THEATRICAL & MUSICAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2085, 8 February 1894, Page 37

THEATRICAL & MUSICAL NOTES.

Coatritmtttsi from tht Profusion ohronlollng their rnoyemenU •nd iloinc »r. lcrlted. All coramunlcatioiu to bo adireiMd ti "Pmiquiti," OUfO TTilaen OA«*. New Zealand i 8 singularly free from theatrical companies just now. In the South Island the sole attractions are the Hellers in Southland, Mr J. W. Foley in the Southland country districts, Hayes's Circus, and Lyon's Opera Burlesque Company at the Christchurch Tuam street hall. The North Island is a little better off, the Brough-Boucicault Company not yet having finished their tour, but notwithstanding this the advent of the Howe-Spong Company in the south and the Hamilton- St. Glair Variety Company in the north will be welcome to northern and southern playgoers alike. Mr J. St. Clair reached Auckland by the Rotomahana on Sunday in advance of a big variety show, consisting of some 40 performers, including the "Royal Ballerinas" (20 strong), which was the feature of the recent pantomime at the Sydney Lyceum. New scenery and costumes are promised, in addition to the latest songs, limelight patents, skirt and serpentine dancing, and a complete orchestra. This is the first time that Messrs St. Ciair and Allan Hamilton have joined in the management of a theatrical venture, and they are determined that no expense shall be wanting to ensure its complete success. Their entertainment is due in Dunedin at Easter.

Hayes's Circus will commence a short season in Dunedin on Saturday evening. It is about 18 months since thiß clever little combination has been exhibited here. Mr Hayes has since then paid a visit to the South Sea Islands, including Tahiti, Rarotonga, and places never visited before. He has with him now some clever gymnasts, acrobats, and riders, and will give a number of novelties. Mdlle. Aeola's cannon act is said to be cleverer than anything in that line yet seen here. Mr Bosco Wilson, who is arranging preliminaries, states that it has been decided to show at million prices. Williamson and Musgrove's Opera Company will not visit New Zealand. The company will in future be located for three months in Melbourne, three months will be spent in Sydney, a similar term will be occupied between Brisbane and Adelaide, and for the remaining part of the year the services of the performers will be utilised in the firm's pantomimes, as they were last Christmas.

The Wellington provincial papers speak very highly of the American Trio aud Novelty Company.

Mr Walter Bentley was to be accorded a benefit in the Bijou Theatre, Adelaide, one night last week under the patronaee of the Lieutenant-Governor and the Premier. The bill for the evening was a dramatic version of the powerful noval "The Silence of Dean Maitland," the playwrights being Mr Bentley himself and Mr E. Lewis Scott. The part of Cyril Maitland waa to be taken by Mr Bentley, amateurs sustaining the other characters, which numbered more than a score.

Madame Bahnson is announced to give a concert in the Garrison Hall on Cup night (21st inst.).

Mr George Walton, the comedian, is about to revisit New Zealand almost immediately — this time as stage manager of Mr Allan Hamilton's Variety Company. Miss Rose Blaney will leave for Melbourne in March with a view to studying for the operatic stage.

Messrs Thornton and Arnold have done so well in Melbourne with •' Charley's Aunt" that they have postponed indefinitely their visit to New Zealand.

Mr Showman, proprietor of the Princess's, is at present on a visit to Dunedin.

An amateur dramatic societies' competition is being got up in Melbourne by Messrs J. F. Cathcart and Pat Finn, the latter of whom is the theatrical critic on Melbourne Punch. The competition will be carried on each Monday evening until all the competing clubs have performed a piece of about two hours and a-half's duration. The merits of the respective performances will be decided by the audiences, a coupon being attached to each ticket issued for the purpose of enabling the purchaser to vote. The first prize is lOOgs, the second a landscape and set ot wings valued at 30gs, and the third a lOgs garden cloth, whilst the proceeds after expenses are paid will be devoted to charities.

