The herald., 1896-04-20
A VERSATILE ARTIST
Facts About q Talented Frenchman, Who Cal
Be Seen In This City

Be Seen In This City
If half the stories told of w. Segom-
mer, who appears at the Orpheum to-
night, are true, he is without doubt the
greatest ventriloquist and mimic this
country has ever seen. During the short
time he has been in America he has
been interviewed by all the big papers
of the cities in which he has appeared
and more space has been given to him
than has ever been given to any man
on the vaudeville stage. Segommer was
originally an actor, and for couple of
years was quite success on the German
stage. About the time when Jules
Vernes toupr of the world in eighty
days and the play derived from it was so
popular it was burlesqued by a Berlin
playwright in a piece entitled A tour of
Berlin in eighty hours. The piece was
first put on at EiSsen, and contained for
its chief attraction a scene in variety
theatre. In this scene an actor was re-
quired who could play several charac-
ters, and as Segommer had made d repu-
tation as mimic he was selected. He
did so well that his friends advised him
to write to Dryer, then, as now, the
foremost theatrical agent in Berlin.
Dreyer invited him to come to Berlin
and Segommer started forthwith, al
though he had to travel fourth class. He
secured an engagement at once. That
was sixteen years ago, and since then he
has become the greatest VentrilOquist
and mimic, his fame and prestige ex-
tending over Europe, and he now bids
fair to become quite as famous in Amer
lea.
In private life he is said to be quite as
entertaining, and to have the same easy
charming manner as characterizes his
work on the stage. He sketches in
crayon with wonderful rapidity and is
no mean artist in oil. He has signified
his intention to make several sketches
of California scenery to take back to
his home, which he now makes in Paris.
But 1t is as a ventriloquist that he ex-
cells. Recently, when he opened in
Keith's Bfjou theatre in Boston the Bos-
ton Herald said of him:
Nv. Segommer, the French ventrilo-
quist, made his first appearance at
Keith's yesterday When the curtain
rose for him the audience beheld two
dolls with their heads veiled, a little
pickaninny in Spanish costume standing
at one side ready to play the picolo, our
clown friend Pierrot grinning in a chair,
huge tiger lying with his head be-
tween his paws, and on the other side of
the central pair four dogs of graduated
sizes, and a big heifer at the extreme
left. M. Segommer entered in evening
dress and in pretty good English got
right down to business. He has keen
sense of the funny, and began by intro
ducing the two veiled figures. One was
man, the other woman. The man
seemed to have a sepulchral voice, and
now and lhen he would end his sentences
with a. downward musical scale like that
or Don Juan, the kings BOBBY son in
l492. The woman sang very badly, and
che man did a German yodle that was
not only excellent of itself. but took on
intrest from the fact that M. Segommer
was holding his mouth openly upward at
that moment. Then the dogs spoke in
their characteristic tones, and the calf
said thing or two, the ventriloquist
operating them all from his stand back
OF the middle figures. While tho woman
sang the second time all the beasts
wagged their ears pathetically. Nj. Seq
ommer then went over to Pierrot who
laughed when the tiger yowled and re-
marked Il think the tiger is a fake.
You're making that noise yourself
While the pickanniny played the pic
colo Pierrot and M. Segommer went into
the wings, and you never would have
thought he was several feet away play
ing. Pierrot came back on his own
nook, and was apparently very agile
dummy, when he turned out to be NJ
Segommer, who gave more imtatio
and made lightning sketches. He was ex-
tremely minute in his detail. For in
stance, when he brought out an old
French warrior to sing 'The Marsel-
laise,' he carried the figure on his right
arm, allowing his left to hang by his
side. One had to look carefully to see
that the arm on which the figure hung
was stuffed, while NJ Segommer's own
right arm was working the figures
head. 1t was certainly most perfect
and successful entertainment