ACROSS THE FOOTLIGHTS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 7683, 5 February 1904, Page 3

ACROSS THE FOOTLIGHTS.

[By « Fra Diavolo."J

TOWN HALL BOOKINGS. February 11—Band Concert. Show Week—A. and P. Association. February 22 and 23— J. C. Williamson. February 26 and 27—M. B. Curtis. March 17—Hibernian Concert.

Pollard's Opera Company, now in South Africa, is gradually being depleted of its original lady members - by matrimony. Miss Zoe Karkeek was married recently, at Durban, to a Mr GrhnalcU, a gentleman in a good position in the Natal Civil Service. Another member of the company, Miss Madge Boon, has Jten united to a Pietermaritzburg Patrons of the old Theatre Eoyal in Masterton will remember Mr Chas. Holloway, that favourite stock actor, and will learn with pleasure that he is about to make another tour of the colony, opening in- Auckland to-morrow evening, in " Two Little Vagabonds." It is now some eleven or twelve years since Mr Holloway was last in New Zealand. The company supporting Mr Holloway is a very strong one, and will be headed by Miss Beatrice Holloway,' a young actress of great emotional power. Included in the combination are Miss Ida Gresham and Mr Chas. Stanford, two old favourites with local audiences. It is to be hoped that Mr Holloway will see his way to include Masterton in his northern tour. M. laaudi, the lightniug calculator, who visited Australia and New Zealand last year, gavo a performance before the King at Elvedon Hall, the seat of Lord Iveagb. As M. Inaudi cannot speak English it was # necessary for Mr F. Trussell, the acting-manager of the Hippodrome, to accompany him, and also his manager, M. G. de Thorcey, as interpreter. His Majesty personally set M. Inaudi various problems to solve, some of them very intricate. One iv particular, to find the cube root of 389017, was worked out by Inaudi, who gave the answer, 73, almost instantly, notwithstanding the fact that he was bombarded on all sides by other members of the party, who tried to confuse him by setting other questions. His Majesty then asked if Inaudi would tell him the number of farthings tbere are in 613 guineas. Inaudi answered correctly, again almost immediately, His Majesty, at the conclusion, thanked M. Inaudi, Mr F. Trussell, and M. de Thorcey. " Valentine Day " in Adelaide Critichits a big nail on the head: At Sydney Palace " Mama's New Husband" is drawing fine houses. Exactly why it is hard to say. At this theatre, Frawley's talented company of comedians played to half biz. If you answer this by saying that audiences want singing and dancing, then I would point out that across the street, at the Criterion, a much better crowd, the Stanton-Hailam Company, did a perish with burlesque, musical comedy, and comic opera. Now this very ordinary American musical comedy company comes along and draws like a brevvery chimney. Mr Win. Hawtrey apparently has a fear of the small-pox, for he recently telegraphed to two of the members of his company at present in New Zealand to get vaccinated before rejoining the combination in Sydney. Mr Bland Holt's latest production, at the Theatre Eoyal, Melbourne, " A Desperate Game," has been an enormous success, full houses being the rule all tho while. It is essentially a colonial play, as evidenced by some of the display lines from the advertisements, winch are as follows :—" Electric Storm in Deadman's Gully," " A Westraiian Flower Show," " Whim of a Gold Mine." "A Church in Bushdom." All New Zealanders will rejoice at the success of their favourite actor-manager, and it only remains to express a hope that Mr and Mrs Holt will soon take a recuperative trip to New Zealand. A member of the Pollard Opera Company writes as follows to the Ofcngo H itness : - As you will see by the heading to this letter, I am writing this on board our special train, which is at this moment at Beaufort West, en route to Capetown. We had a splendid season at Pretoria, where we met quite a host of New Zealanders, who did all in their power to make our stay anjoyable. Since I last wrote we have played nearly all the pieces in our repertoire. " Djin Djin," "Casino Girl," "In Town," " Messenger Boy," and " Geisha," were all put on in Pretoria. On the last night of " Geisha " Alice Pollard at short notice played Jessie Eamsay's part (0 Mimosa San) owing to the iilaess of Miss Earnsay. For the last two nights of the season " The Messenger Boy" was staged, business being splendid up to the last. On the morning of our departure for Capetown the station was thronged with friends and well-wishers to see us off, showing clearly that we had made ourselves very popular. The time is now 10 a.m. Our train is skirting the mountains. This particular scene is lovely, reminding us very much of some parts of New Zealand. Everything is quite fresh and green now, a bit different to when we were going up to Johannesburg, when everything was burnt ujj and dusty, no life to be seen, and water something unheard of. We are quite used to sleeping and preparing our meals in the train now, and look upon these trips rather as a picnic than anything else. A trip from Dunedin to Christchuch will seem nothing to us after these journeys.—We are now back in Capetown, after having toured right through the country. We arrived at half-past 4 on Tuesday afternoon, having been in the train since Sunday morning. It is quite nice to be back here again and meet old friends. As Capetown was our first town in South Africa, we have rather a liking for it, and aftar having come irom dusty Johannesburg, this city seems a paradise. Mr Fred Graham, now appearing in the Williamson pantomime (" Beauty and the Beast") at Sydney, is said to have come in foi a large fortune. Mr Graham intends to leave the stage, and settle down in Melbourne or Sydney. Madame Onra, the clever wire walker with Fitz-gerald's Circus, is the wife of Gilleno, the talented musical clown with the same combination. Miss Fanny Powers, one of the cleverest child artistes yet seen in Masterton, who went to London some time ago with Mr Harry Rickards, has returned to Sydney. She appeared by special permit for one week on the stage of one of the big music halls in the "Big Smoke" There was much excitement at the Melbourne Opera House on a recent Saturday night, when Pagel, Wirth's

