MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11986, 7 June 1902, Page 4 (Supplement)

MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC.

.— _ . ■ »■ ; : ".--. v 'THEATRICAL BOOKINGS. ; ' ' ABBOTT'S OPEEA HOUSE. June 9 to 30—Anderson Dramatic Company., * July 1 ' to ! B—WorlcJ's .Entertainers. '■".///?■■, ■'■ ' ? JiiJy 14 to September 20—Closed for altera- .' ' . tions. ;.,• .' , ■ September 22 to : :October. George Mas- : grove's Company." a;''"' jj :.: ;' r "• " , ; October 18 to November ; Pollard Opera .■/ Company. .'i«iv'.u'&'v/uv ■;.-■'-.-->-;:=•/-.?. f ' J ' -" December. 26 .to, /January 21—Reach < and Wil- ; /.Joufcbby Company- .. < .„,,,_, ,i , December ,26 to 1 January, 25, 1904-Pollaru '. Opera Company. 4 i.'!;''..■..'• v'",''">".; --//' ;.,' HIS MAJESTY'S THEATRE. December. 2s, 1902, to January 21, 1903— J. C. ! --.-/' Williamson. ' : '■■":■ '"■-' ":;■_/ ; January 2716 February 14, 1903—Frank Thorn- ': t>,; ton Comedy. Company. ■;"--'*■ f-% >'■ -■ ", OTHER. SHOWS. . Dix'?! Gaiety Co.—City Hall (permanent). >..-;■ jWirth's Circus—Amphitheatre, Customs-street. -—-June 9 and onwards. , --""' The Anderson Dramatic Company, who are to commence a season at the Opera House on Monday next, will first produce the spectacular and military drama, "The Ladder of Life." : A .Southern contemporary says of this product : —There is scarcely a : dull moment in "The Ladder of Life;" every rung of it, so.to speak, is full of sensation. "The Ladder >of Life" is 110 ; half-hearted drama ; from first to last it fairly bristles with moving scenes, varying from a diabolical attempt to murder a woman by placing -her while unconscious under a steam hammer, to a representation , of the historic fight at Darghai," when the Gordon Highlanders, inspired by the skirl of the bagpipes; won a victory over the hard-fighting Ajridis;and ; yet 'another niche in the temple of fame. Rarely, if ever, has a war scene been depicted such attention to detail. , The cheap prices which the An: derson Company, are going to retail their sensations and spectacular effects ought jo ensure large audiences, for melodrama lias a fascination for a very numerous proportion. of the lopal playgoing public. , . ". : . ..,:■.; i Mr. Val. Vousden, the latest of Mr. Bix s importation, made, a very decided hit on his first appearance -at .the. City. Hall on Monday night, and has'won for himself a < high popularity since then. His mimicry and ventriloquial powers all turn in the direction of humour, and. are clever. His last appearance is announced for to-night. • j On ;; Monday next the Brothers Wirth, the enterprising circus proprietors, ; ;: will . shift camp into the cosy iron building they are having erected in Custom-street. No expense has been spared in making the new amphitheatre a comfortable place of amusement, nor in the provision of an excellent programme. 'i The intention is to give weekly ■ changes, of bill. - The opening week will see amongst the artistes appearing, the Val- ■ dares, the : popidar trick , cyclists who have been specially engaged for =the occasion. It is some two years since the last visit of these clever performers to Auckland, when it will be remembered they showed in their own tent, at Emily Place. • , . i ? ; Tasteful programmes in connection with j the New Zealand tour of the World's Enter- j tainers are being published by Mesdames Macßonald : and .; Smith. ; Several of .1 these, which reached me : recently, are in every j sense handsome .. souvenirs, -' containing ; por- ; traits of the '..performers,-,-'detailed particulars | of the entertainments, a table of New r Zea- j land theatre bookings, "i and a host of adver- j tisements. : From these programmes I note that the company as at present constituted includes Mr. Charles R. Sweet, the " musical burglar;" Nelstone and Forrest, gro- j tesque dance and sketch artistes ; th Main? I Sisters, lin ; terpsichorean , specialities;": Miss | Frances Gwynne, lyric artiste; .Professor Powell and Co., in legerdemain illusions and merriment; Josephine Gassman and -her Louisiana piccaninnies ' (Bill and Irene) ; and Ashley (assisted by Miss Roberts), acrobatic comedians'; Mr. Ceo. y Lyding, tenor vocalist time with Josephine Stanton's Company) ; i and the three Casinos. This combination opens her© on July LV-. - • '•:'. On Monday nigbt, City Hall patrons will be given an opportunity -l of witnessing for the first time the novel and remarkable performance of Gallando, the .modeller in clay.' It is said that Gailando has a heap of ordinary clay brought on to ' the stage, froni ; which .; be ; grabs ;, a■; handful J and flings it against .the wall. Ho then goes to work upon the adhering lump, and by a few swift touches transforms if- into a likeness of some: celebrity. The original nature of the turn commends it to those who are seeking after something new, and it will. doubtless prove a : great attractjop. ~,-.