YEAR AT THE THEATRE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19833, 31 December 1927, Page 11

YEAR AT THE THEATRE.

SUCCESS OF " ROSE MARIE."

FEW DRAMATIC OFFERINGS.

GOOD WORK OF LITTLE THEATRE.

Auckland, which takes its entertainments seriously, did not extend very liberal patronage to American comedy, which , was the principal attraction of the Theatre during the past year. It lias been a year of very few successes, but ' 'Rose Marie"' was a grand finale, something good kept in store until the very last.

The charm of "Rose Marie" lies in its style of construction, which is similar to that which made "The Belle of New York," "The Merry Widow" and "The Maid of the Mountains" record-breakers in their day. The music rises above the light dance tunes of the moment, the plot is well, worked out, the humour is really clever and the whole production shows more than a semblance of dramatic construction. To gratify the modern taste for the spectacular there is the Totem Pole dance. No more spectacular feature has been seen on the stage at His Majesty's. Revival of Savoy Operas.

The dance music of the times has its following and that it can form the basis for good musical comedy was shown in "No, No Nanette" and "Lady, Be Good." These were both among the. outstanding successes of the season. Among the other musical plays were "Frasquita," in which Lehar seemed to capture in snatches the charm of "The Merry Widow," and a fine revival of "La Mascotte," by the Auckland Amateur Operatic Society. > In a different class altogether were the revivals of the Savoy Operas by the J. C. Williamson-Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company. Their seasons were a delight and a noteworthy event was the production for the first time in New Zealand. of the little-known opera, "Ruddigore." Of good, straight dramatic pieces the professional stage gave very little. However, Miss Renee Kelly and Mr. Hylton Allen gave Auckland some of the most delightful light comedy that has been seen here for a long time. "Polly with a .Past," "The Last of Mrs. Cheyney," "Brown Sugar" and "Daddy Longlegs" were all good plays and they were all well played. Lonsdale's "The Last of Mrs. Cheyney" was easily the best dramatic offering of the year, bright, epigrammatic and a masterpiece of the playwright's craft. It had literary merit such as is possessed by few plays that appear on the professional stage to-day. A Popular Artist. A season by Mr, Maurice Moscovitch, an artist who is always welcome in Auckland, was also something that was infinitely more enjoyable than the rather pointless American farces. The play with which the season opened, "They Knew What They Wanted," came with the reputation of having incurred the displeasure of the Melbourne censor and of at least one Melbourne critic. Auckland is now taking sex plays much more philoI sophically. "The Fake" and "The Outsider" were excellently done and a revival of "Trilby" was very popular. Mr. Allan WiJkie's Shakespearian season was an artistic success and the thanks of theatregoers are due to Mr. Wilkie for his periodical visits. ■ Into the class of American comedy fell "Abie's Irish Rose," which has made of its author a millionaire several times over. "Cradle Snatchers" was another —amusing while it lasted, but leaving very few memories. However, the Williamson management was not a great offender with American comedy. Among the gems of the year was the work of Miss Peggy Hovey and Mr. J. Swan in Barrie's one-act play, "The Old Lady Shows Her Medals," presented by the Little Theatre Society. They gave acting that could hardly have, been surpassed by professionals and seemed to catch the true Barrie spirit. Miss Lynda Murphy made an excellent Cockney girl in Shaw's "Pygmalion." The society as a whole, and its producer, Mr. Kenneth Brampton, in particular, deserve every credit for a record year of repertory stage work—a year that has awakened a demand for the many fine literary plays that are available to-day.