SOME NOTES FROM LONDON.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XIII, Issue 773, 29 December 1904, Page 21

SOME NOTES FROM LONDON.

Mr Nat Gould (“ Verax ”), the wellknown novelist, who, prior to his departure for England, was on the staff of the “ Referee,” writes a chatty letter to that journal concerning theatrical matters in London. Says Mr Gould :— George Edwardes, Curzon, and Frohman seem to have all the best theatres amongst them. “ The Cingalee,” “Veronique,” “ The Orchid,” are all doing immense business, and all good. Tree’s production of “ The Tempest ” is magnificent. The Neapolitan Opera Company, from the San Carlos Napoli, are doing well at Covent Garden.

Olga Nethersole has taken George Musgrove’s theatre, the Shaftesbury. Mrs Brown-Potter has dropped money at the New Savoy, I fancy. She wears well—as good-looking as ever. “ Beauty and the Barge ” is overrated. Pinero has created a sensation with A Wife Without a Smile.” It’s very ■clever, but to my mind “ The Duke of Killicrankie ” is the best thing in that line. Ellen‘Terry thinks a lot of Barrie’s new play for her. The Hippodrome is the marvel of London. It’s been full twice a day ever since it opened, Drury Lane has been turned inside out but opens on Boxing Night with “ The White Cat ” panto. Many theatres are ’being transformed entirely—the Haymarket especially. Several new ones are to ■be built.

An interesting case touching the rights

in “ East Lynne ” was heard in the King’s Bench Division, London, recently, before Mr Justice Phillimore. The action was brought by Mr John Pitt Hardacre against Mr Purcell, of the Marlborough Theatre, London, Miss Haidee Wright, and Mr H. Armitage, the proprietor of certain theatrical touring companies, for an injunction and damages on account of an alleged infringement of plaintiff’s sole right in the “ Bullock version ” of “East Lynne.” Plaintiff’s case was that he had acquired for £l2 from Mr Chute the sole right of representing a version of ‘ East Lynne ” composed in 1868, in which there appeared a comic character named ‘ Bullock,” but defendants denied that Mr Chute was the original creator of the part, which they proved had been played in 1866, and in revised versions since that date ; and they denied that there had been any infringement of his version by their representations, which were of a very different version of the play, as a whole, written up by Mr Wilson Barrett, who had, so far as the character of Bullock was concerned, partly written new words and partly relied on his recollection of the character as played by his brother, Mr George Barrett, some years before. The jury, after a prolonged absence from Court, intimated that there was no chance of their agreeing, and were discharged.

Charles Arnold, who recently announced his retirement from the stage, shortly starts a tour of South Africa, it is stated. W. T. Lovell, here with the Broughs, is with Miss Olga Nethersole’s Company at the Shaftesbury Theatre, London. Sir George Grove’s “ Dictionary of Music and Musicians,” originally issued in 1879, in four volumes, is to be reissued, under the editorship of Mr J. A. Fuller Maitland. Many hundreds of new articles have been added and the old ones revised. The first volume goes as far as E, and it is expected that the work will be completed in five volumes.