STAGELAND

Sun (Christchurch), Volume III, Issue 698, 6 May 1916, Page 4

STAGELAND

BOOKINGS. Opera House. In Season—Fullers' Vaudeville. Theatre Royal. In Season—Paul Dufault Conceits. May 8 to 16—The Royal Strollers (J. and N. Tait). Enid Bonnet, an Australian girl who was taken away to America by Mr and Mrs Fred Niblo, is making o Jtit in the New York musical burlesque "Cock o' the Walk." The hitest recruit to vaudeville from what is known as the "legitimate" stage is Nan Taylor, the clever actress who played Aunt Susie in Graham Moffat's "Bunty Pulls the Strings." Miss Taylor was acquired by Mr Bcii Fuller as a Scotch balladist, and she is al present appearing in Dunedin. Amy Castles made her farewell j appearance in the Melbourne Towr j Hall last week. She is departing t< j America very soon. ( Ben J. Fuller's vaudeville activi l ties continue apace. The latest is j an up-to-date theatre at St. Kilda, Melbourne, opened on April 22. Barry Lupino is playing in a new musical show at tbe Winter Garden, New York. Irene Vanbrugh, wife of Dot Boucicault, is playing tke title role in W. S. Maughan's latest and most successful play, "Caroline." Lillah McCarthy (here with Wilson Barrett) is also in the cast. "•*■ The most critical and most serious London journals affirm that Dr Ethel Smythe has inaugurated a new movement in what may be called the comic spirit of music with her new opera, "The Bosun's Mate." The libretto of this is adapted from W. W. Jacobs's story. It is evidence, by the way, of Rosina Buckman's standing in the musical world that she should be chosen to take the leading part in this opera. "Richard III" is to be produced by George Marlow at the Sydney Adclphi Theatre next Saturday. It was last produced in Sydney at the old Royal Standard Theatre (now the Little Theatre) by the late George Milne, about 27 years ago. George W. Anson, a comedian, remembered by Australasian playgoers who saw him as Eccles and in 30 other parts during the Brough-Boiici-cault season from 1885 to 1892, has just celebrated his 50th anniversary as.an actor. This event took place at Spokane, U.S.A., last December, when he was entertained by the members of "The Lie" Company, and presented with a silver loving-cup. Mr Anson has two sons on the stage, of whom A. E. Anson is the better known. The younger brother, R. F. Anson, visited New Zealand with Oscar Asche. According to latest reports from America Josephine Cohan (Mrs Fred Niblo) was seriously ill. Louis Kimball, whom Hugh Ward engaged on his last visit to New York, will make his first New Zealand appearance in "Under Fire." He will impersonate a war correspondent. He specialises in juvenile light comedy. There recently died in Melbourne at the age of 0!) years James Bell, one of the oldest vaudeville identities. Bell first came to Australia under engagement to the late Harry Rickards, in the late eighties. Subsequently he returned io England, and, after touring South Africa and the East with a company of his own, he came out to Australia, again under Rickards's management. After a long season on the Tivoli circuit he once more went into management, this time in the Victorian provincial towns. On disbanding his company lie was appointed stage manager by Rickards, and in that capacity he worked in all the houses under that management. On Hugh 1). Mcintosh taking over the business, Bell's services were retained, but of late his health had been poor, and he was continuously on sick leave. Hajl Caine is amongst the writers •f war-melodrama. Last month his play, "The Iron Hand," was produced at the London Coliseum, of it "The Times" says:—"The plot seems carefully concocted rather than an actual happening, and we could ■ever for a moment believe that we were seeing real people in real conditions. ... The unborr child and the religious flavouring were there to mark it as indubitably his." It sounds very like Hall Caine. Boyd Irwin, who has done consistently good work on the Australian .stage, is another who gets a chance in "Under Fire." His last appear-, ance here was as the gum-chewing detective in "Within the Law," and his success in that character gave him his opportunity with the J.C.W. |irm.

