GREENROOM GOSSIP.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, 14 November 1912, Page 21

GREENROOM GOSSIP.

Mr. Jack Fanning. The veteran touring manager, Mr Jack Fanning, has during the last few days been renewing his acquaintance with old Aucklanders. He is piloting the “On Our Selection” Company throughout Australasia, and is naturally jubilant at being the representative of the greatest Australian play yet produced. It is 32 years since Mi' Fanning previously visited Auckland, and in those days he introduced what was considered to be a masterpiece of stage production, it being none other than a panorama of the Arctic regions. One becomes reminiscent when the days of the panorama are mentioned, its settings were lurid, and effect was obtained by means which thoroughly eclipsed those now in vogue with the cinematograph. During his long absence from Auckland Mr Fanning has been professionally engaged throughout the Commonwealth. Time has treated him lightly, the old joyousness is characteristic of the veteran, and that wisdom has followed his footsteps is evidenced by the fact that he is accompanied by his wife, who describes her visit to Maoriland as being most pleasurable.

Carrie Moore's Country Tour.

The Carrie Moore Company play at Hamilton on Monday, November 18, Te Kuiti on Tuesday, Taihape on Wednesday, and Hunterville on Thursday. A comprehensive tour of New Zealand has been mapped out, and the “smalls” are not to be neglected.

Mr. Andrew Shanks, Scottish Baritone

Mr. Andrew Shanks, the young Scottish baritone, who is accompanying Madame Kirkby Lunn throughout her

tour of Australia and New Zealand, was especially chosen by ML Oscar Kammerstein to sing the part of Govannion in “The Children of Don,” and his efforts called forth the highest praise from the London musical critics. -One paper asks, “What continental star could improve on the rendering of primitive passion which Mr. Andrew Shanks gives?” And another says, “Mr. Shanks did conspicuously well and managed to catch the grand manner which the atmosphere demanded.”

M. Andre De Ribaupierre. Monsieur Andre De Ribaupierre, the violinist of the Kirkby Lunn concerts, comes from Geneva and is a protege of Paderewski who has predicted a great future for the young virtuoso. In some of his appearances in Germany and Switzerland, this young and promising artiste has made a name for himself. A leading Strassburg journal said of him that he could count

himself as one of the best violinists of his class. He made a profound impression by the freshness of his tone, youthful ardour, and interpretation. He displayed a fine technique, a very developed sense of style, and a wonderful capacity for bringing out the subject in the piece he was playing.

Farm Life in “On Our Selection.”

The old set of harness and other farm paraphernalia that do duty in the splendid Australian comedy drama, “On Our Selection,” to be presented at His Majesty’s on Monday by the Bert Bailey Dramatic Company, are by no means gimcrack stage “properties,” for they have all been used in real farm work on the selection of the author of the book, Steele Rudd. These things, which possess little intrinsic worth, were presented to Mr Bailey as a mark of the author’s appreciation of the excellent way “On Our Selection” is being presented on the stage. The large sums of money regularly paid to Steele Rudd for royalty rights abundantly justify his generosity in presenting the harness to the Bert Bailey management.

A Word About “Dad.”

Mr Bert Bailey, who is “Dad” in “On Our Selection,” has for a number of years held pride of place on the Australian dramatic stage as a comedian, and playgoers will be interested to learn that he is to make his appearance in a character which is by popular acclaim acknowledged as his masterpiece. The old selector, ‘Dad,” is a kind-hearted, irascible, thoughtful, and earnest man, with a vast fund of genuine humour, and Mr Bailey’s representation of this manysided personality is a work that stands out in a play that is full of typical characters.

Mr. Sydney Williamson. Mr Sydney Williamson, of Christchurch, provided an artistic treat in the Town Hall Concert Chamber lastFriday, when he gave a classic song recital to an appreciative audience.

recital to an appreciative audience. A rare collection of gems embraced Beethoven’s “Adelaide,” Schubert’s “The Linden Tree” and “Death and the Girl,” Brahms’ “The Little Dustman,” Schumann’s “Moonlight” and “Spring Night,” Strauss’ “Cicely.”... and “Dream in the Twilight,” as well as numbers from Liszt, Grieg, Wolf, Franz, and Loewe. Possessed of high interpretative art and a beautiful baritone voice, which has been strengthened by seven years’ study at the Royal Conservatorium, Leipsig, Mr Williamson is well equipped to express the sentiments of the. Continental composers in all their delicacy and force.

