FOOTLIGHT NOTES
HAND MADE GREETINGS CARDS
Sybil Arundale (1882-1965),
'Mr George Grossmith, jun., has been saturated with Gaiety [Theatre] traditions, and what is more to the purpose, he can give expression to the spirit of travesty that possesses him - a fact that will be readily recognised in his latest work, Venus, 1906, which was successfully produced at the Empire on Tuesday evening. It is in four scenes, and we are introduced to Lord Percy Pall Mall in the hall of his house in Park-lane. Percy has statues of Venus Aphrodite and Vulcan standing in the vestibule, and when a Gibson girl, whom he had taken out to supper, comes on the scene, he is bold enough to say that she is more beautiful than the goddess, who comes to life to put in an indignant caveat against such an outrageous statement. She is supported in her remonstrance by Vulcan, who, as a faithful spouse, champions his wife's case in the law courts (Scene 2). Lord Percy is counsel for the Gibson Girl, who claims to be an actress because she has three words to say in a musical comedy - "What price Romano's?" The witnesses in the case include Mr. Onions [? the lexicographer and grammarian, Charles Talbut Onions (1873-1965)], Jane Cakebread [a notorious alcoholic], and a bookmaker. The Judge - a connoisseur of beauty - after singing an excerpt from Gilbert and Sullivan's Trial by Jury, decides in favour of the Gibson Girl. The Court scene, with its female jury, is very funny. We lose sight of some of the principal characters in the next scene - a compartment in an electric coach on the Underground; but there is plenty of riotous fun in the final tableau, Trafalgar-square, with the Nelson column in the foreground. The Square has been the scene of a meeting of the unemployed, and when the curtain rises a Labour leader is addressing about half-a-dozen loungers and a small boy or two. The audience dwindles to one gamin, who eventually disappears. No sooner has he gone than Vulcan, enraged at the turn things have taken, decides to destroy London by an agent more powerful than radium. The god seems to have seismic force at his disposal, for the Nelson column and Morley's Hotel topple over, the lions trot off, the National Gallery disappears, and that particular portion of London consecrated to living loafers and statues of dead heroes becomes a rocky waste. It is peopled by the characters of the revue in the costumes which Mr. Reed has made famous by his drawings in Punch. They are pre-historic and scanty.
* * * * * * * *
© John Culme, 2006
English actress and singer,
as Lord Percy Pall Mall
in Venus, 1906,
a revue by George Grossmith junior,
Empire Theatre, Leicester Square, 17 April 1906
'In a moment we see birds and beasts even more grotesque than Mr. [Beerbohm] Tree's fanciful fauna in his fine production of The Tempest [His Majesty's Theatre, London, 26 December 1905]. The pre-historic waste is peopled by the characters of the revue in skin costumes, and the wildest spirit of travesty pervades the whole scene. Venus, 1906 is just the right length, and Empire audiences will discover in it just the right kind of entertainment for the summer months.
'The company works admirably together. Miss Sybil Arundale is an exquisite swell as Lord Percy Pall Mall, and has several taking numbers to sing. The chief of these is "The Picture Postcard Girlie," in which various of the ballerine appear as living portraits in frames. The bright and clever young actress, who dances delightfully, is encored invariably, and her success is very great. Mr. W.H. Berry's unctuous humour as the Judge is surpassed even by his drollery as a Labour leader, and it is only his due to say that the success of the Trafalgar-square scene, which is the funniest in the piece, is largely due to his efforts. Mr. Harry Grattan may be bracketed with Mr. Berry, and he shows remarkable versatility in his impersonations of the Professor, Mr. Onions, a bookmaker, Jane Cakebread, Arthurius Robertus [the popular English comedian, Arthur Roberts (1852-1933)], and Mr. Nelson R.N.V. [Admiral Lord Nelson, 1758-1805]. Miss Elizabeth Firth makes a fascinating Gibson Girl, and is lively and spirited in her work; Miss Daisy Cordell is a stately Venus; and Mr. T. Tremayne is well placed as Vulcan. The scenery by Telbin, Banks, and Bruce-Smith is decidedly ingenious, the Trafalgar-square set being especially so; and the music, which for the most part is composed and arranged by Miss Constance Tippett, is catchy and tuneful. Mr. Tom Terriss is responsible for the arrangement of the dances and business, and the swing and go of the whole performance, which is due in great measure to his genius for stage-management, make it very exhilarating. The costumes are cleverly designed by Wilhelm, and Clarkson is responsible for the wigging.'
(The Era, London, Saturday, 21 April 1906, p.24a)