ENTERTAINMENTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16364, 19 October 1916, Page 5

ENTERTAINMENTS.

DRAMATIC ENTERTAINMENT.

THE NORWOODS.

A shoet season at His Majesty's Theatre opens to-night by Professor M. H. Norwood and Miss Winifred Norwood, hypnotic experts and entertainers, when they will present a scientific demonstration of the wonders of hypnotism. Besides the scientific side the Norwoods will stcve an amusing comedy, which is guaranteed to make even the most morose shake with laughter. The present visit represents the Norwoods' third tour of New Zealand, and they make it a strong point that they are hypnotists who can repeat their visits and draw larger houses each time. The programme to be presented to-night embodies a number of ambitious features, which require on the part of the principals expert knowledge in the exercise of their art. The Norwoods claim to bring about the conditions, which create so much amusement by suggestion aided by the concentration of the subject's mind. They have just concluded their third season in Wellington, making in all 31 nights

"THE TYRANNY OF TEARS." There should be a large gathering in the concert chamber of the Town Hall to-night, when Had don Chambers' sparkling comedy, " The Tyranny of Tears," will be produced for the benefit of the Belgian Relief Fund. An entertainment of exceptional interest is promised, and the heavy booking of seats that there has been for the two performances is the best evidence that public anticipation is high.

A musical and dramatic entertainment by pupils of the Convent School, Remuera in aid of the Sisters of St. Joseph, will be held in St. Mark's Hall, Remueru Road, to-night, at eight o'clock.

AUCKLAND MALE CHOIR. A most appreciative audience was present in the Town Hall last night, when the Auckland Male Choir presented a line programme in aid of the £4000 Red Cross Fund. Every item of the musical programme was excellently rendered and enthusiastically received. The choir, which sang in fine style, contributed " The Eve of Good St. John" (Gounod), " Cossacks' War Song" (Horatio Parker), "Lead, Kindly Light" (Purdy), "To Arms" (Maunder), "Abide with -ue" (Monk), "Roman War Song" (Wagner), "Soldiers' Chorus" (Gounod), and the part song, " Hymn to Apollo" (Gounod), The soloists, who sang most admirably, were Messrs. S. A. Macdonald, W. Walker, J. Littler, and P. S. Cousins. Dr. W. E. ' Thomas ably conducted, and Mr. G. I. I Allen was the accompanist. Great in- 1 terest was taken in the lectures by Major ; Maguire and Major Lapraik, who spoke i in telling language on their war experiences in connection with the Red Cross. Mr. C. H. Poole, M.P., made a stirring appeal on behalf of the fund. BAND CONCERT. An excellent programme on behalf of the Auckland Navy League Relief Fund will bo given by the Auckland City Band in Albert Park on Saturday, Trafalgar Day. The concert will commence at 81 p.m., and will include the following items :—March. " West-bury " (Lithgow); overture, "Bohemian Girl" (BalfeJ; concert waltz, "Meditation" (Oscar Verne); grand selection, "Sons of Britannia" (Rimmer); intermezzo, ." Twilight" (Rimmer); overture, " Overturiana' (Rimmer), I introducing favourite melodies from the I well-known operas " Zampa," "William 'Tell," "Maritana," etc.; march, "On Guard " (Ord Hume). A collection will be taken. OPERA HOUSE. The capable and highly-skilled performers wlio present the excellent programme now showing at the Opera House have gained steadily in the favour of appreciative audiences. The Flemings, with their novel feats and in their beautiful classic poses, have added to thejr laurels and represent a strong attraction. The whole programme is marked by brightness and variety, and is an exceedingly popular one. KING'S THEATRE. Sporting dramas of high merit have always been popular with British audiences, and that entitled " The Pace That Kills," as staged at the King's Theatre, Newton, is no exception to the rule. Dealing with the English Grand National Steeplechase, and presented by the firstclass Brandon-Cremer Dramatic Company, j it possesses all that is necessary for sue- | cess, as is proved by the appreciative audiences which are attracted by it. j ________________ | DANCE RECITAL. Another large audience witnessed the delightful entertainment presented in aid of the Servian Fund by Miss Daphne Knight and her pupils in His Majesty's Theatre last night. The ballet, "Pan in Arcadia," was again enthusiastically applauded, and "The Mississippi Cabaret' proved another distinct success. Clever solo work was again a feature of the entertainment, and encores were frequently and insistently demanded. Miss Knight was accorded an ovation at the conclusion, a number of returned soldiers calling for cheers, and she was presented with two bouquets. GRAFTON THEATRE. A special programme for a lied Cross benefit performance will be presented tonight at the Grafton Theatre. The leading pictorial attraction is entitled The Princess Romanoff," in which the leading part is played by Nance O'Neill, who has been claimed to be the greatest emotional actress in America, The murder of the princess's betrothed changes her gentle nature. She swears revenge and sacrifices even love to gratify her desire. Later she finds herself in the wrong, but is abie, happily, to remedy the evil sn-s causes. This consummation, however, is not reached until a series of most exciting adventures is experienced. Other splendid pictures are entitled "Love Me, Love My Dog." and "At the Throttle." A popular item is the latest war topical, which is exceptionally interesting and instructive. The Grafton Symphony Orchestra is a feature of this theatre, which is not the least of its attractions. To-night the orchestra will play special selections, providing, in addition to the picture nroegramme, an instrumental treat. This does not. exhaust the list of special features for to-night, as Miss Mary Oow and Mr J. Wallace Atkinson have consented to sing. A favonrite item will be the singing of the I soldiers' sontr. "Keep the Home Fires Burning." Tickets may be obtained at the Red Cross Depot, or a? the theatre.

