THE LorcnettE

Observer, Volume XV, Issue 815, 11 August 1894, Page 9

THE LorcnettE

By Prompter,

The Sapio-Urso Company who were delighting City Hall audiences up to Wednesday night, migrated .on that evening to the Opera House where ' popular ' prices are being charged for admission to some of the most delightful concerts ever held in Auckland. It is a mistake to suppose that the Company produces programmes ' over the heads of the general public' Much of the music is high-class, for the Company is composed of highly cultivated and most talented musicians, but the selections given while many of them are of the highest class are at the same time well known and widely popular. Take Monday evening's performance, for example. Madame Sapio sang amongst other gems

ing ' Hans ' for ever so long now and not to put too fine a point on it, the piece has lost the charm of novelty.

Mr Thornton's ' Eev. Bobt. Spalding ' is well-known too. No one ever saw a curate of the Spalding type off the stage, and truth to tell, we are getting rather full up of that eccentric cleric who has been introduced to our notice so frequently by Mr George Leitch that we almost feel that we could bear it if we never met him again. Messrs Thornton and Arnold have now returned to Australia.

My Sydney correspondent writes : — ' A Woman's Revenge,' though receiving A.I. support, will on Friday next bring the present Bland Holt season to a close, and in this drama Mr and Mrs Sass and Miss H. Watson will make their last appearance in Sydney, prior to leaving for England. Adelaide is Mr Holt's next resting place and Mr Simonsen, his trusty alter ego is already there making preparations. 'Paul Jones,' with Nellie Stewart as 'Yvonne,' and Wallace Brownlow, the new baritone, as the ' Pirate Chief,' cannot fail to draw well when it opens the short opera season on Saturday next.

' Morocco Bound ' is in active rehearsal, and may be expected to put in an appearance at the Lyceum in September or October. W. B. Spong's Criterion season concludes this week with the ' Money Spinner.'

Mr George Callender, business manager for the clever Heller combination, has arranged, for a brief season at the City Hall commencing Monday next, 13th inst. The show is highly spoken of and the programme presented is suited to the taste of a general audience. Speaking of the entertainment the Southern Cross ' (Invercargill) says : ' The Heller performances have formed one of the chief subjects of the. week's talk. . . . True artiste that he is, the Professor reserves to the' last his bonanza in the way of a sensation. MmeJ Heller, his fair coadjutor having been mesmerised, or thrown into' a clairvoyant condition, is then prepared to answer questions written, or merely thought of. As may be imagined, the lady is plied with no end of questions, dealing with the past, present, and future — with affairs private and affairs public. This part of the entertainment is intensely interesting, and the faces of some of the querists, after their curiosity has been satisfied, is a study. There are some who profess to be able to explain everything they see or hear — nothing is too great for them — but for once people of this type have had to take a back seat and admit they have something to learn. The members of the Company have each well denned lines. Mr Heller's laughing songs, and Mr Abbott's musical and vocal contributions, all met with enthusiastic appeciation.'

An iinportanTi announcement re City of Auckland loan appears in our advertising colums. City Council notifies the appointment of Mr P. O'Kane as City Market Inspector and pound-keeper for city pound. Mr C. F. Mark, Secretary of Auckland Coursing Club, announces August meeting of the club in our advertising columns. The O 'Regan declares that ' women are physically incapable of enduring the hardships of political life.' Oh, are they ? What do Mrs Collins, Mrs Rattray, and Mrs Daldy say ? The Rev. S. J. Neill lectures twice at the Choral Hall on Sunday next. In the afternoon on ' The Religion of Ancient Egypt,' and in the evening on 'Liberal Thought and Modern Thinkers.' The Kauri Timber Co. announce in another column that they are prepared | to supply cheap timber in job lots for cottages, out buildings, etc., for one month. only. This is a rare chance for builders. Ladies will be interested in the announcement in this issue headed 'A Lovely Complexion.' They should pay a visit to the Eucalyptus Depot, Victoria Arcade, and ask for a 'complexion casket.' For further particulars they are referred to our advertising columns. The Columbia Skating Rink has taken on alright this season. The place was again crowded to the doors on the reopening after being closed for the Poultry Snow. The special feature was a bicycle event, in which the Christchurch rider, R. Ledez, established a two mile record, assisted by H. Surman, Smith, Hemming and Skeates (2) ; time, 9min 56sec. The management are now working .up a fancy dress carnival for August 29th, and no doubt it will be a great success. Old John Stacey, "Waterloo veteran, aged 96, recently walked from the wilds of Yorkshire to London and back (over 900 miles) to plead with the War Office authorities for a slight increase on the munificent pension of lOd a day granted him in 1860. Stacey, who has won a sackful of medals for valour, was politely shown the door. Poor ' Tommy Atkins,' he fights for Queen and country while he is strong and able, and when he is old and feeble his Queen and country reward him with — a few pence a day ! It is such men as the Duke of Cambridge that get all the ha'pence. ' Tommy Atkins ' has got to put up with the kicks. All the Ladies of Auckland get their Music Books tastefully, neatly, and cheaply bound at Mb Leys', the wellknown Bookbinder of Wyndham-street, two doors below the Gas office). — Advt.