STAGELAND

Sun (Christchurch), Volume II, Issue 562, 27 November 1915, Page 4

STAGELAND

BOOKINGS. Theatre Royal. December 6 to 13—"Potash and Perlmutter." January 2 to B—Muriel- Starr Dramatic Gompany. Opera House. Fuller's Vaudeville. "Potash and Perlmutter" opens its Wellington season to-night, playing for seven nights only. Hugh J. Ward is expected to return to Sydney from America on December 4. Graham Moffat and Company, in "A. Scrape o' the Pen," are still going strong at the Princess Theatre, Mel:lbourae. Rosina Buckmann", the "well-known New Zealand operatic artist, was included in the cast' chosen to present "Madame I&Ltterfly," ''Carmen," "La Boheme," "La Tosca," and other works at the. 'Shaftesbury Theatre, London, for the season which commenced during October. Dorothy Gumming has left J. C. Williamson, Ltd. In her case it was not a Blatter of the firm leaving her (says. "The Theatre"). Miss Gumming is going to America. She has for yearsi been the most-distinguished looking girl on the Australian stage. Miss Gum,raing has brains, too. So "The .Theatre" confidently looks 1 forward to her achieving considerable success in America. Mabel Normand,. the. Keystone star, whose injury from concussion of tlie brain we mentioned last week, is apparently not so severely hurt as was reported. At all events, it is now said ; that the comedienne is well on her way 1 :to recovery. Los Angeles newspapers' stated that Miss Normand was near; death, , and extras were printed later that she had died. The latter report was-d-enied immediatelyj however, and *ext day Miss Normand was reported much better, and has been improving rapidly ever since. Maud Pane (Mrs Edgar Warwick), ywho is to be principal girl in the Williamson revival of "Mother Goose," -first attracted the firm's notice when she was in this' country with the Court " Cards. It was John. Farrell who saw her as. a promising acquisition, and laid Jus fir%on to the negotiations that secured th-e charming little actress. Violet Paget is making her final appearances in Australia in "The Man Who Stayed at Home." She leaves almost at once to join her husband, Hugh Buckler? who was wounded at the; front recently. George Edwardes would probably have died a' poor man if it-hadn't been for "The Merry Widow" (according to the "Bulletin"). He' was practically • broke, and actually in. despair when Lehar 's- opera fell into his hands. It gave him a glimpse of hope, and he borrowed' enough to put it on. After that all was smiles. During its long jrtm at Daly's Theatre it gave a profit at every single performance. According to the Sydney "Referee'" the Maori troupe of dancers, who were engaged to appear on the Tivoli circuit shortly, have cabled Mr H. D. Mcintosh asking for the. cancellation of their contract. Several of the leading members of the troupe have enlisted in, the Expeditionary Forces, and the remainder found it impossible to carry on without tliem.

Percy Dix, who will be remembered most old patrons of vaudeville in New- Zealand, and by Wellingtonians particularly, has been very ill for some time past, and his condition is now reported to be critical, very little hope being entertained of his recovery. The professional diagnosis of his case is tliat it is ''a general break-up.'' For the past few years Percy Dix has been running a vaudeville theatre in Newcastle, N.S.W.

"Alf" Linley and "Billie" Low, best known in Wellington for their pioneering work in establishing permanent 4 '■ movies,'' have enlisted for active service. "Will Burton, Ben J. Fuller's stepson, is another "theatrical" who has enlisted. He offered himself in Chl-istchurch, was rejected by the medican officers, had another try in Wellington, and got through.

As already-announced, Wirth's Circus will commence a season in Dunedin on December 27. The "Australasian" comments thus upon th'e new show: —"Nothing in Wirth's Circus programme of this year has so caught popular interest as the wonderful performances of Captain Huling's seals, which, on horseback, as musicians, and as acrobats simply eclipse all anticipation of what might be expected from animals which ordinarily appear very clumsy. The Wirth family themselves contribute largely to the programme, Miss Wirth's horsemanship being splendid."

Mme. Amy Sherwin, the Tasmanian soprano, who was teaching in Sydney four or five years ago, and has since done well in London, will settle in New York with her husband (Hugo Gorlitz) next month. Mr Gorlitz will begin by managing the concerts of her soprano pupil, Stella Carrol, lately starring at the Palladium, London. Their daughter, Jeannette Sherwin, will return from South Africa to the stage of America. Tlieir son, Louis Sherwin, is dramatic critic of the New York "Globe."

Herbert Brooks, the illusionist and mystifier, who is the star performer of tlie new programme of the Opera House, which commences on Monday night, recently astonished the staff of tlie Dunedin "Star" with some impromptu card stunts, which dazzled the Pressmen and convinced them that Brooks would be the wrong sort of person to "sit in" with at poker. Afterwards the illusionist became reminiscent, and gave the information that lie is- of Bradford stock. He gave his first exhibitiou of sleight-of-hand to his fellow-pupils in a boarding-shool when but 11 years old, but his real debut was made not as a card manipulator, but (of all things in the world) as an animal trainer. Ho was engaged by the late Frank C. Bostock, and not only worked With leopards, but himself trained in Richmond, Virginia, the famous '' man-chimpanzee,'' Consul. A little episode—that's what he called it—with a leopard gave him so badly-mauled a hand that lie on the spot forsook the management of the carnivora, and lias since devoted, himself to the obfuscation of the more tractable animal' —mau.

