IMsay Affira©£n©na§ Ew™g A® Wanwg ©if S®@s©ia
“The Golden Girl”
One ox the genuine hits of the local
Reason was sprung at the Vendome Mon
day night, when the first appearance
here of ‘The Golden Girl,’’ a musical
comedy, was made before a Nashville
audience.
It is not over praise to say that no
better production along musical com
edy lines has been given at the Ven
dome in many a day than this arrange
ment of music and fun by Frank Adams,
Will Hough and Jo Howard, wi:h as
neatly a balanced east to carry the siti.
ation aloug as one might hope to see.
Productions of the above type fre
quently arrive with one or two strong
features and others not so good. ‘ ’ The
Golden Girl” was above the average
in every particular —in east, chorus,
music, humor, dancing, scenic effects
and all the rest.
The lines were particularly clever and
the different intricate situations wed
drawn. The music was '.veil along the
popular line, and iu many instances
rich with melody; the dancing was a
show in itself and the scenic effects of
a high order. And with all this there
were at least six or eight leaders in tht
cast, with able support to carry the
show along with a rush, and there wa ;
a rush from curtain rise to curtain fall.
The only trouble was that in many in
stances the performers found trouble in
leaving the stage, being encored re
peatediy by the audience and forced to
return time after time.
There were several in the east wh >
deserve, mention in terms of mu !i
praise. Jimmie Lucas as Cadet Jeffer
son Carter, proved to be one of the mo t
attractive and likeable comedians who
have visited here in a long time, lu
every respect he proved himself to be a
high-grade artist along musical com
edy hues. His chief song hit was. "I
Think 1 Hear a Woodpecker Knocking
at My Family JTree. 7 where both words
and music caught the quick fancy of the
house.
Miss Mina Davis, the Louisville girl,
in one of the leading feminine roles,
won instant approval from the audi
ence and made good the prediction of
her friends that she would take the first
rank at an early date. Although but a
debutante in a star role, she must even
at this stage be ranked well up among
the best. Her voice was excellent and
her work in general both artistic and
thoroughly attractive.
Marie Flynn as Columbia Dixie —or
rather Dixie 'Columbia — (probably
switched with the stand north or south
of the Mason and Dixon line) < urtis—
proved to be another attractive leader
in the east whose worth in detail was
of a most pleasing order. Both Misses
Davis and Flynn filled the two roles
given them with good effect.
Franklin Farnum as Cadet; John Fisk
with Joseph Neimeyer as Bobby Harri
son, deserve much praise for their work.
Charles Horn and Porter Raymond as
rival Confederate and Union veterans,
enlivened proceedings at every open
ing offered. Robert Powell was very
good as the much-hazed plebe.
As sideline specialists, the introduc
tion of Joseph Snyder, Sydney Craven,
Lew Fuller and Grace Sparks—an
cestors called in my dream, proved to
be a winning card, while the fine danc
ing of Misses Mantel and Sparks and
Messrs. Mountain, Hall and Neimeyer
only added further attractiveness to the
production.
The work of the chorus was fast and
snappy. The members were well train
ed and better looking.
It was a production out of the beaten
path and well worth seeing by those
who failed to witness Monday night's
performance. The songs to be remem
bered were ‘‘The Family Tree” song
mentioned above, ••Don’t Forget the
Girl You Left Behind.” well sung by
Franklin Farnum: ‘‘The Land of Used
to Be,” sung by Miss Flynn, and ‘‘The
Ship of Dreams.” by Miss Mina Da
vis.—Nashville Tennessean.
‘‘The Golden Girl'-' comes to the
Grand next Wednesday and Thursday
nights, January, 13 14. Matinee Fri
day.
<
‘ THE ROUND-UP.”
The attraction at the Grand, January
30-31 and February 1, will be a distinct
novelty—Klaw & Erlanger’s production
of Edmund Day's play of southwestern
life in Arizona, ‘‘The Round-Up.” As
the- title and lotale of scenes indicate,
it is a ‘‘western play.” but not in the
sense iu which this term is generally
used, for the reason that the story is a
powerful and rational one, true to hu
min life, and presents none of the clap
trap nnd wild, wooly situations which
one might anticipate in a play laid in
the locality selected by this author and
presenting characters of the type which
tell his story.
