The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-11-16

coming on his third visit with Little
Puck" and the Hanlon-V olter company o.
specially artists making their first appear
ance. Over his own signature, Frank Dan
lels tells some OF the reasons why pieces
like Little Puck are so popular and hi:
reasons apply here as well as elsewhere
He says: Farce comedy has assumed
such proportions in the amusements of this
country That those who are in terested il
the legitimate or the serious drama have
become alarmed. | am constantly asked by
newspaper reporters and others what
think OF the present condition Of our stage
and nave invariably answered that be
lleve the American theatre-goers had rather
laugh than cry, and that is why eXtravaganr
comedy has come so steadily to the front
Inc truth of the matter is, we have MOI
enough lelsure-class people in this country
to support the Shakspearean or The legiti.
mate drama. This cultured leisure element
may come in time, and we ma,
have an established theatre devoted
to the careful and elaborate production of
the plays of the great poets and dramatists
but just at the present moment the people
who patroniZe our theatres are engaged
very actively in money making. | say
people" for the women are entering All
branches of business life now as well as the
men. A man or q woman who has been
busy 'huStling' all day in an Office store
or a work room, has no inclination when
evening comes to see a six act tragedy or a
five act emotional drama. They have been
engaged in plays serious enough Tor them
during the day, and perhaps some of them
have had little one-act tragedy in which
they have played a conspicuous role When
evening comes they want relaxation. a
foot
laugh, and to laugh at something that car
ries them far away from the serious scenes
they have witnessed during the day, for
there IS not much fun or jonty in money
getting. This, in lay opinion, is WHY farce
comedy has taken such foothold in orr
theaters and why it prospers so. But al
though L endeavor to keep posted in all
that pertains to M own branch of work, |
had no idea that comedy and farce
comedy had so thoroughly usurped
all the serious dramas until / picked
up a New York paper the other day
and found the seventeen leading theatres
Of New York, all, with one solitary excep
ton, given over to cnmedv at what
is considered the very height OF
the theatrical season Does this
not speak for itself. You will observe that
even the old-fashioned stock theatres have
shelved their classics and thier 'legiti.
mates and are catering to the demand of
their patrons = comedy, frivolty and
laughter.
The Hanlon- Volters-who are not the
Hanlons of ''Fantasma' fame. but another
branch of that acrobatic family-give a
novelty to Salt Lake theatre goers-a fifty
minute pantomime-not the clown and
pantaloon business-but comedy in full
dress, interpreted only by signs by a
company Of performers saiu to be
very clever. Chicago paper says
mot since the remarkable engagement of
Henry Irving has the Columbia theatre
held such an enormous crowd as it did last
night. Every seat and every inch of stand
ing room was monopoliZed by representa-
tive Sunday night audience to witness the
first performance in this city by the Han
lon-N otter artinetti English pantomime
and Novelty company, and all were salts
fed The entertainment partakes of the
nature of vaudeville show, and, while
there is great deal to it, everything is so
systematically managed that the perform
ance moves with delightful rapidly. The
organization contains some of the most
noted of European specialists and some
very clever Americans and some of the
acts are the most startling aud surprising
ever seen on an American stage The
strongest feature, Which is held TO the end
Of the programme, is the gymnastic
feats of the Hanlon- Volter troupe
Robert, William and James - and
so apparently dangerous is their
work tnaU the audience watches every
movement with breathless suspense Feats
are performed in mid-air that are surpris
ing, and headlong dives are made into the
big net stretched beneath the gynmasts
Another strong feature, but entirely dis
similar, is the one-act pantomime, "A Ter
rible Night which is presented by Paul
Alfred. Josephine and Clara Martinetti and
their company. The scene represents the
interior of the first and second floors of an
apartment house. The first floor is occu-
pied by yound married couple, and the
floor above by three college chuns of the
young husband. He invites them to dinner
They accept, get heated with wine. and.
being full of mischief, proceed to make it
lively for their host and all connected with
his household. That they succeed goes
without saying. They crowd so many funny
things into the scenes during the fifty min
utes of the pantomi de that it would be use
less to attempt to describe them The au-
dience laughed itself hoarse."