Dramatic and Musical

Free Lance, Volume V, Issue 214, 6 August 1904, Page 11

Dramatic and Musical

By Footlight.

pr~, Hl'i Woods-Williamson Company 1 have leturned from the North, and le-opened the Opera Hou.se on Monday last with the good old tears-and-sunishine drama, "Hands Acrosb the Sea." Foi melodrama, the tale ens rathei more on the side of probability than usual. Shortly, Jack Dudley, the long-haned hero, with a heart of pure gold, worth £4 a. ton, starts pretty fairly. He is a faim labourer, loves the waid of his employei , whose son ls a villain, and wants her also, but Jack is accepted by her a quarter of an hour from the lifting of the cuitam. * * • The employer wants his villain son to win the girl, who is an heiress with a "dead" father, who is poking around England, having just come from Austi alia, where he has made several million pounds. He declares his identity just in time to give his daughter away to Jack. After which, cards and Paris gambling dens, the machinations of the villain, the murder of a Fiench Count, whose body the hero finds, and from whose shirt front he draws the reeking blade , then cells, New Caledonia for the hero, falling snow, and slow music. The hero's wife travels out to Australia to be near her ill-starred husband. Act IV. shows the deck of a steamer, Australian bound, with a gentleman theieon readting the Free Lance. He bought it in London, I expect The sailors fish up a perishing man from the cold canvas waters, and it is Jack, who has got away from New Caledonia, and is very pale and whiskery indeed. Wife meets Jack, and nearly faints. French captain comes aboai d to claim the convict. British captain tells them to run up the Bn'tish flag, and Jack is safe. The rest is simple. Villain's hung, heroes have a fortune, prattling: tongues, country houses, joy, bliss, happiness. Hooray' Mi . Alfred Wood is the long-haii ed hero, and a fine actor, who overdoes nothing, and is a very noble fellow indeed, and makes you feel it. Miss Williamson is sweet, gracious, unaffected, a.nd dramatic, and the veiy long cast convincingly shows that the company is no "one-man" show. The villain (Richard Stilwell) of Mr. A. Boothman is played with a strong appreciation of the requirements of the part. The whole performance reaches a high level of excellence, and the mounting is especially good and appropriate. Dixs Gaiety Company, at the Theatie Royal, had the "House Full" sign up on Monday night, and I strolled in to see what it was all about. One of the reasons was Fied Graham, who seems to relish the change as much as the audience. Fred simply "outshone all his previous efforts," and he had to sing until the perspiration streamed from him. Personally, I believe the encore business is much overdone, and it isn't a fair thing for an audience wnioh pays for the programmed entertainment to expect a programme and a-half. However, Fred fills the bill in his cheerful manner. He may have sworn "off," but I didn't hear him. • # * Miss Fanny Powers is drawing well. We've aill heard her before, and paid tribute to her great powers of mimicry. She also was victimised by the encore fiend, and) ran the whole gamut of her impersonations, to the great joy of the audience. Ventriloquist Winton, with his doll-humorists, is still "some pumpkins," while the tuneful Les Warton has again established himself as a favourite coon singer. Miss Hilda Lane's sweet songs are still among the greatest attractions of the show. • • * Tenor Wallace Ascot has a tuneful, telling voice, of encore quality. Louie Perfect's name speaks for itself, and Leslie Forrest, as I before intimated, is "no slouch as an entertainer One of the best sketches seen on local boiaids is "The Young Widow," whose coy carryings-on are responsible for much pre-curtain hilarity. • • « The wrestling boom at Fullei's isn't showing any sign of bursting up to writing point, and I feel positively sore

