SHAW PLAY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22583, 23 November 1936, Page 12

SHAW PLAY

COMPETENT STAGING LITTLE THEATRE SOCIETY SATIRE WELL CONVEYED Bernard Shaw's well-known satire "Fanny's First Play," in which _he attacks middle-class morality, caricatures leading dramatic critics of the day, and pokes fun at himself and his contemporaries, was presented at the Town Hall concert chamber on Saturday night by the Auckland Little Theatre Society as its loth production. In a characteristic preface Shaw has described "Fanny's First Play" as a pot-boiler, but, although some of its wit has been dimmed by the passing of the years, and many of its allusions have lost their sting, it is always entertaining. The Little Theatre Society's presentation was another triumph for the producer. Mr. Kenneth Brampton, and an extremely competent cast. Shaw states in his preface that "our respectable middle-class people are all as dead as mutton," and proceeds to try to prove his theory in the play. Its authorship is attributed to a charming young Cambridge student, however, and in a cleverly-written induction Shaw introduces Fanny I) Dowda and her father, and a quartette of critics who have been invited to pass judgment upon "Fanny's first play." Count O'Dowda is an Irish expatriate, who in mind and manners is a survival from tho 17th century, and he believes that his daughter is unspoiled by the crudities of the modern world in spito of her Cambridge education. Ho is sadly disillusioned, however. Witty Dialogue It is in this induction and the epilogue to the play that Shaw's genius for dialogue is seen at its best. 'J here have been few wittier scenes than that in which the bewildered Count O'Dowda is told how tho critics form their judgments. and the one in which they express their opinion of Fanny's first plav and arguo as to whether it has been written by Pincro, Granville Barker or Shaw himself. The players in the induction and epilogue handled their lines well, and their performances wero excellent. JDoreen Saunders was particularly successful as Fanny O'Dowda, while the courtliness and old-world style of Count O'Dowda was well conveyed by Edgar Middleton. The iour critics, Stanley Knight, Max Robertson, Rusk Harris and Terry Agnion-Smith, were Shaw's characters to the life. The honours went to Stanley Knight for his performance as .Mr. Trotter, tho doyen of the critics, and the only one to discover who has written the play, while T. B. Slipper presented a fine htudv of a blunt and matter-oi-faet English theatrical producer. Outstanding Performance In the play itself tho outstanding performance was that of Dulcie Dunningham as Margaret Knox. Her restrained acting in the more dramatic scenes, and her deft handling of the comedy moments, were features of the production. Dawn Collier provided much amusement as Darling Dora, tho happy-go-lucky girl who was responsible for Bobby Gilbey being chased by a policeman and going to gaol, while her partner in crime was ,0111potently played by Ron Bowie. As the French naval lieutenant, Charles Zambucka was equal to his role. The two families, Mr. and Mrs. Gilbey and Mr. and Mrs. Knox, had most of the work to do in the play, and were smartly portrayed by Cam Laurie and Winifred Osborne and P. H. Woods and Anne Lane. James Lovatt was efficient as the Gilbeys' butler, the imperturbable Juggins, who turned out to be the son of a duke.