NOTES BY PASQUIN.

Otago Witness, Issue 1751, 13 June 1885, Page 23

NOTES BY PASQUIN.

Contributions Jrom the Profession chronicling their movemeiits and doings are inmted. All communion tionatobeaMrmtd to "Pasquin," Otago Witness Office.]

The Pollard Lilliputian Opera Company left for Hobart by this week's boat. Their extended season did not turn out quite ao successful »b was anticipated, affording one more proof that many companies which wi.l draw admirably for a week will play to very "shy " houses if they are billed for a longor time.

" Leß Cloches de Cornevilla " waa removed after Saturday laat and a change of programme waa provided on eaca of the three nights of thiß week available. On Monday " The L ; Ule Duke," Tueßday " Pinafore," and Wednesday " The Pirates of Penzance." There ia little to be said about these performances. The cast in "Pinafore" shows very poorly against what it was four yeara ago, save only aa regards the characters of Ralph R^ctetraw and the Captain, filled respectively by Misses Flo de Lorme and Wallace. The two Misses Pollard as Sir Joseph Porter and Josephine are — well, criticism in this case might be construed into discourtesy. The Wybart R9eva Company did well in Auckland with Sardou'a ever -popular play "Diplomacy." Mr Reeve played hia old part of Henry Beauclerc, originally taken by John Olayton in London, Mias Alica Duorwyn oasayed Mrs Kendal's part of Dora, and Mr J. B. Sfceele Mr Kendal's character— Captain Baauclero. Mr Reeve's performance of his difficult and delicate part, if it has not dete riorated during tho laat five years, should be very popular in New Zealand. Mr R. Stewart aa Count Orfoff participated in the success achieved by the other pnncipala in Auckland. The opening night of the Company in Wellington is fixed for Monday next, when " Impulse " will be tho first piece producsd. Herr Frhystych, a Hamburg accordeon player, gave a couple of perfGrmancea in the Lyceum Hall on Friday and Saturday last, but draw only a handful of people on each occasion. He is a clßvor performer upon the instrument in question. Our amateurs are all busy just now. The performance of Byron's "One Hundred Thousand Pounds," and the farce " Jack's Device," was to be repeated at the Princes 3 Theatre ou Thursday in. aid of tho St. Mattbew'a New School Building Fund ; and on tha two following nights tha Masonic Shakespeare Club have the theatre for the iToduction of "Macbeth" (presented with Locke's music). Concerning this I must speak next week. There has been a "Tbompaon'a Panorama of the Soudan War" exhibiting lately in Christchuroh and eslewhere, and Mr "Zulu" ThompHon writes to the Press from Sydney disclaiming any connection with the show. The disclaimer was hardly necessary Mr Z. T. further statos that he will in wopria persona visit New Zealand shortly with a new panorama.

Mr J. C. Williamson, who is now fairly on hia route back to the Colonies, via San Franoieco, has succeeded in "landing" Dion Boudcault. Tho famous actor-author ia to open at the Theatre Royal, Melbourne, on July 11, and to leave Sydney in October, reachicg San Franoißco again in time to fulfil his American engagements. This arrangement will evidently prevent New Zealand having a chance of profiting by the visit. Boucicanlt will produce firafc his own pieee3, " The Colleen Bawn "' nud "TheShaughraun." Mr Williamson has dono other strokes of business during his flying trip through America. He has agreod with Mr Daly for the production of all the Madiaon square pieces, and has also arranged for " The Shadows of r» Great City," a piece very popular in New York. "The Bunch of Keys" and other light American skits are also to be played in Australia. Frank Thornton if» to be the great gun on the occasion of the production of " The Private Secretary " in Melbourne, probably next month. The American playwright Bartley Campbell haa figured np the net profits which have accrued to him in royalties and as manager Bince he began hia career as a dramatist, with the following result: -"My Partner," £3200 • "Siberia," £9000; "My Geraldine," £3600: " The Galley Slave," 1 £12,000 ; " Friend ;.nd Foe," £800; "The White Slave," £10.000; " Peril " (not Sardon'a play), £3600 ; " Risks," £1800 ; " Van, the Virginian," £1200 : " Fairfax," £1000. Altogether nearly £50,000. Not bad !

