THE CRITIC

Observer, Volume 1, Issue 12, 4 December 1880, Page 101

THE CRITIC

Mr. and Mrs. Hart did well at Nelson. Walter Reynolds has completed a new drama. Lydia Howarde's Company will not come to Auckland till the middle of February.

Luscombe Searell's " Wreck of the Pinafore " is in rehearsal at Dunedin, where the Lingards are playing a very successful season.

Miss Clara Stephenson took a benefit at Chri3tchurch on November sth, in " Ireland as it was " and"lxion." According to the "Times" there was a good house.

The directors of the Edinburgh Philosophical Institution have recently given orders for "Ouida's" novels to be withdrawn from circulation. A large number of her novels lie on the shelves.

George Mac Donald has written a novel illustrative of modern English life and manners, entitled "Mary Marston," which will be published in the Manchester " Weekly Times."

George Darrell's season at the People's Theatre, Melbourne, seems to have been a melancholy "frost." According to last advices, "Transported for Life " was to be revived.

A small company, with J. P. Hydes and Clara Stephenson as " stars," left Christchurch last week for Hokitika and the West Coast, where they intend playing Christmas and the New Year.

If the Dunedin papers are to be believed the charming Miss Maggie Knight is not after all coming over here at present. Sho has, in j>oint of facb, joined the company at the People's Theatre, Melbourne.

Harry Braham and Lizzie ; yatson are playing in the burlesque of "Naughty Cupid" at Garcia' s, Manchester, and Harry Rickards was singing at Nottingham in September.

George Bignold reappeared at the Standard Theatre, London, on October 4th, in "Henry Y." There is not the smallest chanoe of his returning to the Colonies at present.

A well-known actor, Mr. Edmund Leathes, has in the press an interesting volume entitled "An Actor Abroad," consisting of the author's personal recollections of travels in Australia, New Zealand, the Sandwich Islands, California, and other places.

Henry Irving's revival of "The Corsican Brothers," at the Lyceum, London, surpasses in magnificence anything ever attempted before. Poor as the play is, it lends itself well to scenic display, and everything that good taste and money oould do has been done. More than £5000 was expended in the preparation of the drama.

The latest novelty in Christclmrch is the building of a theatrical booth by professionals on the vacant ground opposite the Theatre Royal. This method of catering for the public during holiday time, though common enough at Home, is quite new with professional talent here, and ib docs not seom to be highly valued, for one night during the present week the audience was limited to two when the performance qomnienqecl. The leaders of the speculation are, we bglieva,, Messrs. Hydes and D'Elmaine, who probably to suit the taste for highsounding names, announced it as " The Pantheon." Gall it by whatever name you please, " The Royal Pantheon, " in outside appearance and in inside accomodation is a very fair reproduction of the far-fainad Richardson's Show. There is a the same outside stags whereon the big drum is hammered incessantly, while the corx>s dramatique, or at least a considerable porbion of them allow the gaping crowd to form some idea of the glories to be seen within,

Mr. "Barney "Levy (brother of the famous cornet player) died in Melbourne quite recently. He was first violm in every operatic band Mr. W. S. Lyster has got together during the last fifteen years, and visited Auckland with the Cagli troupe. Heart disease carried him olf.

The new opera bouffe company which has just arrived in Melbourne from England, is managed by Mr. John Wallace, who was with the Soldenes. The chief pieces will be Offenbach's "Madame Favart" and "La Fille dv Tambour Major," both of which were tremendous successes in London and Paris.

A singular coincidence. The Victoria, at Sydney, and the Duke's, London, were simultaneously burned down. In both theatres on the night of the fire the "New Babylon" was played. In London, Clarence Holt played the character of Flotsam, the detective : in Sydney, his son Bland sustained the same role.

From a sketch of the career of the late Mrs. Fitzwilliam, furnished to the "Chorus" by Mr. W. Hoskins, I learn that the deceased lady was known on the London stage as "pretty Nelly Chaplin." Her maiden name was not Chapman, but Chaplin, and she was the youngest of three daughters of an English provincial manager.

At Haverhill, Mass., at an afternoon exhibition of Cooper, Bailey and Co.'s Circus, William H. Batchellor turned a double somersault over eleven elephants which were placed side by side, save the two last in the line which were head to head. The third elephant, the largest of the herd, was elevated on two four-feet pedestals. All the company were assembled in the ring to witness the feat.

"Hazel Kirke," at the Madison Square Theatre, New York, is certainly one of the remarkable productions of the day. It has now been played there more than three hundred times. On the 250fch night, the management presented every lady who attended with an exquisite programme and a bouquet of flowers. The former is an artistically drawn and arranged collection of pictures, accompanied by appropriate illustrative texts from the play, and cost not less than two shillings each.

"Miss Colville's disappointments," says a southern paper, "are getting vexatious. Mr. Cary took up a company to Wanganui for the race week thore, but M^ss Colville did not put in an appearanco. On the first night Mr. Cary had to come forwardand apologize for Miss C.'s absence, saying she was ill at Wellington. He added that if any one was there specially to see Miss Colville, he or she could have the admission money returned, but no one left the hall. Mr. Cary does not appear to have suffered pecuniarily by Miss Colville's absence."

