St. Paul daily globe., 1896-02-03
At THE THEATERS.

Those delightful little creatures
The Brownies"-who came to this
wicked world just thirteen years ago
this February, through the medium of
st. Nicholas magazine, and from the
brain Of Palmer Cox, materialized
themselves at last, and appeared upon
the stage Of the Metropolitan opera
house last night. While in their invis-
1ble state these fantastic fairies have
been doing lots of good, Palmer Cox,
their creator. says that his Brownies,
like fairies and goblins, are imaginary
little sprites who are supposed to de-
light in harmless pranks and helpful
deeds. They work and sport while
weary. households sleep and never
allow themselves to be seen by mortal
eyes,
Ii you are not disposed to take the
word Of Palmer Cox; if you can pos
sibly read those blithesome verses
about the Brownies without feeling
that they have helped you, go and see
them dlsport upon the stage and you
Will surrender to their jollity, their in
nocence and their animation. Their
pipestem legs, their google eyes and
their comica pot-bellies will do you a
world of good. You will laugh at their
harmless pranks," and sympathize
with their dire distress while they are
enslaved by the evil Dragonfel
The Brownies" should have found
the stage years ago, but now that they
are here. they are doubly welcome. G.
b. jefferson, Klaw and Erlanger the
managers, who have recognized the
adaptability of Palmer CoX's creations
to the stage, merit the hearty thanks
of the theater-going public, not only for
giving dramatic expression to the
prettiest tales, but for the liberal and
elaborate manner in which they have
! staged the production. Due credit must
also be extended to Malcolm Douglas,
who composed nearly all the music,
much Of 1t singularly pretty and ap-
propriate, and to Ben Teal, whose su-
perlor genius as stage director ap-
pears in the succession of beautiful
groupings and contrasts that render
each ensemble so striking. The seen
cry is gorgeous and the electric effects
| marvels of ingenuity
Beautiful and elaborate as the seem
cry is, 1T cannot outshine the people.
The Brownies and Fays fit hither and
thither in beams Of sunshine singing
sweet songs and dancing merry dances.
Frank Deshon, the king of the
Brownies, flourishes a magic scepter
and sings clever topical songs. His per-
formance is exceedingly clever. Then
there is Ida Mule, as petite as she is
plump,as cunning as she is quaint. Who
could imagine so cute Dame Dru-
silda? Palmer Cox himself, with all his
imagination, never saw a prettier one
in his minds eye. Prince Florimel the
heir apparent by the adoption to the
Brownies throne, must perforce be a
dashing, stylish young fellow, so Lena
Merville was selected for this role. The
selection was wise, for Miss Merville
is not only clever, but shapely enough
to match the queen of the fairies Miss
Marie Millard impersonated Queen I'll
tania. Miss Millard is a vocalist of
more than ordinary accomplishment.
She possesses high soprano of consid-
cradle feXibilty and cultivation. The
remaining characters were Satisfactor-
| lily represented.
But aside from the novelty of the
theme and sweetness of the music,
which would alone distinguish this pro-
duction from all others presented here
in several years, 1t is remarkable for
the display of girlish beauty. The fe
male chorus or ballet departs from
precedent. The young ladies" deserve
the title. They have no personal recol-
lections of the civil war, and Grover
Cleveland is the first president that
some of them can remember. In fact,
these girls constitute an innovation in
the way of a female chorus, for they are
not only young, but their faces are ra-
diant with the freshness and beauty of
youth. They present two superior
| features of the performance-the Ori-
entail ballet and the flying ballet at the
close of the last act. The Oriental bal
| let is charming to a degree, fairly in
toxicating the senses with the brillian-
cy of the variegated lights and the
richness of the costumes which display
the symmetry Of the girls to marvellous
advantage. The flying ballet is some
thing entirely new to the American
stage. 1t cannot be adequately describ-
| ed, further than to say that it is a sue
cession of groupings in mid-air, render
| ed picturesque by the aid of colored
lights and transparent fabrics envelop-
! ing the aerial fairies.
| Another of the admirable specialties
was the duet between guitar and ban
| dolin-a miniature guitar strung like a
mandolin-which was contributed by
| Newhouse and Waffle, the former play
ing the bandolin. The two received four
! encores. During the second act the
! -Four Richards astonished the specta-
tors with fine acrobatic performance.
| Then came the specially that capti-
waited all and that was DOT Leetle
Cherman Pand," led by Frank Deshon.
The engagement is for the entire
week, with Wednesday and Saturday
ma tinees.