The tale of ’‘The Round Up" is told
in four acts, with scenes which repre
sent the courtyard of the Allen ranch at
Sweetwater, the living room in Ja.-k
Payson’s ranch three months later, the
mountains and the desert known as the
“bed lands” of Arizona, and a typical
Arizona scene representing a cattle
round-up. Sixteen well known players
will act the principal roles. In addi
tion to this talent, it is said there will
be a large auxiliary company of genuine
cavalrymen, scouts, cow punchers, Mex
ican vaqueros and Arizona girls, and,
incidentally, twenty Indians and twenty
highly-trained cow ponies from the Ari
zona ranges.
In making this production, Klaw &
Erlanger have omitted no Jeature
whatever that would in any way con
tribute to its completeness of detai
•nd the atmosphere of the locale of thi
•penes. It will he, in every respect, a
true picture of the rugged but genuine
Jy human life of the Arizona plain.
Tho story is very interesting and wil
keep the audience keyed up to the keen
•■st pitch of interest from start to fin
ish.
SUNDAY,
iYiddish Opera Co.
The Dallas News has tho following
to say of the Yiddish opera company,
which comes to the Grand. Jauunry 18,
19 and 21:
Another enthusiastic audience attend
ed the second performance of the De-
Vault Yiddish Opera company at the
[ Bush Temple last night. The piece play
ed was ‘‘The Jewess,” but it is a mis-
I nomer to call it an opera. Some per
। sons wore under the impression that
Haley's grand opera of the same name
। was to be performed. It would be more
appropriate to call the yieee presented a
Jewish play with incidental music. The
story is piactically the same as that of
the well known opera. The scene is
laid in Constance in the year 1414. In
brief, the incidents are: Rachel, the
daughter of a rich Jewish jeweler, falls
in love with a young man named Sam
uel. who is actually Prince Leopold of
Constance in disguise, and a Christian.
Either of these tacts wou'd be a suffi
> lent barrier between him and the jew
eler's daughter, and tho combination of
the two proves to be a veritable bomb*
sheii when revealed. In spite of ail.
however, Rachael had decided to fly
with her lover in the time-honored
way, when they are intercepted by her
father, and-to cap the climax it is dis
covered that the prince is married. Af
ter this there is nothing for Rachael to
do decently but to die. which she pro
ceeds to do in the fifth aet. This comes
about, however, not altogether by her
own will. Sho and her father are sen
tenced to death if they refuse to accep*
th ■ < hristiau faith. When too late the
earknal, who permitted tne execution,
discovers that Rachael was his own
; hrng lost daughter, nnd not really the
This play afforded much more oppor
tunity for dramatic work on the part c
the principals than did the piece of tie
previous night. Madame DeWolf was
Rachac] and acted the part with sin
cerity and force. Her powers of make
up are also striking. The change from a
good looking young girl in the first act
to haggard emaciation in the fourth was
truly ghastly. Tho action of the piny
was again rather tedious, there being
endless dialogues, which, when they
lapsed from German into Yiddish, pass
er! beyond the ken of the ordinary mor
tal. Madame DeWolf's singing was de
cidedly better last night, her intona
tion in some of the long and trying
solos without accompaniment remaining
correct The effect of these songs would
would be improved were an accompani
ment provided. Considerable credit is
due to Moses Silberman, who had to
attend to the double duties of stage
manager and principal male actor—
Eleazor. the jeweler. The other parts
were all well sustained, and altogether
the company showed to better advant
age than in the first play given here.
GRACE VAN STUDDIFORD.
Grace Van Studdiford, who will be |
, seen at the Grand for one night only, .
I on January 18. is scoring a great sue
' cess in the new light opera, “The I
Golden Butterfly.” The Philadelphia
North American had the following to !
say of opera and star:
The Forest theater opened for tho I
season last night with the delightful '
Smith and De Koven operetta, “The |
Golden Butterfly.” Tho entertain-1
ment had been one of the few sue !
cesses in legitimate light opera last I
year, nnd its revival now is amply [
warranted, both by the cleverness and I
rather surprising consistency of its
book nnd the charming score by the |
popular composer of “Robin Hood.” !
The current production differs in i
mnv particulars from the one first i
• seen here in the spring, and these j
■ changes ."11 happily contribute to a !
■ better artistic result.
