The Harvey Variety Company.

Southland Times, Issue 11568, 28 October 1890, Page 2

The Harvey Variety Company.

A considerable time has elapsed since the amusement lovers of Invercargill have had an opportunity of attending a variety entertainment of the London music hall order, and to this circumstance as well as to the reputation which preceded the Harvey company, the large audience in the Theatre Royal yesterday evening was probably doe. The stalls and pit were quite crowded, the circle was well patronised, and, considering a strong counter-attraction elsewhere, the management have every reason to be satisfied with the manner of their reception in New Zealand. Hearty applause, frequent bursts of laughter, and repeated encores marked the performance throughout, and although the high expectations the public had formed were not altogether realised, the " show " was fairly good of its class. In this connection it may be remarked that too loud and brazen a preliminary blast of trumpets has sometimes a most unfortunate result, since it creates anticipations which are not fulfilled and is followed by a re-action in which public opinion is inolined to veer round to the other extreme. Certainly the Harvey Company's entertainment is clever and amusing ia many respects, but it has neither the great roerit nor the startling novelty which everybody was led to expect. The first parfc of the programme yesterday evening consisted of the nigger chair business, with three ladies included in the semi-circle, and it was decidedly, most glaringly, weak. The jokes, if they may be dignified by such an appellation, were decrepit from over- work and feeble with the weight of years, and the comic business generally was strained as well as hackneyed. Of course there was laughter, of course to some of the audience the most veteran funnyisms were brand new, but in the bosoms of the great majority the only feelings that could possibly^ have been awakened were fond recollections of many years ago. Several acceptable items, however, relieved the otherwise monotonous mediocrity, among them being charmingly rendered ballads by Miss Ella Seigfried, Miss Violet Brandon, and Mrs H. G. Cunard, and a song and dance by Mr Brandon. Comic ditties were given by Messrs Cowan, Magee, and Harvey, the latter securing a double encore for his elever imitation of warbling after the accepted stage method of the Tyrolese. The finale was brisk and lively, considerable amusement being caused by the grotesque dancing of one of the Harvey Brothers. After a short interval and a wellplayed pianoforte selection by Mr Carl Riedell, Mr Harry Cowan gave a nigger plantation song and dance which "fetched" the audience. Miss Seigfried and Miss Brandon were successful with a couple of serio-comic songs each. Mrs Cunard was encored for an operatic vocal selection and responded with "It was a dream." Mr Magee favoured the audience with a humorous (vide programme) Irish specialty entitled "One pound one," and Messrs Cowan and Magee caused roars of laughter with an absurdity, entitled for some occult reason, " Namby's Picnic." Last of all came the Harvey Brothers themselves, and it was soon apparent that the management had cunningly reserved the titbit to the end with the object, possibly, of sending the audience home in perfect good humour. The brothers played violin and concertina admirably, jumped, bumped, and flopped about the stage in the most surprising manner, assumed all sorts of grotesque postures, and performed all sorts of whimsical antics, accomplished remarkable feats of high kicking, sang an amusing and extraordinary composition termed a cat chorus, and altogether kept the audience thoroughly diverted during the considerable and very lively time they occupied the stage. These brothers themselves are well worth seeing, and although their performance bears a resemblance to that given by the Rayners here some time ago, it is of a more acrobatic nature and other novel features. The company will appear again this evening- _^_