AMUSEMENTS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15382, 20 February 1912, Page 6

AMUSEMENTS

HAMLET. There was another packed house n|. His I Majesty's TJusilto !n.-l ovpniiifr to-witness ihe -ecnnd presentation of Handel by Mr 11. 11. Irving ami his London IVms- ~ puny. Mr Irving again gave a satisfac- r lory interpretation of the character of the mcianchnlv Dune brooding over the great ( wrong done to his father, suspicions, of , every art (if the tiMirping King, and litiajly. liy t.lio tide of circtm:<laticvs, at lust rising j to the occasion and wreaking the revenue on tin- usurper which had been laid on j liim In- the ghost of his murdered sire. Miss Uaird'fulfilled all thai was required of her ] in tlip part of Ophelia, while the rest of ( the rhnnifters fully realised the op|K>rlunities which fell to their lot in the working out of t!i- tragedy. The staging of the j scenes is carried out in a. most appropriaio j style, while the incidental music of tltC| ( orchestra is nicely suNlitcd. and leaves nothing to he desired. "Hamlet" will bo produced again this evening, • TIIK LYONS MAIL, On Thursday and Friday next playgoers will Ih> presented with their first opix.rtunitv of witnessing a production of "The Lyons Mail." which is.generally regarded as being one of the must interesting dramas ever st-aged. The Duboso of Mr Irving is said to li« an intense study, which holds the audience in thrall all Ihe lime, and when at last the callous, hardened criminal is run to earth ami stands at liav his rage altogether passes the hounds of a human being. This character has long been considered one of the greatest, tests of an actor's talent, and the fact that Mr Irving recorded the longest run in the pirco of any actor since Ihe original production of the niece proves that he may claim tho distinction of being one of the finest actors the stage, has overproduced. Mr Irving's version of "The Lvons Mail " was written by Charles Heade, for the benefit of Charles Koan, who produced it in 1854. Queen Victoria and the I'rince Consort were present at the. lirst performanoe, and are reported to have been '• wrapt, in deep attention, bv tho interest of the scene." More than half a century later, instead of Royalty coming to the plav. the nlay went to Royally. llraring of 'tho furore Mr Trving's performance had tSocasvmrd, King Edward commanded him to Windsor, where the Tun? of Portugal was Ihe truest of the moment, Thn coming tragedies of the two monarchs were mercifullv veiled from them, and the evening was an unqualified success. Mr Irving, of course, being presented and warmlv thanked at its close. The dale, November 19. 1909, was destined to be specially memorable in the annals of stage history, for it proved to lie that of the last State performance, ever given in a reign which was all too short. Onlv two performances can he given of "The Lyons Mail." as on Saturday " Louis XL" will be staged, and on Monda.v the season will close with a production'of "Thr> Hells." A special carriage will be attached to the 12.40 train to Palmerston tomorrow and Thursday morning, which will give residents of stations between Port Chalmers and Palmerrton an opportunity of witnessing "llanilot" 10-nighi and to-morrow night, and return home after the performance. THE KINO'S THEATRE. 'Die new programme of pictures presented at Ihe King's Theatre last night contains abundant 'matter of interest for tho lover of these shows. The lirst number is another instalment of the Australian Gazette containing several topical incidents, while there is also an instalment of the Pat he Gazette, rich and varied throughout. Among the dramatic studies the best is perhaps the one entitled the " Red Cross Seal. It is the story of a girl in |ioor circumstances in the tenement, dwellings of New York. Her ambition lies in thn field of art. anil in consequence of t an advertisement in the papers she applies for admittance, to a school, but tho terms put the mailer out of question. As she turns away disappointed she is noticed by a young gentleman of fortune, who realises that liis life is an aimless one, and eventually, liaving discovered the address of the girl, he takes lodgings in her vicinity to study the life of Ihe lower classes at firsthand. Ho finds out that Ihe heroine, having won a prizo that would have paid her fees in the school, has nobly sacrificed her ambition to save the life of a neighbour, who must have a change- He tries to woo her, hut without success, so he buys the tenements, reforms the life of all its inmatesi and eventually in his own known person and position seeks her again, with tho desired result, "The Smugglers" is also a story of much interest, the heroino being raptured by a. band of smugglers, who