POLLARD'S JUVENILES.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLI, Issue 227, 25 September 1907, Page 5

POLLARD'S JUVENILES.

SUCCESSFUL OPENING PERFORMANCE.

A bumper house greeted Pollard's Juvenile Opera Company at the Town Hall last night, on the occasion of the opening of their present season. This is the sixth juvenile opera company formed by the Pollards within the last 26 years. Though the tree that we loved as children has been many times pruned, the trunk and boughs, in the shape of Mr Tom Pollard and at least one or two of* the old stage favourites, maintain a form that is instantly recognisable as that of an old acquaintance. But the branches and leaves are younger and fresher this season than ever, and the blossoming to come cannot but be glorious. Music, mounting, and dressing are the three outstanding features of "Bluebell in Fairyland," as played by the Pollards. The cooperation of Seymour Hicks and Walter Slaughter has produced a beautiful dream play, which readily lends itself to pretty wardrobe effects and brilliant tableaux. It is divided into halves, comprising the Play and tho Dream. The piece opens with a street scene in front of a rich London merchant's house, and it is a snowy Christmas eve. " Bluebell," a flowerseller, is found by a policeman sleeping on the doorstep, and roughly moved on. " Dickey," a crossingsweeper, sympathises with "Bluebell," who has sold but half her posies., and is disappointed in her plan to earn five shillings wherewith to provide her two little orphan sisters with a Christinas treat. The rich merchant misses his favourite flower-girl, and searches for her. Having at last found her out, ho Bays her half-a-sovereign for a bouquet, and then, after hearing her story, another. " Bluebell" goes to her garret in Drury Lane, and, whilst in the act of filling the suspended stockings, finds her little sisters awake and hiding behind the door, the big black cat having smuggled himself away under the bed. The little sisters, demand a story from "Bluebell," and'while it is being told fall oil to sleep, after which "Bluebell " herself, Avith the cat for a pillow, slumbers. She has a beautiful dream, in which she enters fairyland. She is chosen to awake the king, who has been sleeping for three hundred years, as a penance for being so gruff and miserly, or something equally wicked. Accompanied by "Peter,"' the faithful cat, and " Blib" and "Blob," two impossible boys, she sets out to find the sleeping king. In the meantime she seeks admission to the garden and palace of the- fairy king and queen, who have tisurped the estate of the slumbering monarch, but is .roughly turned away. So she determines to carry out her mission, and warns those who have spurned her that their glory will not be long-lived. Through gloomy vaults and hidden forests, amongst frogs, owls, and frightful bats, the party ventures along, until the king, in his chamber under the ground, is discovered and awakened. He comes to his own, ejects the usurpers, and the dream ends. Back to real life, the rich merchant offers to marry "Bluebell," but she declines him for her first love, " Dickey," and so ends the play, with a beautiful apotheosis, entitled " The City of Gold." Miss Minnie Topping has in "Bluebell" a splendid part to act, and she acts it splendidly. Her sinking ■.throughout is tuneful, full-voiced and sympathetic, and her enunciation excellent. Miss Lily Thompjpn takes the part of " Dickey," the crossingsweeper, and plays it like a boy. Master Bert Nicholson, a street Arab, tells his ragged "palls" about the country in a most effective number, well sung. The rich merchant, "Mr Joplin," was fitly played by Mr Bert Williamson; and his tootmen, whose movements went always with a click, were impersonated by two old friends, Messrs Chas. Albert anil W. Pollard. The part of the cat, which was most life-like when tabby walked on two legs—the " allfours " position suggesting rather too obviously Darwin and the evolution theory—was acted with feline smoothness by Miss Edie Boulter. In the Dream", the usurper king, and queen were impersonated by Messrs Ernest Schatz and Chas. Albert respectively, the latter making a very excellent " Highness," and singing three or four numbers, including " Poor John," most acceptably. Miss May Topping carried through the role of Bluebell's good fairy, appearing with her masic wand at every terrifying turn in the road. Miss Dora Rogers was a most elusiye "will-o'-the-wisp," her dancing being quite a feature of the Dream- The characters of "Blib" and "Blob" are such as reputations are made in, and Masters Bert Nicholson and Leslie Drummond are filling them with success, their Mark Taplian sense of humour communicating itself to the audience at every period. Mr Bert "Williamson, as the " Yellow Dwarf," cavourted around the stage in strictly conventional style; while the chorus of frogs was effective. Many pretty dances were introduced by the Juvenile Ballerini, amongst the most popular being the Dutch yoedel and clog dance by Little Ivy Aldous, the Dutch doll quartette and sabot dance, and the doll ballet. Amongst the introduced songs were "The Only Girl' I Love." by Miss Lily Thompson (the. Crossing Sweeper), the duet and dance by the Drummonds, the effective topical duet, "Why, of Course," the school-boys (Leslie Drumnioud and Bert Nicholson); and "Three Blind Mice," by Mr Ernest Schatz. A feature of the opera upon which Mr Pollard is to be congratulated is tho vocal strength of the chorus. Every mite is a singer. The limelight', \n many alternate colours, enriched the beautiful costumes and scenery, one nickering lighting effect during a furious ballet being particularly fine. Perhaps the most beautiful scene was that which introduced fairyland, "The Garden of the Castle." The concluding tableau was impressively brilliant. An efficient travelling orchestra accompanied throughout. To-night "Bluebell in Fairyland" will be staged again. The booking has boon heavy.