Miss Emma Temple, who so admirably played the part of Mrs Sanderson in "The Man Who Stayed at Home," is also in the east of "Under Fire." She plays the part of a mother whose love for her son causes her to experience conflicting emotions. The "Mother Goose" pantomime and "On Trial" were very nearly not forthcoming one recent night in Sydney. All members of the Theatrical Employees' Federation at Her Majesty's Theatre and the Criterion had come out as the result of a dispute between certain unionists and a member of the J. C. Williamson staff occupying a position of authority at one of the theatres. According to

the union secretary, Mr Charles Phillips, the trouble was caused by some of the employees having been spoken to in a manner they regarded as offensive. After further developments, the members of the Theatrical Employees' Union and the Musicians' Union refused to start work until an apology had been tendered. This was the cause of the delay. Mr Phillips wished lo make it clear that there was no quarrel with the J. C. Williamson firm. He regretted Hugh Ward's absence in Melbourne, as his altitude towards the employees was always a friendly one. The trade show of "Joan or Arc of Loos," the first George Willoughby photoplay, was given in Sydney recently, and was attended by a large and representative number of exhibitors. In this Willoughby first release sensations galore have been provided, and all in attendance at the trade show are agreed that the presentation of the shelling of Loos by the Huns, and of the heroine's bomb-throwing acts of reprisal, were realistically stage-managed. The second Willoughby release, now approaching completion, will be "The Woman in the Case." For the first time, as far as known, a motion picture feature has been shown in a church in New York city, in place of the regular services. This picture was "Destiny, or The Soul of a Woman,"' which was exhibited one Sunday in the Roman Catholic Church of the Most Holy Redeemer. Qn the following Sunday, it is said, the Rev. Father Henry Sippel preached a sermon on the slow of the feature picture at the last Mass. The production was shown under the personal direction of the priest, and under the auspices of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Although "Destiny, or The Soul of a Woman" is essentially a worldly theme, Father Sippel deemed it so powerful and impressive in sending home a strong moral, that he arranged to have his Hock see it. "H.M." makes this allegation in the "Bulletin":—11 is the touring theatrical show that suffers most from the disinclination of publicans to supply accommodation, even when spot cash is available. in large towns hotelkecpers bid for Ihespkm patronage; but there are certain "smalls" where a visit from a show is regarded by Bung as an injury. Bulls (ML.), which was about eight miles from the railway, had a particularly bad reputation when this writer.

with a crowd of 15 or 111 on his jhands, shuck it. A couple of weeks i previously Dix's company had had Ito coach on to Feilding alter the Ishow, although there were four or ifivc good hotels in the place. On my visit, (hiding no hotel accommodation available, 1 got the rather unwilling assistance of the police, and demanded the production of the visitors' book which publicans are supposed to keep, but usually don't. Mainly because the police seemed disinclined to break their genial relationship with the holelkeepers, the examination didn't help matters much, r so other arrangements were made, and a complaint was fired into the Licen--1 ,

