FOOTLIGHT FLASHES.

Evening Star, Issue 18033, 29 July 1922, Page 13

FOOTLIGHT FLASHES.

[By Loiterer.]

After a reign of revue at- the Princess Theatre for over two months, all-vaude-villo will be restored on Monday, with four outstanding acts —The Flying Winskills, Maxwell Carew (London dame comedian), Tom Leamoro (London comedian), and Murphy and Mack (a very novel comedy team). _ In Dunedin just now is Rum Trelea.se, on a visit to the members of her tamily. Miss Trelcaso settled in the United States some time ago, andi took up the dramatic profession and the film business. She came to Australia last year, supporting Fred Niblo in Melbourne, Sydney, and New Zealand in ‘His Lady Friends,’ ‘ Nightie Night,’ and ‘ Wedding Bells.’ Mr Niblo had to close his dominion tour at Christchurch, owing to being recalled to America, and he expressed his sincere regret that Miss Treleaso had been denied an opportunity of appearing with him in her native town. The es-Dnnedinite >eturns to the States next month, leaving Wellington by the Tahiti on August 15, under contract to Mr Geo. 51. Cohan to appear in a vampiro part, “ I felt so lonely and bine when I left Australia last month,” observed Mies Trelease to the writer. “ There I made many t'ue friends; their sincerity was strongly in evidence in the way of flowers and comforts for the trip across to New Zealand. Words can never express the depth of my feelings on that afternoon!” J. 0. Williamson, Ltd., finding that the Cosmo Hamilton comedy ‘Scandal’ is one of their biggest successes of recent years, have decided to scandalise the smaller towns of the Commonwealth and the dominion with it. It was recently played in the suburbs of Sydney, and Js now heading towards Brisbane and Northern Queensland. Doris Duane (Mrs Harry Cohen) is now playing the leading role, in which slaude Hanaford delighted Dunedin playgoers early in the year, but gives an entirely different interpretation. According to the Sydney critics who saw both performances, hers is “much more artistic”; she has “a wealth of dramatic power,” and it is “a pity that such a brilliant exponent of the histrionic art has been allowed to hide her light under a bushel.” Harry Cohen is handling the managerial reins. Speaking of the Flying Winskills, who star at the Princess Theatre on slonJay, the Sydney ‘Daily Telegraph’ stated recently: “'Prominent amongst the newcomers were the Flying Winskills, a trio of trapeze acrobats of a quality rarely seen on the Sydney Vaudeville stage. One of the number supplied comedy in an impersonation of Charlie and, while provoking almost as much mirth as the movie star himself, he amazed the audience in a series of tumbling feats that made most people wonder whether at the conclusion of his turn he had a sound limb in his body.” A cable received recently at Jlelhourne Her Majesty’s notified the appearance of Miss sla.ggie Dickenson and Mr Sidney Culver at the Oxford Theatre, London, under the management of Mr C. B. Cochran.

J. C. Williamson, Ltd., have a particularly successful batch of productions attracting popular favor in Sydney at the present time. At Her Majesty's Maude lane and Alfred Frith, in ‘A Night Out,’ are drawing packed houses. It is years since a musipal play has caused such a furore. One of the papers anticipated that ‘A Night Out’ would run in Sydney for ever! At the Theatre Royal ‘Tho Bat’ has made a smashing hit, and is a veritable sensation. Louis Bennison has made a popular success in the romantic play ‘The Great Lover’ at the Criterion; and at the Palace a saucy farce,_ ‘ Parlor, Bedroom, and Bath,’ with Phillips Tead and Marjorie Bennett in the leading roles, makes a piquant appeal. Edith Drayson, too. is in the cast.

Harry Roberts plays the leading male role in ‘ Scandal ’ opposite .Doris Duane (Mrs H. I. Cohen) in tho interstate and dominion tour of this piece, ‘A Laughing Masterpiece’ is the description given of the act of Murphy and Mack, who will ,be among the headliners at tho Princess Theatre on Monday. Tho act is entitled 'The Major’s Reflection,’ and the whole point is in the clever mimicry of the man who supplies the major’s reflection when tfie hitter essays in shave himself in front of a nonexistent glass. Mr Edmund Burke, the Irish singer, has signed a contract with Signor Gatt-i-Casazza to appear at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, next season in loading bass and baritone roles. Miss Ella Shields is duo in Australia again next year under the Musgrove banner. A Sydney paper puts down her salary for her recent tour at £250 a week. (Maxwell Carew, the famous “dame” comedian, who appears at the Princess Theatre on Monday, has a distinctive style of hia own. He is not the freak “ Same,” but rather a female impersonator ; and his costumes are said to be gor-

geous. The Choir left Fremantle by the Orient Mail liner Ormonde some ten days ago, but were able to give a performance for tho benefit of Perth music-lovers in the a fternoon.

