THE GHOST WALK

Otago Witness, Issue 2771, 24 April 1907, Page 60

THE GHOST WALK

The Besses o' th' Barn Band is due in Sydney next month.

Mr Chas. Verner haa joined MacMahon's Dramatic Company.

Miss Nellie Kilburn is showing at the Tivoli Theatre, Melbourne.

Mr George- Titheradge, the well-known actor, is at present in America.

Little Tick,, li«.rie Lloyd, and Alec Hurley aro booked for South Africa.

Mr Fred Graham and Miss Nellie Dent &?• now appearing a£ Christch-urch. Miss Priscilla Verne is appearing with Fuller's Entertainers in Wellington. "The Midnight "Wedding" Company haa commenced a season in Christcliurcb.

Ona of the world's ruo?t famous conjurors, Mr Cfcas Bertram, died in London recently.

Mark Hambourg, the weld-known pianisft, will shortly pay a return visit to £>outh Africa.

Mr Frank Thornton, the noted character actor, has been engaged by Mr Edwin Geach. for a fourth Australasian tour.

The Woods-Williamson Dramatic Company is touring South Africa still, but will be leaving there in^Octcber for Australia. There is a. rumour that Nellie Stewart may give a short season of "Sweet Nell of Old Drury" before returning to America. Mr J. C. Williamson, who owns .he Australian rights of "Human Hearts," describes the play as one of the very strongest and lnosfe pathetic of modern times. Mt Charles Carter hss added the title Tola in "Lohengrin" to his repertoire. He is still oa tour with tho Mccdy-Manners Opera Company in the English provinces. Madame Clara Butt has booked her passage b/ the Mongolia, which leavea England ia July. She will give a grand farewell in London before sailing for A-ustrailia. Severa.l names known to Australians are ia tl»o cast of "Pet-ar Pan, now on tour — Mar G, W. Anson, Miss Grace Noble. Miss Mabel Lamojit. and Miss Hetty MuTet. At H. 19 Majesty's Theatre, Johannesburg, Wheeler's London Gaiety Company is producing "Th» Dairymaids." Pagel's Circus and Menage.*-* is showing in Johannesburg. A London a-ctres3 has succeeded in an action, fo/ the lecovery of JEIOOO from an insuranca company. This was the amount for whioh a, sable coat 'ost in crossing the Atlantic was insured.

The Theatre Royal, Melbourne, is occupied by Mr Bland Holt's company, which is becoming even more pcpu/'.ax than be-fore. The senfationa.l drama. "Revenge" is drawing big houses.

At tho Opera House, Capetown, Alfred Weeds and Maud Williamson have just oomp'eted a fairly successful season. Most oi the playg produced were adaptations by Miss Williamson.

A diminutive maiden, hke'.y some day to take a great place in the thetktrica.l world, is the daughter of Mr Wm. Anderson, who mad* hor stage bow to Melbourne as the smell child iii "East l»ynne. ' Mies Mario Hall vs coming to Australia, under direction of Messrs J. and N. Tait, and makes hsrr first a.ppearanoe on 3Oth May next, in Mo.bourne, and after appearing in Sydney will coma on to New Zealand.

Ellen Terry is still a nan»9 to charm with in tho United States. She appeared lately in a three-weeks' season at the Empire Theatre, New York, tuid for one week of seven ]Te>rform.-. ancs the taking's were nearly £'7000. Madame Clara Butt on her forthcoming visit to Australia will be accompanied, not only by her uusband, but also by their three children, the youngest of whom haa tho distinction oi having Princess Christian for a godmother. Mt Phillip Newbury and his wife Qimes. Emily Spada) havo been singing at the Queen'a Hall ballad concerts, London. Mr Newbury sa.ys he ia fast regaining the position lost, to some extent, through his 10 years' absence ia Australia.

Mr George Castles made his first appearance on the stage recently m "My Darling," »i Hicks's Theatre, London, playing a, sma.ll part which will enable him to "get his stage Legs."Mr Casiles is uikl'-m contract with Mr Hicka fcr thre*? years Mr Ernest Leicester has sailed for Austarlia to p'.ay his original lead in Mr Edwin: Geach'9 Australian production of the Amwrican emotional play, "Human Hearts." He is described 1 as one of the most versatile aetora in Great Britain.

The Anderson-Sheridan pantomime people, still playing "Cinderella," put up some records at BaJlarat. Ai an Easter Monday matinee £ 104 was taken, while in th© evening the receipts were £257. The company has now passed en to Eendigo. Tho "AM Blacks during their Tsusmanian tcur (12 weeks) covered this extent of country :• By ~»il they have gone 1672 miks, by coach 343 miles, by steamer 317 miles, — total 2337 miles. They have performed m 51 towns and townshies, giving 70 concerts. Edwin Geach has engaged Miss Sydney VaJertine cs leading lady fcr hia production of the domestic drama, • Human Hearts." Miss Valentine had ha-d wide experience in England . and South Africa, and is said to ba young, highly talented, and pretty. A pantomime annual ia published in London by Herbert Blackmore. This 'year hs state? that it will deal with 70 different pantonnmes produced in the United Kingdom laefi Chri'tmas Yet it was believed a little whil« ago that pant/Omim-e vms a thing of th« past. On March 5 th? mturiage took place of MiMark Hambourg, the celebrated Buesian. pianist, and Miss Dorothy Muir-Mackenaie, tUiiithter oi Sir Kenneth Murr-Ma-ckeazitw

K.C., Permanen-t Secretary to the Lord 1 Chancellor and Clerk of the Crown in Chancery.