. With the exception of the star, vir
; tually the entire company has been [
I change I. Harry Macdonough. a mem- I
j her of the Bostonians in their palmy !
days, is the incumbent of the chief ;
j comedy role, replacing Louis Har- i
| rison. Carl Haydn, a capable tenor '
.iii.i an actor of intelligence, is in Wal j
ter Percival's part, while Charlotte;
Deslay is well cast and good to look !
upon in tho role of Tine, the grand i
opera prima donna. The splendid I
, scenic investiture is seemingly as good ;
I ns new. and the costuming tasteful and
grateful to the eye, as in the original
: production.
Miss Van Studdiford, whose foot
i light manner has undergone a vast ,
improvement since the time when sho
too, was among “The Bostonians,"
ior even as comparatively recently as
"Red Feather" days, is the possessor
।of vocal attributes rare in comic
opera. This notable asset received
[ successful exploitation last evening
l in the numerous melodious and al
; ways charmingly orchestrated numbers
which Mr. De Koven has written tor
? the stellar role.
Due appreciation was accorded her
interpretation of the hauntingly tune
ful "Don't Forget Me” the graceful
i "In Paris" duet, sung with Mr. Haydn,
and "The Butterfly and the Clover.”
I The effect of tho latter'piece has been
greatly heightened Lty an ingenious and
j novel lighting device.
Mr. Macdonough reveled in his role
iof the Hungarian Lothario. His ren
dition of the catchy song, “The Man
About Town.” bespoke the keen artis
, tic sense of light comedy that is born
of experience in the proper school,
| and of that alone.
The comic baud and the ridiculous
and easily remembered tune, which
De Koven has written for it, provoked
; the usual merriment. A novelty this
season i" the amusing pigmy trom
bone player. George Edwards, a mid
get. with a sense of comedv uncom
| mon among sueh diminutive actors.jw
Henry E. Dixey will appear next
month in a now comedy. “Air. Buttles,”
written by F. A. Kunner, of Baltimore
Md., a newcomer among playwright.
I The play is in rehearsal and will so ,
| be produced under tho manageriost if
: Walter Lawrence. The scenes are fid
in England and there are twewlonc |
| persons in the cast
Must be some class to “The Golden Girl” judging by this squint at part of the chorus.
The Servant
In the House
One of the real treats promised for
the month at the Grand is the powerful
play, "The Servant in the House,”
which is admitted to be one of the
strongest plays ever written. The Fort
Worth Record, in a review of a column
and a half, said in pari:
"The Servant in the House” is the
most notable contribution to the dra- j
mafic literature of the time. The dar- [
ing of its conception, its bold and un- ,
faltering execution, the beauty of its
theme, the rare excellence of its work- i
ing out making of this, the first dra- ;
mafic writing of Charles Rann Ken- !
nedy to lie presented on the American i
stage, n wonderful and unmatched *
work added to modern stage literature.
The company presenting “The Serv-
ant iu the House" is as nearly beyond
critie.ism as the work of striving, earn
est players may be. Henry Dornton '
is playing the deaf old bishop of Lan ]
cashire. Arthur Behreus is playing the
vicar, and Miss Milicent McLaughlin is
playjug the. ambitious wife. Miss Don
aldn O'Noill, who looks and acts as if
she were really a lass in her early
teens, is giving the part of Mnry. Mr. |
Arthur Goodsall does the part of a -
serving boy, and the two big charge- I
ters of the play are Robert, the drain
man, done by Henry Weaver, and Man
son, by John S. O’Brien.
These are the characters of the play.
This is the little company which' is
sot to portray that saying of George
Frederick Watts that “The hunger for
brotherhood is at the bottom of the
unrest of the modern civilized world.”
Ami they play it so powerfully that
one is held tense, breathless, forget
ting the little things of the day and
remembering only that the whole crea
tion groweth, and I am my broth
er's keeper, and, in good truth, his
brother, too.
Mr. O'Brien, by his deep intellectual
conception of the character of Manson,
has been able to keep all the strength
and power of this actual impersonation
of the character of Christ without los
ing in the last the tender, gentle,
beautiful shades of it. His reading of
the lines iu which he recounts the
Building of the church in India, in
which he falls into pure symbolic
speech, is one of tho most beautiful
and holy things over heard from the
lips of an actor, or known to come
from the pen of a plavwright.