"FIGHTING AROUND VERDUN." One of the epic contests in the present great war is the battle of Verdun, which; has been carried on for months between j the Germans and the French. Ihe defence of this fortress by oar gallant ally ; has won the admiration of the world as j an example of the most heroic courage i and steadfast endurance. Therefore, the I announcement that the French official; war pictures of the fighting round Verdun are to be shown in Auckland is certain to arouse the keenest interest. These pictures will be shorn, commencing on Saturday, at the Grafton and Queen's Theatres. The furious and, at the time, unprecedented bombardment' by the .tiermans,' is shown in such manner as to convey some idea of its immensity and horror. Machine-gunners are seen shelled by the Germans. Deadly hand and grenade fighting is depicted, and shells are seen bursting over the soldiers' heads. The famous French "75's" are witnessed! in action, and the wonderful recoil sys- ! tem i> son in operation. How German gas attacks failed and the fatal consequences to the authors of them are clearly , depicted* The deadly; work of thq 12in,

mortars in ripping up the German trenches is a feature of the pictures, and the importance of anti-aircraft guns is one of the instructive items shown. Besides these, there are many other incidents of equal interest. PRINCESS THEATRE. Tho fascination of the picture " The Snowbird" shown at the Princess Theatre ' continues to grip large audiences. Mabel : Taliaferro, who plays the part of Lois Wheeler, a society darling, proves herself an actress of many-sided personality. Her portrayal of the transformation of a spoiled child of luxury into a woman of | determination and courage is particularly i well done. The settings of the picture are \ of a most interesting character. From the beautiful homes of wealthy magnates the scene is changed to the cold, hard North, and apart from the good story the picture is well worth seeing. i "TABLES TURNED." The principal picture to be shown at the Princess Theatre on Saturday is the Metro, production, "Tables Turned," featuring Emmy Wehfcn. The picture has an unusual plot, and is full of incident. KINO GEORGE THEATRE. I A particularly appealing picture, entitled | "The Two Orphans," is tho special feature | of the change of programme to-day at the j King George Theatre. It is centred about j the life story of two girl orphans, Henri- j etta and Louise, both beautiful, but Louise ! is blind. On the death of their parents I in a French province, they are sent to , Paris. Henrietta is abducted by a ' i rascally Marquis de Preslos." Louise, falls into the hands of a professional i beggar, Mother Frochard. The girl is annoyed by the attentions of Mother I Frociiard's son, a lazy scamp, but hi| hunchback brother protects her as far as possible. Meanwhile Henrietta, half-mad with fright, appeals to Chevalier de Vaudrey, a guest of the marquis. A duel fellows, and Henrietta is rescued. Her dazzling beauty enslaves the chevalier, who wishes to marry her. His father withholds consent, but finally the two orphans find happiness and peace. LYRIC THEATRE . The popular picture "Going Straight" is attracting largo audiences to the Lyric Theatre. The plot is one which appeals to the imagination and to the heart, a factor which, no doubt, is responsible for the favour with which "Going Straight" is being received. Other subjects comprising the programme are in keeping with the excellence of the principal attraction,

