ENTERTAINMENTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20821, 13 March 1931, Page 15

ENTERTAINMENTS.

PLAZA THEATRE. With John Galsworthy's "Old English" •till fresh in their memories, Auckland audiences have been eagerly awaiting the film version- of "Escape," the second of the celebrated playwright's, works t.o'reach the talking screen. Produced in England by Associated Radio Pictures, and interpreted by accomplished English artists, the picture will open a season at the Plaza ' Theatre to-day. Sir Gerald Du Maurier, the noted actor-playwright, makes an impelling figure of the central character—a refined English clubman and war hero jnade victim of harsh circumstance. .Accosted in Hyde Park by a girl in poor circumstances, the man defends her when she is ciiarged with an offence. The detective becomes insulting and abusive, and in a scuffle which follows is killed through striking an iron railing as he falls. Although tho woman's testimony earns him the joniencv of the Court, the clubman is Convicted on a charge of manslaughter nrul sentenced to five years' hard labour jH, Dartmoor prison. On tho verge of collapse and driven almost to distraction, tlie man makes a daring escape. The remainder of tho story traces his attempts to evade the police, in which he is aided by women of every class. NATION AL THEATRE. " Queen High," which heads the new ?rogramme to bo shown at the National 'heatre to-day, is a fast-moving farce with effective incidental music and entertaining song numbers. Based on the successful musical comedy "Queen High" has been,. brought to tho screen by Schwab aqd Mandel, the producers of the orfiginal stage success. The ludicrously funny story deals with two partners in a manufacturing concern who are forever in conflict and who finally decide to settle their difference by a hand of poker. The conditions/provide that the winner is to take charge of the business, the loser becoming butler in the household of tho other. The unfortunate loser, played by Charles Ruggles, is placed in an awkward predicament v.-hen his fiancee discovers him carrying out tho duties of a butler. His plight, is made even worse by the unwelcome attentions of the housemaid. And (he domineering attitude adopted by the fortunate partner does not improve matters. Tho ingenious mannor in which the ** butler " turns the tables on his "master by alienating the affections of his wife provides a succession of hilarious episodes. Tha entirely new musical score includes '' It Seems to Me," " I'm Afraid of You," and "In My Own Peculiar Way."- ' CIVIC THEATRE. "Courage," the adaptation of the successful stage play by Tom Barry, which heads the fine Jouble-featuro programmo commencing at the Civic Theatre to-day. is a poignant drama of a mother's selfraorifice for her children. Miss Belle Bennett. brings a genuine depth of feeling to the part of the happy-go-lucky and Miondthnft yet nevertheless tender mother. In spite of the distressing influences of a spiteful rich sister-in-law, insistent creditors and furniture-movers, she finally earns the gratitude of her family of seven children. As the wotnan's eider daughter, who breaks her engaeoment with a wealthy Harvard student, believing her mother has acted dishonourably, Miss Marion Nixon, last seen it> "General Crack," makes an appealing character. A cast of six talented child artists is headed by Leon Janney, as young Bill Colbrook, who chivalrously defends his mother's honour. Miss Billia Dove, the beautiful and gifted actress, has the part of a genteel Englishwoman who poses as a French maid in the drama "Sweethearts and Wives," which will also be shown. MAJESTIC THEATRE. Entirely different from anything else that has reached the talking screen, "The White Hell, of Pitz P:ilu, ' which will have its initial showing gt the Majestic Theatre to-day, is an amazing drama of man's bsittle with the elements in the Swiss Alps. The towering and formidable Pitz Palu Peak is the "menace" in an intensely dramatic story filmed actually amid the frozen fastnesses of the Alps by a.- Continental company at a height of from 6000 ft. to 12,000 ft. The thundering sweep of an immense avalanche which remorselessly carries everything before it, breath-taking feats in the air by n -daring aviator who swoops perilously close to forbidding mountain walls, and a descent into a glacier 300 ft. deep are only a few of the marvellous spectacles presented on the screen for the first time. The story deals with a young married couple spending their honeymoon 011 the icy slopes of Pitz Palu. who are interrupted by Dr. Kraft, whose own honeymoon had.ended tragically three years before when his wife was lost on the perilous north wall of the peak. Maria and Hans, strangely moved by the doctor's brooding sorrow, join him in the hazardous search for his wife's body. ■ I •' . ROXY THEATRE. Those who enjoy drama are well catered for in the two pictures at present being shown, at the Boxy Theatre. In " Rich People" and " The Racketeer," various aspects of the complex life of a large city are vividly depicted. In the first, Miss Constance Bennett, the talented emotional actress of " Son of the Gods" and " Common Clay," gives a flawless portrayal of a society heiress whose love for a young insurance salesman is not reciprocated by hirn because he realises the incongruity of marriage to a woman so 1 high above him on the social scale. "The. j Racketeer" concerns the hopeless love of a leader of the underworld for a girl of social eminence. STRAND THEATRE. . Various phases of newspaper work are I dealt with in " Young Man From Man- 1 hattan," the drama which will succeed ! " Way For a Sailor " at the Strand ! Theatre to-day. Miss Claudette Colbert, tho brilliant actress of " The Lady' Lies," | " Manslaughter," and " The Big Pond," 1 makes an appealing character of Ann 1 Vaughn, ;i journalist attached to a New York paper who marries a sports writer, j After numerous misunderstandings, which j produnce dramatic acting of the highest order, the two people are" filially reunited. Tho supporting artists include Norman Foster, a stage player, as the care-free sports writer; Charier. Ruggles, (ho bibulous man-about-towu of "The Lady Lies";* and Ginger Rogers, a, delightful soubrette.

