FOOTLIGHT FLASHES

Evening Star, Issue 17880, 28 January 1922, Page 16

FOOTLIGHT FLASHES

[By Loitsbkr.]

The black-typo name on the Princess Theatre now bill on Monday will be that, of Flora, Cromer, English comedienne, who is said (o he the biggest hit on the Fuller circuit since the meteoric. Daisy Jerome. Miss Cronur has two claims to distinction over and above those of her art —first, that she is the granddaughter of the late French President M. Thiers; and, second, that she was the originator of ‘ Inky, Pinky, Parley Vous,’ which was sung by British soldiers from one end of Franco to the other. The other new acta coming in to furbish up what promises to he a fine bill are Kemona, a mysterious woman, cryptically described as giving an exhibition of “ quintuple mind concentration and inverted caligraphy ”: and the delightful child artists, Tools nncl Toodlcs. Mr Gaston Mcrvato, one of the finest character actors we have on the Australian stage, is with “ The Lilac Domino Company, whoso season commences tomight. ft is only latterly that Mr Morvale appeared in musical plays; his reputation, a splendid one, was won in drama. _ He appeared in Dunedin first ns far back as 1897 with the original ‘ Sign of the Gross ’ combination, in such company as Julius Knight, Ada Fcrrar, and Caleb Porter. His next appearance here was with the Hoatty-M'lnlosh Company in ‘Camille,’ 1 Fedora,’ and other pieces, and then with Tilt ell Bruno in ‘Leah Kleslma.’ He was associated again with Harcourt Beatty in ‘The Hypocrites’ (1909), and in 1912 he gave us a very graphic and Idling picture of Dr Pylotfc in.‘ The Speckled Band.’ He last played hero in 1918 with ‘ The Thirteenth Chair’ Company. Flora Cromer, the English comedienne, who will he (he bright star of Fullers’ now bill on M.V-hiy, is said to have a wonderful repertoire of comedy song hits. All through the circuit she has been compelled by applauding audiences to sing (Tom five to six numbers nightly, and she never gets free of her admirers without giving'the well-known ditty ‘Abe, My Boy,’ of which sin is part composer. The appearance, of the popular Amery sisters in the Williamson “Babes” pantomime calls attention to the fact that stage sisters are now seen more frequently than for some time past. The Dolly Sisters'arc known in London as well as in New York, and have also been seen in pictures. The Misses Pounds, from Australia, have established positions in English entertainment, and there are others. In earlier days every vaudeville programme, included one sot or more of sisters. They were not always sisters off the stage, and their singing and dancing was usually of a conventional “serio-comic” typo. Moon and Morris, who came_ to Australia, to give their remarkable simultaneous dances in a pantomime/)! a few years ago, evidently found this country congenial (says the ‘Argus’). They have remained to provide good comedy and dancing in various entertainments, and are. now with the Tivoli Frolics. Moon and Morris appeared hero under the. Fuller banner. The youngest member of the New South Wales State Orchestra is Joseph (Mozart Post, the third oboe player, who is fifteen years of ago. There is a rule at the 'Conservatoire to the effect that male scholarship winners for the pianoforte or violin must take up a second instrument, preferably a wind instrument, a provision which not only makes them individually more proficient musicians, but it gives them a deeper insight into the laws of harmony and orchestration, and at the same time ensures a. supply of players of all instruments for the orchestra.. In the case of Master Post a straight-out oboe .scholarship was awarded him, but he continues Ins pianoforte studies as well. In another instance a brilliant youth, as a pianist, won a scholarship, and is turning out to be a very serviceable French horn player. Cyril Maude was at latest appearing in a variety sketch, ‘French ns She is Spoke.’ Mr Lanri Kennedy sends news of Ids activities in London. The Sydney ’cellist and his wife, Miss Dorothy"'M‘Brirlc (’both of whom were hero under the Fuller banner), the Melbourne pianist, seem to have been having an extremely busy time during the late season. Mr Kennedy and M. Ponishnoff, pianist, were the associate artists with the famous Russian bass Chaliapino at his recitals in aid of the Russian relief fund at the Albert Hall. The contributions of the ’cellist to the programme of the first recital were ‘ Hindoo Love Song ’ (Pimsky-Loreakoff) and ‘Tarantella’ (Pojaper). Mr Kennedy and his wife also made appearances with Joseph Hislop, the grand opera tenor, Madame Namara, the Californian prima donna, Carrie Tubb, Olivo Kavann, and Gerald O’Brien, and many otherprominent artiste, including Madame D’Alvnrez, at her farewell appearance at the Albert Hall prior to departure on her world tour. According to a Sydney paper, the following is one of the mind-concentration feats of Remona, who makes her first appearance at the Princess Theatre on (Monday :—On one blackboard she writes a sentence and a word on another. On a third she sets down any seven figures called from the auditorium. She proceeds then to—-(1) write the sentence upside ! down nncl backwards; (2) write at the same time a. sentence with the word aforej mentioned in it, nncl blend it into the first | sentence so that each alternate letter will bo one belonging to the two sentences ; (3) compose the sentence which is to be the product of the written sentence and the word; (4) write three columns of figures which added will give Hie seven figures called by the audience; (5; during these tasks make a speech about some subject entirely foreign to the mathematical problem involved. “In the good old days” (says Melbourne ‘Table Talk’) “when ‘minstrel’ first parte flourished on a. vaudeville P 1 0 ' gramme, the two best corner men in Australia were Chns. Pope and Irving Saylcs. When Saylcs died his place was filled by Lcs Wa-rton, who proved himself a comedian of exceptional merit Ibehind black-face. Since, those days Mr Warton has established himself in revue, and was indispensable as a merry-maker in the Ward and Sherman combination, which met with marked success over the Fuller circuit last year. In ‘The Babes in the Wood ’ pantomime at the Palace Mr Warton is a merry ‘Mike,’ with a fund of ready humor.” Other good corner men this refeiT.ce calls to mind were Chns. Faning, Will Whitburn. Horace Bent, Chns. Hugo, and Frank- Ynrko. The revival on Saturday evening, January 14. at the Palace Theatre. Sydney, of ‘ The Private Secretary ’ attracted a full house that thoroughly enjoyed tho predicaments of the Rev. Robert Spalding (says an Australian journal). Mr Charles Walenn, who took the name part, wearing a wig of tho color of wilted carrots, had his audience helpless with laughter. The extravaganza is far enough away from present conditions to give it something of the interest of an antique, and in this respect the two “flappers”—Misses Gracio Dorran and Fifi Russell, in their very nar- ■ row, very short, and colorful frocks — looked a little out of the picture. The buoyant personality of Miss Maggie (Moore "(who received a very heart v welcome when she appeared as Mrs Stead, the landlady) added greatly to tho fun, and Mr William Greene, as the pseudo-curate, looked saintly enough to )/c “done” in stained glass It is a coincidence (says ‘Table Talk’) that ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’ should have been the attraction at two theatres this year, tho Fullers presenting it in Adelaide and the Royal Dramatic Players in Brisbane. Tho censor has placed an absolute, ban on a play intended for the London Grand Ouignol. It is tho first time he has taken such drastic action concerning any playlet submitted for this theatre, ami the fact that Dr De Caux, tho brain specialist, lias collaborated in the authorship with Miss Winifred Graham, the novelist, makes the intervention tho more remarkable. (Miss Graham is decidedly angry about it. The play, entitled ‘ Euthanasia,’ deals with tho terrible question whether the parent and tho doctor have the right to destroy the life of an imbecile boy who stands in the line of inheritance to a baronetcy. The playwrights answer their . own question. Swift retribution overcomes the father and the doctor, who by suggestion lead an imbecile boy to take his own life. “ The sub-

