THE LORGNETTE

Observer, Volume XXVII, Issue 39, 15 June 1907, Page 6

THE LORGNETTE

By Promoter,

COMINU SHOWS

17th June to 23rd June— Tait Brothers' " Kelly Gang " Biograpb. 24th June to 13th July— Williamson's Julius Knight Company, fllh July to 12tu July— St. Patrick's Dramatic Society, '• Maritana " 16th July to 20th July — Jessie Maclachlan Concert Company. 22nd July to lOtn August— Musgrove's Grand Opera Company. 12th August to 24th August— J. C. Williamson 16th September to fitii October— Allan Hamilton's English Star Company. 7th October to 26th October — Mac. Mahon Brothers' Dramatic Company. 4th November to 16th November— YVilloughby-Ward-ueach Comedy Company.

IT is not difficult to see why it is that " Human Hearts " has proved a most successful tuit wherever it has been played in the theatrical game so far, nor why it is drawing the crowded houses that have witnessed its performance at His Majesty's by the Ueaeh Dramatic Company since Friday last. The play is a compound of the melodramatic ingredients that the average theatregoing public, as distinguished from the followers of the higher class of drama, delight to sample. There is no special skill displayed in its construction. In fact, many of the incidents are crude and far-fetched to the degree of ludicrousness. The principal thing is the liberal mixture of highly emotional, pathetic, tragic, and laughable incidents in such order that no one of them has time to pall upon the palate. The author knew his public, and he has served up for them a tasty dish of highly-flavoured sensationalis tv

Except for a background of pleasant American home life, there is nothing typically Yankee about the setting. The principal scenes are understood to occur in Arkansas, but for anything that is distinctive in the characters, they might as easily hail from any pare of the Great Republic. At any rate, the hero and his wife — she is not the heroine, but the viilainess — and the principal villain, are just the conventional figures of tne old-time Adelphi shockers, transplanted to American soil. The story is that of an uneducated backwoods blacksmith matched with an unlikely adventuress wife, the appearance on the scene of a former paramour of the wife, who agrees to take her away from boredom to wore congenial surroundings, his murder of the beio's father in mistake for the blacksmith himself, the fastening of the crime upon the hero, his imprisonment and subsequent pardon, the denouncing of the real murderer by the comic uiau, who had witnessed the deed, various scheming and counterscheming lor the possession of the hero's baby-girl, and finally a convenient removal of the faithless wife by a bullet which the villain, when in the toils, meant for the man he had wronged.

If one can disregard the question of probability, the separate scenes are strong in themselves and powerfully presented. Mr Ernest Leicester is an ideal hero of melodrama. Of splendid physique and rich baritone speaking voice, and free from obtrusive mannerisms, he plays the part of Tom Logan wilh a naturalness that is really refreshing. Miss Valentine Sydney has the r6le of the unnatural wife, at odds with the audience in every scene, but makes probably all that could be made of so unwholesome a character. Mr G. K. Montford is as plausible a polished villain as ever trod the stage in melodrama. Little Alma Palmer, who appears as the child of the Logans, is an exceptionally gifted little woman. Always artless in her prattle and be. haviour, she is one of the cleverest of the many baby-actresses seen on the local stage.

The pleasantest feature in the play consists of a group of character sketches with little dependence upon the story proper* Miss Eva Quin is the most Yankeefied person of the cast, as Ruth Larkins, a sweet country girl wearing her heart out for Tom Logan, and maintains the twang and the character artistically. Then there are Logau's mother and half-witted brother, capitally played by Miss May Hesford and Mr Dundas Walker. Mr G. M. Berkeley carries the burden of the comedy of the piece upon his shoulders, as a quaint tramp who turns up at awkward moments to confound the guilty and right wrong-doing. He is a butt of iowcomedy, bubbling over at the spigot. Also, Mr Lloyd Earle makes some humorous dashes as a stage negro. " Human Hearts " will be the trump card at His Majesty's until the end of this week.

The boom in business at the Opera House continues. When the programme was changed on Saturday night every seat on floor and galleries was occupied, even to the lofty stage boxes. No wonder John Fuller sighs for a house with elastic walls. The latest addition to the company ia strong in the muscular sense. Samson and Juno are persons of extraordinary physical development, and perform feats of which Cinquevalli and Sandow would not have been ashamed. Samson toys with dainty dumb bells of 200 and 256 pounds weight with a comparative ease that makes an ordinary person hold his breath, and supports with his teeth a strap passed around the waist of his wife, while she is supporting two enormous weights. Madame Juno, in her turn, exhibits similar hair-raising prodigies of strength. Tempting otters of pelf are extant for any person who can emulate the performance of either, but so far the Aucklanders who are to lift the cheques have not emerged.