strong man, who has been indulging in cross-challenges with Atlas, the latest Rickards strong man, claimed to enter on a weight-lifting contest for £50 which ho said Atlas had promised he would give anyone who could lift bis weights. Altas wanted Pagel to cover hie i>so with another, but the audience were with Page], and sought to insist on his being allowed to try the weights, Atlas called excitedly: Last night my name was mentioned scurrilously and insultingly. I have been insulted by the audience, the public, and the press. (No, no. Yes, yes.) lam now in the doctor's hands for rheumatism caused by the changes in your climate—(loud laughter) —but let Mr Pagel lift my bar. Let him put his money down. I am hero to lift him." Then to stop the disorder tho lights were turned down and the biograph turned on.

The China Mail, in commenting upon the case of the two typists who recently went from Australia with the Sultan of Jahore, says:—" The matter brings to mind the fact that many Australian girls are brought to the East and stranded, and the chief offenders in this direction are theatrical companies. Only a week ago a theatrical company passed through here frona Manila on their way to Shanghai, and for some reason or other left a young girl, not 19 years of age, in the colony. Certainly the company gave her a steamer ticket back to Australia, but she was left without a cent, to carry her down. The company made an agreement in Australia with the girl, who was a singer and dancer, and when she got here they cast her off and left her to the mercies of the world. Had she not met a friend who took her case in haiid, who utilised the services of his solicitor on her behalf, and generally interested himself in arranging her affairs, there is no telling what might have become of her. It is nearly time the Government took a hand and saw that travelling companies who bring young women to a foreign land like this treat them properly and leave them with sufficient funds to discharge their obligations here and carry them back to their homes. This is not the first case that has occurred, and, in fact, within the last six months two other youug women were left here by theatrical companies with their bare fare back to Australia. Had it not been that they met with people willing to lend them financial assistance, the probability is that they would have been sued for debt, and placed in positions that no white girl should be subjected to. The practice is unjust to the girls themselves, and unjust to the people here. The public have it in their power to teach the management of such companies a lesson." Handcuff King Cirnoc, of Eickard's Company, still retains the .£IOO he offers to charity for anyone who can bind him securely with regulation locks, handcuffs, and chains. One M'lntosh sought to win the .£IOO for charity the other night by loading up Cirnoc so heavily with chains that the audience protested on the grounds of cruelty, but the handcuff king freed himself in So^min.