OPERA HOUSE.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XV, Issue 889, 21 March 1907, Page 16

OPERA HOUSE.

(By

“Footlight.”)

FULLER’S ENTERTAINERS. J7he ‘iiiuiicigcrnenL Hus every reason to be satisfied vvitn me patronage bestoweci on tne opera nouse mis week. Each evening Hie attendance has been sufficient to pack rne meatre irom floor to ceiling. The programme is a decidedly auracave one, anu is responsible tor the good business .eiencu to. On Monday evening a holiday crowa nded the theatre, and songs suitable to the nay being ceieorated, were sung. “’Kathleen Mavourneen ’ was an excellent contribution irom Miss Lorraine Tansley, and ca.led for the warm applause 01 me audience. Mr Harry Linden enjoys me honour ot having become a popular favourite, and he deserves the success achieved, since he has a fine voice, anu is a comedian of some merit. “Central Give Me 249,’’ is a pretty little song, which suited Miss May Wallace. If Miss Wallace continues to improve as she has done since the commencemen. of her Auckland season, Mr John Fuller will be able to take the credit of having introduced a young artist 01 something above the ordinary calibre. Mr Joe Woodward doesn’t sing badly, while his dancing is clever; possibly he is bashful, but it will prove a ratal mistake if he concentrates his arten.ion on the sta.ls, and offers the “gods” nothing more than a broadbrimmed hat for their money’s worth. In the gadery will always be found the tyrants of the theatre, good judges as a rule, but autocrats a. all times, so that the artist who ostracises the powers that be must look to himself. “Home Boys” suited the pleasing baritone of Mr E. W. Gollmick. This is a wet country, but nothing ever happens to turn out of its course the smooth flowering stream of Mr Sam Wi.son’s inexhaustible spring of comic sayings and doings, and he babbles on with a never-ending current of comicalities. Miss Annie Cavendar is making her first appearance this week. She sings rather nicely, while her dancing is especially good. One of rhe novelties of the week is the appearance of Miss Rhoda Dendron, a really clever artist who has achieved fame in European circles. Miss Dendron’s dancing is on unique lines, inasmuch as she performs barefooted. Her first dance was a delightfu. fantasy called “Fascination.” The second was entitled “A Reminiscence of Spain,” the third was a very appropriate Irish dance, “Erin’s Colleen,” and all previous efforts were crowned by terpsichorean extravaganza entitled “La Gaie France.” Different costumes were used in each dance, stated to vary in value up to Miss Ida Berridge continues to evoke hearty applause by her ballad singing. “Please Let Me Sleep” was an item of Miss Berridge’s, which pleased the audience immense y. Mr Tom Armstrong and Miss Priscilla Verne present a laughable farce “The Foolish Fool.” The sketch certainly is very foolish, but Mr Armstrong is rather clever, and the crowd does not hesitate to show its approval; in fact the applause amounted almost to an uproar. An artist meeting with considerable sue-

cess is Miss Pearl Livingstone, a chic ittle comedienne; her “Bridget Malone” was excellent, and evoked as an encore “The Music of the Band.” The Melbourne Meistersingers appear in a number of military quartettes, and continue to please with their delightful singing. The undoubted draw at the Opera House this week is Lieutenant McDonald, the king of sharpshooters. A young Australian of prepossessing appearance, he performs a number of feats with the rifle which have never been surpassed in Auckland. Off either shoulder, standing on his head, lying backwards over the railing of the dress circle, or in any other position, it is all the same to McDonald. He shoots wi h unerring aim, and never misses. One of his most daring feats is to sight a rifle on a tripod at a small disc. Then standing underneath, with his head touching the disc, he fires at the trigger of the stationary rifle, which in turn explodes and shatters the disc above the rifleman’s head. To all appearances it is a genuine feat, and is one of the utmost daring. Lieut. McDonald is assisted by “Dummy Hoskins,” and one of his most daring acts with the aid of this human target is co shoot bits of pasteboard from between his fingers, and shatter half-a-dozen discs with which his head is pinned to a board. To-night it is announced that the King of Sharpshooters will perform the famous William Tell feat by shooting an apple off the head of Miss Rhoda Dendron, the clever dancer, who has promised to assist in the intrepid act. The Warwick Bioscope shows some very good pictures, and caps what must be described as a really good all-round performance.

Further new artists are announced for Saturday night.