THEATRICAL AND MUSICAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3149, 22 July 1914, Page 60

THEATRICAL AND MUSICAL NOTES.

By PABQUIN.

Tuesday, July 21. It is understood that an important transaction affecting the proprietary of the Plaza Pictures has been completed within the last few days. .From what can be gathered, it appears that the interest of the shareholders of the Plaza Pictures has been purchased by the Hayward people, in conjunction with the New Queen’s Picture proprietary, and that these two proprietaries are _ forming a company to control tne three shows—namely, the Octagon, New Queen's, and the Plaza. This company, I understand, has now materialised. Furthermore, in all probability the King Edward Picture Theatre at South Dunedin, now in course of construction, will in due course come under the wing of the newly formed company, and it is also said that there is a likelihood that it may secure a lease of portion of the Stock Exchange Buildings, with the object of constructing another picture theatre there. It will thus be seen' that the cpmpanv has secured

control of three picture theatres, that two others may ultimately be added to this number. It is understood that the Plaza Picture Company —capitalised at £2500 received something like 300 per cent, tor the handing over of their seven years’ lease Of the Plaza Theatre—no* a bad percentage, seeing that the George street picture show started only a few days beiore last Christmas. ■ A start has been made to pull down the City Dining Rooms at the corner of Jetty and Princes streets, preparatory to erecting a new picture theatre. Mr E. W. Walden has drawn up the plans for the now building, which will be a handsome edifice in brick, with plaster facings, and will have a depth of 77ft, with a frontage to Princes street of 51ft. Its total seating accommoa tion will be something over 8l)U people, and it will probably be ready for occupation about the end of the year. The greatest interest was aroused in Auckland last Monday by tlie Jackcllon trio of Russ'an dancers. Their performance was hi several respects remarkable in its novelty. During the few minutes they occupied the stage they presented almost as many dances, and every one was performed with striking gracefulness and animation. Each of the dances was given in appropriate costumes, tlie rich dressing of the trio being a feature of the act. They shortly appear at the Princess Theatre. Fourteen vaudeville artists arrived from the United States at Sydney by the Ventura, under exclusive engagement to the Fullcr-Brennan circuit of Australasia. r lhey represent many branches of the profession. The new people include Sebastian Merrill and his “ Tip Yaps,” a whirlwind comedy act, introducing a sensational cycle novelty; the Harley Wonders, a lady and gentlemen, who present a comedy novelty jumping act; Matiido and Elvira, two typical Spanish entertainers; Chippola Twins, and Bear, two pretty girls, who introduce a tame old bear into a novelty dancing act; Phil Percival, the comedian at the piano; Gledhill and Davis in a novelty, entitled “ Motor v. Man ”; and Rose Milwood, a popular London chorus singer. All these artists will appear in New Zealand on the FullerBronnan circuit Edward Blondoll, the American comedian, opened his season in Wellington last week'in his own creation, “The Lost Boy.” The New Zealand Times pronounces Blondell’s performance as the most original absurdity it has seen for many a long day. The visitor has a most wonderful gift of laugh-ter-raising, and his success was acclaimed in a most liberal way. Blondoll opens at the Princess Theatre next Monday. Sebastian Merrill’s wonderful tandem somersault is entirely new, and quite sensational. Two men mount a tandem so high that they are almost lost to the view of the audience among the fly borders. Portion of the incline is hold down by a spring bearing a pressure of 20001 b. At a signal the men ride forward, almost immediately the spring is released, and both men and machine fly through space, describing a perfect forward somersault, alighting squarely on a platform springboard, and continuing the ride off the stage. When one takes into consideration the limited stage room at the Sydney National Theatre, it is difficult to realise that such an act can bo so successfully produced. Mr Graham Moffat, the author of “Bunty Pulls the Strings,” states that “tlie ilea of writing Scottish national plays came to me after seeing a company of Irish players in dialogues for my platform recitals. The Scots humour is quite unlike Irish, and thp lowland Scot of whom I write is quite distinct from the Highlander. All the people in my cast are Scottish, and even the material for costumes hails from Glasgow. My other plays include ‘A Scrape of the Pen ’ —a two-act comedy dealing with the adventures of an English girl who visits a Scots farmhouse, a period of 35 years ago; a romantic one-act play, 4 Annie Laurie,’ and a sketch or two. 4 Bunty ” was written in three months. Our Scots accent is that of tho West of Scotland, and although I have been training an English relative of mine for some time, her English-Scots is not sufficiently perfect to warrant giving her a speaking part in 4 Bunty.’ I daresay it will interest you to know that the character of Bunty ’ is my conception of what my mother was as a young girl. All sayings Bunty uses are my mother’s very own.” The Sydney season is now in full swing under the direction of Mr E. J. Carroll. Dunedin will bo visited next November. It 1 as been learned from friends of the late Mr Lawrence Irving that when he embarked on the Empress of Ireland he was taking back with him to England the manuscript of a new play. In telling his friends about it ho remarked : 44 This play will make me a famous actor.” Mr Irving mentioned neither the name of the play nor its author, but it was evident that he was greatly impressed by the excellence of it, and was delighted at obtaining it. Unless a duplicate of the work has been sent to England—and it is understood that this is unlikely,—Mr Irving’s 4 4 find” will be lost to the world. One of the most remarkable figures in the world of the stage has been lost to it by the death of Miss Lily Hall Caine, who, after the death of her husband, Mr. George D. Day, lived in close retirement, and never recovered from the blow. She died on Whit Monday at the house of her sister-in-law, Mrs Edward Dean, at Aldershot, and although the immediate cause was pneumonia, the actual, in the knowledge of her intimate friends, was a broken heart. She was a lady of highly-strung and most sensitive nature. Her last part on the stage was that of the heroine in 44 The Prodigal Son ” at Drury Lane, and she did much to make the play of her famous brother, Mr Hall Caine, the success that it was. As Glory Quayle in 44 The Christian” she will be best remembered in the provinces, where she was one of the greatest favourites of the time. She first became known with Mr Wilson Barrett, and afterwards appeared in London in 14 The Duchess of Malfi,” at the Opera Comique. One of her most notable parts was that of Regina in 44 Ghosts.” When Mr Frohman produced 44 The Christian” at the Duke of York’s Theatre she played Polly Love. The greatest grand opera company in Christendom will visit Australia in 1916, if terms can he arranged between those who are interested in the international galaxy of stars appearing at the Champs Elysecs in Paris and the company under whose management and in whose theatre it is proposed that grand opera should be played in Australia. For the first time in the history of the Commonwealth it is assured of the presmee of the most famous living artists an the European stage. It has hoard some of them, at long intervals. It has never heard most of them. Now (writes the London correspondent of the Sydney Sun) the whole lot will go to Australia if satisfactory terms can bo arranged. Caruso will not be among the party, because be is

