THEATRICAL & MUSICAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2020, 10 November 1892, Page 35

THEATRICAL & MUSICAL NOTES.

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Bookings for the Dunedin Princess Theatre are Williamson's Comic Opera Company, December 14 to January 12 ; Max O'Rell, under Mr Smythe's auspices, January 13 to 17 ; Holloway Dramatic Company (return season), February 18 to March 4. Mr Bentley. proposes to play a return season in Duuedin from February 11 to February 17. Martin Simonsen is cabling to New Zealand with respect to dates for Emerson and Wood's Alabama minstrels, now performing in Melbourne. Mr St. Clair, manager of the Holloway company, has received a cable message intimating thafc the Maggie Moore company have abandoned their New Zealand visit. The competition in the circus line in the Ofcago country districts does nofc seem fco have been a brilliant success in some of the centres at all events. At Winfcon Hayes' Allied Circus is said to have had an audience of 990, while the moiety of Wirth's circus which showed there is alleged to have only had 20. Rather depressing circumstances under which to go through a long performance. Mr Cameron informs me that his company will work its way up north, wintering in Auckland, and that thence Mr Hayes will take a trip to America with the object of obtaining fresh novelties. Mr Horace Chester and Miss Ada Fitzroy have joined forces in Chtistchurch, and are appearing in the Arfc Gallery in Armagh' street. Mr F. C. Appleton is the only. Australian actor with a university degree. He is aB. A., Melbourne. His daughter, Miss Maud Appleton (but now Mrs Robert Inman), will be remembered as a leading member of the Grafcfcan Riggs Company during their late tour of the colony. The Montague-Turner Opera Company are meeting with success on the West Coast. They are afc present afc Reef ton. Messrs Knight Asfcon, who came to New Zealand with the late A. T. Dunuing's London Opera Company, John Gourley, and Edward Farley have joined the Emily Soldene Opera Bouffe Company in Sydney. Mr Harry A. Gribben, who commenced his career in Maoriland, is a leading member of the London Gaiety Company now performing in Melbourne, and is said to be an exact" copy of Fred Leslie.

Auckland correspondent, writing last week, says :— Some of the companies have done very badly, owing to the plethora of amusements. Signor Foli must have gone away with a very poor opinion of musical Auckland, and, with the exception of the night on which he was accorded Viceregal patronage, he sang fco a beggarly row of empty benches. The fact is he fell upon evil times. Neither the appeals nor denunciations of the press had the slightest effect in improving matters for Foli. The opera company had swept the boards. The notes of "Ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay" still lingered in the ears of the Aucklanders, and the attractions of high-class music were set forth in vain. The spectacle afforded abundant food for reflection to the cynic and the moralist. A daughter of Alice Lingard'6 has just married Charles Godfrey, the lion comique's son. The bride must be one of the two little girls who 10 years ago, when the Lingards were playing in the colonies, used to parade the streets in care of their musical conductor, Luscombe Searelle. Miss Lingard is still what elderly gentlemen call " an uncommon fine woman, sir," though to the youthful taste perhaps a trifle — well, elephantine. Signor Foli on Thursday, October 20 (says the Sydney Telegraph), finished his New Ztaland concert series at Auckland, aud the big basso in a few weeks will be turning his goodhumoured face once more towards London. Of all the "specially imported" stars who have thrown a passing brightness over the colonief, Signor Foli has been the least fortunate. He will go back richer in experience perhaps than anything else. Ifc is true the terms agreed upon before he left England have been paid, but all the same the tour has not been a financial success, and ifc is a matter for regret thafc Mr W. H. Poole, to whose enfcerprife we owe the basso's visit, has beeu left considerably out of pocket. Foli had the ill-luck fco drop down upou us iv hard times, aud his tnanagc-