John McCormick, the Irish tenor, had his engagement cancelled in Montreal when the Canadian manager heard he had refused to sing "Tipperary" in Kansas City. McCormick refused on a purely musical ground, he pleaded, thinking it far beneath the usual numbers in his recitals. Curiously enough, he sang it for a phonograph.

According to the latest advices, the Williamson firm is sending two companies to New Zealand at Christmas. The company due to open in Wellington on or about Boxing Night wiSll be the dramatic company headed by Miss Muriel Starr, last here with the American play, '' Within the Law.'' In Auckland the Royal Comic Opera Company is to inaugurate a tour of New Zealand, playing a repertoire of old favourite operas and musical comedies. One of those, "The Dancing Mistress," we have not seen. Others that may figure in the repertoire are "The Quaker Girl," '' Paul J ones,'' and '' The Old Guard.'' The company at present includes Misses Florence Young, Gladys Moncrieff, Ethel Cadman, Ethel Morrison, Minnie Love, Connie Milne, Alice Bennetto, and Addie Lennard, Messrs Phil. Smith, Leslie Holland, Claude Bantoek, Alfred Andrews, Derek Hudson, Harry Burgess, and John Robston.

Miss .Minnie Love will play Ghopinette in the revival of "Paul Jones." Mr Leslie Holland will be the Don Trocadero, Mr Phil Smith, of course, Bouillabaisse, Mr Reg. Roberts Rufino, and Miss Ethel Cadman Yvonne; and this cast recalls that in the first production in Australia of Planquette's opera, which was given in the Melbourne Opera Hoixse on March 29, 1890, the cast was as follows:—Marian Burton as Paul Jones, W. H. W'oodficld as Ruano de Martinez, Henry Hodson as Bicoquet, Jj&hn Gourlay as Don Trocadero, Sydney Deane as Kit Kestrel, G. H. Snazelle as Bouillabaisse, George Leitch as Petit Pierre, Ida Osborne as Malaguena, Aggie Kelton as Chopinette, Nellie Stewart as Yvonne. The production was under the management of Messrs MaeMahon.

Another noted English actor is dead, in the person of E. S. Willard. He first came into prominence in the original production of that best of melodramas,

'' The Silver Bang,' '■ in which he created the role of the villian, Captain Skinner, '' the Spider.'' The play had an exceptional cast. Wilson Barrett was in the title-role, his brother George Barrett played Jaikes, and Miss Eastlake was Nellie Denver. In later years he discarded that type of medodrama for strong dramatic plays, like "The Middleman," in which ho was the first portray er of the role of the old inventor, ably enough impersonated recently in the film version by Albert Chevalier. He played many successful Reasons in the United Slates, the Americans talcing a great liking to him.

Amy Murphy and Nellie Black, the two Dunedin girls now on the Fuller circuit, are on tlieir way to New Zealand. They will open at Dunedin, where they can be sure of a good reception, and will be seen at the Opera House shortly.

Opening at the Opera House on Monday night are Morris and Meeker, two American patter artists, who term themselves the "Salesmen of Joy." Their talk hinges round the desperate efforts of one of them to sell a doormat to the other. Vernon and Sinclair, the favourite sketch artists, are also amongst the new arrivals.

Three comedians of the Tivoli Follies, Walter Weems, George Welsh, and. Billy Rego, solemnly waited on Jack Cannot and presented him with a brush and comb recently, says the "Referee." The point of the joke is that Mr Cannot is as bald as the proverbial billiardball, and in accepting the presentation he suggested that perhaps he might do. better witli a sponge. Referring to his; lack of hair, Mr Cannot explained that it caused him no concern whatever. The less covering he had for his head the better he was pleased, as it was well known that all the most famous comedians of the age were bald-heads. For instance, he pointed out there was Paulus, the greatest of the French funny men. Coquelin, W. H. Berry, Arthur Playfair, and last, but not least, the late Harry Fragson. "You don't want hair to be funny," says Mr Cannot, "what you want is brains."

Neither Brussels nor Warsaw is evidently to be released from the thrall of German rule for the present, to judge by the plans for the people's "entertainment" made for the future by the invaders. Arrangements were recently completed for an elaborate season of German music and drama in the Belgian capital, to begin on September 30 and last until March 31, 1916, whilst Warsaw is to receive a visit from the brothers Herrnfeld, Berlin actor-man-agers, who specialise in German comedy.

According to a writer in the "Green Room Magazine," the salaries paid circus performers and workers are about the lowest paid to "&ny public entertainers. For instance, the '' death defiers,'' the performers who risk life and limb to provide "thrills" for the audience, are said to often receive no more than £3 per week.

Lily Langtry, the English actress, known as the "Jersey Lily," goes to the States shortly to play Sydney Grundy's adaptation of W. B. Maxwell's '' Mrs Thompson." It is a modern comedy, in . which Mrs Langtry plays the part of an up-to-date business woman.

Tlie newest thing in moving pictures that promises to be a huge success is the vaudeville pictures. A company with a capital said to be two million dollars has been formed, which is to be called the Vaudeville Players' Film Company. It is going to make only vaudeville films. Already overtures have been made to many vaudeville headliners of importance in America to act for the new concern, on a yearly contract. The scheme is to film all !unds of vaudeville acts which are adapted for the camera.

The Edison Company has gone into the seven-reel feature business. The first of these to be screened is Thackeray's "Vanity Fair." The critics all agree that the atmosphere of the century has been kept up, and the lover of Thackeray will find that the famous book has actually come to life on the picture screen. The director of the picture comes in for a great lot of praise for his share of the production, the actors and the photographer also reaching a high reward for their share.