Sifting Out the Chorus Girls. When J. C. Williamson advertised in Melbourne for ladies and gentlemen for the pantomime one day last week over 100 aspirants to join the ranks of the pantomime chorus put in an appearance at Her Majesty’s. They were all shapes, sizes, and ages—from the 14-year-old schoolgirl to the demure dame of 40 odd. Andrew McCunn, Frank Dix, and Minnie Everett sat in judgment upon the bunch, and put them through their facings. The test, however, eliminated all except a mere twenty, for this year’s pantomime will be above the average from the vocal point of view, and mere looks will not be counted as a qualification for the chorus, who will have to do more than merely appear ornamental.

A Record in Transit.

Something of a record was put up by the J. C. Williamson organisation at the end of the week, when four companies were got moving to their destinations, Sydney and Melbourne. From the Harbour City were brought by a special train the “Nightbirds” and “Get-Rich-Quick, Wallingford ” Companies, while bn the same day as these arrived there were dispatched from Melbourne the “Ben Hur” and “Quaker Girl” Companies, these in another special. Altogether, more than four hundred people under the Williamson management, with many tons of baggage, were transferred from one capital to another without a single hitch, in spite of the fact that many Cup specials were in transit from Sydney to Melbourne, and the traffic was exceedingly heavy and ■complicated on this account. This big joo placed another record to the credit of the Williamson transport department.

None of the Flavour Lost!

“Nightbirds,” as staged in Australia by J. C. Williamson, differs in some respects from the production as staged in Vienna and other parts of the Continent. Piquant it is, and the music is exactly the same, but certain portions of the libretto and various incidents have been toned down in conformity with public taste in Australia, which is not so “exuberant” as in various European cities. This is not to say that the Australian “Nightbirds” is milk-and-watery. Far from it. The flavouring is all there, but some of the ingredients have been taken out. “Continental in atmosphere and surroundings” is how the play might be described, and there certainly can be no cause fof complaint from playgoers who desire their comic opera served up with “sauce piquant!”

Producer of “ Puss in Boots.”

Prior to leaving for Australia to produce the “Puss In Boots” pantomime for J. C. Williamson, Ltd., Frank Dix was tendered a farewell dinner in London at Romano’s. A large and distinguished company was present, including Lady de Bathe (Lily Langtry), George Graves, Alfred Lester, Jimmy G'lover, Arthur Collins, Robert Courtneidge, and others.

Have You Got Your Tack?

“Have you got your tack? Every citizen must have his tack? What is home without a tack?” were the persistent queries spread broadcast in the “Get-Rich-Quick, Wallingford” advertising in Melbourne. The public were also invited to wire Wallingford if the tack forwarded by him through the post failed to arrive. The result was that telegrams poured in. These were advertised daily, and caused considerable amusement and interest, as numbers of them came from wellknown people, whose names were ad-

vertised. “Have you got your tack? is' at present the popular question in Melbourne. * * * * Carrie Moore’s Successes. Miss Carrie. Moore’s successes in the comic opera world are proverbial, though New Zealand unfortunately missed participating in them. In addition to being imported from London for the title role of “The Merry Widow” in Australia, she was the original “Dolores” in. “Florodora” when it was played there some years ago. It has just been revived, and Miss Moore was approached by Mr Williamson to play her old part. However, she had just organised her present company and could not agree to accept. The only original in the revival cast was Miss Grace Palotta. - • • • * * “Condensed” Opera. Miss Carrie Moore has had two years of vaudeville work at Home, dividing her work principally between the Hippodrome, Palladium and Tivoli. “Condensed” opera is becoming a popular turn at the big music halls. «> * * * Lucky Girls! A chorus girl in the J. C. Williamson “Nightbirds” Company in Melbourne drew a £lOO prize in a big sweep last week, and has since been busy investigating fine fabrics at fashionable drapers’ shops. Another member of the chorus drew a £2O prize, and gave a supper to a number of girl friends, each of the guests being presented with a gold fountain pen.. The chorus girl is now referred to. as “her nibs!” Taking a Joke. When Fred Niblo —“Get-Rich-Quick Wallingford”—arrived in Melbourne an experience that befel him denoted That there is at least one humorous

