Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-30

DCOUESNE EHnd JuCH opera.
GRAND OPERA HOUSE. .-..............Cora lanner
HARRY WILLIAMS ACADEMY Sam Devere's Co.
HARRIs' TuEATER ............. The Haymaster.' -
DAVIS FIFTH AVE. MUSEUM. -. .Curiosities Etc
STANDARD THEATER......-....-..'' 'Ranch Ming
The above are the theatrical attractions
for this week.
Something has already been said in these
columns of the new comedy which Stuart
Robson played during the first half of last
week, and 1t would not serve any useful
purpose to say much more. us Marriage
g Failure" is really a farce comedy, not as
the products OF Hoyt ct al are improperly
so called, but play half way between
comedy and farce The authors, Messrs
Gordon s. Corhett, call it comedy, and as a
comedy ii calls for little but condemnation.
Considered more charitably as farce
comedy the farcical situations, the caricatures
of character and the rough humor of some OF
the lines are moro appropriate, and the work
as a whole might be made with some radical
alterations ami additions to the two last acts
passably good play no doubt. In comedy we
expect to find life pictured as it is. or as it was
at some time in the past The life which is
Marriage n Failure?' shows US is not like life
as ii may be observed on this continent to-day
and il will hardly he argued that IL resembles
by any possibility American life of an earlier
epoch. II the picture is prophetic OF what LIE
here shall at some day be, heaven help America!
1t must be said, however. that the first act of
us Marriage 4 Failure?" is of far higher
quality than its successors. The opening is
real comedy and the ENHANCEMENT of the
young married couple in the net OF dlfhculues
arising from the avalanche of the wlfe's
family and their friends. Is amusingly managed.
In the second act however, the characters fade
out and the action becomes a disconnected
tumble of more or less ludlcrous and often
impossible incidents. The prosecuted young
patny, and his behavior is out of
keeping with the revelation of his
character in the first act. The heroine. too.
shows an imbecilic readiness to desert her nus
band that would disgust 4 gallery of divorced
females. The possibilities of the plot are
many, but after the first act the authors seem
70 have lost sight of everything but the dia-
logue which occasionally SparkieS with bright
should come at the end of the second act,
but the situation upon which the curtain falls
does not provide this requisite. The climax of
the play, II there IS any perceptlDle Use TO
height comes after the incident designed to be
pathetic, where the husband sets about writing
his farewell to the wife who has abandoned
him, and is interrupted by the appearance of
that Weak-minded young person in a becoming
state of penitence and mourning dress.
This situation would have power if
were WEI reasonably lst,I motived ~ bat tp sk!ilfulIy
NlI. I.uusO.I sti.Nc 10 IeHu rcaIIy 40 ihe
scene the audience could not help perceIving
Its absurdlty. At this point III the play the
authors seem TO have become disgusted with
their task, and the action becomes wild gallop
for the tag. The conclusion iS the most uIi-
satisfactory part OF the play; the punishment
of the horrible old harpies, the father and
mother-iuIaw, Is SO utterly inadequate.
That the play knocked down and re-
built might make amusing farce
comedy is conceivable. There is a refreshing
hOr- he and 10 pyrfr
and there. Mr.. Robson and his companions
eonscienuously give the play all that lies within
their power, ana in the case OF Mr.. Robson, Mr..
Woodward and the very YlvaciouS little Miss
Olive Nav this is saying a good deal. Miss
Waldron does not appear to advantage in the
role of the fiabby yuun" wife-her massive pro-
portions and general characteristics belong to
an absolutely opposite personality. The idiot
son is a positive blot, an offensive and deplora-
bly, inartlstic one at that, upon the play.
-
Two weeks ago the average impartial man.
who looked 1T the busy scene within the Du-
cuesne Theater, was willing TO bet dollars to
doughnIts that it could not be finished or made
ready for the reception of the public by the day
set for the opening. December l. The building
contractors, the decorators ard the army of
workmen employed in various ways to change
livery stable into 4 lheater have accomplished
what not so lnnG ago appeared impossible.
The DuQuesne TheaJer Will be Open TO the pub
lie tomorrow. and it can be predicted, without
fear of contradiction, that they Will find
in il the most beautiful place of amusement
this city has ever had. OF course there are a
good many little things to lie done about the
house. but it may be accepted as certain that
the theater will be in very comic hle state
OF punishment by to-morrow night. Until the
house is properly lit up, filled with people. with
the crimson curtain in position, The fOotlights
agloy, and the orchestra fiddling for dear life,
It Will be impossible TO fully appreciate this
little gem of a theater. But yester-
day afternoon, with painters still at work,
with bare spots in the parquet, in dim half
light. without any of the accessories such as
hangings electric light effects, and with the
stage a jungle OF border lights, ladders and
ropes no one could fail to see the beauty of
the auditorium's contour. the grace OF the bal
cony's curves. the harmonious proportions of
the proscenilm arch, the novel and delicate
design of the boxes. and the soft, yet rich tone
of the scheme OF color in which the
house rejoices. Cream and gold
are the dominant colors in all
the decorations from the frescoed dome to the
old gold plush of the char seats The seats are
made of cherry, and measure from is to %
inches in width. They are comfortable in
themselves, and apparently there will be
enough room between the rows.
The cCziness of the theater is another striking
feature. to which the glass partition protecting
the back of the parquet from the lover con-
tributes materially. 1t will be impossible ap-
parently for anyone to complain that he cannot
see and hear perfectly in any part OF The house.
II is claimed that the theater will seat between
LOO and l.SOO people in the parquet, balcony
and gallery. There are ten boxes, four on
each side arranged in the usual fashion, and
one large one at the top on level with the
gallery. The loftiest box is evidently designed
with view to making its roomness compen-
safe the occupants for its altitude above the
stage. The arrangement of stained glass at the
back of the box is one of the most beautiful
effects achieved in the decoration.
Compared with the principal theaters Of New
York, Philadelphia, Chicago and other great
cities the Duquesne. already seen at a dis
advantage. appears to me to be one of the most
artistic creations in theatrical architecture
that the country possesses.
Messrs. McElfatrick & Co. have built so
theaters more 1 believe. but l doubt if they
have produced anything better than the
DuQuesne. These are laudatory superlatives,
but If the Pittsburg public does not indorse
-
Miss Annie Pixley is an actress whose fol-
lowing is large and loving. She has appeared
IN a round of plays during the week at the
Bijou before very big audiences. and she has
shown that she has not lost any of those de-
lightfully magnetic qualities which have
brought her TO the top of popularity's wave.
In ''N'liss" she is seen to best advantage but
Ety!e of acting tells with great effect Miss
Pixley's versatility is also displayed in the dual
role she assumes in ~ Second Floor" a light
amusing comedy that seems to have found
more friends here than on Its first visit to this
city.
Grand opera at the new Duquesne Theater
light comic opera at the Bijou, and Cora Tan
ner in a new role at the Grand Opera House
will fill the cup of the theater-going public to
the brim this week. THE Paymaster" at Har-
ris' Theater Sam Devere's varieties and Harry
Williams curiosities, and other entertainment
at Harry Davis Museum, and The Ranch
49, aNd e1x