AMUSEMENTS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 242, 18 February 1911, Page 3

AMUSEMENTS

WIIITH BROS.' CIRCUS & MENAGERIE. Wirtli Bros.' Circus and Menagerie will show in New Plymouth on Friday and Saturday, February 2-1 and 2.3 (two nights only), and there will also be a matinee Saturday afternoon, on a site near the railway station. The bill boards of the city hear the legend, ''Have you seen Lizzie?" The stranger unwittingly inquires as to the identity of the lady, only to ascertain that the inquiry refers to the huge hippopotamus on exhibition at Wirth's Circus. Lizzie, the new pet of the circus, gets as much attention as a first-born child, or a probable Melbourne Cup winner. In tiie morning she gets a dishful of carefully-selected corn, to which is added a quantity of sliced turnips, which have already been soaking in hot water an hour. After this meal, she looks for her all-day bath, prepared in an adjoining tank. Great care is taken that the water is not too hot nor too cold. About 4 o'clock each afternoon she gets her second feeding. At about this time Lizzie becomes rather restive, possibly because she is hungry. After this meal .she is further indulged with an armful of hay, and then retires for the night upon a straw bed, specially prepared each day. The "lady" delights in potatoes, and relishes the addition of some of the tubers to each meal; in fact, she becomes more tractable if she gets a plentiful supply of them. Care is taken that they are well washed before dishing up. When these animals become excited the strange phenomenon of the blood sweat appears on their skins. The pale .chocolate color of their hides becomes densely covered with globular red spots, which, upon rubbing off,'will leave .stains like blood upon the cloth..

MR. J. C. WILLIAMSON'S NEW COMIC OPERA COMPANY, ' '■' THE DOLLAR PRINCESS." Writes the musical critic of the Dominion of "The Dollar Princess" (to be presented by J. C. Williamson on Mondays—To hear the music of Leo Fall's charming light opera, "The' Dollar Princess," once Is a delight. To hear it twice is positively fascinating. The graves of its orchestration—the merry work for the bassoon, the haunting melodies for the oboe, and the pretty use made of the harp in many of the accompaniments— becomes more apparent, and. one becomes familiar with the puzzlitig changes of time, and eccentric intervals), which make for originality in the work. Its melodies are delightful many of them are not included in the original scony.and may be interpolated numbers by other writers—but the. musical' taste and ' form throughout pleases inordinately. Miss Ivy Bjckford sings her music with ease and breadth, and her "Olga Alaska" song in Act 1 goes as does no other number in the opera. Mr. Clayton, as the cheeky, bounder Freddy Fairfax, is quite good'to look upon, and his singing and acting is brightly debonnair. Mr. Bert Gilbert scores'as Harry Q. Cornier, the quaint benevolent American njulti-millinnaire, and gets recalled' three or four times for his "Foolish Questions" .song. Miss Olive Godwin make* a dainty, if wilful, Dollar Princess, and Miss Lottie Sargeant frisks neatly ( as Daisy Conder, who believes in •platoiyc marriages. Mr. Charles Albert is pxprllcnt as Sir James, the footman, hut there 'is no one whose comedy is more popular than Mr. W. S. Percy, who, as Bulger, is extremely, humorous. The audience could do with, more of Bulger than it gets, especially lovers of tenth's, to whom his antics on the court outdo Wilding, Parker, arid Doust in their loveliest interludes. The orchestra is a feature, and its control by .Mr. Fritz is all that.it should be.

So much has been hoard of the unusually brilliant-nature of this play that public-interest lias been keenly whetted in the forthcoming production on ;Morrday next. There is little doubt that everything points to a more than usually, interesting performance. It is probable that no stronger combination of talent has previously been associated in one company that has toured the Dominion. Of the opera itself, contemporaries speak in nothing but praise. An added attraction will be found in the fact thai "The Dollar Princess" will be heard in comparatively the first,flush, of its fresh, ness; and by all appearances with a east of artists the very best Australia ,s possessed of to-day. ,