REPERTORY SUCCESS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18661, 22 March 1935, Page 3

REPERTORY SUCCESS

.a*. COWARD'S ' 'HAY FEVER" AN AMBITIOUS EFFORT 'tha GisDovn'e Repertory Society and its- able producer, Miss Ellen Millar, added to their list of successes in the presentation at the Opera House last evening of N"oel Coward's comedy "Hay Lever. an ambitious effort calling for much histrionic ability, which obviously uiis not lacking amongst last night s performers, In "Hay Fever" Noel Coward, in cynical vein, has written a delightful satire on modern social conditions, with special stress upon the nonchalant, casual attitude of a household of to-dav towards its guests. There are many deliriously amusing situations, which were enacted with skill by the repertory players, who missed nothing of the underlying vein of satire. The company and the producer were warmly applauded by the audience on the fine achievement.

The spirit of the play was admirably iritefprated by the characters chosen. I hoy were frequently applauded by the large audience, and the general opinion seemed to be that the production was one of the best achieved by the society to date. It certainly fulfilled expectations.

The stage was artistically arranged, producing the right effect, and on this Mesdafnes J, A. Eivers and ft. G. Crawford and iliss L. Bain are to bo congratulated on the beauty of the sotting, masses of flowers being artistically arranged and the furnishings set out in a maimer which provided the best effect. The furniture was loaned by Messrs. Humphreys' Warehouse, and was In perfect harmony with the remainder of the. stage settings. The dressing of the lady members of the cast was also strikingly effective. The cast was well chosen, and each member is to be congratulated on the performances. Mrs. \Y. A. Bowie fitted well into the part of a retired actress. Mrs. Judith Bliss, interpreting the character with a charming vivacity, changing her moods during household tiffs and in her love-making scenes. Miss A. Ryan made her first appearance on a local stage production as Morel P.liss. and she pleased the audience with her ability and the naturalness of her manner. Miss h. Godfrey had a difficult role to fill as Clara the." maid, and her ability as a comedienne provoked the audience into frequent bursts of laughter. Miss (J. Smith, as .Jackie Coryton, was also remarkably successful, particularly in her shyness 'with another of the guests. ?d"iss I'.* Fisken, as Myra Arundel, played her p'art splendidly as a wise city girl out to enjoy the country life. The 'main male part was played by Mr. M. Dobson, and his performance of a modern voutli aroused admiration. Mr. J". G. Nolan, as Richard Greathani, again displayed his great abilities before the footlights, his reserved manner, never carrying his characterisation too far. perfectly fitting the part he had to play. M, T. Scott, as David Bliss, was at homo as the husband of the ex-actress. and Mr. ft. Wall, as Sandy Tyrell. contributed to the humor of the evening. At the final curtain, the audience was thanked by Miss Millar for its support and the appreciation it had shown of the players' efforts. She took the opportunity to make ail appeal for increased membership, in view of the costs of the production leaving all too slender a margin on which the society had to meet its outgoings. Members of the Gisborne society, she said, were fortunate, for in Sydney, in addition to the subscription fee, members had to pay for seats at each p'erformauc.© of the society's productions. Assisting the company in its success were Mr. A. .1. Nicol. in the role of stage manager, Mr. A. B'. Sevmour as make-up artist, and Mr. TT. S. McLernon in scene shifting. Musical selections were provided by an orchestra conducted by Mr. Wilfrid Koliu. and they went far in adding to the enjoyment, of the entertainment.