Beautiful nnd uplifting ns is the
• haracter of Manson, it is left for Rob
ert the drain man as portrayed by Hen
ry Weaver, to tear at one’s heartstrings
• nnd awaken one to the sense that out. in
the great throng of those who labor
j at tho unlovely tasks of the world are
I heart breaks and disillusionment, hopes
: and fears, loves and losses, and a tre
| mendous surging unrest of mind and
heart to which the rest ,of us maroc
i have been strangers. This daring man
who tells you “some one ’as to see to
1 tho drains; some one ’n«/ n clear up
। tho murk o' the world,'tvpifies that
great underted. unde'p a jJ struggling
I hoping rebellious ( j rnl y whom the
I world undervalues tho ' h knoW s j t
; cannot live withc jt all know that
|in froth some one maS f elear up tho
muck of the wor ]j ], u t we cnst dis
honor upor w j lo t akeg that task.
And the' j s wk j c h makes of them
* V mass of restless humanity
*1 ch would tear down society and
?‘. e Jablished beliefs and customs —it
, : p gely the comfortable world itself
j !* n ' its injustices and its refusals of
| " r 'thorhood which makes the atheist
; ■’’! the anarchist. And how this work
U Tyrone Power's coinpela, how yon
' oof all his heart has fplt. how vou
•offer with him when he Yplls hiw'bis
gal died and how he ikent to the
gutter in his sorrow, how RK. miser
able. / incompetent, wretch s\w no
chance nf raising little Marv «n?k gave
her to h:« vicar brother who has Jtolen
her love from him. how he has stXven
anil worked, and learned slowly n Vit
of books after he gave the work of hM
SAN ANTONIO LIGHT AND GAZETTE
Hans Richard
Hans Richard, who appears at the
Grand Tuesday night under Mrs. Yates
Gholson’s auspices, in addition to be
ing popular for recitals, is very much
in demand for orchestra work. He
has appeared with nil the leading or
chestras of two continents, including
the Philharmonic of Paris, the Ca
lonnc. the Zurich, the Marseilles Phil
harmonic, the Leipsic Conservatory,
the Symphony of Rome, the Berlin
Philharmonic, the Cincinnati Sympho
ny, the Pittsburg and tho Bazi] Sym
phony orchestras.
This year he is the soloist with the
Thomas Symphony orchestra, under the
direction of that most critical of di
rectors. Frank Stock, who has declared
himself most enthusiastically, greeting
him as a most worthy successor to the
great Alfred Rewonsmer, his beloved
teacher.
The musical critic of the Cincinnati
Enquirer, in reviewing Mr. Richard’s
first appearance there, said:
“A strong local interest was attach
ed to the symphony concert yesterday
afternoon in Music hall under the ‘H
reefion of Mr. A’an der Stucken, inas
much as it was the American debut of
the brilliant young pianist, Hans Rich
ard. This interest was heightened by
the fact that he had chosen for his for
mal introduction to the Cincinnati pub
lic the Piano Concerto, C sharp minor,
op. 28, of Schytte, which thereby was
given its American premiere.
“Mr. Richard left a profound im
pression of his artistic achievement.
His style itself is broad and cosmopoli
tan—it flows with spontaneity and is
not fixed in a preconceived mold. Pran
istic as the concerto is, Mr. Richard
invested it with n new charm of pian
istic beauty. Technically, interprets
tively and temperamentally he is a pi
anist, and a virtuoso at that, who be
longs in the first ranks. There is a
striking sense of healthy tone and pro
portion in his playing, and a strong
intellect balancing a warmly pulsating
heart.
“Tn all the movements of the con
certo ho manifested the faculty of
shading down to every mood of fho
composer. His delicacy and poetrv
were as marked as his capacity for
strength, and in the fortissimo pa’-
• sages he reached a high degree of vir
| tnosic power. Mr. Richard was re
ceived after the manner of an ovation
| bv the audience and recalled several
1 times.” ...
youth to that xitthe ungrate
i ful vicar brother, and how he honors
j l:<‘ or wher' in telling of his reforma
, tion he s./ls. ‘‘somethin ’ come over me;
'twas Work, that's wa’t it was.” It is
as impossible to resist his acting, as im-
I D<ssiblo to resist his alternate hope
'And despair to,resist his tremendous
। grief when he tells of that little girl
' he has been cheated out of ns it would
Ibe to resist the whole fascinating
[•heme and playing of this most won
. derfnl preachment of the drama.