Oae ot Carl Roaa'B violinista remarked lately, in reference to the London Promenade Concerts, that the recognition accorded each of the national airs is as follows : " Turkish, loud cheering German, divided. French (the * Marseillaise ! ), cheering. Italian, cheering. Chinese, cheers and laughter, Russian, hisses and uproar. Sondaneee, aome cheering. British, groat enthusiasm. When," he continued, "the National Anthem ia cheered moat and the * AJaraeillaiaa ' next, the political confusion of the audience is in a moat chaotic state."

Irving'a early salary npon the stage was 25s a week. His last salary (before he superseded Mrs Bateman as lessee of the Lyceum) was £200 a week. What ha now makes as a successful actor-manager it would be difficult to even guess at. A very good hit at the actual scarcity of existence of the traditional green-room ia made by Mr Jerome, in hia new book entitled "Tho Brief Career of a Would-be Actor." He says : 11 There was no green-room. There never had been a green-room. I never saw a green-room, except in a play, though I was always on the lookout for it. I met an old actor once who had actually been in one, and used to get him to oome and tell me all about it. But even bis recollections wore tinged with a certain vagueneßs. He was not quite sure whether it had been at Liverpool or at Newcastle that he had come across it, and at other times h6 thought it must have been at Exeter. But wherever it waß the theatre had been burnt down a good many yeara ago— about that he was certain."

•i£ hel , a J a^; 8t * len£ conc «fc tickets is this— "Pew 16, Seat 2." Needleaa to say the performance is an oratorio. The Times and Daily Telegraph both devoted lmt over a column in tength to the return of Mr Irving and Miss Ellen Terry to London. The newly-started Playgoere' Club intend to occupy the entire first row of the pit on Mr Imng's re-entree at the Lyceum. Misa Minnia Palmer (now in Chicago) Bays that in her opinion^the "poor hard-worked critics all have hard-hearted employers, who make them "do" two or three theatrps in one ev . e . nin B- Hence it ia, she says, that some oritics l^e her and some don't, because one sees one bit of the play and one another The celebrated Mias Fortescue ia to the fore. She baa with supreme modesty told a Glasgow interviewer that she will not play Ophelia while Ellen Terry lives. She has further

threatened, in her next visit to Glasgow to don male attire and appear as Romeo, The Prince and Price 'aa of Wales, with their sons, went to see " Peril " at tho Court Theatre previous to their departure for Ireland. Con aider ing the title of the piece the visit no doubt seemed singularly appropriate. Mary Anderson has repeated at tbe Lyeanm her old success in the yet older oharactor of Parthenia. Mr Terriss waa her Ingomar, and a very good Ingomar too. After he had been duly caught and his hair cut by the gentle Parthenia he made a magnificent picture of the typical reclaimed barbarian. . Miss Jennie Lee's " Grasahopper " undor ita new name, "Good Luck," haa not found favour at tbe Strand Theatro. It ia remarked that the dramaiii persona have all deteriorated sadly — the little circus ridor herßelf moat of .all, — and that the dialogue has grown decidedly vulgar iv tone. Six nights of " Good Luck" waa enough, and "Jo" waa then hurriedly revived. This ia what one outspoken writer remarks concerning our popular Jennie Lee as the Grasahopper : " She sat on the table, she winked and grimaced at the audience, she mauled cold meat and pretended to devonr it, ehe drank from a bottle and pretended to be what she called 'muzzy,' and when Mr Olaik again came upon the scene she kicked up behind and ' landed ' bim in the stomach. Tho * unskilful ' laughed at all this, but the 'judicious' had cause to grieve. It wasn't fuu without vulgarity ; it was vulgarity without fun,"

Mr Wilson Barrett, consistent in his rivalry of Irving, intends to repeat that gentleman's travelling programme. He will shortly take an eight weeks' tour through the English pro vincial towns, and in October sail with hia entire company for a four months' visit to the United States, opening in New York early ia November, Scenery and properties for only thre3 plays will be taken — viz , " Claudian," " Hamlet," and another— not " The Household Guds."

The popular French actress, Mdlle Dioa Petit, has died with terrible suddenness. She waa starting to fulfil a professional ongagement at St. Petersburg, and just aa tho car moved off was taken ill. Her maid and the con ductor did what Ihsy could to : saist her, and fifteen minutes later the train pulled up at CompitSgne. Here a physician who was at hand pronounced her dead, the supposed cause bfinft heart diabase Mdlle Petit made her debut at the Orte'on in 1864, and was the original heroine in " The Two Orphans." M. Damala recantly fell off a rock (a stage rock) and broke hia arm. He is progressing well, and will aoon resume ac'.ing.

