NOTES BY PASQUIN.

Otago Witness, Issue 1761, 22 August 1885, Page 23

NOTES BY PASQUIN.

Contributions from the Profession chronicling their movements and doings are invited. All comfnumcations ■ to be dddresed to "Pasquin," Otago Witness Office.)

' Auckland for melodrama, Dunedin and Christchurch for comedy, is likely to become an accepted axiom among theatrical managers. It would be difficult to determine the why and wherefore, but there have been repeated instances tending to confirm this estimate. Frederick Marshall, one of the most brilliant , comedians who ever visited the Colonies, landed in Auckland and appeared in some of his best ■characters there before empty benches. He penetrated south as far as Napier meeting no better reception, and forthwith turned his back "upon New Zealand, probably for ever. On the other hand, Messrs M'Mahon and Leitch, with a company certainly much inferior to many that .have travelled this Colony with meiodrama, .• have achieved a really gigantic success in Auckland actually extending their season to a period . of n,e>rly ten weeks'. ' InDnnedin and Christchurch they did fairly, good, but by no means - extraordinary, business. They compared un- ,. favourably with the " New Babylon," " World," and '♦' Youth" companies. But Auckland has {proved to them a veritable Tom Tiddler's ground, and the final sensation added to their 'repertoire, "The Pearl Divers," has. drawn ' more money to the treasury than either " The ' Silver King" or "The Lights o' London." " Tbi§ makes it interesting ' to examine what ' manner of piece "The Pearl Divers" is. It *'* ma^ be fairly described as a spectacular melange 'in" six acts,- and was in its original form first ,' produced in Paris. Among the sensations are a 1 diving scene involving a tremendous struggle at ' thfc'bottom of the sea, a London street during a thunderstorm and downpour of "real rain," a : collision at sea, a leap from a speeding train, and exciting passages in a lunatic asylum. ( The general mounting of the piece was, according to the Auckland papers, exceedingly good. ■ The company are due at the Princess Theatre, Dunedin, on the 21st September, and play " short .return seasons at Wellington and Christchurch dri their way down. Mr Leitchi 'while playing in the " The Pearl 1 Divers" last week, had a valuable watch and "chain abstracted from his' dressing-room' by some ' one of the light-fingered gentry. Mr W. H. Thompson commenced with his Zulu War Diorama at the Princess Theatre last Saturday night. Both pictures and lecturer seem untouched by liime since their last appearance here, and Mr Thompson, to the great delight of the pit, is as liberal as ever in the matter of presents. The ! Egytian War is yet to come. Mr John Radcliff and Mdme Pauline Rita ' gave a couple of very successful entertainments at the Thames. ' ' Professor and Mrs Baldwin commenced, a series of, their entertainments at the Theatre Royal, Auckland, on Friday last.' , Mr George Lingard, with his Panorama of Scotland and the Soudan War, was to open in Wellington.dri Thursday, the 20th inst.J . Mr Wybert Reeve and his company have been drawing good houses at Invercargill during the past week. , ' 4 It is •well-known'that one of the chief attractions of Mr Wills' new" play "The Young Tramp " will be the appearance of Mrs Langtry " in male clothing. She has to, don' trousers, and tof ask a frien4 whether she looks like a man. The friend has to reply : , " Well, you look rather • too wide about the —^—" Whereupon tlje Jersey Lily will very properly remark, " Don't be rude." ! ' These are' quoted as authehtic'lines', bu'tit seems ; doubtful whether they will really be allowed to '■ stand. ' ' i .The Inventories Exhibition was not long without its fire. The conflagration broke out early one ' afternoon, and though promptly extinguished, did about £20,000 worth of j damage in "ihe 'French annexe portion of' the India Museum. The spirits of theatrical Managers are said to have' risen' immensely 'as the newsvendors perambulated the' streets howling, «• The Inventions in Flames !" , j ' The condition of theatrical business, in London is shown by the fact that at two theatres — the Empire and Vaudevilles-half salaries are being paid, Mr Irving has found himself obliged to issue the following announcement:-— STAGB WARNING. — An Advertisement, seeming to date from the LYCEUM THEATRE, having lately appeared. offering to procure, at a small pre- • .xnium, engagements on the Stage for Lady Amateurs, Mr IRVING begs to give, notice that such Advertisement .was, entirely wittiout his knowledge, and had absolutely no connection wltK the Lyceum Theatre ; and that, moreover, no such Advertisement is ever issued from' the Theatre, > ■ ',