Lawrence Irving and his wife, Ma
bel Hackney, will make aa American
tour this season under the .management
[of the Shuberts. They will appear in
[“The Incubus,” and will/nave the sup
port of an American company.
Rehearsals have jusf begun of F.
Anstey's farce eomedy “The Brass Bet
tie,” now in its second year at the
I Vaudeville theater. London. The play
[will have its first American production
' in Atlantic City. January IS.
Oreste Vessellp. the band leader, was
horn in Rome. - His wife, however, is
I an American, was a Miss Egan of
I ’ineinnati./
As C’.yde Fitch’s last play, “Kitty
land live Canary.” was not completed nt
। tho time of tho playwright's death it
। will tjot be produced. This decision was
' roncMed at the request of the late tn
tlinr'l family.
Lillian Resell.
With the awakened interest in the
atrical affairs that the new year ushers
in. San Antonio will enjoy a number of
striking engagements iu the immediate
fnture. None of these will be more in
teresting that the eomiug of Lillian
Russell to the Grand for two nights.
February 4 and 5. when she wiii offer
her latest hit “The First Night.”
This dainty little comedy was pro
duced in Philadelphia on Christmas
night at the Broad Street theater and
made an immediate hit. The press of
the (Junker City greeted the fair Lillian
effusively and it was the general ver
dict. that she has come into her own in
the central character of this play. The
one big thing that stood out was the
critical estimate of Miss Russell’s ar
tistic. advancement in tho legitimate
field. Stepping into a character that
has been regarded as a test for any
comedienne, she scored a personal tri
umph in it that was second only to the
distinct comedy hit of the play. It has
been shown conclusively this season that
the great body of theater goers want to
laugh and forget the panic which lias
passed into histety, and the lighter and
funnier the stage offering the surer its
success. Afiss Russell discovered this
ten<!cncy early in the year and aban
doned a good dramatic offering that
had proven a success in order to try out
tho comedy which she had intended
using later in the year. The wi.vlom of
the move was immediately demon
strated.
Hi’- present vehicle, which she is to
bring south for an extensive tour, was
a Inpted trom the German by George A’.
Hobart. It is in flavor a Teutonic farce
depending upon the ridiculousness of its
situations lor its most appealing com
euy. The theme is one that piles laugh
upon laugh in the unfolding surprises of
complications that spring from a most
innocent source.
MRS. LESLIE CARTER.
Duc of the biggest dramatic treats of
the season will be enjoyed when the
distinguished emotional artistte, Mrs.
Leslie Carter will be seen nt tho Grand
Saturday, January 15, in her new play,
"Vasta Herne, ” written especially t'ot
her l>y Edward Peple, author of “Tne
Prime Cfiap. ”
The role in which Mrs. farter up
pears j- a marked departure- from the
roles - ( > has portrayed in
“Zu-;. Mme. ■ußaiTy.” “The
Heart o' Maryland’Kind “Kassa.” It
is in fa rhe' first umo in many years
that 11, •ator goers have had an oppor
tunity • < ee the actress in modern
costume. •Vasta Herne”-it is said is a
modern problem play, dealing with a
striking theme in an unusual way.
Aasta, from whose name the title of
the piny is drawn, is a New York wo
man of I. nuty and culture who has won
fortnm amj fame as a writer. She has
fallen in:., the hands of an unscrupu
lous publisher, one Hartley Bellaire,
and i is in an effort to escape him
that she had recourse to drugs, under
whos, influence she finds herself able
to write more brilliantly than ever be
fore. \t the same time into the life
of Vasta Herne comes Dr. Dudley
Maurv, who, recognizing her symptoms
and loving the woman, determines to
save her in spite of herself. The dra
matic conflict comes between the two
men. each fighting from different im
pulses, and, between the two of them,
Vests is really left to fight her bat
tle alone. The drama is told in four
acts. The first and the last act take
place at the New A'ork home of Vast:l.
Ihe second aet shows a villa on the
Hudson river and the third net takes
place at t|„. Ritz hotel, Alexandria,
Egypt.
Mrs. Carter has m'Cn sur
rounded by a eapalje supporting com
pany, an-, tbo east this season, it is
said, is no exception to the rule. Her
loading man is E. J Ratcliffe, and oth
ers in Imr support are, Charles Clary,
Louis Mill,. WiMiam H. Shay. Alice
Butler, I" rence Malone ami Lilv
Cahill.
