CAPPING CARNIVAL.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 115, 20 June 1914, Page 13

CAPPING CARNIVAL.

IN THE THEATRE ROYAL. The college students were merry erough last night, and tlie large audience that attended the Theatre Royal to be amused by their grotesquerie had convinced itself before hand that it was going to enjoy itself, and so everybody was satisfied. The programme was funny and, in spots, even witty, but the trouble was lack of stage management —the action, which was disconnected in any case, frequently hung fire. The "Diploma Day Nightmare" purported to be a satire on the ways and manners of the governors of the University, and some of the caricatures of the members of that honourable body were very good. The parody of the Chancellor was one of the best, and so as to make sure that the resemblance should not be missed, and to give point to the joke, bottle of stout stood ostentatiously by his right elbow. The registrar was caricatured as a person incurably somnolent, and. various plain jests were forced on the imitation Chancellor and a member of the board, disguised as a cleric, both of whom regretted that the students had acquired the deplorable habit of being young. One member of the board put forward a brilliant suggestion for making ideal students, which was that the whole bunch of them should be pulped in one gelatinous mass and then turned out in moulds. It was with such jests and blunt satire that the farce was carried forward. In the end the Chancellor stated that he had decided not to award any diplomas this year, but would give suitable prizes instead, so more caricatures of our prominent citizens were brought on. '' Mr H. Holland" was awarded a loan, "Mr J. C. Adams" receive a pair, of trousers, and "Mr L. M. Isitt" was presented with a bottle of something, and as a fitting finale to the farce students and professors danced a sort of Can-can, alleged to be a tango. The next stunt was "A Masquerade of the Motley,'' and was carried out by the girls, who made it by far the brightest part of the show. The goblin dance, the songs of the Indian troupe, and the dancing of Columbines and Polichinelles were well done. The chorus could have contained some male voices with better effect, for the uniformity of the soprano voices made the singing rather weak. The last performance of this tliree-in-one entertainment was the '' brilliant Belfast beliowdrama,'' entitled '' The: Pinching of the pearls.'' It was a good skit on the average melodrama, and some very undeserved satire was thrown in heavy lumps at the police. Especially commendable was the humour served up by Sammy Simpson, the butler, and Sarah Bloggs, the servant. Of course everything, from the pinching of the pearls to the arrest of the virtuous hero and the final discomfiture of the was conducted with obvious burlesque—but a'eal melodrama is near enough to burlesque at any time. It was a hilarious show, and quite enjoyable, and to-night's repetition is likely t,o be even better.