The evening world., 1894-05-08
UNCLE"

"Charley's Uncle was produced at tho
Bijou Theatre last night, and indicated
It's managers intended cleverness when
he named II 80 hat 1t would appear to
the lnsuspecting public to be a COM
panion piece to that great farce success.
''Charley's Aunt" which II Is as far
from being as a peg-top Is from being n
bird OF paradise. 'Charley's Uncle" Is a
fribbling attempt at fun that is main
tained through three acts without as
many as three hearty laughs to support
It. There Is not a reck Of sentiment in
1t. not n throb of heart, not the vaguest
mention OF the blind little god who lost
his eyes to campaspe at cards. 1t bur
lcsqucs nothing. II caricatures nothing
unless 1t be Itself. Anybody who has
seen the old minstrel sketches in which
mesmerism and the blue-glass cure were
explained by burnt-cork comedians. who
belted each other over the head with
blown bladders. Will recognize "Charley's
Uncle" us belonging to the same school
of heroic humor. Instead of bladders box
ing gloves are here used, and the whole
fun of the piece consists In the soak
ings'' which II comedy old man, the
uii'iO Va Nv bi"ys b'No ~ WV y" -
stages of the performance. His nephew
Charley IL manager of n music hall.
but the family doesn't know 1t. He
stays out late of nights. and they won
der why. His uncle undertakes to
change Charley's nocturnal habits, and
sends for n hypnotist, who ~out-hypnots
all other h%ypnotists by possessing the
unexampled ability to mesmerize a
man for life. That, at any rate. Is what
Charley's uncle thinks he can do. The
hypnotist comes along and falls into the
hands OF Charley's crowd. who hire hin
to hypnotic the uncle. Some sort OF n
document is sneaked In to which the
uncle's signature Is required. and this
is used as n post facto excuse for hyp-
nothing the old chap. but 1t is plain to
everybody who Keeps a weather eye on
the proceedings that there is no other
reason for hypnotizing the aged victim
than that he may be slambangsomely
soaked" at proper intervals. He IL
finally done up" out of view OF the
audience in the last act. comes out on
the stage with the evidences of the
battle In his misplaced whiskers and dis.
turbed wig. and that ends the play.
There are three women in the piece
One Of them hangs onto the plot by the
skin of her teeth, but the two Others
have no more connection with the stag,
than the small boy looking through tn,
fence has with the game of baseball
going on inside the Enclosure. All three
OF them could be left out without spoil
ing anything; the play would be Just a.
good without them. 1t Is in no highel
plane than the crude minstrel sketche.
after which It has been patterned. 1t 1,
absolutely devoi OF meaning or moral
How any man outside OF Bloomingdai,
could expect to make a play that would
please In these days without putting
single spark OF human sentiment into !
Is beyond comprehension. The wort
love- is not used once during the per
Torrance.
SO far as the acting was concerned tn,
performance last night was all right. /
was said that f. J. Henley, who mad tn,
role of a prize-fighter and the pleasure
OF twice soaking" the old guy, was SUI
fering with some ailment or other whic
affected his acting. but he couldn't hav
had anything worse than the play itsel
to worry him, and he must have felt Xix
a gold dollar in an ash dump; yet h
gave an exceedingly fine and fnishe,
portraiture of the slugger. doing hi
work 80 well that apology was super
rogatory. Bettina Gerard was brilllan
too. although the playwright left he
almost to her own resources, providing
her with nothing to do but be cheerful
and vivacious and wear three odd cos
tunes, the last one of which was O