aftei having witnessed the Stalwait Scott and Mick Hogan give a "tuin" on Monday night. Scott put Hogan down twice "caitch-as-ca,tch-ca,ii," but Mick proved victorious m (Jumbeiland style Peaice, who was billed to appeal, was suffering from a slight indisposition, so didn't toe the mark. He is, I believe, , now fit again. His scientific style has been very much admned b} all who lo\e the manly spoit. * * * The little Macauley gnls (two) aie very fine danceis indeed, and, 'Undei the Panama" gives them scope foi their agility. Miss Edith Buike, a pleasing balladist, sings "Cupid Ha.s a Key" with much ai ohness, and is a cultuied a,nd sweet-voiced Performer. Zamoni, the drawing-room entertainer, heard in his musical "turn," is at his best. He has a large collection of articles of oommeice, on which he plays populaa airs. His shadowgxaphy is amu&mg. The various other amusei s who a>re enlisted under the Fuller ensign are doing good work for the public weal Dubois' oratoiio, "Seven Last Words of Chinst," was given in aid of the organ fund, with splendid 1 effect, by St. Joseph's choir Buckle-street, on Sunday eveninp- and, although the • \s eatiher was very inclement, the large octagonal church was taxed to its utmost seating capacity. The Right Hon. the Premier and Mrs. Seddom were present. This work of Dubois, who is probably the greatest of living organists, is simply an inspiration of gejiius. It abounds in bhe deepest pathos, the most profound devotion, and the di amatio effects, which were so admirably brought out by both choir a/nd orchestra, were striking a,nd startling in many instances. In fact, this work is a casket of musical gems. ♦ * Miss Viard Daniels, the sopiano soloist, is the possessor of a voace of fcru-e soprasno quality, and her opening solo was a real treat, the recitative work being very fine Mr. Jas. Seairle, who did the tenor work, eclipsed any of his previous effoits here. His greatest effort was m the declamatory work at the end, "The Sun was Darkened." * * * Mr. D. Y. Lihcrap sang with fine effect, "Father Forgive Them," and "My God why hast Thou forsaken me, ' the latter being the piece de 1 esistance of the work. The Rev. Fathei Moloney, who shared the bantone solos with Mr. Lihcrap, was heard to great advantage in the "Third" and "Fifth" Words, moi c especially the latter, viz., "Sitio" ("I thiist"). *■ ¥■ •* The work of the chorus was excellent, the balance of tone beang capital, and the expression very effective. The orchestra was a good one, and undeistood its work thoroughly. The performance leflects much oiedit on the conductor, Mr. William McLaughlrn. At the end of the Third Word, the Rev. Father Ainsworth preached an eloquent sermon. * * * The following constituted the orchestra — First violins, Signor di Rago (leader) and Mr. Brodie , second violin, Mr. J. Lindsay: viola, Mr. C Ciminio; 'cello, Mr. A. H. Mamerton , bass, Mr. E. Townsend flutes, Mr. T. K. Thomson and Signor Truda ; oboe, Mr. H. Moschini ; clarionet, Mr. A Crump ; cornets, Messrs. J. Parker and Coyle ; trombone, Mr. H. Cummins; Tympani, Mr. W. Gore Crawford ; harpist, Signor F. Gagliardi : organist, Mr. M J. Ennis. * • * A benediction service was held, the Very Rev. Archdeacon Devoy being celebrant. The collection amounted to about £40, a gratifying result. In response to many requests the oratorio will be re-produced in about three weeks' time, the date of which will be advertised. (Continued on page 18.)

Woods' is the name, a remedy Of sweet peculiar excellence ; Greit, as the mighty lestless sea, "Pis purchased too at small expense, Peppermint doth form its base, With Pharmaceutics, pure, of course. Cure you 9 Oh, fool ' the hardest case Cannot withstand its magic force.

The Dampieib aie in North Queensland, <md shortly open in Busbane. * * * The Flying Jordans axe coming baick to Australia, under the management of Edwm Geach. Rumoured that Hairy Rickards will send another vaudeville company for a tour of New Zealand. « • * Wellington's 1 mk-masstei , "Little Jim" MacMahon, is known on the other side as ' the Mighty Atom." * * * It i> an excellent thing to be able to sm« well, and the next best thing is to know you can't.— W. S. Gilbert * * * John Kendnck Bangs, an American humounst, has had the temerity to fashion a musical comedy out of the "School for Scandal." Couldn't we get Beit Royle to build a musical farce on "The Vicar of Wakefield," or "Jessica's First Pii ayer" ? * * * The most popular song of the century so far has been "Viens poupoule," which rivals "Ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay" in its universality. Onginallv a, French ditty, for the last year it has haunted the ■whole of Europe At latest dates it was one of the items of the "Empire" programme. It is said to have done more for the "entente cordiale" than all the efforts of politicians. * * * Thus Melbourne "Age" on Padeiewski — "We have from time to time inveighed against the 'encore fiend' and all his works. His practice is to go to a concert with a fixed resolve of getting twice as much for his money as the giver of the concert reeraids to be fani value, and he has been known to persevere in this species of exaction right throuerh a long programme, and quite regardless of the merits or demerits of any particular item. * * * "Now, the Padei-ewski demonsti atio 11 differed toto ccelo from this sort of thing. We are convinced that the shouts and applause had little, if anything, to do with a desire fen' further favours, but were merely the spontaneous expression of admiration and delight at a truly great performance ; and we assert with even more confidence that, in playing as he did again and again, and yet again, Mr. Paderewski acted under no sense of compulsion but desired in his turn to show that he was as t>lea«ed' with his audience as his audience has been with his peiformance "

William Gillette, authoi ot feeuiet Seivice," gatheis m at least 4000 dollars a week in Ainenca. Theie aie at least ten stock companies playing lu>% woiks eveiy week, and he is the richest playwught in the world just now . There is a good stoiy letailed by a well-known Ameucan actor (says "The New York Clippei"). A "heavy man," whose natural humour inclined him more to comedy than to the line of parts he was pourtraying, was condemned to meet the diamatic fate of all bad men in melodrama —death during the last act. Two soldners in the play weie assdgned to shoot him, but unfoitunatcly for the piogiess of the scene both guns missed fine. • » * The "heavy man," however, proved equal to the embai rassing situation, for liis death was the cue for the climax and it had to take place. Gasping for bieath, and clutching his ooat in the region of his heart, he dramatically cued out "I die' shot by an invisible air gun, but with my dying breath I curse the mggai dly Government that does not supply its soldiers with moie substantial ammunition'" and, with a last gasp, and an acrobatic fall, the heavy man finished his part of the peiformance amidst cheers from the front and hearty laughs of appreciation fi om the w ings.

We read of love, we read of war, Of val'rous deeds and mystie lore But then, we've read it all before; And yearn for something newer. There's nothing fresh, the woild is stale, And weary as a twice told tale Yet stay! when coughs and colds prevail, There's Woods' Great Peppermint Cure.