The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-01-19
DRAMATIC AND LYRIC
A little Surprise Party at the
Grand.
GOING AFTER THE GONDOLIERS,
classic Helena Indulgcs in ShakespeeriaI
Repast-The Old Folks at the Theatre
Latest Notes in Amusement Circles.

| A big gathering came out at the Grand
last evening to hear George Thatcher's
witticisms and behold the other features
of the Boston Howard Athaneum show.
They were somewhat paralyzed when
the curtain went up to have O. stout gentle
man appear ard announce that the Howard
AGhaaeum was somewhere in the snow
sheds near Truckee, and that Miss Helen
Blythe would fill the gap with the emo
tioual drama of "a Mothers Love-" Any
one who wanted his momey back could have
it. A number availed themselves of the op-
portunity, but the greater portion, includ
lag big gallery, staid to see it out.
The steut gentleman also said they We're
no variety show: we think it would have
been somewhat better if they had been;
ferred it, and the box office would have
stood a better chance on the three remain
ing nights of the engagement. A "Moth-
er's Love- is about as dreary piece of
dramatic hodge podgery as one often sees
forged together with Mary Anderson fey
the permanently weeping mother, with
Lawrence Barrett as the bibulouS doctor.
with Stuart Robson for the melancholy
horse doctor, and Louise Dillon as the
soubrette with the wind mill arms-it
might be possible to galvaniEe the piece
into some sort of temporary success; with
the Helen Blythe company, it is hopeless
task. There is nothing bright enough
about the whole thing to call for criticism;
the players are as mediocre as the plaN, land
while it might delight the critical taste ola
Cheyenne or an Atlantic city Iowa, it is
not up to the standard that Salt Lake is
accustomed to require for her dollars hows.
1.-THE Gondoliersn has come, been seen and
been slated. The American managers who
paid heavy sums down for the eastern,
, western and southern rights to the opera,
, purely on the strength of the success in
) London, will probably wait next time till
the American public has had chance to
put forth it's little fiat. And vet tits i'm
| possible to say for certainty. The main
, trouble with the American production
seems to be the English company, and when
: Francis Wilson or some Others of our
j clever people get chance at it, they may
: reverse the verdict. These are some eX-
4 tracts from two cities opinions: The New
York Herald says:
;, In all my dramatic experience which extends
over respectable period, can recall no col
: lapse more complete or diSconcerting than thai
of the English company with which THE God
s dollers'' was produced the other evening.
: The confident assertions of Mr. D'Oyly Carte
q in London had led US to expect very different
presentation of Gilbert and Supivan,s operetta
liFo believe him, his artists were well equipped
o for the work.
t They could sing-oh, they could all -sing-+and
S several of them were competent,actors
V The company is perfect, said Mr.. D Oyly
|: successes The Chief soprano part pa { vii vii
Il be played by young American lady, Miss
Esther Pallser Her real name is Emma
deiphia. : Casnda viii be- pla ngta
n l'by Miss Agnes Macfarlane, a debutante o
l. great promise. LUZ falls to the lot o
/ Mr.. Arthur Marcel who has good baritone
:. voice and is a clever comedian. The part of the
Grand Inquisitor will be in the hands of anothe
> of nv old comedians, Mr.. !. "A Muir, who played
: in THE Mikado" in Berlin and WIGS grea
favorite of the late Emperor. The tenoris Mr.
Richard Clarke, another young actor He ha
very sweet voice-so good, indeed, that ST
. l>Arthur Sullivan says he wants no one bette
l for his grand opera next antumn.''
a AS so forth.
l. l quote from an interesting interview witt
Mr Carte "a rte ae eeG published in the London ed
How Mr.. Carte can ever have rrisked hi
q managerial reputation by such statements
e cannot understand If he believed what he wa
e saying. what can we think of his judgment
:. And if he did not believe it, what we to thin
IS OF his
n Need 1 complete the sentence?
= This failure of the London .oCmpany7to redeem
n their managers pledges has done more harm t.
u English art in America than will be undone b.
e half dozen successes 1t has Injured tn
" prestige of the London stage no lesstthan tn
IS fame of Sir Arthur Sullivan; and il has put
d weapon into the hands of narrow minded critic
of which they will not be slow to avail them
r selves.
All this, however, does not detract in tn
least from the intrinsic worth of ahe OPERA an
e it, even now, Mr.. A. M. Palmer could replace
e few of the present Interpreters of the work
II have no doubt at all THE GonddiisrS' .woul
go" like wildfire.
The libretto, like all Mr.. Glberts ,lfbrettos
gains on closer acquaintance The literar
a neatness and humor of the dialogue are ofte
y marvellous The lyrics in most cases: are prett
D. enough to stand on their own merits.
- The Morning Journal says:
q The mere fact of such a report getting out a
20. that Mr.. A. M. Palmer intended te sue D Owl
~ Carte for sending such a company over to pla
~ THE GondollerS" as the one saw for the frs
y time last Tuesday night, is an indication of tn
u suppressed Indignation that gentleman is peI
he fectly right in feeling. But there is not likely
le beany suit aboutit. Mr. Carte, tits tnr has sen
n over company of third class people, but h
really gave no guarantee of their ability. H
thought very probably that people who ,wer
Y good enough for the third-rate towns Of Bingham
were good enough for US, in the same toploft
- manner that all Britishers are in the habit of a:
ri Stunning toward 1.-The StateS''
,aj Yet Mr.. Carte had been here before and ougf
Ia TO nave known now very jealous We feal abou
III prerogatlves 1t is not even true, as he stated
" that Mr.. Gilbert had ever rehearsed the con
81 pany that has been given US. Mr.. Gilbert coul
,e not have done so, as he left for India immed
e. ately after the first representation of 9TH
y he never saw single individual among thos
o. now here.
t. at the same time it was great misfortune fc
Or the piece that George Thorne, who was 10 hay
re played one of the two principal parts, fell sic
with typhoid fever couple of days before tn
company left London. He is strong fayorit
4 here and would undoubtedly have pulled DIP til
representation to some sort of decentlevel
", The popularity of Gilbert ana sullivan her
and the hold they have upon American aud
Of ences, in spite of three successive failures
shown ln;the fact that business at that Wreteale
little New Park theatre has been most remarl
able since the first night. On that evening tb
house held in money all that could possibly b
N got into II. On the second night the recent
we're close upon 81 400 and on the third nigf
they were about 500 more than this. By thf
time too, though the performance was still ia
from being what it should, it was so much aboy
err the first night that it almost seemed ditferer
re piece.
~ And so ssy all this the American manager
AZ who have purchased out-of-town right
for the opera are vastly encouraged in their III
dertaking. 1t is not, however, safe for them
count too much upon the money success of th
first few weeksin New York. With "Rudd,
gore and with The Yeoman of the Guard til
receipts were phenomenal for the first two
'lt three weeks. There are always enough people
g, New YORK to MI q theatre for that length {
time, for even failure, if curiosity has bee
properly whetted in advance. Thus with 9Th
~ Yoeman." The Messrs. Aronson did as big
Us business as they ever knew for a month at tn
n Casino, though everybody knew the opera to /
in a failure, When, however, it came to out {
town, the public went once and never again
Chicago and Boston gave up one good night
~ receipts TO either 'Ruddygore or 1.-The Ye
ID man. and though the companies that are no
Is being organized here in America for the Easter
ne and Western representations of the work wi
IN be infinitely better than the one New York ha
IN seen, 1t is not at all probable that the opera
'n several Of the early successes of Gilbert an
Is Sullivan. The lack of really funny part in tn