, 1879-02-09
THE STAGE.


CHICAGO.
THE CRITERION COMEDY COMPANY
has grown steadily, though By slow degrees,
into popular favor during their short engage
ment At Hoo]ev's, aud their success has been
lcgtimately earned. Had they chosen to bring
out ",vlius II at the start instead Of 'Caste"
it is more than likely that the financial results
Of the week would have been more satisfactory.
We should Judge SO, at least, from the imnledi-
ate recognition which this new farcical comedy
met with from the audience on Friday evening
as piece OF bright, spicy, and innocent fun.
1t certainly answered the purpose for which it
was intended, keeping the house in
roars Of laughter, and at the same
time bringing into play some OF the best char
actcristics Of the actors. "Whims" is an
adaptation Of German comedy; aHd>may be
c1assed among the pieces which for some time
past have tickled the public ear with their
proad and bosterous humor. It is worthy Of
remark, parenthctcal]y, that most Of the re-
cent stage literature OF this order is derived
from philosophical Germany. nation that Is
not popularly credited with lively apprecia-
tion OF humor. while the volatile French are
supplying The fearful material. "Our Bache-
lors" and d host of farces of the same sort
uutt dl4 u NCI4ua1 t!143A. Liz PAGaSAe PANNS
was translated some time since by
Chicago PLAYWRIGHT, and wns submitted
to Robson aud Crane, but they were not suili-
GENTLY impressed with its merit to venture on
taking it into their repertory. Unuuestionab1y
two Of the roles would have been veil adapted
to their peculiurties. Perhaps it is ou the whole
better placed with the Criterions, for it con-
taius not two ssstar parts " only, but number
r }aiah Iii frih
throughout a wcll-organizcd combination make
no 6 very complete and diyerring entertainment.
Like many OF the comic triiles of its kind,
.sWbims u is almost devoid OF plot. 1t is
palpablc ioke-palpab|e from the first to the
spectator, and kept up with consid-
erablc ingenuity to the close. The
fun consists in kind Of
ca1ue Of cross purposes brought about by al
Innocent deception on the part Of young artist
who is In love with the daughter OF q wealthy
banker. VINO is devoted to the emancipation OF
woman. She conceiyes an affinity with Or.
Slaughter, man stricken with vanity and de-
voted to the fair sex in general and sends him
a note. The Doctor wishes to pay his devotions
lncoc., and prevails upon the young artist to
change names with them, and he in turn gives
the name Of Slaughter to another young man
who is engaged to the niece OF the banker: out
OF this, it is easy to see, ariscs bewiltlering
series of complications, which grow more and
more perplexing until the final explana-
tion is 1nade. 1t is not ncediul to re-
hearsc such story as TINS, winch
amounts really to nothing more than an anus
ing practical joke. It is more to the point to
note the manner in which the matter has been
handled, first by the adapter, and, what is more
important, BY the performers. There IS goou
room for improvement in the treatment OF
some Of the Situations, which occasionally in~
yolve an anti-clmax, but the faults perceptipe
here are such as may easily be remedied, and it
should be remembered that this was the first
rehearsal OF thu: uicrc. In the cast there are
four distinct characterizations, each Of them
susceptible Of artistic treatment. Or. Az
man Slaughter is type OF the lady
killer, whose sole occupation seems
to be that OF looking out for conQuests, while
his partncr, DR.. Sadeye, is afflicted with pnrti:-
ular terror OF, nnd aversion to, women. The
bankers sister. Sophr0nia, who has written
tragedy, Is, in common with all the other
women in love with the imaginary Dr.. Slaugh-
ter, and she mistakes Sadege for him. insists on
reading her play to him, and puts the unhnpp7
man into many distressing predicamcnts These
scenes ntford Aliss Louise Sylvester an excellent
opportunity for doing the scrio-comc tragedy
queen as .Sophronta Soros;s and her acting was
one Of the must e1nphatic hits OF the per
appears to suit = her. qualities more
happily than that Of the rollicking Polly Ecc'cs
which was certainly not in her vein. Mir uoir
per's personation OF Slaughter was marked by 4
DOQpOHS uTOllcI1 tIi1L utG1i11lE III kEcS HiCSSL-
IDLY funny, and Mr. Mackav's makeup AZ SOD
eye was excellent, while his portrayal OF the
terror he was thrown in by the approach OF
the tr4a+ic SVphroA'a constituted some OF the
most diyer!ing portions Of the play. The dia-
loguc is bright ant. " itty occasionally, and never
dull, and the situations, while alWa;s bordering
Oh pure burlesque, do not go Very far he, ond
the line supposed to be drawn between comedy
and tfayesty.
MISS ADA cAyESD1su
ck H.
Vckcr's, and one which WIS hardly to be anticI-
pa1ei, considering TINT she opened in q plaF
! which was comparative failure both in London
! and in New York. Mr.. Wills rewrote ''Jane
Shore expressly for Miss cavendish, but it was
only after earnest solicitation the part Of her
friends that she was persuaded to play the part.
| Sne has no reason to regret having done SO, Tor
while it is highly Improbable that this rescusci-
| tated fossil will ever regain permanent place
on the modern stage, it has served to bring iutO
| prominence in Miss Cavcndish's acting some OF
| her nobest traits as a tragic actress. The por-
trait she draws OF. this wayward and sinful, but
| suffering und pcnitcut, suui is full OF pathos,
| anu what We are accustomed to call ''cmulionai
| power'' 1t is fair test Of tile command the
| artist has over her audience that she conpcIs
their undivided attention from the beginning to
| the close Of rather prosy and dismal play. 1t
| is good sample Of what innate power she pos
sesses, and suggests still greater achievements.
| AT THE METROPOLITAN
/
engagement OF Hiss Lima Tettenborn. Coming
as She did, almost unknown, this lively young
| German soubrette proved at once that she w'is
an artist. Trusting but little to stage routine,
che carried them by impulse. y genuine child
OF nature, her absolute abandon leaves hardly
| time for thought Of criticism. Playing in an
utterly nonsenslca1 piece, she manages to secure
cons' ant attention md applause, while her
songs, albeit her vocal powers are not extra
| Ordinary, have been heartily encorcu. Her
dinlcct is crisp, pleasing, and thorougiy natural.
| Altogether her success in Chicago las been a
pronounced one, and may be the Beginning Of u
bright career.
/ LOCAL NOTES.
The Balabrega-Leyton science-and-mystery
| combination, under the management Of Mr..
Harry Chapman, open in Elgin tomorrow even
| Ing.
! The Gotthold g. Rial "Uucle Tom y marty
passed through town yesterday on their way to
Milwaukee, where they will open tomorrow for
| week.
Prot. j. n. Webb, OF this city, and Master