The herald., 1897-03-21

The public interest in the drama has
been exhibited during the past week In
a manner that must have been satisfac-
tory to managers. "Shore Acres" at
the Los Angeles has attracted increased
patronage with each performance, the
receipts on the third night exceeding
those on the opening night, and the mouse
was packed to the ceiling at the Satur-
day matinee. The general verdict as to
"Shore Acres is one of approval, al
though the qualificationsof opinion have
in some cases been rather amusing. one
patron of the drama, an out or town
manager, indeed, voiced his ideas by
saying that the piece had no songs nor
music in it, and therefore he did not like
it as well as he did The Old Home
stead" Another critic thought that
while the piece was harmless enough, 1t
needed spice, and as to the characters
why you could find any number of old
folks just like those in the play If you
would only take the trouble to go north
and look for them. Taking the play just
as if appears on the surface some see
nothing in it but reproduction OF num-
BILE life, Photographic in its merciless ac-
curacy, and therefore of little interest
But there are those who, looking a little
deeper to find the springs of action, see
and admire the unselfish devotion OF
Nathaniel Berry to his younger brother
a devotion that kept him single man,
and sent him to the war and made him
in his life thereafter a patient minister
to the family circle that grew up around
his brothers hearth. There is genu-
inc poetic touch about the loves of Helen
and Sam and ii is pleasant to believe that
Sam, who left home with a hundred dol
lars and a young wife, was able TO come
back in fifteen months richer by one
baby and a house and lot, the latter
partly paid for. The trip from Colorado
to Maine must have been somewhat ex-
pensive, too, and Sam must have done
very nicely to be able to afford 1t all in
the short time. By the bye. Miss Morrow
should wear that wedding ring when
she comes home with the baby. At
least 1t would appear to be the proper
thing to do under the circumstances.
"Shore Acres is a piece that might
be seen again and again without 1t grow
ing wearisome. Even the first act,
which has great amount of talk in it,
is full of suggestive thought, and while
some people might like it better If
barn-yard quartet were introduced
there are others who admire the strict
adherence shown to the natural sequence
of events in the action, and who do not
want to see probabilities set at naught
for the sake of amusing the ground
lings Verify. SO great is the demand for
amusement" that one may expect to
see Othello and the fair Desdemonda
dancing a Niger breakdown and to hear
10 Lot Gil, tool q
demand for something funny continues
to grow at the present rate.
The Los Angeles theater will be dark
during the present week. The New
York Bloomer minstrels were to have
appeared on their Pacific coast tour, but
something appears to have happened,
either the company got tired or disgust
ed or both. and consequently the street
parade daily" of twenty more or less
fascinating bloomer girls, and their ap-
pearance at night on the boards of Mr..
Wyatts' stage are misfortunes that have,
for the time at least. been averted.
For genuine, quiet humor, a neat, in
cisive style finished department and a
thorough grasp of character, the work
of Comedian Clarke cannot be too high
ly commended. His fun is good. clean,
wholesome. and, above all, cCnta gious
Laugh, and the house laughs with you"
might be a fair boast for him to make.
A visit to the Burbank is the thing while
there is an opportunity to witness the
clever work OF Harry Corson Clarke.
Referring to the question of advance
notices of coming attractions which are
printed in the daily journals as matters
of news and which ii has been found are
not always entirely truthful, subject
g1,.-1 Co.. H..
ago, Mr.. Edward NJ. Roberts writes to
the Mirror lengthy letter in which he
says that the existing system is all very
wrong and the advance man is largely
to blame. He then suggests that the
travelling organization would fare much
better if the advance agent would hand
over a few notices in the paper of their
original appearance. He should request,
at the same time, that the editor state in
connection with their publication that
the following is a bona fide notice from
he-of-date' This treatment
would be of perceptibe benefit to the
theatrical profession, would strengthen
the readers faith, and be a real benefit
to all concerned. A deserving company
can easily win good notices as il prog
resses on its tour. The press. generally
speaking, is courteous in that respect"
The suggestion is not without merit ard
notice that had appeared in a paper
that had a reputation for independent
and competent criticism would be "a
real benefit to all concerned"
The production by Mrs. Minnie Mad
dern- -Fiske of the dramatization OF
Thomas Hardy's Tess Of the D'Urber-
villes," at the Fifth avenue theater,
New York, on the I'd instant, was an
event of uncommon interest. The work
of the greatest living novelist is suffi-
ciently important to compel attention
and the success of the play is therefore
from an artistic point of view, a matter
for congratu,ation. The occasion also
called forth the recognition of Minnie
Madden by a New York audience and
the people appear to have been neither
slow nor niggardly in according 10 this
gifted woman a high place in their re-
gard. When Mrs. Fiske, then Minnie
Maddern, visited this coast the present
writer had the pleasure to express in
terms of unstinted praise a high appre-
citation OF the genius shown in the act
resss Interpretation Of character. Miss
Madden did not succeed, financially. to
the extent she deserved and her work
was caviare to the general. All she
needed then, however. was a character
entirely suited to her powers and she
might have obtained universal recogni-
tion. As it is today, after her temporary
retirement she appears as the heroine Of
Hardy's work and she has evidently cap
tured the critics as we'll as the public.
The Sun says teresly: Mrs. Fiske is
no less a genius than Duse." and out of