The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-10-11
DRAMATIC OBSERVATIONS.
TIE HERO ~ 1.-THE ELECTRICIAN"
rs A HCSH OF GOODNESS.

THE Partisan sort " u"h'"E '
hut TbInly In ',ThO Proper Capcr."
The audiences at tho Third Avenue last week
found points to like in THE ELECTRICIAN
and among them cheek and thirst wore'nerhaps'
the first two. That was because there were two
particularly effective opponents OF tho tormer'
and a drunken possossor of the latter, who was
n sub.villain, with many outward wrestles
with his inward self, accompanied by speeches
whose morals were incontcstRblo. Tho man
OF effrontCry was n lifo insurance agent, VINO
entered banks and hnrrOoms in search OF cilonts'
who loft show cards Of his company IN con
spicuous and homogeneous places. and VINO bore
himself well up To the standards OF brt2cn I'M
pudence set by MIR. Evans in 4. McCorNer.
The other example of impudcnco was IA girl VINO
peddlod nowers-and apples and served In gen
oral as a prop for innocence. Her capacity ir
saucy repnrtcc, whether directed toward a bank
official or IL tipsy workman. was remarkable, ana
her pert manner bore out tho meaning OF hor
replies. Charles T.. Blaney, the author OF the
play, has dclvcd in variety farce of the sort
that runs alank comedian through "a cylinder
printing press, and brings out at the opposite
end a nattened likeness Of the victim. The
directness of THE Electrician" which was
melodrama, was Off the same cut. Though the
villain was the Vice-President Of a bank, ho
was suspected on sight and known for vileness
with his first lines. So. too. the hero could not
be mistaken. Whether jauntily fashionable
in street attire, or in greasy clothes with his
arms smeared with one product of humble toll
(his hands were then white, that he might later
soueoze the heroine's), he was plainly n stall.
wart hunk of goodness. Tho comic freshman
suffered to a degree that he whistled like a
calliope as he struggled with speech, and with
the assistance of the programmes act captions
there was little difficulty in picking out, long be-
fore he got them, the man who came In for
dreadful hurts. In the same manner. when the
hero, at his greasiest, and the heroine. in her
best frock, met before tho cog wheels of the
factory scene, the love passage that ensued was
but the mortsage-for the melodrsma was
altogether too well ordered to be without that
hoon-to-come.due staple was not on NEE fathers
farm, or NEE child's birthplace, but was Sc
cured by so unromantic IL chattel as an electric
lightins plant. Herein came the title, and
heere, he inventor was held against a switchboard
while an electric current shot blue blazes out of
him. Dynamos and fly wheels were all about
in this scene, which was well done. Equally
effective was a scene that showed the interior
of a bank, and that provided two stairways
and a connecting raised gallery over which the
pert sub-heroine could rush. in sight OF the
audience, open Il safe, grab up $4,000, and push
1t right under the nose of a forecloser., Taken
altogether, play, acting, and settings had few
faults that hurt it for audiences that like their
drawings bold and blunt.
Gayety OF scene and action is achieved in
"The French Maid" There is no doubt about
that. 1t is primarily an exhibition OF women,
after the Rice manner, but the disclosures are
less reprehcnsible than usual. The indccency
IS pretty nearly confined TO u dance by a dozen
girls in skirts composed OF ribbons, which sep
arate at every movement of the wearers and
show their legs full length. Mr.. Rice is an in.
genious inventor of deplorablc things for his
female employees to do, but this one would
seem to reach a climax at which he might well
stop, blush, and repent. He is to be
ed, however, for having licensed his male come
dams in this new musical farce to distend their
roles US far as the possibilities permit, and sew
cral Of them have thereby achieved very laugh
able proportions. Twin brothers are conspic-
uous in the fun. One is q big. brawny sailor,
the other is n little, scrawny waiter, and they
nrI represented BY Hallen Mostyn and Charles +.
Bigelow in about as comical q style as could well
be imagined. Nor do they compel laughter by
any resort 10 butfoonery. Their methods would
be considered legitimate in a comedy. and do
rot lapse into any OF the excuses commonly
seen in pieces OF foolcry like The French
Maid" Their song of childish "Reminiscences is
more than merely funny. The clever verses
are made to count for every point of humor in
them. Mr.. Mostyn's ballad of his voyage in
side a whale, and Mr.. Bigelow's about the dis
"a 49, AA@A0o ~ - AAAAASA ~ IL
OF experiences in the treatment of such ma
terial.
The second act of '"The French Maid" il at
the Boulogne casino. and IL is a better paint
ing than any in the preceding piece at the Her.
aid Square. OF course. there is a masquerade
in it. That old excuse for the introduction of
variously CARRIED people has not yet been super
seeded by a new and better one. Here a con-
tortive and gymnastic dancer named Saharet
is u surprising performer, and all tho actresses
In the company, whether they play speaking
parts or arc merely visible participants in the
scene, arc clothed strikingly. The costumes
are French conccits, artistic in their extrava.
gance of shapes, though showing some errors
OF JUDGMENT IN the rGolors, which sometimes
bright, however, and the majority OF specta.
tors look no further than that. Notably hand.
Miss sylvia, Miss Robinson, and Miss Wallace,
and they arc put forward in changes of fine
gowns that are modest
The direction of the performances at the Casino
continues in some respects to be constantly for.
ward. $rhe Belle of New York" in the man.
ner OF its production. marks an advance over
The Whirl of the Town" just as much as that
piece was a gain over In Gay New York" In
costuming the Casino continues to improve.
It's colors grow better. and in the present show
there are elemedts which will compare favor
e"y wiz INC DcSI VI imported work In the
same class. 1t would be too much to say now
that the finish and smartness of the London
musical farces, when they como here in their
best estate have as yet been acquired; but the
taste and beauty of the present Casino produc,
uon are not matters OF opinion, but very Ger.
Tam facts. Possibly in the candy store h re il
better scenic art than in any of the other set
tings, and the repetition of a view 30 attractive
as Inc bakery in '"The Wedding Day" confirms
s .nrce suspicion that somebody, in the Casino
FORCES must turn with especial congeniality 10
places OF that sort. That bakery was fine
enough IN its way, but the confectionery OF the
pay now on view could scarcely be surpassed
LOT acilcate coiors and artistic contrasts. The
gowns OF The shop girls blend charminRly with
no tlhts OF the room, and the crowded STAGE
mas scarcely q diacordant note in It's scheme ol
U4,2r' Inc closing view OF Narragansett Pier
s MMh inc Casino archway in the background
nnh she ocean IN the distance, is another de.
ishtiuI view, and the costumes here ARE admir-.
ape. Masked balls-isn't ii a masked ball that
fuses the plecoi-are familiar stage enisodcs
t ,h lhe vogue OF musical farce SGT In, and
,nen success depends on the degree of iudr.
meht with which they are presented, 'fbe
"ai'noe hgures are original and picturesnua
anu lney vary the aDertaple with a ra,sI