ENTERTAINMENTS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 19 December 1924, Page 2

ENTERTAINMENTS.

OPERA HOUSE TO-NIGHT. ‘THE MARRIAGE CHEAT.” A. charming romance midst scenes of tropical beauty - will have its first screening at the Opera House to-night. There is no spot on the globe which possesses such an atmosphere for. romance as the South Sea Islands. Such is the locale of “The Marriage Cheat,” a First National attraction, produced by ;th© late Thomas H. Inee. Based on the. story by Frank R. Adams, it is enacted by a Cast that includes Beatrice Joy, Percy Marmont, and Adolphe Menjou. In spite of the fact that it would, entail considerable expense and time, Mr. Ince transported the company and technical staff to one of these fable islands, and there the production was -made, with the result that it is "pervaded with realism throughout. Th© story of “The Marriage Cheat” relates the adventures of a civilised young woman, pretty and rich, who is cast upon an island through a remarkable escapade, and there finds the love that civilisation has denied her. A good comedy, senic and topical complete a tip-top programme. “PAID IN FULL.” LAST NIGHT’S PERFORMANCE. AT HAWERA OPERA HOUSE. “Paid in Full” is a drama which, unless played by a company 6f flie standard of the Nellie Bramley combination, would last, in the ‘parlance familiar to theatrical managers, “one night only.” In fact the theme itself is by no means original—rather the reverse.. There is the allegedly harsh employer, the incompetent employee who gets his wife to plead for -him when he gets away with liis employer’s cash, and the fellow she should have married but didn’t—the one with the brains and, what is more important, the cash. In the capable hands of the Nellie Bramley Go., however, a very mediocre drama is presented in a manner which takes it out of the rut of the ordinary melo-drama of a fifth-rate yellow-backed novel. In fact it is the artistes who make “Paid in Full” worth while witnessing. Nellie Bramley takes the role of Emma Brooks, the faithful wife of the spineless husband who cannot keep his fingers away from his employer’s cash box. As the old sea captain George Bryant interpreted the part to the life, and no greater compliment could be paid to this distinguished actor. Jimsy Smith, the successful superintendent of the LatinAmerican Steamship Co., and the unsuccessful suitor of Emma Brooks—and who, by the way, appeared to spend the best part of his time in the home of Brooks-—rwas admirably played by Guy Hastings. The theme, as stated, is a well-worn one, lvhich would appeal more to the gallery than the stalls, but played by a company of artists such as the Nellie Bramley Co, it. makes an undoubted appeal to all. There is one thing that is certain, and that is that the Nellie Bramley Company are always welcome visitors to Hawera, and that an announcement of their performance is generally succeeded by a rush for the booking office.