The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-01-31
A GOOD IDEA
Hallen and Hart Put Out the Stand
ing Room Sign at the Academy.

Hallen and Hart are in town again.
this time with a e play. The stand
ing room" sign went u at the Academy
of Music. and every corner was packed
with people to see "The Idean with the
two clever comedians at the head. The
play is a good type of farce comedy.
rather less disconnected than "Later On"
the story bringing on a secret marriage
and three or four matrimonial mistakes.
Fred Hallen goes skipping and dancing
through his usual character of an up-to-
date young man, Hoffman Howes, a
youth who is not slow. Joseph Hart has
a beautiful chance to sport his fine red
wig and his croaky voice as Clean Brad
ford from the Idea OIL Well, Pennsyl-
vania. There is something very fetching
about the way that voice trails of at the
end of a joke and loses itself in his ex-
pansive smile. Hart is a great acto /,
distinctively great. He can play Com
rades'' and hit every note wrong, pre-
viously doing skyrockets all over the key
board just to show what he could do il he
had a mind to. He can make the house
roar just by turning on his innocent
smile. He could break up a revival just
with his chuckle.
Hallen is such a graceful dancer that
there was a good deal of that sort of thing
on the bill. The dancing lesson" In the
last act, gave him a chance 60 get in
some of his fine work, and convince
people how light he ia on his feet. Hoff-
man Howes and Bradford return from
a ball at an early hours A. M.-and
Hoffman puts his friend to sleep in a
folding bed, Their folds it up out of the
way. After his hat band has ceased to
worry him, he unfolds bis friend and
together they sing a song about THE
Other Side of the Story" in which an
elaborate pantomlme tells the real trath
about certain yarns told to friends.
There were several familiar faces, pretty
Molly Fuller, as Mrs. Morton Howes:
George O'Donneli, as Epson Downs. and
John E. McWade as the secretly married
Morton Howes. AL. Wilson appeared as
Carl Pretzel, with a yodel and a Dushel
of really funny jokes, Harry Hilton has
| a face shaped like a Thermometer, but as
Reed Wallpaper, his makeup. disguised
| lin. His voice is we'll worth hearing.
Richard Reap is another last years mau,
appearing as Wells Fargo. Donald Harold
| was the papa. a reformer who needs re-
| forming. Gu. Won Kettler was a policeman.
| Fanny Bloodgood is a chubby, kittenish
little actress who does Peach Blow and
an GRAND boy. Alice Carrie has a magni-
icent contralto voice, and Florence Hol-
brook a clear, flexible soprano. Mabel
| and Lulu did a .'coon" dance in burnt
cork, that was recalled again and again.
| Carrie De Mar danced like a fairy and
believes in dress reform sklrts-very
dress reform.
There was a great deal of Incidental
music, with not one really .'catchy" air.
The nearest to it was How to Tell q
Married Man." The sentimental ballads
were remarkable for the utter absence OF
an idea. THAT Would be a Novelty is q
pretty little song that might be longer
without hurting Ii.
The scenery is remarkably pretty with
no effort at realism" the ball room In
the third act, especially. In the second
a game of keno, or lotto. played. The
audience had been given keno cards. and
those who had the requisite five numbers
in a line were given a reserved seat ticket
for the next night.
1.-THE Idea" will continue until Satur
day night, with matinees as usual.