The programme of comedy and miscellaneous music and dancing is both varied and copious. Jtialeigh and May are mingling clever balancing and mirth in their smart tricks on the aerial wire. Slade Murray has a new budget of comic and descriptive songs, each good in its way. The Lewis sisters pirouette gracefully iv two bright song and dance turns, and the Stagpoole comedy trio are as amusing as ever in their new sketch " The Music Teacher." Lucy Lavinia has a heavy mortgage upon the good will of Opera House patrons with her olio of serio-comic songs. Carl Collier looked in for oue nighfc only, on his way through Auckland to the Islands, and Doris Baker, Bob Lloyd, Amy Blackie, Nellie Power, the melodious Val Newton, and the Lewis sisters provide a bright and popular first part. The Warwick Bioscope has two airings per night, the strongest consisting of peeps at a pantomime performance of " Aladdin." On Saturday evening the company will be strengthened by the addition of Bonita, the wonderful markswoman, and her pair of human targets, and Cleopatra, the snakecharmer, who has with her some thirty serpents and crocodiles.

"The Story of the Kelly Gang" is the subject of the newest biograph entertainment, which Messrs J. and N. Tait will introduce to the Auckland public at His Majesty's on Monday next, for a season of six nights. Bushranging in Australia is now, happily, a thing of the past, but people not yet past middle age can recollect the time when New Zealand was ringing with accounts of the startling deeds of Ned Kelly and his gang of bank-robbers in the northern districts of Victoria. In the Kelly days, of course, biographs were unknown. Messrs Tait have, however, been able to secure, under the direction of a gentleman who was concerned in the chase after the Kellys, the reenaction, at the scenes of their exploits, of the actual doings of themselves and their pursuers. For this purpose a large party of workers were in the field several months, a special train being used for an exciting train-wreck scene, and the result as revealed by the biograph- is said to be a very stirring entertainment.

Whoever was responsible for the compilation of the programme of the Auckland Orchestral Society's concert of last Thursday night cannot be congratulated upon his handiwork. It is not that there was so much that was gloomy in the works selected — the works were interesting enough in themselves as musical curiosities — but the heavier items ought certainly, to, have been separated. As it was, the central portion of the first part was depressing in the extreme. Yet there was quite sufficient of the more lightsome class of music on the programme to have given relief, had it been more judiciously distributed.

The sensation of the evening — so sensational as to constitute a memorable musical event — was the performance of two of the four movements of Tschai&owski's " Pathetic Symphony," the Allegro con Grazia (No. 2) and the Adagio Lamentoso (No. 4). The Allegro is quaint to a degree, with flowing and ear-haunt-ing melodies in the uncommon 5-4 rhythm — a singular blend of sweetness and melancholy. The Adagio is the musical embodiment of pessimism and despair. Save for a few dozen bars of consoling melody that follow the plaintive opening, it is a mass of appalling gloom, that seems to rend the composer's soul, and certainly harrows the feelings of the listeners, finally dying away in a shuddersome moan from the double basses. As a composition of extraordinary emotional power the symphony was well worth hearing, even if the effect was the reverse of pleasurable. In view of the call it makes upon the executants, the orchestra are to be complimented upon their rendering of the great tone effects.

It is understood that the other two movements are under rehearsal, and that the symphony will be given in its entirety at an early concert. Let us hope, however, that it will then be followed by something more cheerful than was given on Thursday. This was a bracket of two songs also by Tschaikowski, given by Mr Barry Coney. They were cast in the same mournful mould as the symphony, and pitched in the least pleasing notes of the singer's voice. Mr Coney was much happier in Elgar's stirring descriptive song, "The Swimmer," set to words by Lindsay Gordon, and still more so in one of his encore items, Pinsuti's " 'Tis I," which exactly suited his best register. Apart from the big symphony, the orchestra gave nothing but repetitions — the second Hungarian Rhapsody of Liszt, the " William Tell " and " Zampa " overtures, the "Fete Boheme " movement from Massenet's "Scenes Pittoresques," and the " Mignon " gavotte. All these were brightly executed. Herr Wielart conducted, and got some excellent effects out of his performing forces.

Mr James Crabtree, who is to take the part of Don Csesar in the production of " Maritana " by St. Patrick's Operatic Society, is one of the leading tenors of Sydney, and, besides having had wide experience in opera and oratorio generally, has filled the part ot Don Cee^ar with distinction in other performances. The local preparations for the opera season are progressing excellently. Either chorus or soloists are engaged in rehearsal every evening.

A private letter received in Auckland states that Mr Edward Farley, the well • known opera baritone, is seriously ill. in Sydney.

Auckland is not to have the opportunity of hearing Miss Marie Hall, the star violinist now in Australia. Her New Zealand tour is to open at Wellington on 4th July, but Messrs Tait advise us that they have been unable to secure dates at any suitable house in Auckland, and so will have to pass the city by. Another argument in favour of the Town Hall scheme.