A stage dodge worked by no less a personage than the great Malibran herself is mentioned by a writer in a Home paper. Singing in Balfe's "Maid of Artois," she had, after playing a very laborious part, to wind up with an especially trying effort. This, it was feared, would prove too much for her strength ; but she declared that if they could manage to procure for her a draught of English stout just beforehand, she would engage to bring down the house. The manager did contrive to furnish her with the stimulant in the following highly ingenious manner. As the heroine lay exhausted on a raised bank supposed to be in the parching desert, her head low down and turned away from the audience, a tankard of the beverage was put to her lips through an aperture opened in the stage for the purpose, and its results were exactly as she had predicted. So successful indeed was the experiment, that it was continued every night during the run, the* original rather awkward expedient being abandoned for that of furnishing one of the slaves of the relieving party with a gourd suspended round her neck, which she offered to the fainting lady, who readily imbibed from itj not, as was supposed, a draught of water from the well, but a good pull of stout.

SiDgers are, says a Hom9 writer, exacting people, we know ; but Signor Tamagno, who appeared here, it will be remembered, as "Otello" on the first production of Verdi's opera at the Lyceum Theatre, is evidently more difficult to satisfy than most other artist 3. Before consenting to appear at Madrid, Signor Tamagno put forth the terms he required, which demanded exorbitant travelling expenses and 6000fr in, gold for each appearance, to be paid in advance ; he stipulated, moreover, that he would only sing in three selected operas, and that he was to be honoured with a royal rpception by the Queen Regent and the young King. The negotiations were not completed, and Madrid wi:l uot hear Signor Tamagno just yet. Tamagno, it is said, began life as a butcher.

Miss Julia Neils>on has always been an intense admirer of her sistr-in-law. Miss Ellen Terry, and models her style of acting on the Lyceum actress's methods. This, together with the remarkable similarity of their voice', might easily lead a casual observer to believe he was watching the more famous actress. In some parts of "The Tempter" Miss Neilson's beautiful tones and distinct utterance of every word aro especially remmi&ceut of Miss Terry.

The subjoined i<3 a literal translation of a theatrical notice of the year 1734-, preserved in the Brunswick Museum : "In order to secure the comfort of the public in every way, the management of the theatre have decided that the spectators in the front row should lie down on the ground, those in the second should kneel, while those in the third and fourth rows

should sit and stand respectively, so that all should have an equal opportunity of seeing the actors on the stage. N.B.— The audience are absolutely forbidden to laugh during the performance of a tragedy." It is a common thing to hear of a racehorse being leased, but it will astonish most people to learn of an operatic artist signing his name to an agreement in which the property "to let;" is his own voice. Yet this is the case. Signor Giraud, of the Italian Opera Company who were recently in Adelaide, was wielding a hammer in an armourer's shop, and accompanied the strokes with a rippling melody, when a gentleman who happened to be on the premises at the time at once concluded that •• here is a gem worth polishing." He at once had an interview with the young workman, and it was not long before Giraud was placed at a college at which he was taught the art to which he is so much devoted. Aud what was the quid pro quo? That the syndicate which was formed to develope the beautiful tenor voice should have proprietary rights in it for a certain number of years. His course of study finished Giraud soon came into notice. Managers engaged him through the syndicate, to whom every penny of his salary is paid. Of course the singer is allowed by his " owners " a comparatively small income for himself. Everywhere he is accompanied by [a representative of the syndicate, whose "lease" expires at the termination of another year.

A few days ago (says a writer in a Home paper) a person offered M. Claretie the heart of the famous actor, Talma, which was accepted and placed in the Museum of the Comedie Franchise. Now a gentleman wants to give him the mummified hand of the actress Duchesnois and a letter of Victor Hugo. He accepts the letter, but refuses the hand and one of the reasons he gives for doing so is that he does not wish to transform the collection of souvenirs of deceased members of the Com<sdie which are on show at the theatre into an anatomical museum. But why, then, take the heart and reject the hand ?