LYRIC THEATRE. Maurice Chevalier, the popular French actor, rind Miss Claudette Colbert, of " The Lady Lies," are. the principals in " The Big Pond," at the Lyric Theatre this evening. " Strictly Unconventional,'' with Lewis Stone, will also be shown. GREY LYNN CINEMA. " The Green Goddess," with George Arlifs, and " The Aviator," with Ed ward Everett Ilorton, comprise the. main films at the Grey Lvnn Cinema this evenitig.

nniTANNIA THEATRE. "Up tho River," an hilarious farce, is the main attraction at the Britannia 1 he;lire this evening. VICTORIA THEATRE. "Son of the Gods," with Richard Rarthelrness and Constance Bennett, is being shown at the Victoria Theatre this evening. PRINCE EDWARD THEATRE. "The Dawn Patrol," an epic of the air, will, he shown at the Prince Edward ! heat re to-day. TUDOR THEATRE. • Frank Fay and Racquel Torres appear 1 Under A Texas Moon"- afc the Tudor Theatre this evening.

REGENT . THEATRE. ' Miss Ruth Chatterton, the dignified emotional actress of "Charming Sinners" and "The Laughing Lady," is again partnered with tlie polished English actor Clivo Brook, in "The Better Wife," commencing at the Regent Theatre to-day. Miss Chatterton invests with her customary charm tho _ part of a woman of humble birth who is married in a fit of despondency to an eminent. and brilliant lawyer (Clive Brook), who has been divorced by his pleasure-seeking wife. It is tho woman's endeavours to prove worthy of her husband's social status which enables the actress to rise to real heights of emotional characterisation. In spite of her earnestness, however, the wife sees her husband gradually deserted by his friends and in dancer of becoming a social outcast. The lawyer neglects his work and it is only the patronage of Gustav Saxon, a wealthy foreigner, admirably portrayed by Paul Lukas. seen recently in "Grumpy" and "Young Eagles," which enables him to regain his former prestige. Paul Lukas gives a distinctive portrayal in the unsympathetic role of tho foreigner whoso avowed love, for tho lawyer's wifo causes a temporary estrangement between tho two people. ST. JAMES' THEATRE. Sutton Yano's impelling drama, "Outward Bound." which was presented in Auckland a few years ago by the Little Theatre Society, has lost nono of its power by its transference to the talking screen. Splendidly produced and interpreted by a cast of accomplished artists, tho film version will open a season at St. James' Theatre to-day. Dealing with a difficult theme in an earnest manner, the story tells of the secrets unfolded by seven people who supposedly return from the dead. Although the play aroused a storm of criticism when it first made its appearance, the absenco of any desire on the part of the author to satirise the life hereafter overcame religious prejudices, and the play has since been translated into most foreign languages. Mr. Leslie Howard, the original Tom Prior of the stago success, recreates a striking character for the screen, and others in tho strong cast are Miss Beryl Mercer, of "Seven Pays' Leave" and "Common Clay," Holen Chandler, Alex B. Francis, Montague Love and Douglas Fairbanks, jun. LONDON THEATRE. "Her Man," which will replace "Enter Sir John" at the London Theatre to-day, is an exciting and swift-moving portrayal of the efforts of a Havana cabaret girl to