Tho New York Dramatic Nows deserves a word of credit for the following satire upon putf paragraphs : — A current paragraph in the n'jwFipapera announcas that Mdme Modjeska never wears ready- made stockings, but has he?B manufactured to prder in one of the leading silk mills of England. This information cannot but be most interesting to anyone who hai over seen Mdme Modjwka act It has hitherto been tho general opinion that Mdmo Modjeaka waa an actress of much skill, polish, and tale.nt, whose performances were made doljghtful by her experience and training, and by the natural gifts with which she in endowed. Now, however, we know that it ia the stockings. This hint ought to be of service to a groat many actresses who would like to be in Mdme Modjeaka's place if they could get there. Let them coase to wear readymadGstockiugsand become great arMsta.

Mr Arthur Howell, the husband of Mdme Rose TToire^, who accompanied that lady on her visit to Australia, ia just dead.

The following is one of the numerous advertismen « of cheap copies of Sbradivarius violins such aa are made by thousanis on the Continent", lubel and* all : — Handpome Lion-head Solo Violin, labolled "Antoniua Stradiurius Cremona faciebat, Anno 1650." Marvellous ricb tone : fine preservation ; suit professional; with bow, resin, and splendid brass-mounted case ; sacrifice lot for 15* ; carriage paid ; fonuino bargain. Inspection invited. — A iondon paper remarks thp,t there are two points of novelty about thi3 advertisement. The first ia that the violin bears date the year of Antonius Stradivariua 1 birth, and therefore it must have been manufactured by the great fiddle maker while he was in Rwaddling clothes. The second point is the munificence with which the advertiser includes in the bargain the resin.

A theatrical adaptation of Ouida's "Puck" hw been received at the Olympic with shoutß of dorisiv« lausrhtor.

" The Last Sigh of the Moon" is tha title of fche latest cantata- a very absurd one — given in London.

Five hundred new candidates were nxamined for the present session of the Guild Hall School of Music, and during the last term nearly £6000 was paid to 82 of the leading musical professors of the day. At the Vaudeville Theatre, the late H. J. Byron's posthumous play " Open House" has been produced, and proves that up to the very last the clever dramatist's haud bad not lost; its cunning. The piece promises to be one of the chief succpsaes of the season, J. L. TooJe ia rehearsing another of Byron's comedies which was lef b unfinished.

Mrs Langtry, after vainly trying to capture Londoners as Princo~- '• "Vfr efi an( j Lady Teazle, haa made a fair ri;o« • -<s< as Lady Ormond in Sardou's "Peril" {"Nob Intimoo"). I should say that those Londoners who remember Mrs Kendal in the same part would not be amongst those who are enthusiastic over Mrs Langtry's performance. However, the part is one of far lesser pretentious than those the Jersey Lily essayed at the commencement of tbe season.

Henry Irving has initiated a useful reform on hia return to the Lyceum. Henceforth every seat in the house, down to the pit and gallery even, will be numbered, and may be booked and reserved without extra fee.

Paragraphs lately appeared in the London papers to the effect that Mr Wilson Barrett intended to admit soldiers in uniform free to a Saturdayafternoon performance at the Princess' Theatre. The thing proved a hoax, and a number of soldiers were turned disappointed away from tbe theatre doors. The police are endeavouring to trace the author of the affair.

Two generally popular pieces, Derrick's "Twins" and " Trois Femmes pour un Mari," have lately failed disastrously in San Francisco. Worse than this, Ristori, still called by her admirers the greatest living tragedienne, b.-^r. just been playing in tho same city to a beggarly array of empty benches. Riatori. although hor genius is dimmed by age, is still pronounced in oer tain respects unapproachable, but the following passage from the Ngwb Latter amply accounts for tbo deplorably cavalier treatment she ia now receiving : — c> It would have been better for Ri?tori had phe allowed the impression madfi by her when, if not exactly in her prime at least but barely past it, to remain undisturbed. She is as ever the groat artist, the incomparable tragedienne, but age haa furrowed her cheek, wrinkled her brow, bßnt her back, dulled her eye, and strained her voice, and her appearance no longer cnmpletea the illusion of her realistic acting. Her vocal weakneas detracts from the significance of her emotion and pathos, Ths ©xorsi'wreaesa of bar

facial play is no longer as potent, for the marks of age nullify the efforts to oinphasize those human feelings associated with the aunny side of life. Mentally Ristori is as great today as she ever was. But the physical means by which she illustrated her genius are now but in a limited degree at her disposal." The onco great actress still plays alternately in English and Italian.