"THE BATTLE OF THE SOMME." Commencing at the matinee at the Lyric Theatre on Saturday there will be presented the British War Office's own films, showing the opening of the great offensive in France, "The Battle of The Somme." i Mr. Lloyd George specially directed that these films should be .1i40v.11 everywhere, and 40 copies were simultaneously shown in London alone, where they caused an enormous sensation. Among the most wonderful of the many incidents which make these pictures bo different from the war films previously seen here are: The five days' sustained bombardment of the enemy trenches at Beaymont Hame.l prior to July 1; 9.2 in howitzers shelling the Germans at Mamet, blowing up tug-outs, and clearing away wire entanglements: thousands of "Flying Piga" being fired by 9.15'n trench mortars; operating the" 15in howitzer I" Grandmother") manned bv Roy-! murines, each shell weighing MOO pound*: the morning of the attack. AI ii .'.mil along the entire 16-mile front i the troops loaned over the parapets and charged under heavy fire. Other features are the rescuing of a comrade under fire; Lancashire? returning with prisoners; friend and foe helping each other; the pathetic scene after the Gordons made their unsuccessful but glorious charge on Mametz trendies; nerve-shattered German prisoners arriving; and the burying of German dead on the battlefield. The pictures convey a most astonishing impression of the vastness of the offensive organisation. Nothing could be so effective as the sight of mile upon mile of bursting sheila and shrapnel on the enemy lines. So close together and so continuous are the great black upheavals that one wonders how the munition depots could possibly supply the demand for five days in succession. The management, wish it to be specially noted that this picture has the samo "official backing" as "Britain Prepared." There will also be shown several interesting additional items. i 1 QUEEN'S THEATRE " Blind Justice," the principal film now showing at the Queen's Theatre, is the story of a philanthropist's experiment in the direction of reclaiming an apparently worthless life. He sets out to reform a young vagrant by taking him into hi 3 own home. So complete a reformation is effected that in a very short time his only daughter has eloped with his protege. This naturally annoys the philanthropist, but he is finally placated on learning that the pseudo-vagrant is in reality a celebrated author, who has been conducting an experiment on his own account. GLOBE THEATRE. Interested audiences have attended- all the week at the Globe Theatre to see the fine picture, "The Prisoner of Zenda." The story is so well known that the pictorial version is especially interesting to the thousands who have read the book. The magnificent setting and the splendid acting have delighted even the most exacting. The success which is attending the screening of "The Prisoner of Zenda" should augur well for the reception of the sequel "Rupert of Hentzau," to be shown next week. EVERYBODY'S THEATRE. The pictorial drama, "The Warrens of Virginia," which opened so successfully at Everybody's Theatre, is maintaining its popularity with the audiences attending this cosy theatre. The incidents are vividly portrayed and cleverly enacted. The supporting items in the excellent programme include a fine war picture series. Especially interesting are the representations of new monster British guns in action. ______________ , GRAND THEATRE. I . i The picture "Rags," shown at the j Grand Theatre, and featuring the delightful Mary Pick ford, has proved a popular • hit " In the somewhat unusual role in j which Man' Pirkford is seen in this pic- | ture she exhibits a new side to her stage personality, and one which makes a . .rent appeal. An interest..-.; pirtnA! which has been well received is entitled.! "Will a Woman Tell!" The title in | itself is provocative, and the plot is in I keeping. There is a very varied topical j budget also screened. ! DANCE CARNIVAL. A splendid programme is to be presented at the dance carnival to be given in His Majesty's Theatre on Friday, October 27, by Miss Cecil Hall and her pupils, on behalf of the Red Cross Fund for New Zealand soldiers. The items include a' Russian ballet, with a story, a fairyland ballet, an Oriental tragedy sccna. and an enchanting classic pastorale. Among those who will take part.are: — Iris McKenzie, in " Danse Bacchanale" i and " The Firefly": Vita Flanagan, in j Cupid"; Lyla Bennett, in a weird I Eastern dance, Destiny"; Elsie De ' Tourret in " Pas des Violettes"; Marie McPherson, in "Polka Cap rice"; Muriel Brown, in "La BelliParisienne," assisted by Will Norgrovo and a bevy of "Midinettes." In the classic pastorale, " The Drya'd," there will appear Joy Bartleyas "The Dryad"; E. Miller, 'The Goddess"; Kathleen Blomfield," Th« Shepherd M ; Amber Jones, "The Shepherdess," and the corps de ballet.