Madame Antoinette Sterling sang for a few nights at the Dome in the Brighton Pavilion. She excused herself from singing one evening one of the three songs announced in the programme—F. H. Cowen's "Listen to the Children "—because it had been inserted without her knowledge. This announcement does not appear to have been a mere eccentricity on the part of the cantatrice, for Mr Edward Lloyd mado a similar explanation with regard to Blumentbal's "An Evening Song," which he could not give, as he had not been told that he was to sing it, and had not brought the music for it with him.

The Imperial mandate has gone forth that Berlin is to have a new opera house worthy of the name. Dresden, Frankfort, and other towns have fine opera houses, but the Imperial Residenz possesses merely a shabby old building. The glorious orchestra and excellent company are worthy of a better house.

Vienna possesses a whistler of extraordinary powers. This gentleman, a warehouseman, walks home from work whistling popular folksongs aud followed by a large crowd, who wait for him every evening at various spots on the route as regularly as for a city train. The whistler seems to be utterly unconscious of his rearguard, but has no objection to receive such acknowledgments of his skill as a cigar from a coffee-house waiter, and pinks from a flowergirl. The Viennese is another piper of Hamelin, only, whereas the piper was "pied," as Daisy Bell would say, the whistler does it for nothing.

Among the records of the great engineering exploits of our time, a place will be certainly given to the bold fcnterprise of Mr Tree. It was found that the shipwreck scene in "The Tempter" could not be worked at the Haymarket Theatre without going into the regions of the tempter himself, which, we are informed, are down below. Consequently, engineer Tree at once ordered an excavation of no less than 40ft to be made beneath the stage ! Now, thanks to this, the shipwreck works marvellously well, and is a thing that ought to be Been by all, especially before rashly undertaking the enterprise of crossing from Dover to Calais.

The daughter of a well-known Copenhagen lawyer is Miss Frida Scotta, the young Danish violinist, who made au appearance at the Crystal Palace recently. When only a tiny child she used to play little Danish airs on a miniature violin, and Bhe is now only just 2L years. Miss Scotta has played before the King and Queen of Denmark, who presenttd her with the Danish Order of Merit and complimented her highly on her talent. A more notable royal appearance was made before the Emperor and Empress of Germany and the Empress Frederick. "If I shut my eyes when you are playiDg," exclaimed the complimentary monarcb, " I could fancy it was Sarasate, but I much prefer to keep them open." Miss Scotta is a skilful equestrienne.

A generation ago (says a Home paper), Mdlle Wietrowetz would have been regarded as a phenomenon, but female fiddlers are now so numerous that she is scarcely as yet obtaining the full recognition which, in my opinion, she deserves as an artist of very high grade. During Mr Henry IrviDg's absence in the United States he has borne his Lyceum subjects in mind. His benevolence towards the patrons of his house has been manifested by important works of bricks and iron pipes in his theatre in order to render the house fireproof. At any moment it can be flooded with water, all the walls, the ceilings, and the floor will pour forth water upon the turning of the tap of the hydrant at any one of the many places where the taps are touchable. The whole theatre will become a shower bath. Of course the audience cannot be rendered fireproof, but they have only, if they are getting too hot while escaping, to go within the reach of the in-gushing streams in order to be rendered quite comfortable. If Mr Henry Irving, who is a great patron of new plays by young author?, should have the misfortune to have one of his productions hissed on a first night, be need only tura on the tap to give the audience their quid pro quo. It was by wearing her brother's clothes that Mies Phyllis Broughton first accustomed herself to the male attire she now wears on the stage. " I made," she says, " a raid on my brother's wardrobe, and for a fortnight, at home, I absolutely lived in a suit of hiß clothes in order to get thoroughly used to it."

Over £1050 represented the money value of the audience in St. James's Hal], London, on November 7, and how much was refused it is impossible to say. People began to arrive about half -past 10, so that they had to wait four hours and a-half before the entertainment commenced. And all this to hear one man play the pianoforte for two hours.