FOOTLIGHT FLASHER.

Evening Star, Issue 9889, 28 December 1895, Page 2

FOOTLIGHT FLASHER.

-- t»S!faseitgdatßig.»<hi|i]tei iwiiljpifiwtij'*l* wta unearthed." Tan tn&oaj «'ftJft'«ong always pleased heart' mide itis appearancf W {tag sold while tEe opera, wajs at it* &ss? to the 1 is writing the mow for a new ballet, to bVcaJled * Dresden cblpai' all the dancers being dressed \b Imitate Dresden china Btattiettes.' Oar. London correspondent wrote on No-

, vember7:-: -. ■■ <J: The farewell banquet to Mr John Hare, which will precede hj» Americw-puw-Aus-tralian tour, trkes place at the Whitehall Rooms on-the 26ih; toe Duke of Fife presiding. It is jußt thirty years {or, rather, will b9 thirty years next Monday, November II) "slucojohn ITairß stagename he has rendered jamoua and;: made his debut as the sleepy old Lord Ptartnigan in ' Society' at the little-theatre-in Tottenham Court road. It was a memorable occasion. For the first time in the history of the stage the characters, from the herb and heroine down to the ball room guests, were faultlessly drefi9ed, the rooms were fitted with ceiling>, • carpets, etc., and the practicable doors had bona fide handles and latches. Never before had such tremendous realism been known. It quite took the critics' breath away. Mr Hare had only a few lines to say, yet he played Lord Ptarmigan into prompt prominence. This was the first of his long series of famous character studies. I can at the moment recall vividly his polished, gracious, dignified Prince Perovsky in 'Ours,' his mincing old beau Farintosh in ' School,' his inimitable, grand old English gentleman Dnnsoombe Dunscombe in' M.P.,' and best of all, perhaps, his Sam Gerridge in ' Caste.' Then came some moderate successes only in old comedy. Sir John Vesey in ' Money,' and Sir Peter (not a good Sir Peter) in < The School for Scandal' After starting for himself at the Court, I remember big hits as the Squire in ' New Men and Old Acres,' and (this is a masterpiece) Lord Ki!o'are in • A Quiet Rubber.' Ho was the original Vicar of Wakefield to Men Terry' 4. Olivia, and later scored as the martinet colonel in ' Tne Queen's Shilling.' Coming to more t cent days, Hare's creation of Benjamin Ooldflcoh in * A Pair of Speotoolei * stands out by itself. Without him that play ii simply "piffl*." In Pinero'B 'Profligate» and 'Lady Bountiful -'■ also he had good parts, and the remarkable hit he made as the Duke in 'Mrs Ebbsmith' is too recent to need emphasis. Mr Hare, like the Ban* crofts, is a great believer in exercising care in small things. Before producing a pby at the Garrick he rehearses it for ween, and each actor's every movement is thought out, tried, retried, and tried yet again. When, therefore, a play comes out there it runs as smoothly as though it had been played for weeks. Mr Hare has appeared more than once before the Queen, and can show many marks of approbation from other members of the Royal Family. French farce has fallen upon evil days in the Old Country, and it is gratifying to the patriot to nolice how eeldom nowadays we see the legend " Made in Ger " —I mean "Adapted from the French"—figuring on our theatrical programmes. Good, amusing plays, of course, are welcome from whatever source they come; but we prefer original work, and it is tolerably certain that Mr H. Burnand's hash-up of Blum and Toche's farcical comedy 'Madame Moogodin' will do little to turn the tide of theatrical affairs. A stronger piece than ' Mrs Ponderbury's Past' would be required to effect such a change. With Charles Hawtrey, Lottie Venne, and Alma Stanley in the principal rdles, the piece is amusing enough, but the story is terribly thin, and might well have been told in a curtain-raiser instead of three rather puerile acts. Hawtrey exhibits himself in a new vein of farcical mendacity, no longer as the fibbing mart volage, bnt as the hen-pecked husband who bows his head to the conjugal yoke, until fortune enables him to turn the tables most effectually on his loud-voiced spouse. Miss Aim* Stanley fills the role of domestic tyrant, whose tyranny is broken by a timely revelation of her "past." Lottie Venne intervenes in the familiar character of a music hall lady. Mrs Ponderbury's " past" is not of a very terrible character. Prior to her marriage she bad a railway carriage flirtation with a stranger which ended in her according him a kiss under somewhat compromising circumstances. Her version of the affair, however, is very far from the truth, and in her drawing room hangs a knife with which she professes on the memorable occasion to have defended her honor. To Ponderbury this apparently harmless dessert knife is a veritable sword of Damocles. At the'smallest sign of frivolity on his part it threatens to descend npon him, and the very sight of it reduces bim to abject obedience. When, through the indiscretion of a visitor (the railway stranger) Mrs Ponderbury's past is revealed, the famous knife is at onoe torn from its position by the husband and cent to complete the dozen in the kitchen. Ponderbury, of course, at once resumes his position as master of tire bouse. The acting all round of the pUy was excellent, but the success of the evening fell to Miss Alma Stanley, who ia fast developing all the qualities of a superb comedienne. Han trey, of course, had bnt few opportunities as the ben-pecked husband lor the display of that cool audarity and imblinmfrig mendacity and effrontery which are essence of his style. Lode Venne—well, she ivas Lottie Venne; and played a niter part for all it-was worth. " .'" ;•.":;.".•! - *