The Now York Mirror says— •• Although many of the chief British novelists have attempted the stage, thero is not an example on record where the sam 9 writer has been the author of a succeoaful novt>l and a successful play of the first-class " Does the writer not consider the late Lord Lyttun a successful novelist, and are "The Lidy of Lyons " and " Richelieu " not successful plays of the firstclass?

Just as Ellen Terry is returning to England after her triumphal American tour her husband, Mr Kelly, is lying upon hia death-bed in a semi-genteel Bloomsbury lodging. In thi9 case the wifo ha? not, as usually, borne the social penalties of marital separation. Whilst Mrs Kelly has gone on from triumph to triumph, Mr Kelly haa been achieving very meagre pecuniary results He is a man of liberal education, and at one time held a commission in the British army.

Marie Van Z*ndt ia to be accorded a great reception on her forthcoming appaaraace in London, to compensate her for the unchivaltou3 conduct of the Parisian mob who would not make allowancaß, and let bygones be bygones. Theatrical scenes and portraits are now •ho rage amongst London picture gazora, and a number of leading painters are reosiving sittings from profession ala. The camera obacuva ia to bo introduced on the boards of a Brooklyn theatre, and made to assist in working out the plot, by disclosing to a joaloua wifo the endearments of her husband and her rival.

Henry Ward Baecher, the stage's new ally, visited a performance of "Fedora" by Fanny Davenport, in Cincinnati. The only player whom Mr Beecher had previously scon waa Irving. It will thus be seen that the eminent divine has quite a store of amusement laid up for the solace of his old ago. Thero ia an actress in London who haa assumed the norn de theatre of Miss Tenuyson and bids fair to make a success not only upon the boards, but as a dramatic authoress.

A musical exchange has been formed in London with Colonel Henry Mapleson at itfi head, for the direction and transaction of all business connected with music at home or abroad. Agents will bo appointed in all large cities, and a great feature of tbo work will ba the introduction of artists and debutantes to managers, and the negotiation of engagements. The sale and disposal of musical copyrights is also to receive attention.

Mr Irving and Miss Terry embarked at New York amidst a perfect mob of private friends, autograph Bands, and interviewers. Small wonder that it in ntated towards the close of the straggle the actor's face wore a woaried and disgusted look, while Miss Terry piteously implored the reporters to desist, as she was extremely indisposed. She diplomatically gave the newspaper men a few " button holes " and they departed radiant.

A B^Btonian lady, oince lrving's visit, has expressed hor surprise that Shakespeare did not write n, play about Charles I, "It would havo been such a beautiful play," she declared, " But Shakespeare died bafore Charles waa born," objected a frisnd. "Ah well, but Shakespeare is full of anachroniams," waa the triumphant reply. Mr Clement Scott's version of "Claire Soleil," to be produced at the Comedy Theatre shortly, is entitled "Nelly Nightingale." "Little Jumbo," a diminutive elephant, who rides a tricycle, is the latest novelty at Covent Garden Circus (which house is, by-the-byo, shortly to return to ita legitimate use). The little animal mounts the machine without, assistance, and travels round in a Btyle that shows he is fond of the business. He can, further, walk upon the tops of wine boi; le3 and play the organ, and, at a pinch, the drum. We hear of curious Press mistakes in tha Colonies sometimes, but I am not aware that any Colonial journalist has beaten the recent P3rformance of the critic of the Manchester Examiner. " The' Bohemian Girl " was pliyed, and at the beginning of the book the original cast was re printed. The critic evidently laboured under the impression that he was actually lisfceoing to tbeea artiafcs, and wrofe accordingly. Ha further appaared to consider by his remarks that the opera was a comparative novPlty.

Walt Whitman, the fainouu poet who has given so many people the headache, is an old man of most picturesque aspect — with a face that suggests a kind of amalgamate Lear and Rip Van Winkle with a slight dash of Father Christmaa. When he is well enough he may be seen in the streets of Philadolphia in a costume fully as picturesque as himpnlf — a big felt hat, an open collar, and large cuffs of spotless whiteness. His house is a simple wooden dwelling, furnished like a log hut in the backwoods. There are no carpets ; at the head of the Htaira is piled the wood with which tho veteran replenishes the fire in his little stove ; the room in which ho workn i« ulao his bedroom; papers litter the iluor uI..J u-,b!e, and a few old printa from illustrated jwniirs decorate the walls,