booked for several years ahead. But a new tenor who has created a furore in Paris, Ml. Eerrero-Fontano, will more than make amends for his absence, it the critics are good judges. 1 am assured that M. FcrreroFontano is to-day the purest and greatest tenor in the world. it is a very large order, but some art.st was bound to arise who could cnallcnge the pr.-eminence of Caruso, j Special attention will bo given to the proper staging of the opera. Extraordinary disclosures were made a few weeks ago in Berlin in an action m which „Herr Schrumpf, director of a theatre in Munich, claimed damages from a local magazine for a libellous article it had published concerning his treatment of tlic members of his company. The actors connected with the theatre attended the court in a body, and substantiated the allegation that Schumpf was in the habit'of kicking them and lashing them with a whip. Once, when addressing the assembled company, he saxa: “It’s a pity ;we are not in Russia; I would then walk into you with a knout. A woman employed as a prompter described how she had had her facial beauty maned through being struck by Schumpf with a heavy bunch of keys. It was alleged that the actresses were each paid a salary of less than £4 a month, and that they had to find their own wardrobes. The presiding judge, in commenting upon the case, remarked : ‘‘Never before lias sucli testimony been given in this court. The poorest working men do not endure such treatment, and are better off than these actors.” Schrumpf was muictcd in costs, and is likely to lose his license as a result of the revelations. The once famous Saddlers Wells Theatre, London, where Phelps and Madame Yestris attracted all the town, is now closed, and when it reopens it will be a picture palace. It was lately open as a music hall, but the competition of other and more up-to-date places of entertainment, including the picture theatre, has drawn away its former patrons and left its scats empty in recent years. Charles and Thomas Dibdin, sons of the famous song writer, were at one time its owners, then followed Samuel Phelps and Mrs Bateman, mother of Mrs Edward Compton, when Mr Herman Vezin and Mr Charles Warner appeared. But after a long run of successful management the old theatre fell into a bad way, and ■was closed for a time, until Mr George Belmont opened it as a music hall, and from its stage, under his management, were introduced to the public several of the present prominent music-hall artists. It stands on the site of an old spa, and was once a fashionable resort. A revolution is likely to result from the ruling of the English National Health Insurance Committee that during the period of rehearsals players are under contract of service within the moaning of the Act. As the London Era points out, the actor will see in this a strong argument in favour of the growing movement for payment for rehearsals. This will hit the humbler managements hard, for they will not only have to pay for the insurance stamps, but will also be called upon to pay salaries where they had not previously done so. It is a question of organisation, and, in no less degree, one of supply and demand. The opex-a scheme proposed by Madame Melba, mentioned in the cable message lately, is announced in recent English papers. The Boston Opex-a Company, which is successfully running the Theatre des Champs Ely sees, with the Co vent Garden Syndicate, is concerned in this scheme. The project includes a tour of Australia and America. The company’s Boston season runs for 12 weeks from January 4 next. At its close, the company of over 300 persons and thirty opox-as, will return at once to Paris, playing there next year in April, May, and June, as this year. From Paris it will make straight to Melbourne, and the ppex-a season there and in other , neighbouring centres will be August and September. October is set aside for Adelaide, and from there the oommnv will go to Anr-rica, for a season in San Francisco, calling at Honolulu on the way. From San Francisco the company will cross America, touching at various towns on the way, and x-cach Boston in time to reopen its usual season there in January, 1916.