ment proved unequal to the struggle. The singer of "Off to Philadelphia " himself must have found it to his advautage to be an Irishman, and we have it on good authority that ifc is one of the peculiarities of an Irishman of the right sort that he derives consolation and contentment under circumstances which inspire in others less happy-go-lucky in disposition only disappointment and dismay. I notice (says a writer in the New Zealand Herald) that among those who take part at Snazelle's entertainment at the Choral Hall is Ivan Truegold, a pianist and a Russian. There is a bit of romance attaching to this gentleman's appearance. Local gossip says he is a Russian of noble birth, and was placed under Rubinstein, but forsook music to join the Russian navy. For political reasons he left Russia, and finding himself stranded here, took to that last resort of many geniuses— the gumfields. It was there that Mr Snazelle discovered him, a^d hearing his story, took stops to get a practical test; of bis ability as a pianist and afc once engaged him. There is no place like a gumfield in which to find "all sorts and conditions of men"— Oxford and Cambridge men, exofficers of the Guards, and artists of all kinds. Some time ago a musician of exceptional ability was found acting as cook at a saw mill. He was taken in hand, brought to Auckland, afterwards toured in Australia, and is now in London. Mr Beerbohm Tree's father— an old German •gentleman named Beerbohm, much respected in London " city " circles— died at the ond of August. Old Mr Beerbohm was in the grain trade, and owned or controlled one or two journals devoted to it. He was a fine, handsome man, living in good style near Hyde Park. The old gentleman disapproved of his son's choice of the stage as a profession, but became reconciled to the unavoidable after the brilliant success of the son as actor and manager. Mr George Rignold, in a letter to the Era, vigorously denies Mr Wingh'eld's statement that Her Majesty's Theatre, in Sydney, is devoted to producing dramas of a low, sensational character. Mr F. Nosworthy, an actor, killed himself at Maccle&field, Cheshire, on August 9, leaving the following remarkable letter addressed to his manager :—" Dear Mr Graham, — I owe you some explanation and more of apology for my discourteous and unusual method of leaving your company, and also of robbing you of a night's service. Last night, during the front scene with Lingard, an ' old complain of my eyes came once more upon me. On a previous occasion I had to relinquish my employment for ever. I was a draughtsman then, and my sight was useless to me for some time. Nofc choosing to become this time a burden upon my relatives, also being somewhat tired of life and having no fear for anything hereafter, I have, in the full possession of my reason and after carefully studying the question on all sides, decided on the step I am about to take. Asregards Mrs Braid, the balance of my salary is in a drawer in the looking-glass in the room I occupied. I fear it will not discharge my liabilities towards her, but perhaps if the Macclesfield authorities will be kind enough to provide me with a wooden box without forfeiting my few things, they might realise sufficient for the balance. lam resting under the fond hope that my few relatives, with whom I seldom communicate, may not hear of this, as matters such as these only attract a passing local notice in this buoy world. (I am having ray breakfast as I write this. Curious, isn't it?) I wonder what a pistol-shot will feel like ! Not much, I reckon ; but, all being well, I shan't be able to tell you. By the way, it may interest you to know that I am not the miserable devil you would, perhaps, imagine. On the contrary, I am quite cool and collected, as I am already booked for my last journey, and expect to carry ifc through successfully." The jury returned a verdict of suicide while temporarily insane. " Almavira," in the Figaro of June 8 says :— " In the course of the past week, two actresses ■well known to the profession have been cut off by death. Miss Lydia Foote, a charming actress, whose best-known character was perhaps that of Esther Eccles in "Caste," had been before the public for nearly 30 years, her first performance having been made in "The Detective" in 1860. The other lady who passed away was Mrs Leigh Murray. She had reached the age of 75, and had retired from the profession. Mrs Murray will be remembered as the original Mrs Kinpeck in " Plays," and Mrs Foley in " Forget-me-Not." Her last appearance was, I believe, in " A Village Priest" at the Haymarket. Not the least interesting fact in connection with Madame Bernhardt's performance of Leah on v recent Saturday evening was that the original English Leah was present. Miss Bateman was in a private box, following the performance throughout with the deepest interest. But the drollest incident of the evening was caused by the waggery of the promjjter, who " rang down" in the second act before Madame Bernhardt had said all she wanted to say. Now Leah, in M. Dannont's version, is not nearly so loquacious as usual, all the spare talk being done by Nathan, the Schoolmaster, so Madame Bcrnhavclt felt that she really could not do without this speech, and her voice was heard steadily declaiming for a full minute after the fall of the curtain. "Those who knew" were heard to exprebs pity for that prompter. Immense sums are now being paid by fashionable New Yorkers to operatic stars for their services at private houses. Miss Emma Eames, for singing at a large reception recently, received the sura of £200 ; and it is said that one of the De Reszkes determinedly refused to sing at a privatei vate house until the too tempting offer of L4OO for his share in the evening's entertainment made him break through bis resolution.