SHOWS OF YESTERDAY

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18336, 2 March 1934, Page 6

SHOWS OF YESTERDAY

MR. EDWIN GEACH IN N.Z. THE FIRST “MOVIES” Among the visitors to Wellington at present is Mr. Edwin Geach, one of the best-known and most popular theatrical managers of a quarter of a century ago, and now a director of the Union Theatres, Limited, of Australia. Mrs. Geach was formerly a Miss Willis, ot Jolinsonvillc.

Tip; memory has to stretch a long way back, to connect with Mr. Geach’s first visit to New Zealand. “I came over in the first place,” said Mr. Geach, “with Camilla Urso and De Vere Sapio, two very fine artists who appeared in the old Theatre Royal here nearly 40 years ago. Camilla Urso was then considered to be one of the greatest violinists in the world, and Madame De Vere Sapio was an operatic soprano of great distinction. She afterwards was brought out to Australia as prima donna of a very fine Italian opera company, the only members of which to come to New Zealand were the Cutticas, who, for the first time introduced ‘Funiculi, Funicula,’ the Neapolitan ballad composed in connection with the funicula railway up Mount Vesuvius. The two artists had on that occasion come to Australia ‘on theii own.’ Herr Benno Scherek was the manager and I was treasurer. ‘‘That trip was the first of many to New Zealand,” continued Mr, Geach. “I was here with Carl Hertz, a wonderfully clever magician and showman, who was a revelation in up-to-date stage magic. It was lie who brought the first kinematograph to this country. 1 always remember one of the pictures—a man walking over London bridge. At a certain lime lie turned sharply round and looked behind. Hertz was quick to seize mi that action, and always whistled loudly just before the man turned his head. It always brought a shriek oi laughter and a round of applause. Hertz was also the first man to manipulate the billiard balls, and hold them between the outstretched fingers of his facile hands. “Later I came to New Zealand with the great Charles Godfrey, the greatest descriptive balladist ever known. It was a revelation in the protean art to hear him sinsr songs so wide apart as 'The Seventh Royal Fusiliers,’ and ‘Grandpa’s Birthday.’ I was ahead of Frank Thornton on several occasions, when he played ‘The Private Secretary,’ ‘Charley’s Aunt,’ and other successful farcial comedies, and later I was with the Willoughby-Ward and George Willoughbv companies playing comedies such as ‘The Man from Mexico,’ with Miss Grace Palotta and Hugh J. Ward. Later still I piloted Donald Macdonald, the famous Melbourne war correspondent (of the Boer War), whose illustrated lecture tour through New Zealand was a triumph.’