Theatrical business in London at latest advices was very poor, and many promising ventures bad to be withdrawn from the boards, including ‘Love’s Awakening’ at the Empire, in which Vera Pearce had a small part. Oscar Ascbo’s spectacular production of 'Cairo’ had .also been taken < IT in consequence of the departure of the company for Australia. Another piece taken off was the rerne ‘ Mayfair and Montrnarte' at the New Oxford Theatre, cn which a large sum of__money had been spent by Mr 0. B. Cochran: but in that instance the withdrawal was attributed l to the illness of this leading lady, Alice Delyeia, formerly a classic dancer in Paris, who came to the Cochran management in 1914. and has been a reigning favorite over since. On one occasion she had 1 the honor of being personally complimented by three queens—Queen Mary, Queen Alexandra-, and Queen Amelia of Portugal. Her retirement from the cast of ‘ Mayfair and Montrnarte’ made a difference of £2OO a nicht in the takings of the theatre. Mde Delysia was seen on the screen in Melbourne some years since in the name part of the English adaptation of Rider Haggard’s ‘She.’ During'this month Ada. Reeve, who has had a phenomenal season in Melbourne, is to appear with her own company at Fullers’ New Theatre, Sydney, in ’ Spangles.’ Mrs Brnntftn has left Sydney to rejoin her daughter Dorothy in London. Before leaving Australia for England l Ella Shields met Wee Gcorgio Wood at rvrth. na his way to tour the Muscrove

Tivoli circuit.. She then gave Wee Georgio permission to include in his programme an impersonation of her successful character song, ‘ Burlington Bertie from Bow,’ which was one of his successful impersonations in London. This week (says Melbourne ‘Table Talk’) Wee Gcorgie is including ‘Burlington Bertie’ in his programme, and is scoring almost as big a success with it as did the originator of the number He has hit off Miss Shields's characteristics to perfection. The song is given at the conclusion of the sparkling little playlet ‘Thicker Than Water.’

Nellie Calvin (says the Sydney ‘ Theatre ’I, who will be remembered as tho beautiful accomplished lead in many of tho productions of J. C. Williamson, Ltd., notably the revivals of ‘Brewster’s Millions' and ‘Sherlock Holmes,’ left Sydney during the month to open in ‘ Within the Law’ at Auckland on_ July 1 with the Nellie Bramicy Dramatic' Company. Miss Calvin in private is Mrs Roland Stavely. Tho death has occurred in 'Wellington of Mr R. T. Kirk, at the early age of twenty-four years. Tho late Mr Kirk was well known in musical circles throughout the dominion, having been musical director of the Annette Kellerman Vaudeville Company during its New Zealand tour. He was a talented pianist, and was also possessed! of considerable executive ability. At one time he was a member of tho Greater Crystal Palace Orchestra. Ho died in a private hospital at Wellington,

5111 a Dolinda, to appear at the princess on Monday, a beautiful Parisienno trapeze artiste, was personally congratulated by one of her own countrymen, General Pan, when he visited this country, on her clever performances. Besides being a clever trapeze artiste, Mile Dolinda is an accomplished dancer, Russian, French, Italian, and Spanish dances being presented in excellent st-yl* In addition, she also speaks five languages—viz., English, German, French, Italian, and Spanish. The Johannesburg ‘ Daily Mail 1 reports a case with an important ruling to the theatrical profession. Two performers. Moore and Moore, sought £2OO damage? from Mia E. Steele (Steele-Payne Bellringers) for alleged breach of contract Mrs Steele admitted having dismissed them; but this she held she was justified in doing so because they persisted in per forming a sketch, ‘ Lucille the Florist,' contrary to instructions. From the lower court—which decided against them— Moore and Moore appealed to tho Supreme Court. The Judge-President of the Supreme Court said the question was whether a music-hall artist was entitled to say to his employer: “ I have a particular turn which I like and which you don’t like. Whether you like it or not, I shall produce it whenever I please.” Stated in that form there could he no doubt that there was only one answer; stusic-hall artists were not entitled to do this. The employer was the judge as to what work the performer was to put on the stage and what he was not to. put on tho stage. It was idle for an artist to say: “I am at perfect liberty to produce any sketch or piece that I like because that is my speciality.” That was the case attempted to be made, and that case failed in the lower court and must fail now on appeal. Aloore and slooro' were directed to pay the costs of tho appeal.

Allau Wilkie declares that dramatic art is at a lower ebb in Australia than in any other civilised country. Not because there is not a larrro public here that would approve a belter class of play, but for the reason that dramatic control has passed from the actor-manager to the purely commercial manager. Mr Wilkie contends that the actor-manager haj been in all countries the salvation of the stage. Tire State Orchestra (New South Wales) costs £20,000 a year. On an average (Mr Wilkie's gross expenditure is £45,000 a year. For its performances there is no end to tho masters from whose works the orchestra may draw. On tho other hand, Mr Wilkie lias to rely solely on Shakespeare for his repertoire.—Sydney ‘Theatre Magazine.’