THE RECENT SHAR FORMANCES AT THE THEATRE ROYAL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11714, 23 April 1900, Page 3

THE RECENT SHAR FORMANCES AT THE THEATRE ROYAL.

TO THE KDITOK. Sin,—My attention lias been drawn to a lengthy epistle in your issue of the 16th on the above subject. The author states t-hnt he is an admirer .of mine,-mid then proceeds (o vilify mo in the most approved'fashion. Save me from piich admirers, say. I, who as "fools step in where angels fear to tread." His charges I will endeavour to reply to seriatim:

The seeencry, he says, was old and shabby. That is untrue, as, with the exception of one scene, it is all new, aiicl carried with the company, and the, one. scone referred to belongs to the Princess Theatre.

He says the play was hacked ay.d mangled cruelly— ay, brutally,—and in saying so lie merely betrays his ignorance. To inoluile al! (lie very beautiful scenes he refers to wo-.ikl necessitate the audience being in the theatre at 6 o'clock, and they would bo kept there till 12. Every leading actor who plays " Hamlet :> arranges his own version, and, with the exception of London, I have played the one I submitted in. every town in the I'nited Kingdom, in America, and throughout Australia, with satisfaction to my audiences ; and the nonsense he talks about the character of the King and the management is made plain when I state thot the gentleman who represented the part.is the manager, but had too much good sense to question my arrangement of the play.

Then he speaks of the apvointmnnis and dresses in disparaging terms. Vvhat does he want—ail elaborate production of the play costing some thousands of pounds for one or two nights by a travelling^ company? Instead of grumbling, as lie does. let him and those who are with him assist in the movement of having stage education, and so, by raising the tone of the drama, obtain such respect for it that the higher-class plays are better supported, and then managers will feel justified in spending more money on their m-oductions.

T do not care to follow the writer in bis obnoxious advice to some of the players, which, to say tl>e least of it, is characterised by an absence of gentlemanly feeling. All I will say is this: that the gentleman who represented Antonio had never done so before, and suffered at the beginning from stage fright—a malady I. hope the writer may never experience.

Of my own shortcomings in the writer's estimation thore is little to be said. I never expect to be .able to plea-sa everybody : but why be should object to my having- a little light shed upon me is beyond my comprehension. If T omitted the lines lie quotes, which I may be pardoned if I doubt, it was an error. : as-.l have always hitherto spoken them, and hope-to do so for mam- a year to

Your correspondent has no monopoly in his esteem for Shakespeare, and he is certainly not, serving the cause by writing in the style he has adopted.

He has a nasty word to say about the ladies: but- perhaps he docs not know or rare to know, that the lady who played tiie parts of Ophelia and Portia did so then for the first time, with but one rehearsal for Ophelia and two for Portia.- In my opinion she emerged from the trial with great credit, and I venture to say .that no unprofessional lady could have even; spoken the words. No doubt, hafl it boon possible, longer rehearsals would have taken place, but certain circumstances which need not be entered upon prevented that. I do not suppose that if any further correspondence appears I will be able to Sake nart in it; but, I. hope that out of evil may come good, and i hat this little storm in a teapot, may have the effect of helping the cause of the high-class drama, and aiding to obtain for it a much-needed State protection, when all these desirable results will be thoroughly brought about.—l am, etc.,

Walter Benti.ey. Theatre Royal, Christchureh, April 19.