je.ct matter of ‘ Euthanasia’ frequently raises controversy among doctors now,” raid Miss Graham, “and the play is not nearly as horrible as- one recently produced at the Little Theatre entitled ‘ The Old Women,’ a. study of lunacy that had absolutely no moral at. all. That was a French production, however, and the censor is noticeably lenient to French productions. JJr Do Cans, who has a large private lunatic asylum for women at Hendon, is responsible, for all (he medical references. Mr Jose Levy, the. manager of the Lillie Theatre, accepted the play. Miss Sybil Thorndike and all who road it expressed their appreciation. Then I heard th;it it was unconditionally censored. Why docs the censor not give an explanation when plays are banned, and why are those responsible not given the opportunity to make certain ; Iterations?” Lady Maxwell, who plays the rote of principal boy in the J. C. Williamson pantomime ‘Labes in the Wood,’ at Her Majesty’s in Melbourne, had on the day of the opening performance an experience that might have had serious results. To obtain rest in preparation for her first appearance in the pantomime, Lady Maxwell took a dose of a sleeping mixture shortly after noon. At 5 o'clock site was still sleeping soundly, 'and Miss Audrey Thacker, who came with Lady Maxwell from England, ami shares her flat at Cliveden, Fast Melbourne, became alarmed. Efforts were made to awaken the actress, but without result. Hr Larry Thomson was sent for, and found that Lady Maxwell had apparently taken an overdose of the narcotic. It was not until after 6 o’clock that the measures taken to awake n Lady Maxwell succeeded, but her memory had gone, and she was unable to recollect a word of her part in the pantomime. It was not until five minutes before she was duo on the stage that her memory returned, and she was able to maito iici entrance apparently none the worm for her experience. It was stated tho next day that Lady Maxwell had fully recovered. The east of ‘Scandal,’ which comes hero on February 23, is tho same as for the Australian tour, save that Miss Rosemary Rees (who recently toured with ‘ The Mollusc’) takes tho role of Mrs Vnnderdyko, assumed by Frances Ross in the Commonwealth. Melba confesses to having been touched to a great tenderness by the compliment paid her'by the people over her scries of 5s concerts. The box plan was billed to open at Allan’s at 7.30 in the morning. Applicants for tickets began to arrive-at daybreak, and long before tho advertised hour they had made themselves into what tho descriptive reporter calls a surging crowd. A man came out to distribute coupons, but ho was mobbed, and nearly li’nd his life crushed out against the dorrs of a bank on tho opposite side of Collins street. Ho lost his coat in the struggle, and when he was at his last gasp ho despairingly Hung all his remaining coupons into the thick of tho riot. That saved him, but nearly killed dozens of others. .Eighteen women, after waiting patiently for hours, fainted at the crucial moment of surge, and so lost their chance. Popularity could go no farther than this crowd expressed it. And the crowd wasn’t made up of only city folk; scores of country people, as well as suburbanites, caught first trains to town to battle for tickets. For the second concert the box office opened at the mystic hour of midnight, and Allan’s windows had been boarded up against eventualities. By 7 a.m. every seat was bought and paid for; tile fagged night-duty staff broke, for bed, and the remains of tho crowd wont home to fry their breakfast eggs in the fat of disappointment. Some of them are now wondering if it wouldn't have boon simpler to have opened tho box office at 6 p.m., and let the rush happen on tho right side of midnight instead of in the dreary and tramless wco sin a’ ’ours.—‘Bulletin.’