ENTERTAINMENT.

Manawatu Herald, Volume LII, Issue 4579, 14 March 1931, Page 3

ENTERTAINMENT.

TOWN HALL TALKIES. A MUSICAL WONDER. With the showing' of “Dixiana” at the Town Hall to-night, the talking- screen takes a new step forward in its march to provide and encompass variety entertainment. Here is the first- original screen drama with music, not operatic, not operattish —but a dramatic story which might have been non-musical had not its brilliant theme and glamorous locale made the insertion of music important. Bebo Daniels, whose magnificent and surprising talents as a soprano gratified in “Rio Rita,” surpasses that achievement with one of the most colourful singing roles ever seen on the screen. Opposite her is a handsome and able leading man new to the films, Everett Marshall, distinguished young star 'baritone of the Metropolitan Opera Company. These two stars lift the production to heights of sheer and delightful entertainment by their incredibly fine voices and their brilliant acting. This beautiful musical drama and romance, depicting the glowing life of the gay south in New Orleans, lavishly offering spectacle and colour in its Mardi Gras and ensemble sequences, has its lighter moments in the mad comedy antics of that insane pair of fun-makers, Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey, who clowned so amusingly in “Rio Rita” and “The Cuckoos.” The music remains with you and you’re sure to go out whistling “Dixiana,” “A Tear, a Kiss, a Smile,” “I’m Your Baby Now,” or possibly any of the dozen or so tunes with which the show is studded. You should also get a good deal of delight in Hall’s Negro Chorus which delivers spirituals and southern melodies with that close harmony which only they can command. “Happy Days,” is the headliner for Wednesday next.