IN LONDON NOW

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1076, 13 September 1930, Page 26

IN LONDON NOW

Many Musical Shows Ready This Month RESTORING DALY'S PRESTIGE “Eldorado,” which is to reopen at Daly’s Theatre, is the work of coloured British subjects, Ernest Trimmingham, who wrote the “book,” and Rutland Claphani, who has/provided the j It is expected to restore the departed glory of this famous theatre. The departure of this theatre’s oldtime glory definitely began, I think, j with the petering-out of the excellent j revival of “The Dollar Princess’’ five years ago, writes Harold Conway in the “Daily Mail.” Since then there has never been the atmosphere which one had always associated with the most famous home of musical comedy in the world. CAST OF 80 The original libretto of “Eldorado” has been liberally revised by, among others, Oscar Asche, who, in addition to acting as co-producer with Edward Royce, is to head the cost of 80. The other players include Desiree Ellinger and Donald Mather, who appeared together in “Silver Whigs,” Mai Bacon, Mark Daly and Robert Nainby. The locale of the production is divided between Brazil and the Argentine. In fact, the play owes in part t its presentation to the fact that Messrs. Collins and Fen- ; ston, who are presenting the piece, have business interests in South America. The avalanche of musical productions shortly to descend upon London seems to be increasing steadily. Andre Chariot, not content with the preparation of his new revue, has just acquired the English rights of a Continental musical play, “Die Wunder-bar,” which has been ,a big success in Berlin and Vienna. * He is to present an English version by Rowland Leigh about the middle of next month. Meanwhile, the new Cambridge Theatre in Seven Dials is steadily nearing completion and will, it is hoped, be open to private inspection at the end of this month (August). Its official opening with “Chariot’s Masquerade” will follow a fortnight of the show at Birmingham. Beatrice Lillie is being provided with ample scope for her gift of burlesque. Her performance will include one of a prima donna, “La Lillie,” and one of Ruth Draper, herself the queen of burlesquers. One novelty in the production will be an Edgar Allan Poe thriller, “The Masquerade of the Red Death,” in ballet setting, with music by Cyril Scott. The other big musical production of September, “Follow a Star,” is now in the final stages of rehearsal and will open at Manchester, coming to the Winter Garden Theatre in London on September 10. This piece has an exceptionally strong cast, including Jack Hulbert, Sophie Tucker, Claude Hulbert, Charles Courtneidge, Alfred Drayton, A. W. Baskcomb, Irene Russell and Betty Davies. WORLD'S WORST CONJURER Mr. Baskcomb, as the world’s worst conjurer, who gets jobs only because his wife, an international star (Miss Tucker), refuses to appear without him, has the part of his life. Miss Tucker has plenty of good new songs, I hear, including a duet with Mr. Hulbert entitled, “You’ll do the singing and Til do the dancing,” “The good old days of Rome,” and “I never can think of the words.” The words of this last number were written by Jack Yellen, who does all Sophie’s lyrics, after a ship’s concert when they were crossing the Atlantic. Mr. Yellen started to sing one of his own songs, and—as usual—broke down in the middle. “I never can think of the words,” he apologised; and Miss Tucker immediately “commanded” him to write her a song around that phrase!