THEATRES AND THEATRE-SOERS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2604, 10 February 1904, Page 57

THEATRES AND THEATRE-SOERS.

AN INTERVIEW WITH MR WILLOUGHBY. (Fkom Our Ov:k Connssposrßzirr )

WELLINGTON, February 3,

Mr G. Willoughby. with his company which has just concluded a -\ cry successful season here, leave by to-nic;:it's steamer for Iho south. After playing a s-lio:-r s^a^n in Christchurch Mi- Willoughby will make a farewell tour of Australia. Ho will then proceed to England anel get ti^^ciL^r a strong company to plaj '" A Stranger in a Strange Land" through the English provinces. This farce, which hi^ been such a sviccom in Amei lea, and which it no\/ being played in New Zealanel, hi« not j-ct been seen in England. Though tho present company will be eusbantWi, t'io firm of Willoughby and G^ach will i:oL be d^olvpd. and Mr Gearh will probably lcinain in the colonies, Mr Willoughby assuming the manage ment m England. Tne provincial tour at an end, Mr Willoughby will got tog°tker a strong English company and iiev. p'avn ot a briglio dccripti^n f^r another tour o? Austia'iu anel Xew Zeal iwl. In view ff r ! ;c interest liov/ being takoa in connection with

the construction and fittin? up of thent'-ps and the danger to life in the cvni of fire, tho rcirarl.- 01 11 c\pcnei end actor sue.' 1 as Mr Willoui}Yuy is Aiili no r'-oubt \>l re.i.l with interest. During thr coiu\=o> of :< brief inter\ic\v I liad v, ith him this afternoon just prior to his departure lie expre%~d ihc opinion that, in view of tLe recent cli-»a-itor 111 Chicago and the fact that tho mbnicipu authorities wpro be in 4 hcYi responsible to some extent it bchoveM the municipal autbor'ii«« hero to do everything in their poner to safeguard tho pu.-hc At tho tarns time thero mu«t bo consideration shown to the owners of the theatres in that, as the municpal authorities «ere usual! v Miiftmg bodies, some definito arrangement for a considerable period should bo arrived at. It would be very hard on a theatre proprietor if one set of mon decreed that he should do certain things ono year, and in a year or two another pet of mop decided that he should do something different under their regime. What was wan cod, said Mr Willoughby, was a thoroughly expert opinion that the authorities might abide by. It was, of course, important to have plenry of exits. At the same time this could be overdone. At tha Exeter fire m England in 18c6 or 1887 there was great loss of life from the «ame causes that operated at the recent Chicago fire. In the theatre itself very few people lost their lives, but round a. cornea- in a passage leading from a gallery over 100 bodies were fc;uid piled on© above the other. There was a turn in the ptairs and a door that opened inwards. Well, after that fire in Exeter, they built what was called the Irving Model Theatre, which was verysafe," but was notoriously the most uncomfortable theatre in England. Doors liko huge stable doors opened out on to the street, four on each side, and the draughts were such as would almost blow you out of your seat. The theatre was 1 long tunnelsnap ?d building, with one gallery right at the ond — .nost unplct-irosque and mo^t uncomfortable. It would thus be seen that ihero was a happy medium in providing for the safety- of the public, while at tho same time thinking- of their comfort. There shcu'd, of course, be a sufficiency of outlets, and, equally important, in Mr Willoug'.iby's est'mation. these, outlets or escapes should be clearly indicated by means of very large block type and a pointer. The aesthetic sense of pome people might rebel against this, but it was no use having th° notices prettily dene. It was of the utmost importance that they should bo plain black letters on a whilte ground, or something of that sort. It was equally important that as many of thess* escapes as possible should be opened as soo;i as the curtain fell after each performance, so that the theatre would be emptied through them, and theatregoers thus familiarised with the exits, [n regard to Ne-vr Zealand theatres Mr Willoughby states that in the cities most of the buildings are good, and the theatres are well conducted A good deal more might, however, be done in the way of providing for the comfort of patrons. For instance, the vestibules might be carpeted and more handsomely furnished with lounges, paintings, and even photographs. If there were places where men could smoke in comfort or ladies and fieir escorts could enjoy a cup of tea or coffee people would enjoy a visit <.o tho theaire much more than they now did. England and America, and even in Australia, proprietors recognised this. Mone3* was. &D'nt in the interests of patrons Moreover, patrons would appreciate a play or an opera all the better for witnessing it in comfort and amidst pleasant surroundings. New Zealand audiences Mr WilJoughby has found mosl discriminating and up-to-date. In proportion to the population. New Zealanders are, he thinks, probably the most amv?emc-at-!o\ing peoplein the world. The reason of this and of their up-to-rlat&nefs he an.rib.utes to tho fact that they are pve-ity woil all woikc-ra and a go ahead people. People, he saye. cannot afford to go to sleep here. Practically they r.re awake all the time to what is going on. The tendency of the day, Mr Willougliby thinks, is In the direction of bright, clean plays. The '" problem" play has bed a set back, though Mr Pinero's latest play, ""Netty," which is of this class, has been very suceP-seful in London. Anything froir Air Pinero's pen, however, is sure of a j,ood run, for, apart from his name being a guarantee* of ability, anyone who produces one of his plays in England has to guararteo it a run of at least three months. In the colonies the tendency seemed to be in farcinof light plays mule-ad. of onytlui.g Oat required a good deal of digestion. Thir- i, natural, adcted Mr Willoughby, for you are a 'voik-a-day people, and naturally go to the theatre to a piettly large extent to be amu~.cd. Producing a letter fiora his pocket from a well-known authority in London, Mr Willoughby read a few lines, which showed that the \ogue of the day in London is mainly for musical comedy. Edwards and Fiohman, thu writer stated, v.ere having masters pretty well their own way in that direction. " Three Little Minds." added the writer, is about the best of these pieces It is very dainty, and as it will be taken to Australia fiom America, with the original cacte. it is sure to have a big run Mr Wil'oujriiby leaves New Zealand with 0 good (.leal of legret. for 3io has made mauy friends hoie, and altogether is very charmed with the colony.