The herald., 1897-04-13
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BURBANK THEATER-First night
so we'll as the succeeding nights, and
last evening was no exception to the
rule of a limited audience, in spite of the
change of bill from melodrama to COM
! edy. 1.-The Three Hats" is one of those
rafting French farces. the success of
which depends, not so much upon the
dialogue as upon the ability Of the act
ors to give piquancy to the funny eitua-
tions devised by the dramatist for the
purpose of extracting a succession Of
laughs.
The people In the cast this week who
are entrusted with such an onerous re-
sponsibility are for the most part not
so perfectly apt at the business" that
makes this kind of funny piece take with
the public as might be desired. Harry
Corson Clarke is, of course. host in
himself and he is we'll helped out by
Mr.. Tjader. Mics O'Neil makes saucy
boy in buttons and plays her small part
with a good deal of vim. The remainder
of the company, however, is made up OF
people who have not had the practice
which is indispensable to make piece
OF this character go.
There is an indefinable touch required
In the handling of French farces, a
finecse in the dealing with subject that
is always more or less risky-generally
| more so. The plot, such as 1t is. usually
deals with the peccadilloes of married
| men and the escapades of their wives,
| the entanglemente arising therefrom
| furnishing the motive for situations that
are laughable and sometimes not so very
proper. In this adaptation of "The Three
Hats there is nothing especially OBJ
| jectionable-the dialogue has been care
| fully revised, and II 1t had been as care
| fully committed by all Of the company
| the result would have been smoother
performance. As it is there is no doubt
| that the work will show up much more
| smoothly tonight and an enjoyable
| rendition may be expected. Mr.. Clarke
is always good and nearly always ex-
| cellent in his line of elderly men. In this
| piece, as in others he has appeared in
here, he gives the impression of having
| plenty of reserve force at hie command.
preserving as he does an even balance
| and never allowing his funnyisms to be-
come coarse or wearisome. His tact and
self-possession always keep the other
| actors in line while he is upon the
stage. Mr.. Tjader made very comical
and even grotesque character bit out of
Prof. Blithers, the exaggeration going no
| further than was allowable in such
| role.
| The curtain raiser, "One Touch of
| Nature" was to a certain extent spoiled
| by the fact, first, that no one besides Mr..
| Clarke appeared to be acquainted with
| their lines, and, second, by the fact that
the tender bit of sentiment on which the
| interest of the whole little piece depends
is only perceptible when the part of the
old copyist's daughter is played by some
one with the necessary sprituelle en-
dowment. Katie Pearson is built upon
| generous lines, and while we'll fitted for
such characters as the dashing Irish
widow she lately played, is not at her
best when her buxom form and a little
| of the leftover Irish accent are used to
embellish such delicate part as that of
the motherless young actress. Conse-
| quently the work did not entirely sue
ceed, although it is really a little
dramatic gem, and it is easy to be seen
that Mr.. Clarke could give an excellent
rendering of the old man, provided he
were adequately supported.
The two pieces will remain upon the
bill for the remainder of the week.
ORPHEUM-The new bill for the first
time tonight.
LOS ANGELES THEATER-"For