DRAMATIC AND MUSICAL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 9368, 18 May 1889, Page 4 (Supplement)

DRAMATIC AND MUSICAL.

The Hugo Buffalo Minstrels have departed. They left by the steamer on Thursday for the South. The next company to occupy the Opera House will be the " Baby Ogden Combination." Mr. Ogden and the " Baby " ore both well and favourably known in Auckland, and will be remembered as members of Miss Carrie Swain's company. Their repertoire, consists of such popular pieces as "Jo," " East Lynne," the "Lady of Lyons," " Mamma- in - law," " Bootle's Baby," etc." The acting manager, Mr. P. J. Gunthorpe, arrived on Tuesday, and the company follow next week. The cablegram published some weeks ago announcing the insanity of Miss Mary Anderson —though, happily, the beautiful actress is now restored to light and life—is fully justified by the reports of her health to hand by the last mail. The London edition of the New York Herald stated that " for a number of weeks Miss Anderson had given evidence of a disturbed nervous system, no less painful to her friends than mortifying to herself. She is said to have developed" a strange and unreasonable habit of quarrelling with her manager over matters of trivial import. The outbreaks have frequently occurred in the presence of the entire company on the stage and at rehearsals. Mr. Abbey, her manager, went to Baltimore early last week to look over tho ground preparatory to his star's expected resumption of her professional labours in that city. It is learned on the highest authority that though Miss Anderson was at the depot on his arrival she did not. recognise him when he accosted her. She stoutly demurred, maintaining in all sincerity that he had no right to speak to her. She did not know him, she said, and she seemed to be outraged by his presumption. It required some moments to calm her and a considerable period elapsed before she finally recognised Abbey." Dr. S. Weir Mitchell subsequently declared her to be suffering from "severe nervous prostration," and her health was such that her dramatic season at the Chestnut-street theatre had to be abandoned.

Air. (J. Haddon Chambers, the clever young author of "Captain Swift," has been commissioned by Mr. A. M. Palmer to write a play for the Maddison Square Theatre, New York, for next autumn. The new theatre to be erected in the Queen's Road, Brighton, is to be called the Lyric, and it is said that Mr. W. S. Gilbert, who is one of the directors, proposes to produce all future operettas by himself and Sir Arthur Sullivan simultaneously in London and Brighton. In Mr. Pigott's comedy, " The Bookmaker," the forthcoming appearance of ■which has been announced, Miss WattTanner, described as an " Australian actress of repute," will make a first appearance in London. Tom Matthews, the pantomimist, has just died at the age of S4. So far as his arc is concerned, his death breaks the connection between the old and the new. Matthews appeared at Sadler's ells as clown in 1529, and took his farewell benefit at Drury Lane in 1565. The death is announced, at Milan, at the an-e of nearly 76, of the once famous baritone, Felice Varesi, who was the original Ringoletto, was in the —playing the titular character, we believe —of Verdi's "Macbeth" on its first production at Florence, and was the original Germont in " Traviata." The last-named opera was at first a fiasco—a result which, according to M. Pougin, was largely due to Varesi, who was " furious at being cast for an apparently secondary part, and brought but very indifferent care to its interpretation." After the performance Varesi thought it necessary to convey his condolence to Verdi, but the maestro caustically replied, " Make them to yourself and your companions, who have not understood my music.His daughter, the soprano, Millie. Elena Varesi, whom Madamo Ristori heard in Buenos Ayres, and somewhat prematurely wrote that she " would put down Patti," appeared at Her Majesty's Opera, Drury-Lane, in 1875. She is now the wife of Signor Boccabadati. The late Sir Thomas Gladstone was a well-known lover of music, and was senior Vice-President of the Royal Academy of Music, an institution in which his sister-in-law, Mrs. Gladstone, wife of the Liberal leader, has always taken great interest, Mrs Gladstone has, incised, on at least two occasions distributed the prizes to the successful Royal Academy students. Mr. Augustus Harris has just concluded an engagement with Madame Schlager, the celebrated dramatic soparno, of the Opera House, Vienna, for his forthcoming Italian opera season at Covent-Garden, after beinw in negotiations with her for the past eighteen mouths. Madame Schlager is said to have a remarkably pure and powerful voice, and her personal appearance is described as being fully in harmony with her talents .'is a singer and actress. Mr. Harris contemplates sending out an English opera company in the autumn. Miss Alice Lingard has returned to the Haymarket Theatre, after a provincial tour, and is now playing Mrs. Ford in "The Merry Wives of Windsor." Miss Lingard intends shortly to give a few morning performances of " Cymbeline," in which play she appeared so successfully in the provinces as Imogen. Mr. Henry Bracy, who was so favourably known to Australian playgoers nine years ago, is once more in Sydney. At present he is under engagement to Mr. Solomon to sing at the Criterion Theatre concerts, though the special object of his return to Australia is the production of some comic operas of which he has the acting rights for this part of the world. The chief of these works is " The Old Guard," Planquette's latest opera, the bright music of which fully justified ail that was said of it during its run through the provinces. Miss Maggie Moore (Mrs. J. C. Williamson), who left Sydney for America by the last mail, intends spending most of her holidays in San Francisco, her native place. Mrs. Williamson has been separated from the members of her family there for some years, and the recent death of her mother go shortly before the accomplishment of the long-deferred visit naturally proved a great shock to her. Her stay will probably be limited to two or three months. In Sydney at the Theatre Royal " Sinbad fche Sailor" is enjoying a modified success. At Her Majesty's "Romany Rye" is considerably in the ascendant. " Sweet Lavender," with Mr. Thornton and Miss Gilmour in the principal parts, continues to be a potent attraction at the Criterion. At the Royal Standard there is pugilism ; at the Gaiety and Haymarket Music Hall, minstrelsy ; at the Academy, " Whittington and his Catat the School of Arts Miss Wangenheim's Opera Company with "Pinafore;" and at the Alhambra Miss St. George and other interesting persons with varied material. The Sunday evening concerts at Her Majesty's and the Criterion are well attended, and clearly very much liked. The Gaylord-Silbon combination have had an agreeable experience in Hobart; and in Launceston the Simonsen Opera Company, with Miss Elsa May as prima donna, are understood to be maintaining their popularity. Miss May's singing, especially, is spoken of in very eulogistic terms.

Mr. Warner has continued his performances with agreeable success at the Opera House, Brisbane, in "Drink," "The Lady of Lyons," and "Hands Across the Sea." At the Gaiety, in the same city, the Mostyne Family have been playing pieces suitable to their capacity. Musico-Dramaticus

*,* All communications intended for this column should be addressed "Musico-Dramaticus," Herald Office, Auckland, and should be forwarded as early as possible.

A little paragraph which has just gone the round of the press tells us of the enormous multiplication of newspapers in these kingdoms. Going back to the year 1846, the statistician discovers that since that time their number has nearly quadrupled ; while as for the daily papers, each with its three hundred publications per annum, there are now one hundred and seventy-four of them ; whereas forty-three years ago their number was fourteen. These figures would be all the more striking if the later rate of increase had been noted, and if comparison had been made of the number of sheets issued from the newspaper press now and thirty years since. For this enlightened generation has not only four times as many newspapers as its groping predecessor, and twelve times as many daily prints, but the rate of circulation lias risen prodigiously. They count by hundreds of thousands who used to count by Saturday Review.