Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1886-06-15
AN kNGLfsH CRITfCfsM.
How an American BurIesqus Actor Is We've,
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How an American BurIesque Actor ,s Viewed
In London
From the Pail Mall Gazette, June |.
IL Mr.. piNey stakes his reputation on
Z" Adonis no will be remembered In Lon
don chiefly for his marvellous imitation OF
Mr. Irving. Gait, voice, face, bearing--tbe
mannerisms OF that famous tragedian have
never been so faithfully reproduced. one
rubs ones eyes aud looks at ones pro.
gramme TO be quite sure that it really il not
Mr. Irving who IL singing a comic song,
making love, and working the pump handle.
IL was triumph of mimetic art, and II has
seldom or never been surpassed. Mr.. Dixey
is a clever aud versatile comedian, and whom
he Ia on the stage tho tun Is fast and furious.
But the piece in which he appears il rather a
series of brilliant spuris than a continuous
performance The American variety enter
tainment is never likely to be scclilnatized
I'm England. Even TO be tolerated, such
wretched stuff AZ the parody of the " crIisty
old father OF melodrama who turns his
daughter out of doors on the least
provocation," or the burlesquo of the
" stage villain of society dramas" should pe
eliminated. 1t relieves the rest, but 1t ais
helps to destroy It ON the other hand,
much OF "Adonis" N good, full OF smart
bits Of dialogue, spoken in racy american
{" Adonis' IN always Adonus') which
falls pleasantly enough ON English ears, aud
eccentric bits of business-tor instance, the
cigar. The dashiug "Adonis" lights a cigar
and hands another to his butt, the marquis,
who finds some difficulty In making IL draw.
1t should be good" says AdonIs al gave
a shilling for two-(then asidc) tenpence for
this-tw opence for that" The burlesque of
course, pretends to DO nothing more than a
wild, nonsensical medley, OF which Mr..
biNey IA the central figure; but To go down
with an English audience, who arc evidently
more difficult to amuse than Americans,
there must be no hating in the frOlic, no car
pentei's scenes to stop the way, aud no fifth
rate acrobats. "Adonis" " Is a statue who is
brought to life, "quarried, not born" loved
by every woman he meets From the studio
In Athens we are transported to the nina
rets OF India which (keeping up tho spirit of
burlesque) lie by the side OF some American
lake. Here II dance of the Bric-a-brac
guard very brilliant affair. in which Il group
OF derNishes take part In the next act We
appear to be In the valley of the Rhine, aud
Talamea, the sculptress, sings (vGry WELL
ditty, and being encored reappears in satin
ulster, and also "does the dude" There is
mechanical donkey, whose hind legs work,
and some rough and tumble business by
group of inferior acrobats. Then the scene
change to country store in the American
backwoods, where everything from
whisky to ribbons is sold. Mr.. 'Dixey
IL the storekeoper, and assumes a
number of DISCUSSES by means OF wigs
false noses and moustaches, which is
ali clever but Pontless The operation OF
shaving the wicked miller Is very funny.
"With or withoutT' shouts Mr.. DiXey, WHO'S
officiating as a Yankee barser, and brandish-
ing his razor over the victims head-"With
or without" "With or without what ~
"Chloroform ~ Tableau. But the harle-
qulnade for this portion of the play Is nothing
else, wearied the audience, and the poor little
Japanese kids" taken from "The MIksdo"
met with small courtesy from the pit and
gallery. BY far the cleverest lady of the
company is Miss Amelia Somerville, Of
enormous griffin n word, an enlarged Miss
Barnett-who, as Rosetta, gives highly
amusing burlesque of "the simple maiden of
melodrama" Miss Lille Grub chow much
more modest American actresses are than our
De Veres and Mount.tempests y has
capital voice, little hard, but strong and
pleasing There are many pretty faces in the
chorus. The music is selected from famous
comis operas, the piece il most splendldly
mounted, the dancing is good. Burlesques
are kittle cattle, and We fancy with some
judcIOus trimming and fitting 10 English
tastes "Adonis' will draw large houses.
Portions of it certainly no one should miss
seeing. Even Mr.. Irving would forgive the
imitation, it IL SO very clever