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Observer, Volume 1, Issue 4, 9 October 1880, Page 30

The theatre has been engaged by Mr. and Mrs. Hart for the night of the 20th inst. Fairclough's season at . the Theatre Royal, Melbourne, was not financially successful. The "Leader" says Fairclough's Richard HE. is highly " rumbustious." W. T. Wrighton, the composer of the hackneyed " Her Bright Smile Haunts me Still," is dead. Roberts' Hnmpty-Dumpty Company is not, after all, coming to the colony. Catherine Lewis, known in the colonies as the " best abused opera bonffe artist" is sueing Augustin Daly for alleged breach of contract. Walter Reynolds has been playing, "Tried and True" with Mrs Walter Hills Company at Timaru. The local press is overpoweringly eulogistic. Lingard and Craig must have made up their little tiff on Saturday, as the latter played the " Bosun" ; with all his usual verve that evening. Miss Amy Sherwin has, the " Mirror" states, been seriously ill, but was better when the mail left. She is now a great favorite in America. The School of Arts at Brisbane has been fitted up as a theatre by James Thynne White. His new house is building. Gilbert's new play, written expressly for Sothern, is said to be the best thing he has yet done. Sothern paid Mm £3000 for it. Miss Cleveland (late Mrs. Charles Vincent, and now Mrs. Nelson), has finally left the stage. She was a magnificent actress. Ketten got £300 for six nights in Brisbane. Ho played a seventh night and gave the proceeds (£80) to Keogh, who had him under engagement. Rose Herseewill join Emilie Melville's Opera Troupe at San Francisco shortly ; so will Armes Beaumont. "Baker and Farron"(says the "Chorus") "have been professionally ruined in London by bad management, but they did well in Dublin, and have now gone to America." Camilla Urso arrived in New York on August 15th. The "' Mirror" says she is going to make a concert tour the States under the auspices of the Boston and .Lyceum Bureau. J. C. Williamson and Maggie Moore commenced an engagement at the Theatre Eoyal, Melbourne, on the 18th ult., in " Struck Oil " and the "Pool of the Family." One result of the row between the "Star" and the Lingards is that the latter have made up their minds not to' come back here at Christmas. There will probably be some difficulty about Neilson's fortune. She has a divorced husband living, and, as American divorces don't count in England, ho may be able to claim the whole £40,000. The Lizzie Morgan Company have been playing an Irish drama called " Inchavoguo," at the Princess Theatre, Dunedin. It is founded on the famous novel, " The Queen of Connought," and was played with that title at the Olympic in London some years ago. The name may possibly mislead people into thinking this piece is Dion Boncicault's latest effort. Inchavogue was only played a couple of nights. De Lias called on me the other day, and explained at length his position relative to the Steelo Dramatic Company. The story is scarcely of sufficient public interest to bo worth repeating, but I will confess our worthy manager convinced me that his conduct to Mr. Steole has been perfectly fair and square. One thing is certain, i.e., that taking into consideration the money paid by Steele to De Lias, the latters takings on the season didn't amount to £12 a-week. My Christchurch correspondent writes : — The Dramatic Company has left us, and in its place we have " Thomson's Confederate Diorama, and Colossal Mirror of the American War." I give you the full title because it looks so grand. In addition to the pictures there are two ventriloquists with this show. But the great attraction will be no doubt the " magnificent souvenirs" which will be given away each night. Poor " human nature' ' — Sam Slick was not the only person who knew how to tiokle it.

Dr. Neil is loud in praise of Edwin Browne. Listen to this :— " Mr. Browne has played but a week, but he deserves to play many weeks. You need not embarrass yourself by the question of whether he can play Hamlet or Richard the Third. It is probable that he knows better than to attempt either ; but you may be quite sure that he can play characters, of which Tender Jim is the type. Ho has a good appearance, a pleasant voice, and a natural manner, and he used all these attributes with the best effect in showing what was intended in the character he personated."

The author of " Our Boys" lives between Eccleston-square and a bright peaceful rural home at Sutton. The cynical humour which finds expression in his characters on the stage, whether simply written or actually personated, is distilled from his habitual and ordinary way of regarding life. On the stage he talks and looks exactly as he does at home, and at home he is not less outwardly cynical and inwardly good-natured than is Sir Simon Simple in his own play, "Not such a Fool as he Looks." Byron bubbles over with good things which are current in all society, and are often entertained unawares by the comic journals, He is, perhaps, the only actor on any stage who walks out before the footlights in the clothes in which he drove down to the theatre.

Barry Sullivan, the greatest tragedian on earth, has been denying the statement that ho has mode an engagement to go again to Australia. "Ho now" (says " Carados " in the "Referee") " presents his compliments to his friendsthroughout England, Scotland, and Ireland, the United States of America, Canada, and California, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland, India, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania, and begs to inform them that he is resting until September, when he will commence ' a tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland." I have always been taught that Ireland is part of the United Kingdom; but Barry being an Irishman, and an educated one to boot, evidently knows better.

A theatre lessee who comes in contact with a manager who is heir to about eighty thousand pounds, and doesn't very soon discover the fact, is not half so shrewd as he ought to be. At the Leeds Assizes the other day an action to recover damages for false imprisonment was brought by Mr. George Paxton, whoso norn de theatre is Strathmore, against Mr. Francis Rawlings, lessee of the Theatre Eoyal, Halifax. Strathmore was manager of the " Peril " company, and while playing at defendant's house found himself in want of cash for a cheque for £65. Eawlings supplied the money, being told that, although there was not a balance at the bank to meet the cheque, it would be furnished by Strathmore' s solicitors. Through some mistake the bit of paper was sent back dishonoured. Thereupon Strathmore was given into custody. The mistake as to the cash was soon set right, but it wasn't so easy to wipe out the indignity, so the manager brought his action. On hearing it transpired that plaintiff was the grandson of Sir Joseph Paxtou, under whose will he is entitled to the large fortune alluded to above, the jury, without leaving the box, gave a verdict for the plaintiff, with damages £50, and now I dare say Eawlings is wishing there was some method of knowing a man worth £80,000 when you meet him.

My Dunedin correspondent writes : — On Friday and Saturday last a company of amateurs played Hamlet at the Queen's Theatre and succeeded very well. There was, of course, some awkwardness apparent. Some were too diffident, others too confident, but generally the characters were fairly played and the text was conscientiously rendered. Mr. Barrett, a schoolmaster, who possesses a good knowledge of the mechanical part of elocutions, essayed to play the part of the Prince of Denmark. Some of his readings were peculiar — he dragged his voice at the end of sentences and changed his tone without reference to the test, or else, with what would generally be regarded as a misreading of it. In asking the grave-digger how long he had been a " gravedigger," he endeavoured to give a sepulchral tone to the word "grave" which was ridiculously out of place. Generally, however, his acting was much better than one would expect from an amateur and some consider his rendering of the part equal to Mr. Geo. Darren's. There was as usual, a desii-e shewn on the part of the ladies to appear as young as possible, and as a consequence Hamlet's mother looked a good twelve years younger than her son— a slightly anomalous condition of things. The people were, however, well pleased with the performance, and. the ladies and gentlemen forming the company will be encouraged m their study of Shakespeare.

Errata. — Through an unfortunate printer's blunder, I am made to say in the " Critic " of this issue (see p. 29) that Mr. Craig insulted certain members of the Lingard Company. The passage should read : " First of all, he (Lingard), in a most unnecessary manner, insulted Craig, and made uncomplimentary remarks, etc., etc." The error was not noticed until the first sides were through the press.