Says the Wellington "Chronicle," of the 13th, "Mr. K. W. Cary doesn't let the gras3 grow under him much. The amateur "Pinafore," Madame Franzini, and Nigger Minstrels cannot satiate his appetite for enterprise. He leaves this afternoon for Dunedin, where he meets Professor Haslernayer, tho celebrated presditigateur (well remembered here several years ago), whom he intends to run for a week at Dunedin, and a similar season in Christchurch, and then to bring on to Wellington."

During Mr. Proctor's lecture, at Wellington, on "The Life and Death of a World," and when alluding to the great age of the earth, an individual in a front seat of the stalls suddenly and angrily observed, — " That is not true ; if that is true, then the Bible is a lie," and having so delivered himself, he jumped tip and left the Theatre, followed by a companion, apparently of the same way of thinking. Mr. Proctor barely paused in his discourse, says tho "Times," and continued a lecture that filled all who heard it with delight, admiration, and awe.

Kelly and Leon's Minstrels (minus Kelly) xxnder the management of Dave Hayman, are doing a grand business at St. George's Hall, Melbourne. Mr. Billy Sweatnam, a now comer from America, is an acquisition to the troupe, and meets with the general approval of his audienca. The company is now doing a "Black Pin a i," with the consent and permission of Mr. Williamson. It is (the local papers say) immensely funny, and with Bent as the Admiral, Sweatnam as Buttertub, and the " only Leon" as Josephine, the trifle goes fast and furious.

Ihe last new thing in photography surpasses the ingenuity of the man who invented the spirit photographs, and suggests how handy it would have been had that crafty person added this to his devices. The photographer takes one negative of the sitter with open eyes. The he makes the sitter shut his eyes and remain in the same position while another negative is taken. The two negatives are printed on the same paper, one on each side exactly coinciding. When this double-faced picture is held in proper position before a lamp, and the lamp is rapidly moved or caused to flicker, the curious effect is produced of long-continued winking. It is not claimed that a person looks more beautiful when he keeps winking, but it cannot be denied that it gives one a very interesting appearance.

How the children of actors gravitate towards the stage as a rule. Two of the sons of Mr. Sothern, one of whom was educated as an artist, are already before the footlights, and Mr. Boucicault's eldest boy, who was originally intended for the army, has now served quite a year's apprenticeship as an actor. Miss Nina Boucicault will, moreover, enter the profession some two years from now, when she will be sixteen years of age ; she is a bom soubrette. The latest announcement of this character is, that Mr. Sothern's only daughter, Miss Eve Sothern, a lovely young girl with the advantages of abundant fair hair, blue eyes, and classic features, has decided to become an aotress. She will appear first in the provinces, making her ddbut as Moya in "The Shaughravin."

Offenbach leaves very little money. He lost almost the whole of his fortune at the time of his brilliant but unrenranerative management of the Gaitd some years ago. The failure of Sardoii's drama, "La Haine," which he had mounted with a. magnificence never approached on any stage, along cost him many hundred thousand franqs. His later works, too, have not been financially successful. The copyright of his numerous operas must, however, be worth a great deal. It is stated that just before his last illness he implored M. Carvalho to hasten the production of his " Contes d' Hoffmann." "I have only one wish now," he said; "to be present at the first performance of my opera." He died with his last wish ungratified. Extreme unction was administered him on his deathbed by tho Vicar of St. Loius d'Antin.

Most people (says "Pan") know poor Neilson's former husband by reputation ; lie wag the victim while in New York of the moat successful of Mr. Sothern's practical jokes at the Gramercy Park Hotel. How frightened he was, and no wonder, when Dundreary's confederates, including Mr. W. J. Florence and the late "Dan" Bryant, the negro minstrel, drew pistols and bowie knives and indulged in a sham fight I Well, the other day the badly "sold" victim of this American encounter, made his appearance in the office of the late Miss N eilson'a solicitor and executor, Mr. George Lewis, and demanded her jewels as her husband. Tho response was, like the "official arguments" of H.M.S. Pinafore, "unanswerable." "You married again some time ago, did you not ? Well, then, if your claim to having been the late Miss Neilson's husband is correct, yovi must have committed bigamy."

W. G. Coup's Show exhibited in Wincheschester, Va., Aug. 16. That morning, when preporingfor the customary street parade, the cage of hyenas had been placed in position, and as Charles Drayton (the keeper) entered the den be saw that something was wrong. He at once attempted to olose the inside iron door which divides the cage into two compartments, hut the eldest male hyena, named Gabriel, refused to obey his orders, and assumed a defiant attitude. Mr. Drayton immediately said to some outside attendants, '.' Here is trouble ; send for some iron bars." Drayton, who had nothing but a cowhide whip, knew that instant action was necessary, and he seized the hyena by the throat and threw him to the floor of the cage. This subdued the beast, but for a moment only. It regained its feet and stood ready for a springf, its, rage reeming uncontrollable. Wsht a houn4 ;t se.ize,d. IJray ton, and the other hyenas, who, liad remained passive, now became infuriated at the sight of blood, and began attacking one another. Drayton with his naked hands fought the animal, and by his great strength and dexterity prevented it from attacking a vital part. The attendants, by the aid of crowbars and pitohforks> compelled the hyena to release its hold, and Drayton, who had fought his way to the door, fell into the arms of his friends as soon as it was opened. Drayton was at once removed to an hotel, and Manager Coup ordered that everything possible should be done to alleviate his sufferings. His physicians expressed a belief that no serious consequencos will result,