PLAYS and PLAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 92, 20 April 1939, Page 21

PLAYS and PLAY

WELLINGTON REPERTORY.

"Fidelio," in his criticism of Shaw's play, "The Apple Cart," in London "Sphere," says:—" 'The Apple Cart' has come to town. This is a play by George Bernard Shaw of which you may have heard; the only thing we can suggest is that you see it for yourself." This is almost as brief as that of the "New York Times" critic, who confined his remarks on an eminent English actor's performance of Hamlet on Broadway to the. following:—"Mr. played Hamlet at the Lyceum Theatre last night. He played it till ten minutes past twelve." However, "The Apple Cart" is unquestionably one of Mr. Shaw's masterpieces. It is purposeful, provocative, and singularly prophetic; and it is written in Mr. Shaw's best style. It is described as a political extravaganza s in two acts and an interlude. Its setting is the King's palace in England in 1970. The scenes and costumes will, of course, be slightly futuristic. The production will be under, the direction of Mr. Leo dv Chateau and the cast will include Mrs. Ina Allen, the Misses C. M. McGreevy, Pat Greenfield-Brown, Lilian Mitchell, Patricia Hogg, and Messrs. A. O. Heany, Cedric Gardiner, Arthur AshleygJones, B. S. Withers, Charles Johnston, Ernest Le Greve, B. Cahill, L. H. Herd', K. H. Churchhouse, and W. F. C. Balham. The producer has designed the settings which will be built by Mr. J. W. Johnstone and painted by Mr. W. J. Conroy, and Miss Pauline Shotlander has charge of the costumes. "The Apple Cart" will be staged by the Wellington Repertory Theatre Society in the Concert Chamber from the 16th to the 20th of next month.

"THE WOMEN" FOR WELLINGTON. "The "Women," Clare Boothe's muchdiscussed and keenly-anticipated satirical play, with its all-women cast of 40 players, headed by Irene Purcell, distinguished American star, will be presented at the Opera House, Wellington, on Saturday, April 29. Probably no theatrical event in recent years has stimulated so much interest. "The Women" is caustic, but is essentially witty. Clare Boothe has exploited the distaff side of life, sometimes with a dash of bitterness, sometimes with sarcasm or irony. The story deals with a group of Park Avenue women with plenty of money to spend on themselves and a lot of time to do it. They see all evil, speak all evil, and hear all evil. The gossip results in driving Mrs. Stephen Haines (Irene Purcell) to divorcing her husband, but she saves herself in the end by a woman's wit and wisdom. Mary Dees, who appears with Irene Purcell, is the double of the late Jean Harlow, and as such completed the actress's last film, "Saratoga." Other American stars are Marjorie Crossland, Jessica Rogers, and Doris Packer. All are appearing in New Zealand for the first time. "The Women" ran for over 800 performances on Broadway, New York, and for 104 at Melbourne. It has just completed a run of over two months in Sydney, and in Auckland created quite a sensation, where the booking created an all-time record for a talking play.

to RICHARD CROOH^^^^^M MONTH. New Zealand audiences l^^^^^^H the outstanding success score^^^^^^H American tenor Richard Crooj^^^^^B he visited this country a few^^^^H ago. His impeccable artistry m^^^H deep impression on audiences. great tenor is a cosmopolitan of s^^H any language is easy to him, and j^H faultless French, German, and ItalislH has amazed critics. His programmes* range from Handel to Brahms to the drawing-room ballad. Music lovers ■ will learn with great pleasure that Mr. Crooks is to make a return visit on his way to Australia in May, appearing in Auckland and Wellington only. At the time of his last visit one critic wrote: "The Crooks's charm rests not so much in the exceptional sweetness of voice, the remarkable vocal artistry, nor in the genial platform manner, as in the absolute sincerity of interpretation, enabling him to please and delight as much with the ballad 'Until' as with his glorious singing of^-. the Italian aria, 'Amor ti vi eta,' from Giordano's opera, 'Fredora.'" This great tenor will appear at Wellington on May .20, 23, and 25. INTERESTING EXPERIMENT. A group calling itself Play Presentations has been formed in London, its main object being to give private performances (admission by invitation) of selected plays . for the benefit of West End managers and others interested in West End productions. The little experiment is interesting, and the first results have been most encouraging. The. plays ar« presented in the Portfolio Playhouse,

ALL-AMERICAN REVUE, . Lavish scenes, clever humour, and beautiful and talented girls are some of the features of the "Hollywood Hotel Revue," which opens at Wel» lington on May 12. The company con» sists of 60 American artists, and includes many outstanding personalities of stage, screen, and radio. Presented by the famous American producer Harry Howard, the show is headed by Marty May, New York star of "Roberta," who .acts as compere throughout the revue. Bobbie Morris and Murray Briscoe are creators of a new type of comedy which has found great favour during the Australasian tour. The company abounds in dancing stars, including Jack and June Blair, and Jack Whitney, a sensational acrobatic male dancer. Among the female leads are Wilma Homer, vivacious comedienne, who, until joining the "Hollywood Hotel Revue" Company, had worked as stand-in for Claudette Colbert in Hollywood for two and a half years. The singers of the show are Magda Neeld and Robert Berry. Miss Neeld has just completed an 18 months' tour of America with Jack Hylton and his Continental Orchestra. Robert Berry was juvenile lead with the "Ziegfeld Follies" and "George White's Scandals." Two of the revue's brilliant stage settings are built round a pair of magnificent acrobats, Frank Park and Bob Clifford. A novel act is that of the Eight Apple Dancers, a group of coloured folk who introduced the stage version of the "Big Apple" to American audiences. : . .