■-•« - ' .i A nonsensical paragraph (says Table Talk) i has appeared in one of the prints stating • that a theatrical trust has been formed by Mr. J. C. Williamson and Messrs. Edwardes i ; ; and Frohmnn, •to control '•; all Australian, • theatres. Such a. project would require ■an ; immense; amount of capital, and the buying i or leasing of all the theatres in Australasia, 'which> is not quite an easy matter. As to !boycotting newspapers \ honestly criticising. inferior- plays i and » second-rate performers, ■ managers .; would pretty soon -: get . tired. :•• It f has been tried before by > some ill-advised managers in Australia, but the boycott did ■ not.-., work " satisfactorily'., if What; is termed ■ a "theatrical < trust?' ■ is- really'already" in existence, by way of agreement with Messrs.. ; Prohmani and Edwardes ■in connection; with new productions. But let us suppose that ; mbbishy productions are*' to -be - foisted on Australians by ■ a trust. Well;VAustralians cannot be dragooned into paying to see or hear inferior plays. The great : public willsimply stay at home. '' ' ! s ; Mr, E. H. Stevenson's biograph entertain- : ment in the Federal Hall has J been well-at-tended * since the- opening night ' (Tuesday I last) fp- The season lias 5 been extended until to-night. Of similar shows' none have been. ' ; seen here presenting such a large variety Of excellent pictures. '_>.'' '"'■'•' '"■'"'' : -"-V."',.:■■'.'•''■''■ '■> Mr. put} Mrs. f W. ' S. ' Percy • have "signed on'?/ with Mr. ? Tom- , Pollard ,fori another 12 mnpths from 'next Christmas.' 1 .. ; ; According to present arrangements, Company A of the World's Entertainers Mill, at the conclusion of the Auckland season, leave for America;; ■'."'; 1 The manuscript and, effects of "Sherlock : Holmes" (says'the Sydney Morning Herald) are now being received by -Mr'.'" J. jC. Williamson, who is making arrangements for an early production of the drama.' ', "] '/ The latest'sensation on the London variety stage is Olev'os, " The Man with the Iron .Eye-brows," who, with hooks .'attached, to his eyebrows, drags a' carriage' containing four or five people across the stage several times. There is no doubt such a feat is' a great 1 " ''.',",, ' : ; ■'" ■ ( '...- ■-' 'Nothing more humorous has. been seen in CbrijtchurchV (says the , Press) than the ;" turn" of Mr. Charles Sweet;. the " musical. : burglar," with i the: World's Entertainers. '_ He is a philosopher who moralises a la Mark Twain on men find'things in general,, creatingfrqail?; of laughter by his quaint style. His half-hour on the stage passes like a few minutes, and the -, c^everly-mapaged. imitations ;. on the piano of various instruments, particularly the banjo, must be heard to be appreciated.'^ r".. i :, ~-. / [>f' > .".".' f ; f Writing by the last mail my London correspondent says:—"The . following paragraphs '~J, from one ;' of yesterday's Lonon papers 'applies strongly 'to .New. Zealand "'aspirants,' .' and it may be read by,, them with instruction and , profit: 'Already i {her are .' nine .. Australian concerts announced for tl'e next few weeks; and more are on the tapis, so that the promoters must be "prepared to face a very goodly measure of disappointment. '; Apart from two or three singers, the Loudon public does not take, and never has' taken, the slightest .interest in the doings of Australian singers, so that the concert-givers must look for patronage entirely among their own people'. Even if all the tickets for the concerts referred to were given away, there are not enough Australians; in" London .to half-fill the halls on those different occasions. It would "be infinitely better if n; number of the r artistes joined in j the givjiig of 'one good concert, then they might count on a fair audience, and would also have a . reasonable chance of ;securing , the attendance ' of ' the critics,' for whose benefit ■ tlib'sa concerts' are 'mainly given. Austral'/.musicians' still cherish the idea that if they price get a. fairly good or perhaps laudatory notice in a London, paper, it is sure to bring wonderful returns, but,the'place is- so over-slocked with '' artistes ; that 'it. usually brings nothing but subsequent disappointment;' while these isolated instances, of "praise are nourished in Australia, and so induce others to come Home arid' share the same fate.'.' ':.. -.." '•.;."Sherlock Holmes" drew full : houses.at the Lyceum up to the last moment, when it had compulsorily to be withdrawn to make room for Sir Henry Irving and his company. It proved quite a phenomenal success.*'-/v . ,i -, •; -■ ■<:-. '