escape from her environment and to begin life anew, with her sailor lover, raising chickens on an American farm. Helen Twelvetrees gives a splendid performance in the leading role, and the street, and cabaret scenes of a SpanishAmerican town are splendid. The capable acting of the large number of "supers" used in the crowd scenes is a special feature of the film. Several tuneful melodies have been included in the picture and humorous interludes have been skilfully interspersed between the many tense and dramatic scenes, which culminate in one of the most realistic bar-room fights ever screened. The supporting items 011 tho programme maintain the high standard set by the main picture, and cover a wide field of interest. TIVOLI AND RIALTO THEATRES. John Erskine's much-discussed novel "Sincerity" has been skilfully transferred to the talking screen by tlie Universal studios, and is being shown at the Tivoli and Rialto Theatres under the title, "A Lady Surrenders." None of the author's felicity of expression has been lost and the theme deals convincingly with the modern problem of marriage and divorce. In addition to the remarkable story, however, the film is notable for the introduction of Miss Genevieve Tobin and Miss Rose Hobart, two talented artists of the Broadway legitimate stage, to the screen. Splendid performances are also given by Conrad. Nagel and Basil Rathbone in the leading male roles.

CRYSTAL PALACE THEATRE. Mr. Cyril Maude, t\ie well-known English actor, who was seen in New Zealand some years ago, brings one of his favourite characters to the talking screen in the film version of "Grumpy," which is the picture of main interest at the Crystal Palace Theatre. As the eccentric old retired crime lawyer, whose gruff and shorttempered personality hides an active brain, the actor revels in the role he made famous on the stage. EMPRESS THEATRE. Mystery, romance and defb character sketching make "Grumpy," which heads tho programme at the Empress Theatre this evening, a really distinctive picture. As an irritable, yet likeable* old crime lawyer, Mr. Cyril Maude, the accomplished English actor, recreates a role in which he has appeared 011 the stage for many years.

WEST END THEATRE. " The Desert Song," with John Boles, and "True to iho Navy" are the attractions at the West End Theatre this evening. . EPSOM REGENT THEATRE. Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsev, the inimitable comedians of " Rio Rita" and " Dixiana," move gaily through a succession of hilarious episodes in " Half Shot, at Sunrise," at tho Epsom Regent Theatre this evening. ST. PATRICK'S DAY CONCERT The proceeds of the St. Patrick's Day concert to be held bv the combined Roman Catholic schools in the Town Hall on Tuesday evening will augment the Mayor's earthquake relief fund. Over 500 peiformers, • representing 15 schools, will take port in massed and solo singing and thev will have the assistance of wellknown local artists,, including Miss Kate Campion,* Mr. Fen . Barnes and Master Desmond Casey. An announcement of the programme will be made shortly. HOSPITAL CONCERT. Patients at the Auckland Hospital were entertained last evening at another concert, arranged by Mr. Neville Carlsen. A splendid programmo was presented in ward 28, the patients from other wards being present.