WELLINGTON NOTES.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1468, 13 June 1918, Page 27

WELLINGTON NOTES.

(By

“Lorgnette.”)

WELLINGTON, June 10. Old and young Wellington are all agog for the coming of the J. C. Williamson pantomime “Dick Whittington.” The local season will extend from the 27th inst. until the 6th July. The striking personal resemblance borne by Elsa Langley, of the English Pierrots, now showing at the Town Hall Concert Chamber, to Vesta Tilley, the famous English artist, who specialises in male impersonations, was so frequently commented upon by visitors to Australia that this clever performer thought she would do a little imitating. Accordingly Miss Langley has included in her repertoire a Tommy Atkins dressed “turn” in which she appears in the old British regulation red jacket, dark trousers and cap, and during the company’s recent Melbourne season Cyril Maude paid her the high compliment of greeting her with the remark that “she was Vesta Tilley’s double in that rig.” Miss Langley is one of the strongest drawing cards in the Pierrot combination.

Mr. Sydney James and his merry band of Royal Strollers brought their Wellington season to a close last Saturday evening. The brief season will long be remembered with pleasure by all those who had the opportunity of witnessing this particularly clever and unique entertainment. The work of the Royal Strollers has a distinct individuality and flavour all its own, and is clean, clever and brightly artistic from start to finish. They excel in the creation of pure amusement, but there is enough serious work introduced to show that they have quite equal powers in that direction.

Last week I received a letter from Mr. Galwey Herbert, the well - known comedian, whose last visit to New Zealand was with the late Frank Thornton. At the time of writing, Mr. Herbert was playing Captain Cornelius Keys in Walter Howard’s military drama “Seven Days’ Leave’’ at the Park Theatre, New York. Mr. Herbert ought to be quite at home in military plays. His father was Surgeon-General H. C. Herbert, and his brother, Lieutenant H. C. Herbert, is now second in command of the South Lancashire Regiment at the front. Mr. Herbert’s first part on the stage was in the military drama “Bootle’s Baby,” in London. With the Daniel Frawley Company he toured the world as light comedian in “Secret Service,” “The Girl I Left Behind Me,” “Barbara Fritchie,” “Arizona,” etc. In America he has played with Nat Goodwin at the Lyceum, New York; he played Alaric in “Peg o’ My Heart,” the Englishman in “Excuse Me” for three seasons, and Drinkwater in “Captain Brassbound’s Conversion.” Last season in America he was leading man in “Hobson’s Choice.” He will be best remembered to New * Zealand playgoers for his performance of Dick in “Facing the Music” with the late Frank Thornton.