Miss May Beatty has returned to Loncbn after her firsit (and moat successful!) pantomime engagement «t Dublin Gaiety. She will shortly reappear »t several London halls in the sketch written for heT by the clever cousin oi Australia's comic opera favourite, Mr Greorge Lauri. Mt Jake Friedman, th& Austral-Dutch comedian, who, after the loss of his Australian partner, John Tudor, became a single-handed "ycdeller," is producing at the Hackney Em•pire a new musical playlet called "liappy Holland," written for him by the la»te- Harry Leader, of Sydney. Recently an admirer handed a pretty little black deg, bedecked with ribbons, over the footiight3 to Miss Connie Milne, who was appearing at the Thea.tre Royal, Adelaide, in "The Country Ghrl " The practice of makingsuch animal presentations is a pleasing change from the handing up of the bouquet.

A cry of "Fire!" started a panic in an American theatre during an opera performance. Part of the scenery was ab'aze. but the prima donna continued her song, stepping to tho fron.t of the stage while the fireproof curtaia was lowered. This restored confidence. The curtain was raised before she concluded, and th-a performance was resumed. The Rev. J. Hillhouse Taylor, the author of "Parsifal," is a Sydney man, and has great ideas of preaching to enormous congregations through the drama. He desires to carry on the work of reconciling church and stag© by converting the stage into a pulpit. The success of "Parsifal" is a proof that the people like their sermons done up in dramatic fcrru.

Mir Sanger, the veteran, circus proprietor, Who is 79 years old, was born in the show business. His father saw Xe-lson fall mortally ■wounded on the quarter-deck of the Victory. He retired with a pension of a year, and his first investment was in a small peep-show at Bristol. That peep-show wa3 the origin of Sanger's "great hippo-dramatic and spectacular circus."

Tho death of Otto Goldsmidt, at the «ge of 78, removes a familiar figure fioni the musical world. He was besrt known as the husband of Jenny Lmd, whom he married 111 Boston, U.S.A., in 1852. Since 1858 he ha,s lived in England, and he did splendid ser\ics to music by the foundation of the Bach Choir in London, in 1875, and the production for tho first time in England of Bach's great Mass in B minor.

The Howard Brothers, the thougiit readers here with Wirth's Circus, wlio have De-en appearing at fbe London Palace, recently suffered a severe disappointment. Owing to the eickness of oae of the brothers they had to forego a ''Royal Command" performance. When the mail left the Howards were to meet in a trial of wits the much-boomed Zancigs, rivals in their business. Tne Zancigs wcie in Australia years ?go

M'ies Rosina Brandram, famous as a Savoyard who sang and acted in G-ilbert and Sulhvai operas fcj 26 years, and created the principal contralto part 3in all the works of these composers afoer "lolanthe," died laSt monith aa Southend, after a long illness. Miss Brandxßm. was one of the most popular of operatic artiets in the celebrated group organised by the late Mt D'Oy'.y Carte 30 years ag-> for the Gilbert an«d Sullivan performances. M. Pader-ewski has arranged to spend the autumn and wirrfcr in America, wlvsre he is to give something like a hundred concerts. He is an exception to the rule that a prophet has litt!© honour in 'bis own neighbourhood, for when he recently played at a charity concert in tho theatre a,o Lausanne (near which is his tome) tho seais were entirely taken up by subscribers to the theatre, for whom the box-offico was first opened, the result being that visitors *nd ordinary folk were unab'e to hear him

In an article entitled "Stars Who Have Made Me." Charles Frohman, the American "Napoleon of Dram*." who commenced life as a ticket-taker on th© Bowery, has been justifying hia practice of relying upon a "star" to carry a play through H« baheves in ptars, ne explains, because he believes in individuality, and denies that any star vas ever made by a m»nßger. It is the audiences tba-t make them. Mr Frohman's article has given rise to much comment, one of his critics asserting that his recipe for making a play is "Mis 9 Somebody and padding."

According -to the Native Companion for the current month, the first dramatic performance given in Australia was that of Young's tragedy "The Revenge," which was produced on January 16. 1796. in Sydney, by a company of COBnoU It nils in a. prologue to "tlxis performa.no3 that the lines were spoken which contained the famcus couplets — From distant climes, o'er widespread seas we

come (Tho' not wr»h much eclat or beat of drum) T'.ua patriots all; for be it understood. We left our country for our country's good.