"THE FLIRTING WIDOW," AT THE GAIETY DE LUXE.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 59, Issue 261, 6 December 1930, Page 2

"THE FLIRTING WIDOW," AT THE GAIETY DE LUXE.

"The Flirting Widow" has everything that makes for splendid entertainmeht- — comedy, romance, laughter and lofe! Dorothy Mackaill will win the he.arts of everydhe as the beautiful "bogus" "ividow. See how she gets into an awful niess by announcing ner engagement to a non-existent man — only to find that he is not non-existent at all — far from it! London society provides a smart backgvound ' f or the story of a young Englishwoman who in prder to oblige her family went-a-hunting for a husband. It also affords the feminine memhers of the cast, Miss Mackaill, Leila Hvams, Emily Fitzroy and Flora Bramley an opportunity to wear a group of what are said to he the most beantiful new gowns seen in recent films. Dorothy •Mackaill seems to hecome a better comedienne with every succeeding film, and in "The Flirting Widow," the sparkling all-talking comedy to be presented at the Gaiety De Lnxe tonight, she displays all her talents. "The Flirting Widow'' is a brilliant comedy about the difficulti.es Celia Faraday, a young English woman, encounters when, without having gone through the formality .of acquiring a husband, she suddenly annoxmces that she has become a widow. The events that transpire when an. English army pfficer with the same: name as Celia' s supposedly late husband appears on the scene, are delightfully original and anmsing. When the pair realise that they are really in love, matters hecome even more complicated and. cor- • respondingly funnier. "The . Flirting Widow" moves along at a brisk pace and keeps the audience in "a jovjal humour. The situations are cleverly construcfied and the comedy . is always spontaneous. Basil Rathbone, as Colonel Smith, Idlids_ admirable aid to Miss Mackaill' s hilarious antics. William Austin, Leila Hyams, Claude Gillingwater, Emily Fitzroy, and Wilfred Noy, the .supporting.piayers, have. captured the spirxt of the piece and' prove themselves adept at farce. "The Flirting Widow" fills a long-felt need for clean, brisk, well-constructed comedy romances. It is adapted from Mason's "Green Stoekings." An excellent hunch of all-talking shorts accompany the main feature and include Jay Velie, the celehrated tenor, in "A Journey of Songs," "The Four Synco Pets," ' semi-classical instrumenta! number, A. and M. Havel, musical comedy stars in a comedy sketch "Playmates," G. Givot, a celehrated singer, the "All Girl Revue," an all-singing-dancing-musical revne and the two latest Paramount and Fox News, the whole forming anotlier of those greater week-end changes which anust draw capacity business. Seats may he reserved at the theatre, -or hy ringing 'phone 3809.