decide to sacrifice her life to save their interests. She places a note in a bottle and flings it into the sea, where it is picked up by her father's fishing boat, The revenue cutter is communicated with, and (he whole band taken prisoners. "Tho Peril of tho Plains" is a good story of Ihe Wild Wesl, the prominent figures being a girl and her young brother, who are caplured by Indians. A pleasing drama is called "The Carrier Pigeon." The hero tells his love by means of the bird, which afterwards conveys tidings of his danger, and he is rescued from Ihe hands of a body of Indians who have him at bay. There is a fine scientific film, "The Lilo of Dees," which shows the whole process and management of a bee farm, to the wonder anil delight of the interested spectator. Tho mmtc element is more than usually pronounced. "Heroes Three " and " Duped by Dupin" are very laughable, while "Courting Across the Court," besides the element of fun. also contains a fine view of a suffragette procession. "The Almighty Dollar" is particularly good, the hero in this case coming off with flying colours. The programme will bo repealed to-nighl, and continue as usual till the end of the week. FULLKHS' IMCTfUUES. Made doubly atliracliivo by its general mr-rit anil by the. freshness lent 10 it by i the introduction of otto or two kxal elfcels, tho new piogramiiic that was submitted to pa iron: in ilio Princess Tlioalro last night in no wise failed in its purixiie of amusing . and entertaining. There are several kintniiaMilor films on the list, owli of them Iwing ) very good. That showing l-lio Rcedhajii boys at drill was vechaps on-i of the best, . llio Ixivh, aH dressed alike, going; through various' intricate evolutions and marches > with a precision and uniformity Hint was almost machine-like, and could only lie the . outcome of endless effort.. A very pretty lain is unfolded in '•The Modern J lousy ) that .lack ISuilt." an adaptation of the |>opular fairy-tale, in which duck builds n house. . for his bride-to-be, only to find that she has fallen a victim to tho wiles of a eotuci what dyspeptic-looking millionaire, .lack '. U-turns U> the. city disconsolate, but incitnI while another young liuly appears on the stone, and afler Incoming acquainted with Jack's sad story, t-'dies blich an apparent interest in the house ttiat one is almost led k> believe that it is i»6t tile house at all that interests her. These suspicions are confinm*i later in the story by certain interesting deviliKimcnU. which result in "The House that Jack Built" becoming a ipiite useful institution, An interesting 1 industrial film de|«cts tho making of a six-ion cheese, the whole, process bene; \ shown, from the milking of the <r>w ami the jireiKualion of tins cind lo the final bidding tip in the mould. "The Wager'' is ' a iaiighablc tale of a young man who 1 Ims wagered that he will kiss bin friend's ' fiancee at her birthday iiarty, of how he 1 succeeds in " making good," and of thn discomfiture of tin young ecttple on discovering how the lady Ins bovn duped. Most ol tho second half of the entertainment ii taken tip with the tcivoning of "The Fatal Wedding.'' the pioditction of (be Australian Biograph (.'o. The story whitii i.i we'd loh] in the picture is too well-known to need repetition, but menlia:i may lie made of a wvue in whiclt the tin-can band collectively and individually display its ability, the dancing of somo of th<- little (.'iris being extremely clever. The introduction at appropriate moments of a juvenile churns which had sjn-ci-ally trained by Mr I'. Maninelli, adilcd to the enjoyment which the film afforded. In the iju-Iv liii'i of ihe cu-niii/ Mr .lohn Ful lor, sen"., gave pleasing renditions of "() ;-timinor night " and " The pilgrim of love." Though hardly n> strong ai of yure. Mr Fuller's wice has lost none of im sweetjie<.s, and his .-lifts were rewanlcd with vigoious apjilauie. lnti'reslin.; films on tile list which may n'to lie mentioned ar-j " Waldidcvs of (he World," '•Great Knu'i'ieeriir.' Fctis." and " Dupin Atnuse.-, ilim.iclf." Tile pictures, will bo diown again this evemic.'. UAYWARD'S IMCTURKS. N'ohvith.-tai.diug tlie many tounler atiittoiious, a liouso assembled at the iltuns Hall last night, and distinctly showed [ its appreciation cf the fine programme, tie' !s\-r jiorh-jp- y« displayed in the hall. All the rtoms v,e r , ; good, but four pictures stand out in slr-'ing relief, and_ are wt.rtii ■-•oil'.}; to see. T lio>b are tite " Threshold of ' F.iiV." " Wonderiiil Plant Life," " Flora and tilt Nymph"." a wrfceth-coloured am! arti-tie procnetion. and ""T'ne Indian i Fluto." a Yitagr.iph production which is j not overdone, and which is perfect as re- : ganis Tv* sacm scries will t» rci\o-',oJ to-aisfct.