MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13501, 27 July 1907, Page 4 (Supplement)

MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC.

" BOOKINGS. ? HIS MAJESTY'S THEATRE. I July 22 to August 10-Grand Opera Co.- ■£•.' August 12 to August 24-Mr. J. C. WilliamI:- ' . son. ' - '-'. ■-, '" ,'-',-' September 16 to October s—Maud Hildyard. Dramatic Co. (Mr. Allan Hamilton). ■'; ! October 7 to October 26—MacMahon Bros. Dramatic Co. .;- ~ „,„. November 4 to November 16—Mr. bo win '. Geach. _ CHORAL HALL. ' July 25, 26, and Miss Marie Hall's Concerts. ' OPERA HOUSE. Nightly—Fuller's Vaudeville Co. The " Carmen" of the grand opera season's opening night was one of the most notable productions ever staged- in Auckland, and the lovely opera received a fine interpretation, both musically and vocally. Frl. Heinle made a very fine Carmen, bringing out well the full, passionate, and impetuous character of the Spanish gipsy, and her impersonation would, indeed, be difficult to excel. ~'.; Unfortunately " Faust," placed on at the last moment instead of " Tannhauser," suffered from a number of defects, and in some respects there was a little disappointment in the presentation of this great masterpiece. Curiously enough there is divided opinion regarding the Marguerite of Mia Barekow, some spectators holding that Frl.. Barekow was not qualified to play the part dramatically, and that she could not look the part. This is rather curious, for the Marguerite of the story was a simple, quiet German village girl, and Frl. Barekow being a slight young German girl eminently suited the part, and it must be admitted that, for a stage experience of but very few years, she played it well. As one leading Australian journal said, " Mia Barekow played Marguerite, and it would be difficult, indeed, to find a better; she was Marguerite, and the Marguerite of Gounod. No higher praise could be bestowed upon her." It is true her soprano voice is not yet large enough for the demand of such an opera, but she sings with sweet expression, and without affectation or mannerism of any sort. The Mephistopheles of Heir Runger was the true German conception of His Satanic Majesty, and, perhaps, the outstanding feature of the performance of the opera. The music-lover who misses hearing the celebrated violiniste, Miss Marie Hall, will miss one of the most delightful treats that have come this way of late. She seems to bo equally at home in all classes of .violin music, and the rich organ tones she draws from her splendid Strad. in such themes as the rich, broad chorale effects of Corelli's "La Folia" are something to live in the' memory of her hearers. Her exposition of the great "Concerto in G. Minor" of Bruch, especially in the beautiful adagio movement, at her first concert was a superb performance. Last evening she played the greatest work' ever written for the violin, the Vieuxtemps Concerto, Bach's celebrated " Chaconne," and her performance drew from the audience a perfect ' storm of applause. She will give her third and last recital in Auckland on Monday evening. The pantomime for its Brisbane and New Zealand visits will have a new Jill, in the' person of Miss Olive Godwin, who has now recovered from the illness which incapacitated her from taking up the character (for which she was specially cast) when "Mother Goose" began its course. In a private letter to. a friend, Miss Amy Castles, who has recovered from her recent illness, states that she has accepted the following engagements:—Cologne, Schwerin, Douglas, for July; Baden and Magdeburg, for September; Munich, Dortmund, Mannheim, Metz, for October; Berlin, St. Peters- j burg, Vienna, Frankfurt, and the Harrison tour, for November; and Newcastle-oil-Tyne, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Sunderland, Sheffield,. Leeds, _ Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, and Bradford, for j December. Miss Castles regretted very much that' her recent attack of measles pievented her appearance in opera at Cologne. The Fred Elton Comedy Company report most satisfactory business throughout the provincial tour. To-night the company open at Waiuku, on Monday night at Pukekohe, on Tuesday night at Otahuhu, and the next station will be Whangarei, booked for August 1. Admirers of Miss Mario Narelle "will be pleased to learn that the' popular singer is now fast recovering from her unfortunate illness. It is estimated that in the cities visited by. " Mother Goose"—Sydney, Melbourne, Geelong, and Adelaide—the pantomime has been witnessed by well over. 500,000 people. The • Perth season commenced on Saturday last. Madame Carreno has been having en-' thusiastic welcomes in the South, and music-lovers are looking forward to her Auckland visit with-a very considerable degree of interest. Critics unite in declaring her rendering .of the appassionata sonata of Beethoven and of Schubert's G Major Impromptu to be magnificent performances, and that her tour de force in Liszt's transcriptions of the "Erl King" is an unmistakable illustration of her varied ability as an artiste..' Of the Chopin items the Nocturne in F. op. 15 and the Tarantelle op. 43 are both rare items in concert programmes, but her playing of them is considered a brilliant and facile exposition of technique. Grand Opera at His Majesty's is at present the big attraction for theatre-goers, and it was exceedingly unfortunate that the opening of the Auckland season should j have been marred by the sudden changing of the list of dates. " Lohengrin" was announced for Monday night, but that day it was put off owing to the late arrival and rough passage of the Mokoia from Sydney.' The second production, "Carmen," took place on Tuesday evening all right, and the public then concluded the way was clear, but it was not so by any means. " Tannhauser" was the opera billed for Wednesday night, and when the audience arrived it found " Tannhauser" replaced by " FausE." Of' course it was not worth while going home again then, and " Faust" duly had practically all the " Tannhauser" audience, but the public resented it very much all the same. While ultra musical critics might have found many discrepancies, Gounod's great opera was well presented at so short a notice, and the general verdict of tho audience—that is, the great section which does not mind if some complex theme is not legato enough so long as the general effect is good—was one of high favour. Another unfortunate episode was the withdrawal of the matinee " Hansel and Gretel" without any managerial announcement of the fact, and consequently some country and suburban residents arrived to find the theatre closed. A new list has now been published, and it is to be hoped, for the sake of the public, that no more vexatious alterations will take place. Mr. J. C. Williamson's new musical company, now playing "The Blue Moon" in Melbourne, is likely to remain an Austraian institution for many years. The manigerial announcement is that, so far as the irst three weeks' receipts are concerned, ' The Blue Moon" exceeds both " Florolora" and " The Geisha," two of the most successful pieccs-ever produced inthesouth•rn capital. "The Blue Moon" would have istablished a record for that period only or the fact that "Mother Goose's" golden ;ggs block the way. London newspapers to hand by the last nail referred to a demonstration to be held it the Alexandra Palace on June 22, when ' 1000 boys and girls from the orchestral ilasses of elementary schools in London and li.strict were to perform en masse. This s the,outcome of a movement that has revolutionised school life all over England. Sight or nine years ago the headmaster of ill Saint's School, Maidstone, decided to tart a school orchestra to help the vocal nusic. So pronounced was his success that , hat before many months had passed the >rchestra. had become famous throughout -he country. Since then something like iOOO of these school orchestras have been itarted. It has been noticed by the inspecors that the progress of those ..schools ' vhich own,an orchestra is much greater ban others. The children buy their own nstruments and music, and pay 3d for the weekly lesson. This has now become a ; tandard fee amongst violin teachers for •hese pupils, : _ j ilusico -Dramaticc: s 4