THINGS THEATRICAL

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 7336, 14 January 1911, Page 8

THINGS THEATRICAL

OBSERVATIONS IN AMERICA AND EUROPE. MR HAROLD ASHTON'S VIEW. Mr Harold Ash ton reached Dunedin from the south on Monday evening, having just arrived by -the Moeraki from Melbourne after a tour of England, the Continent, and America extending over nine months. Mr Ashton's tour was a business one from first to last in the interests of Mr J. C. Williamson, whom he accompanied from Australia to London at the commencement of his journey. In England lie visited in addition, of course, to London all the provincial centres, and from there travelled through France, Germany, Belgium, and Holland. He then crossed over to Canada, and passed down to New York and several of the other big cities of the United States, returning to Sydney via Vancouver, and arriving there on Boxing Dai'. " And hero I am in Dunedin," said Mr Ash ton, when interviewed by a "Daily Times" reporter. "And 1 am specially delighted to get back here at this particular stage, because I personally made arrangements for the whole of the productions which Mr Williamson's company has now commenced to stage in Dunedin when I was in Amercn on t!n> occasion, of my previous visit there two ' years ago, and then also engaged Miss Katharine Grey, who was looked upon by all the principal theatrical managers | there as the best leading woman m j America. My nine mouths' tour was I made with the express and only purpose of seeing all the attractions and b'g artists in the different countries visited, and looking out for anything that might be suitable for our market. Some of the results are to be seen in the pantomime which we are now producing in Melbourne—-namely, 'Mack and the Beanstalk." which is unquestionably the best ;we have ever produced. Dmiedinitps will have an opportunity later on ofI see'ng it, and personally—-and the Mcli bourne public ovidentlv' hold the same . opinion—l consider it the bent we have ' ever introduced. It is certainly the most expensive. Several of the specialities i which are introduced in it are the ont- ! come of the visit Home made by Mr I Williamson and. myself. Aad to give some idea of the extent to which one is prepared to go to obtain the desired specialty of sneei'dit'es. I might mention that I left London one evening and the next morning was in Paris, and from there went to Belgium, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Bremen. Hamburg. Leipzig, Cologne, and then back to Paris, stopping at each place one or two nights, as the case might be. and attending the bijr vaudeville performances. And all this travelling in search of a bior specialty- which was urgently required for the pantomime which we are now running in Melbourne. Even then my object was not attained, as the few big specialities that I did see that were good enough, for engagement were booked for a long period, abend. In ■lie meantime, however/ Mr Williamson had secured a very fine one in London. In going to all this trouble and expense it was realised fully that Australians and New Zea'anders would have nothing but the best, arid this Mr Williamson has always tried to e"ve them. "As you know. Mr Williamson has arranged for a tour of Australia and New Zealand by Henry B. Irving and his wife. Miss Dorothea Baird, and a complete company, which will come out at the end of May next. The company will present its Shakespearian repertoire, and its v : sit will represent the biggest venture in drama that has yet been launched in Australia, Mr Williamson has also purchased numerous other pioces including . Conan Doyle's latest; 'The Speck-led Band,* and another very fine drama by an American author, entitled 'Alias Jimmy Valentine.' Both of these nieces we saw in London, and they proved two of the big successes of the season. They will be brought to this country in due course. Altogether Mr Williamson has prettv well secured the cream of what was offering, both in England and America, so that theatregoea-s need not. be disturbed about not being well sunplied for some time to come "I saw Miss Tittell Brune in London. She is looking splendid, and desired to be remembered to her Australian and New Zealand friends, with quite a host of whom she corresponds She still looks upon herself as an Australian, as it was in the colonies that she made her big successes. I saw her playing in Hal! Caine's piece, The Eternal Question'.' and she was very fine indeed, but tli» piece itself was not a success. Miss Ola Humphrey is doing very well indeed at the Strand Theatre. London, in the fareecomedy. 'The Man from Mexico,' whieh was played here' by tho Hugh Ward Company. "An important venture will shortly be introduced to the Australian public by Mr Will'amson. He has made arrange ments . for a grand opera - com nan v headed by Madame Melba. with an enormous array of lending Continental artists, to visit Australia in Septemhfir next. This company will bo altogether too big to take anywhere except to Melbourne and Sydney, in each of which cities it will play for a season of eight weeks. Prices of admission will, nf courses, require to be enormously Increased. Anyhow. Mr Williamson has taken the matter in hand to thoroughly test the desire of the public in Me! . bourne and Sydney for grand opera on fi.o very finest scale. The question isWill Australians manifest a due apn*-p----ciotion of it? Personally. I think thev will." Questioned in, reference to the Toeent-ly-oaWed announcement from London that Mr Beeeham was profoundly dis"itisfied with the third opera season, and that an elenhant standing on one foot on top of Nelson's Cohimn draw a much larger crowd than 25 "Salomes." Mr Ashton TemaTked that Mr Beeeham, who was one of the family of- Betfcham of pill fame, a millionaire, and a great musical enthusiast, was, to begin with, paying excessive salaries, while another point was that he. had set himself up against the Covent Garden season. -London people were accustomed to get their grand opera at certain seasons, and it was owing to the extra expenses incurred and the fact of not producing his trrand operas :tn tho reeular seasons that Mr Beecbatn's enterprises had not turned out successfully. "Evidently." said Mr Ashton. "Oscar , Hammerstein, the American, holds different ooinions from those pfMrßeeobam and thinks a great deal of the possibilities of London for grand opera, as, when I left, he was going to erect very bit' buildings in London, and run in opposition to Covent Garden. He had the thing in NewYork running against the famous Metropolitan Opera Directorate, and was so successful that, eventually they were compelled to buy hiin out-"