“The Red
Contracts were signed yesterday hy
Manager AVeis and Martin & Emery
company whereby the latter’s admir
able organization will present the
Henry Blossom and A’ictor Herbert
latest comic opera success, “The Red
Mill,” which played one year at the
Knickerbocker theater. New York city,
and thro months in Boston and Chi-
cago. proving the most successful musi
cal attraction that these cities have
seen in years. The cast, the scenery,
costumes and accessories to be used
here are a duplicate of the famous New
A'ork production, even including the
six little Dutch Kiddies, which the
metropolis rnved over, together with
all of the song successes of Victor Her
bert’s stunning compositions. The
company nilnibers about 60 people, in
cluding n chorus which for beauty and
voices has seldom been assembled in one
organization.
The story told is of Con Kidder and
Kid Connor, two Americans stranded at
a small Dutch inn in Holland. They
have come to the end of their financial
resources and are in debt for a week’s
board. They are about to make their
escape by means of a blanket rope from
an upstairs window when they are de
tected by the Burgomaster and only
saved from imprisonment when they of
fre to work out their indebtedness.
Kidder, who professes to being some
what of a linguist, is made interpreter
at the inn and Connor becomes a wait
er. Kidder has but a scant knowledge
of French, and when he is confronted
by an irate Froch countess, who does
not understand English, his attempts at
conversation are laughable.
Gretchen, the Buigomastei‘s <l”r'
ter, is betrothed to the governor of
Zeeland, an oid fop and rone, and to
escape this marriage plans an elope
ment with Dorris Van Damn, a young
sea captain. The Americans promise to
aid the elopers in return for a passage
to America. However, the plans are
discovered by the Burgomaster and
the prospective bride is locked in the
red mill until the arival of the gov
ernor. Connor and Kidder rescue
Gretchen by bringing her down on the
sails of the windmill.
The second act is placed in the hall
at the Burgomaster's house. The gov
ernor has arrived, but his bride is miss
ing. The father offers a large reward
for the return of the girl, and on advice
of the sheiff sends to The Hague for
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, on
nor and Kidder intercept tho wire and
present themselves as the detective and
his n-iend, and in a clever Inirlesque
scene they take off the Gillette play.
At the opportune moment Gretchen is
returned as tho bride of Doris, and the
reward enables the Americans to re
turn home.
The music is by A’ictor Herbert, far
and away the best of the composers of
light niusie in this country; the book
is by Mr. Blossom, who has written
clever dialogue in the past, and the
company engaged is, from all accounts,
said to be a mighty good one. It in
cludes Bert O. Swor as Con Kidder,
Franker Woods as Kid Connor, Otto
Koerner, Alvin Laughlin. Carl Hart
berg, 8. AV. Stott, Harry R. McClain.
Cecil Summers and the Misses Agnes
Major. A'ernice Martyn, Adeline Stern,
Georgia Harvey and a chorus of 50,
including the six little Dutch Kiddies.
An augmented orchestra which is car
ried by the company will also be an im
portant feature.
Pierre Wolff, author of “The Secret
of Polichinelle,” whose uew play is to
be produced this winter at the Comedie
Francaisc, will turn the play over to
Charles Frohman for English production
directly after its Paris production,
Bertram Mnrburgh has been engaged
to play the principal comedy role in
support of Clara Lipman in “Marjory's
Mother.” an adaptation from Bi*s.<n
and Thurner’s “La Marriage d'uno
Ebtile. ”
JANUARY 9. 1910.
“The Climax.”
Archie Bell, a well known theatrical
critic of New York, in a letter to the
Cleveland News last summer, said of
'“The Climax” which eomes to the
: Grand January 26, 27, 28 and 29:
It’s easy to go into superlatives when
writing of a piny which Cleveland will
j not see until next season, and about
which all New York is talkiug. Only
[superlatives have been used iu regard
to it since the try-out several mouths
ago. No person has arisen with the
| courage to roundly condemn it. Even
critics of drama in America don’t earn
to make idiots of themselves any more
frequently than necessary. So the doors
of Daly's theater in New York are still
open, and although the weather is
scorching hot. people file into this par
ticular playhouse day after day and
week after week to see a representation
of a little drama called “The Climax.”
Some of them come back many times.
