... 'LOTUS HEART' TO FIGURE IN ALL-CHINESE CABARET LIAN-SHIN YANG, Chinese TV artist, will present an all-Chinese revue at the Club de la Cote d'Azur, Frith-street, on Monday next for two weeks. She will be assisted by other Chinese artists, including dancers and jugglers. The title of the revue is Lotus Time, and this is the first time an all- Chinese revue has been presented in London. Lian ...

... DIFFICULTIES THAT BESET THE ART OF SONGWRITING SONG WRITING has a universal appeal. But the songwriter of to-day little realises that from the moment he puts pen to paper the cards are stacked high against him. In a new book entitled So You Want To Be A Songwriter, (published by Colin Venton, Ltd.), Cleethorpcs songwriter Walter Howe, whose The wedding of Jack and Jill continues to be ...

... LORRAINE MERRITT LORRAINE MERRITT, honey- blonde American singer of gay and romantic melodies, will appear for three nights only at the Society Restaurant in Jcrmyn Street, on January 29, 30 and 31. The short ness of Miss Merritt's engagement ts necessitated by Tcresita de Alba's opening at the same place the fol lowing Monday, February 2. Lorraine Merritt is a very close friend of Sarah ...

... CABARET Reg Barlow's I HAD hoped to write about the floor-show at the E*b*s*y Club this week, and tell you all about D*v* K*y* and the other artists there, but when I rolled up for the 1 a.m. show an official told me, very politely, that as I was not a member my request to see the show must be declined. Club regulations and all that. I asked if I might see the manager, to explain that all I ...

... NIGHTBEAT Reg Barlow's THIS week I thought I'd steal a march on JAMES HARTLEY. GORDON IRVING and the other big guns by starting my column thus: I must be the only Stage critic who has watched a regatta and listened to Hyde Park orators between cabaret shows Tou see, I'd been to a trade show of Andrews-Duval Produc tions' Jokers are Wild-- an early- evening affair arranged at the Em- ...

... BLACKPOOL TOWER ONCE again Kathleen Williams has brought together from various parts of the world a superb collection of big top' acts, to whom, as in so many former seasons, Charlie Cairoli plays host at the Tower. Charlie himself relies on the well proven mixture of sketches, comic mstrumentalism. and knockabout, in much of which he is notably aided and abetted by Paul ana other Augustcs ...

... LINCOLN 'DICK WHITTINGTON' DicK WHITTINGTON AND HIS CAT. which opened at the Royal on Christmas Eve, is in the best tradition of family entertainment. John Hale's fresh and amusing book contains nothing liable to bore or mystify any child, and for adults there is local humour in plenty. The whole show has a delightful air of intimacy, due partly to the fun of recognising familiar friends ...

... CHESTERFIELD 'PUSS IN BOOTS' GERARD GLAISTER'S production on Christmas Eve at the Civic was completely satisfactory. The players, particularly Wilfrid Brambell, as Cobb. Marigold Sharman, as Puss, and Robina King, as the Princess, interpreted Nicholas Stuart Gray's fantasy with a nice blend of delicate humour. Though the Civic Players have always per formed their Christmas plays with a high ...

... CREWE 'JACK AND THE BEANSTALK' BANK-HOLIDAY audiences gave a good send-off to Daymar Productions' presentation of Jack and the Beanstalk at Crewe Theatre. This well-dressed, smartly produced show, which has plenty of interest for children, as well as for their parents, is scheduled for a fortnight's slay. June Scott is a charming princi pal boy, who has acting ability, a pleasant voice ...

... HIGH WYCOMBE 'CINDERELLA' MUSIC from Sullivan's operas add lilt and distinction to this pantomime by Ronald Parr, which the Repertory Company are presenting at the Intimate. Neil Gibson's bright and breezy production, full of wit and garnished with lively topical allusion, affords a triumph of ingenious manipulation and improvisation over (he limita tions of the small stage. Colourful settings ...

... RAMSGATE 'JACK AND THE BEANSTALK' JACK AND THE BEAN-STALK, which began a fortnight's run at the Granville on Boxing Day, has a generous measure of all the essential ingredients of a successful pantomime. Presented by Bill Fraser and Robert O'Connor, it is a colourful, snappy show with the accent on comedy. Settings and costumes arc excellent, and the action is so smooth and speedy that ...

... LIVERPOOL 'BABES IN THE WOOD' HOWARD AND WYNDHAM'S production of Babes in the Wood, devised and directed by Freddie Carpenter, opened at the Royal Court on Christmas Eve. Based on a book by David Croft, it brings an entirely new and refreshing approach to the old pantomime story. There is a much more modern touch about it, especially in the dance ensembles. But perhaps the greatest ...