sing Board. On a return visit a few weeks later, the doors of the hotels were wide open. But the embittered boss of the hotel where I stayed handed out Gott strafe remarks regarding the injuries of a legal character he intended to inflict. His hot air haunts me still. A Keystone comedy featuring Syd. Chaplin, Charlie's equally knockabout brother, will be the star item at everybody's next week. Syd. Chaplin in the guise of a waiter steals a submarine (specially lent by the U.S.A. Navy) and the fun follows. The picture, which is in four reels, is said to be 4000 ft of laughter. After making a record season of nearly four months in Sydney, and getting equally emphatic evidence of approval during their limited season in Auckland and Wellington, the Royal Strollers open at the Theatre Royal on Monday night. The Strollers are said to be distinctive—they must be to be able to turn people! away, and since Christchurch is I partial lo costume comedy shows the! [Strollers should get an equally good jhearing here. Sydne- 'aines, comedian, is the leader, and the others are: Misses Rossiter (comedienne) j and dancer), Gwen Lewis, and Connie Milne, George Grayslone (basso), Cyril Norlhcote, and Arthur Frost. The Hippodrome, buili by the Sydney City Council, in Manning Square, • Haymarket, has been completed, and taken over by the lessees, Wirlhi Bros. II ivsaid to be the finest build-! jing of its kind in Australia. The I proscenium opening is 45fl wide and ■ l3ofl high. The stage is 72fl wide by! ! 54f1 deep, with an understage of 12ft | 1 Gin headroom. The stalls are ar- i j ranged in the form of an amphitheatre round a water pit of 40ft I diameter and 12ft deep, for acts by performing seals and polar bears, [etc., and other special features new | to Australia. This space will also be i used as a circus ring by raising a : platform lo the required level by | j means of hydraulic power from the stage. "The Test," a four-reel feature drama, which was recently showing iat some of the Auckland picture theatres, is the first entirely local production made in Auckland. TakI ing it all through (says the "AuckI land Star") "The Test" merits the I popularity which it is undoubtedly ; achieving wherever shown. . . . The scenes in which a ne'er-do-well and a girl die from exhaustion, exposure, and hunger, are weirdly realistic. These bush scenes are filmed : in Ihe Wailakere Ranges. A writer in the "London Express" Intakes this justifiable complain! about the actress who isn't:—"ln no ■other art than that of Ihe stage is it possible for the novice or the ini expert or llie hopelessly incapable lo 'be foisted noon the public in the ; highest temples of thai art. In Ihe j old days, the absence of a recognised ; academy was in large measure nulli--1 lied by Ihe necessity for beginners | lo spend years in Ihe provinces in i "slock" companies, where they enacted different characters every j nigbl and learned their work IhorI oughly before arriving al their | Mecca. Ihe West End of London. ; The old actors, generally recruited ! from a lower social scale llian those of to-day, spoke the King's English. 'To-day, a young woman need only i be beautiful, or possess "influence" or Ihe command of money, lo be foisted upon the public in some—not all—of our hesl theatres, in Ihe principal parts. Rawness, lack of technique, lack of temperament, lack even of any lalenl histrionic gift, seems no bar to preferment." Padcrcwski is nol an arlisl to be slighted without protest. Playing at a Biltmore matinee recently for I a fee of £6OO the famous pianist had an unwelcome experience. Madame iAUIa, the eminent soprano, and Al-

Bert Spalding, a distinguished American violinist, contributed the entire first pari of the programme, and Paderewski Ihe remainder. Now it happened that the lirst part was extended by no fewer than seven encores, and it was almost 1 o'clock before Paderewski was able to make bis appearance; he was in no mood to overlook what he considered a personal offence or a breach of etiquette. Lunch called loudly from within and without. A gentle stream of people began to empty into Ihe lobbies and elevators; Paderewski arose in the middle of a dainty Coupe rin number and said: "Those who do not wish to hear me kindly leave the room at once." Encouraged by this invitation many more arose; Ihe further exodus was met with hisses on the part of Ihe pianist's admirers, and Paderewski added in no uncertain voice: "1 am astonished to find people in New York leaving white an artist is playing." Tins protest being greeted with cheers and applause, Paderewski proceeded to regale Ihe seorners of material delights with a piano recital lasting an hour and 2(1 minutes. "Compulsion and the Actor" has been the subject of discussion in Ihe English theatrical papers of recent dale. In this connection Ihe "Era," while to some extent deploring the possibilities of the middle-aged artist being called upon to serve with Ihe colours, says:—"This means that there will probably be a great deficiency of actors of ability. There will always he a sufficiency of people of Ihe male sex who profess and call themselves actors; but that is a differenl thing from being able to act. Theatres will continue open, and plays will be produced. II is inleresting to speculate how lliey will be cast so as not to seem flat and insipid. At the present juncture a great many male occupations are undertaken by women. Why should there not spring up a special class of actresses impersonating men in plays The disguise of sex on the stage is no novelty. In Shakespeare's lime boys represented women, and very successfully."