One chap told me he had seen “The
climax” fifteen times. Others could
tell a similar story. Ask them why they
go and they .would not be able to tell
yon. It’s one of those strange things
that happen occasionally in the world
of the theater
Think of the strong scenes rm you
will, but one thing is certain. You can
not forget them. One who sees “The
Climax" will never forget that moment
when, in the ecstasy of devotion to her
art, the girl stands up to sing and the
tones will not come. This particular
episode has the relentless pathos of
Greek tragedy. It thrills the audience
and produces the effect of runuing an
ieielo along one’s back. Aet “The
Climax” is not a “weepodrama.”
AS’omen do not sob as they did when
they first saw “The Alusic Master.”
The latter resorted to well established
tricks of the stage for its laughter and
its tears. “The Climax" is natural and
human. It is electric 1 in <-oi»pe)ling a
response from the people An the chairs.
Watch for it when it comes to Cleve
land and behold a dramatic pearl tho
brilliancy of which betokens much for
the future of the American stage.
“THE FLOWER OF THE RANCH.”
The Shreveport Times last Sunday
■ had the following words of praise about
I "The Flower of the Ranch.” which
iconics to the Grand soon:
There have been many tiihes whin
! advance notices of coming prodtic
, tions have been embellished with
praise, surrounded by reasons why
I the production was deserving of theso
। embellishments, and very often it has
been tho case where the realization
has not been comparable with what
was anticipated.
“The Flower of the Ranch” came
here yesterday practically speaking,
unknown. It was not advertised as
the greatest thing on eartii, but what
the management promised they gave.
It was not “flowery’’ advertised, as
the same might possibly have sug
gested.
Lecompte and Flesher Wade have a
good show. Even though the com
pany is not a large one, they made up
in quality what was lacking iu quan
tity. The lyrics and music from the
i.en of Joseph E. Howard are filled
full of witticisms and melody, notably
must be mentioned “Claremont.” sifng
delightfully by Miss Adelaide O’Brien
as Margaret; "‘Just Say You Care." a
duet rendered with much feeling by
Miss Nettie Watters ns Flower, and
John E. Frank as Jack Farnum. Tho
latter also displayed much skill in
his rendition of “Dreaming,” and
“Tho Big Banshee.”
The Pajama and the Nightie, even
though it was somewhat suggestive,
nevertheless was a pleasing adjunct
to verv entertaining production. The
chorus though small worked well and
worked apparently to please. The
different figures, devised by the stage
director, Charles Mast, were well con
ceived of.
The stage settings were in good Taste
and fully up to what was expected.
BEAUTIFUL “NANA.”
The world wide reputation which
Suchorowsky's famous painting
“Nana’,” has acquired as a marvel of
art, prepared the people of San An
tonio for something unqsual in the
hibition now in progress at the fine art
gallery. 514 East Houston street, but no
one who lias not seen the picture pre
viously is at all prepared for the start
ling realistic effect that it produces
upon the beholder. At the first sight
it is hard to realize that “Nana” is
not a living and breathing form that
may move or speak at any moment. The
lite-like tints of the flesh seems to
change and the eyes to move and the
limbs to palpitate with life. This illu
sion is increased when the visitor turns
and beholds the reflection of the pic
ture in the mirror on the opposite side
of the room. The details of the picture
are absolutely perfect, aud Whatever
point tho eye rests on reveals something
new for admiration. “Nana" is some
tiling more than an example of the uude
in art. The treatment of the subject
is chaste because of its natural sim
plicity. The accessory objects in tho
picture, instead of throwing the figure
of “Nana” in stronger relief, divert
attention to themselves and cause the
visitor’s admiration to be divided be
tween the subject and the artist. There
is nothing suggestive in the pose and
the beholder views the exquisite work
with the same feeling with which hu
would view a Grecian statue. The im
mense crowds that viewed the picture
wherever it has been exhibited, as well
as the unbounded admiration that all
have expressed who have seeu it, prove
that “Nana” is something that all can
sec and admire. This masterpiece should
be seen by every person who loves alt
in its highest and truest sense. Jf ca h
only remain here a few days longer. *
“The Wedding Day.” a i lew p ] av iR
three acts by Jessie Trimble, was pre
sented the other afternoon at the Hark
att theater. New York, with Jessie Ron
stellc in the leading role. The piece
will soon be sent on tour.