Omaha daily bee., 1896-03-29
M
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never has he so thoroughly succeeded in
sinking his own strong personality and di-
vesting himself Of the mannersims which are
nearly always with him, His efforts were
admirably seconded by Mr.. Woodward in the
part Of the old negro body-servant. the only
other character in the piece, which, in the
hands Of this accomplished artist, became a
thing OF beauty. fit to rank with the Mr..
Valentine Of the star.
In the bright dialogue OF IAN Everyday
Man" is seen the def touch of Miss Mer-
ington, but the hand OF the brilliant author
OF Captain Lettarblair" Is not apparent
otherwise In the construction of this later
work, which is to a certain extent disap-
pointing. The curtain rises to the orchestral
accompaniment OF Mary and john" the
domestic happiness of Mary and John is re-
vealed; the always hazardous experiment of
forcibly changing the current OF a human
life 10 tried, with ludicrous and inevitable
results; and the final curtain falls to the
renewed harmoBies Of MARY and John"
shutting out the hum Of the bees, the
sight of the hollyhocks and snowbslls in the
homely garden and the spectacle of the
uninterrupted bliss Of Mary and John. 1t
is a pretty, clean, harmless play, based upon
that rare thing. an original idea, and com
tanning one OF the most humorous scenes
furnished by the contemporary stage. Peo-
pie can and do laugh at II without restraint.
There are no tears, save such as may be
shed In sorrow over the employment of the
touch of melodrama In the matter Of the de-
falcation. 1t is a good contrast to M Val
entine'S Christmas" which is all pathos.
Unlike that fine performance, 1t is not cal
culated to add greatly to Mr.. Russelps fame,
nor, one is confident, to be very long re-
tanned in his repertory. There Is not much
In it for the company, outside of Miss Rad
cliffe, who was a gracious figure as Empy's
wife, and Mr.. Denham, who as that physician
whom the apparently intoxicated junior
warden calls "Old Dry Doc" contributes
a most artistic drunk to the symposium in
Empy's chambers.
It would seem that the warning which was
published !, the evening papers relative to
late Corners at the performance of M
Valentines Christmas was mere stage
thunder, inasmuch as the last tardy ar
rival was ushered to his seat at precisely
$3.50, stumbling over half a dozen people to
reach that resting place. Add to the an
noyance caused by these fashionably dila-
tory folk, the wave of bronchitis which a
quiet performance behind the footlights al
ways calls out, and the inevitable chatter
Of those neighbors who were exchanging
social gossip and explaining the incidents
Of the play, and it will be understood that
the first fifteen minutes of the action on the
stage was little more than a pantomime,
enjoyable as such, but not precisely what
those expected to experience who came early
in the faith that the notice referred to had
nuQ SOIlp OlItE UDJeCl THAN ~ III opaSC IA
the newspapers,
A member of Mr.. Russell's company, who,
though he is never conspicuous in the cast,
contributes largely in his way to the pleasure
of the audience, is the efficient stage man
ager, Stewart. Allen. In addition to the
somewhat unusual qualifications for his posi-
ton, which have kept him with Mr.. Russell
for a good many seasons, Mr.. Allen has a
pretty gift of verse-making. some of his
| nopnnoSitinpc HI viDp ppnpa red in the Ora m tic
Mirror and elsewhere. The following lines,
suggested to Mr.. Allen by the delightful per-
formance of Mr.. Russell in "Mr. Valentines
Christmas" are here printed for the first
time:
The old man sat by the bright log fire,
The sparks flew merrily higher and higher
AS he dreamed of his first love, and last.
His faithful old s%ervitor, bowed Town with
Stood by his old-fashioned chair,
AS he turns DER the leaves of his life
To the Wondering mental there.
Chloe and Francis. Inez and Joan.
Dead loves to his memory dear.
But Agnes. the dearest, stood out there
+. Like a star in the armament clear!
Far away though she was on this Christ
He feels the sweet touch of her hand,
Each heartstring Of memory attuned to
Like the tone of a melody grand! +
The sudden heart failure, the faltering
The knowledge Of sins all forgiven,
!, The Christmas chimes ring. the angels
Ger the bachelors Christmas in heaven!
Coming Events
An event Of more than ordinary interest
to the theater-goers of this city will be the
appearance at the Creighton, commencing
this afternoon, of the popular comedian,
Eddie Foy. His annual engagements here
for many seasons with the Chicago opera
house productions are still pleasantly re-
membered. Inasmuch as Mr.. Foy has always
in the past been associated with spectacle
and plays of the burlesque order, his appear
ance here in legitimate comedy will add a
new interest to the performance. In the
character of Captain Courtenay, In 1.-The
Strange Adventures Of Miss Brown" he has
q role entirely different from any he has
heretofore played. but IL report is true, his
success has been unqualified.
Miss Browns adventures are said to be
very funny. In reality. there is no such
person In the play. One, Captain Courtenay,
who is a regular up-and-up guardsman, falls
in love with a school girl, who is a ward in
chancery. He has had great success in
amateur theatricals and is presumed to be
an adept in DISCUSSES. At all events, for
bcllul " me HcdNy me, ana lO0S lmprlSOn-
ment penalty for so doing. he induces his
love to play truant and weds her privately.
Her absence from her seminary is discovered
and she Is hunted up by her principal, who
has also with her. her lawyer and a Scot
land Yard detective. who are after the CAP
tain. The pair are about to sit down to a
wedding dinner at the apartments of Major
and Mrs. O~'Gallagher. Warning is given of
the proximity of the schoolmarm. and the
officers of the law. There Is only one way
of escape for the captain. Mrs. O'Gallagher
suggests that he go to her dressing room,
cut off his moustache with the majors
razor and don petticoats and other female
attire and for the nonce become Miss
Brown of Portsmouth" He takes the ad-
vice, and, disguised. escapes from the house.
Not so fortunate his bride; she is captured
and taken back to school. Then the cap
tain, finding his disguise SO effective, de-
termines on a plan to elope with his wife to
the continent, there to renal until she be-
comes of legal age. Aided by his friend, the
major, he is made a fellow pupil as Miss
Brown with his bride In the young ladies'
seminary, The scenes that ensue are said
to be funny beyond description. II takes
two acts to enable the married couple to
escape from the school and to get free from
the legal embarrassments, but In the end
they find all obstacles to their happiness re-
moved, ana thereafter they become models
OF married military proprlety, There will be
a special matinee on Tuesday.
Thomas Keene will bsgin an engagement Of
III raA nfuhfa I'm aInEGia- and