headed by Mr. Robert Grieg and Miss Beatrice Holloway, who would be supported by an excellent company, many of the artists of which were well and happily remembered by New Zaland audiences. The opening play would be "Officer 666," which had just completed a wonderfully successful season at, Perth, Western Australia, and in the company's repertoire were plays made famous by Mr. Fred Niblo and a number of the latest comedy successes.

FUTURE ATTRACTIONS. The second Williamson vaudeville combination, said Mr. Shepard, would appear at Auckland on Saturday next and at Wellington shortly afterwards. The heudliner would Lie iMiss Hetty King, one of the most popular and notable performers upon the world's vaudeville stage, and high as was the standard of the first "big time" vaudeville entertainment, an equally high standard would be maintained steadily unde;- the new management and policy of engaging artists. Everything pointed, said Mr. Shepard, to a most successful theatrical season for the Dominion during the coming year. He- could mention the arrangements made for the lecturing tour of Mr. and Mrs. Martin Johnson, who had recently returned to America from a strenuous and very wonderful expedition to Central Africa (Mrs. Johnson being the first white woman to penetrate into that part of the interior), the tour-of the Hawaiian Troubadours, whoso present kci'.soii in Brisbane was one of outstanding success, a return of the Sistine Choir soloists, and, about Eaater time, a return of Long Tack Sain and a new company o{ sixteen performers. Another very line show, to reach New Zealand about December ; was "The Thief of Bagdad," Douglas Fairbanks's biggest picture, founded upon the Aesop fable. It was without question the finest picture yet produced and would be presented as a theatrical attraction, in the larger theatres and upon an elaborate scale, with special orchestral accompaniments and an excellent prologue by a company of Arabs, "not local colour by local A(■abs, local colour by Arabs from Arabia." ' I