ENTERTAINMENTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19981, 25 June 1928, Page 12

ENTERTAINMENTS.

MOiSEiwrrscH farewell. Auckland lovers of the pianoforte regretfully said good-bye to Mr. lienno Moiseiwitsch on Saturday evening, when lie gave the third and last concert of his season in the Town Hall. Considering the cold and wet the audience was creditably large and the concert was most successful, although the pianist had to play in a. hall entirely without heating and under conditions which compelled many of his hearers to sit in coats and wraps throughout the evening. The feature number to many was The Chopin sonata in B Flat Minor, containing the famous funeral march. This Moiseiwitsch treated with all the power of his great technical resources, from the gloomy opening of Iremendous chords in the bass through the gently poetic scherzo, to the funeral march itself. His reading of a composition which has suffered for a century from being sentimentalised by the everyday player was a revelation. The first and third parts were played with a ruthless vigour and even in the melodious middle section the heavy tramp of feet was never out of hearing. The whirling (male of the sonata was a fine piece of work. Schumann's "Etudes Symphoniqucs,*'which followed immediately, was a severe exercise in pianoforte technique, consisting as it did of a theme and innumerable variations, growing ever -more elaborate. At its close the pianist received his loudest applause of the evening. Two preludes of Rachmaninoff, the rapid G minor and the well-known C sharp minor, were both notable. In the latter, as in the funeral march, the artist put commonplace interpretations to shame. Another technical exercise, brilliantly carried through, was Liszt's La Campanella," with which the programme ended. The pianist was quite at home in the quaint intricate passages at the top of the kevboard and in other difficulties which the work presented. Two quaint little tone-pictures, "Flirtation in a Chinese Garden" and "Rush-hour in Hongkong," by a young American composer, Chasins, were 'much enjoyed, in spito of their novelty. They were matched by "Le Petit Ane Blanc," a representation of a little donkey's paces, by Ibert. flic programme also included Hark, Hark, the Lark" (Schubcrt-Liszt) and a melodious little Bach prelude. Among the encore numbers were a berceuse and two preludes by Chopin. _ PRINCESS AND TIVOLI. All the heroism? and perils of life on board the old-time clipper ships in what is regarded as the "golden age of sail, are admirably portrayed in White Wings," the current attraction at the Princess and Tivoli Theatres. The story is woven round a great race from Foochow to Boston between two sailing ships, the Lord of the Isles and the Yankee clipper. A pleasing romance runs through the picture, the leading roles being filled by William Boyd and Elinor Fair, who were seen together in "Hie \ olga Boatman. A second attraction is "Surrender," a stirring story of love and adventure on the Russian border in tho early days of the war. Ivan Mosjoukino, who fills the leading roLe, gives a greater charactcrisa- | tion than in "Michael Strogoff," the European production in which he was featured. Mary Philbin, Nigel de Brulier and Otto Matieson are included in the supporting cast. EVERYBODY'S THEATRE. The first feature of an enjoyable programme now showing at Everybody s Theatre is "Gigolo," a First National picture in which Rod La Rocque is featured. Ho is seen as "Gid, a wealthy American boy, whose mother, portrayed by Louise Dresser, keeps her son abroad too long for his own good. Gid returns to Paris after being severely wounded in the war, to find his mother penniless and becomes a gigolo or dancing partner, at the famous Cafe Marignys. llow the love of a boyhood sweetheart brings him to his senses so that he returns to America with her, forms an interesting story. The second attraction "His Dog," adapted from Albert Payson Terhune's popular story, has as its central theme the regeneration of a man through love for his dog. Prominent in the cast are Sally Rand, Robert Edeson, Joseph Schildkraut and Julia Faye. TUDOR THEATRE. An attractive programme at the new Tudor Theatre this evening will include "Dressed to Kill" and the Tudor ballet in classical dances. The decoration of the theatre is an innovation for an amusement hall and is carried out in old fifteenth century lines, although still providing the most modern of comforts and screening advantages. In "Dressed to Kill." Edmund Lowe gives an outstanding characterisation of Barry, a sophisticated underworld leader, while Mary Astor and Ben Bard complete a splendid cast. MISSIONS TO SEAMEN CONCERT. Humorous sketches, fancy dances, vocal and orchestral numbers will he presented at St. 'Mark's Hall, Remuera, this evening. The programme has been arranged by Miss Harrison in aid of the Missions to Seamen. The entertainment will be held under the auspices of the Ladies' Harbour Lights Guild. Members of the girls' branch of the Navy League will assist with the sale of sweets.