'Miss Emma' Nevada, the popular prima donna, is -to .M married to her agent, Mr Palmer, in • • .October/ 1". • ". '; ; • ; A very old Adelphi melodrama, called " The 1 Thirst for Gold," has been revived at the Olym- • pic Theatre. The French original, "La Priere Sea Nauf rages,", was produced at the Paris " AmbigU as lpng ago as 1853, but the piece has interesting' Englip assopjations as being the onVin- which' Bliss Genevieve Ward, until then only as an operatic vocalist, made her stage <#6vfr'at"'the Adelphi.' The pjece was then called •' The Brayer in the ' Storm,'' and ran fqr 162 nights. JJLiss Ada Ward is now, playing the part once filled by her celebrated name: pake. The will of the late composer, Mr Brmley jSichards, has been- sworn over £4400. Gertain London circles are in a flutter of ant>cip,at?ori qver the projected dehyt as a professional violinist of the Brincess Lidi D.olgou- ■ rouki, daughter of the morganatic wjdow of );hQ'''late 'Czar Alexander. Qreat interest is being exerted to^compel the F-rinc.es's to abandon "her intention! ' Respecting Mdme Fatti's recent appearance In London in «<La Traviata, ?> the two great sen : sations of the evening are said to have been the

Patti Idas and the Patti diamonds.

The former

is an importation from the United States, where' the • Patti kiss " has become as celebrated as the "Ellen Terry shake" and the "Emma Abbott hug." At Covent Garden Mdme Patti rushed at the happy Signor Giannini, took his head between her two fair hands! and adminisie'red a sounding kiss on the forehead until the tenqr looked as if he would like her to do it $ome more. Then stye retreated, blowing kisses with her two hands to him from far away, until she suddenly escaped through the open door. Mdme Batti's engagement is for eight nights 8* *®$ a n 'B^*» This is a good deal short' of phe extraordinary 'terms she commands in America, but still it is the highest salary ever paid - #> a prima donna in England. Govent Garden jpheu full ' only holds', about £1200, and the exyenssß foot up to very nearly J6900 » night,' The

margin of profit left for the enterprising manager who engages Patti is therefore small. Miss Minnie Palmer is back again in Europe. She goes for a holiday to Switzerland, and reappears in London as Tina in "My Sweetheart " about the end of September. Sir Arthur Sullivan, despite premature announcements, has really left England on his way overland to 'Frisco.

The Bancrofts' farewell at the Haymarket was fixed for July 20, when the Prince and Princess of .Wales had promised to attend. The Handel Bi-Centenary Festival at the Crystal Palace proved a gigantic ' success notwithstand the fears that- were entertained that no one would be found now Sir Michael Costa is gone capable of controlling a musical army nearly 4000 strong. Mr Manns, however, essayed and accomplished the task. The total attendance at the festival wns 85,474 or an average of ever 20,000 each day. " Dark Days " is to be produced almost simultaneously in England, Germany, and America during the last Week in September. Its London home will be the Haymarket with Miss Lingard, Mr and Mrs Beerbohm Tree, Charles Sugden, Barrymore and others in the caste. Mr Beerbohm Tree plays the villain, a character which has been considerably expanded from that of the original murderer William Evans. The story is considerably altered in may respects. Mr and Mrs W. J. Holloway (Miss Kate Arden) and their daughter, Miss Essie Jenyns have been thoroughly enjoying themselves in London and Paris. They return to Australia about Christmas time, with several novelties, and liberally replenished wardrobes.

After her retirement Mrs Bancroft intends to write a full and complete history of her theatrical management, which will probably be a most interesting record. It will date from her early career as partner with the late H. J. Byron at the little Prince of Wales' Theatre 20 years ago, when Miss Marie Wilton, instead of being an exponent, of drawing-room comedy, was a favourite burlesque actress. It was only by mere accident that Mr and Mrs Bancroft struck the line that has brought them fame and fortune. M. Gounod, the eminent French composer, is between two stools. In consequence of a verdict for heavy damages obtained against him by Mrs , Weldon he vowed never again to set foot in England, but nr an while pressure is being exerted to compel him to fulfil an engagement to conduct his new oratorio " Death and Life " at Birmingham, and a claim of £1200 for non-fulfilment of contract stares him in the face. The unfortunate musician will evidently have to " part" one way or the other.

Miss Van Zandt's success in London has keen so great that the pavagraphers got to work and announced to the world that the young lady was about to be married to a Russian Grand Duke. This soft impeachment being denied, they next discovered that she had fallen into horrible disgrace with the Prince of Wales, by declining to meet his Royal Highness. This, too, proves to be false, notwithstanding a substratum of truth. Miss Van Zandt was, it seems, invited to dinner by Sir Arthur Sullivan to meet the Prince, but having a dinner party at her own house that evening was compelled to refuse. The Prince, so far from taking offence, gave the young prima donna a "by special desire " night immediately afterwards, and also invited her to sing at Marlborough House.