person in the city who is thoroughly cdgnisant of the appropriateness of the tack in relation to J. Rufus Wallingford. A fine big motor was in waiting to receive the comedian at Spencer Street station, but when a short distance had been traversed both, back wheels of the car grounded with a crunching sound. It was found that they were punctured, and embedded in the covers were the heads of numerous tacks. An investigation in the station yard' disclosed the fact that a handful of tacks had been placed beneath i eafcli wheel by some practical joker. It was certainly a humorous episode for the representative of Wallingford, who exploited the tack to make his millions, to figure in, and Niblo saw the comic aspect of the incident when he dryly remarked to Josephine Cohan — “There’s no one can take a joke better than I can —even if it’s against myself.” * * * * The Ways of the Company Promoter. “Get-Rich-Quick, Wallingford,” the American comedy which has convulsed Sydney and Melbourne, will be seen out here shortly. Fred Niblo, the American star comedian, chatting regarding the play, said: —“GeLßichQuick, Wallingford” is the greatest satire on the ways of the company promoter that ever happened.’ It strikes me that we could get something from the people who work that business not to play it. Anyone who has been used to getting in on the first floor without putting up money will enjoy every moment of it. Those who have been in the habit of coming into schemes with the public can take it as a tragedy. John Rockefeller nearly fell out of a bo? aughing at it, and when it was running in New York there used to be regular Wall Street theatre parties of brokers, speculators, and such like. You’d see half the house almost and the other half laughing, and you could tell just by that who was making money and who was losing it. And

all the time the box office was getting it in hatfuls. It ran for over a year.” • « ♦ * A Gigantic Circus. Next December will see the arrival of the largest aggregation of circus and Wild West people ever brought to Australia. This enterprise sails from San Francisco in, a few weeks’ time, and will play all the principal cities and towns under the auspices of Mr Bud Atkinson, the, American showman. Most prominent are the Ten Martonis, a Russian Cossack riding and acrobatic act, which is easily one of the biggest in the world. The Four Karolvs are Hungarian Royal rough-riders, and their act is one of the highest salaried in the whole of Europe. Added to these is the Pas de Deux, what is described as a carrying act, whilst a comedy jockey stunt is the limit in absurdity and cleverness. * * * * Straight from the Wild West. Some wonderful Wild West performers are coming with the big American circus. Amongst them are Tex M'Cloud, absolutely the greatest lariat thrower the world has ever seen. Amongst his many feats is that of lassooing seven horses and their riders in one cast. Then there is Johnnie Mullins, of the celebrated 101 ranch. In addition to his ranching work, he is one of the best known figures in America, by reason of the fact that he is a member of the Selig picture people, and figures in all their Western productions. The Blanchetts (man and woman) are fine performers, the latter being the recognisedchampion bronco buster over the other side. Another decided novelty will be the introduction of Bert Morphy. He is the man who sings to beat the band, and he has been one of the strongest open-air attractions for some time; The show proper will consist of nearly two hundred performers. Mr Claude Webb, the well-

known touring manager, is making preliminary arrangements.

Purifying the Pictures.

The censor is abroad in Sydney, the pictorial entertainment being under the ban of his displeasure. Regulations have been gazetted prohibiting representations of scenes suggesting immorality, indecency, the execution of murders, and other revolting sights, scenes of debauchery, or low habits, and other scenes tending to demoralise the young, and the representation of successful crime such as bushranging, robbery, and other lawless acts which may be reasonably considered to have an injurious influence on youthful minds. Programmes must be submitted to the police for approval, accompanied by a synopsis of each item, -and films must, if necessary, be screened for the information of the police, and pending the decision of the Minister the censor may require that the. exhibition be deferred. The maximum penalty is £2O.