The herald., 1898-01-18
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ORPHEUM-The bill last night was
very evenly balanced, so far as the vari-
ETY. of the attractions was concerned,
and, in quality, fully deserved the, at
times, uproarious approval bestowed
upon it. In addition to the menagerie
part of the show, including the ponies,
dogs, monkey and human lizard all of
which was as good as ever and was
wisely placed in the front part of the
program, the new turns were looked for
with expectancy. The first new number
was disappointing. Ophelita is petite
enough, but has no right to be billed as
a premiere danseuse and singing SOU
brette." She is nothing but a child, who,
like scores of other rather precocious
youngsters, can dance a few steps,
though she cannot sing at all. Exactly
why the little one has place on the
Orpheum program is hard to under
stand.
Musical Dale" gave an extremely
well-rendered lot of operate and other
airs upon different sets Of bells, and also
played concertina. He has a mastery
touch and shows great skill in giving the
soft passages of his music in manner
that Is rarely approached by other ex-
perts on the bells. He had to answer
several extra demands before the audi
ence would let him go.
Kitty Mitchell is a dainty little per-
former, who "recites' songs with a Curl
iyyf1 of nx,t1, Id.
and at times sliding into the singing
voice, but always clear and perfectly to
be understood, which, after all, is the
great desideratum in a ballad. Kitty
Mitchell was charmingly attired, and
her pretty hair was simply but effective
ly arranged. She looked, to use an often
quoted simile, like one of those pink Gre
ations of feminine loveliness which are
made in Dresden china But, for all her
apparent simplicity, the fair little Kitty
is not behind the best of them in giving
chic Interpretation to her songs. She
began with a Sunday-school selection,
followed 1t with an Irish piece, and then
came the inevitable coon song. The lat
ter was given in style entirely new to
this stage, being so dainty and refined
that it just suggested every detail of the
nigger business without going broadly
into the execution of it. The audience
did itself credit in appreciating thor
oughly such clever piece of work and
called again and again, until the little
woman gave them naughty version of
Little Red Riding Hood"
The Gilmore Sisters, as they are called,
personate an Irish mother and daughter,
respectively. The mother is loud, very
loud, speaking lady, whose education
evidently began at the wrong end, for,
while she can dance a capital jig, her
brains have not been cultivated at any
school but that of experience, and she
has powers of repartee that are strong
enough to knock a man down. Her
daughter dresses well and is supposed
to have had boarding school educa-
ton. The scene between the two is cap
italy sustained, and, while it was free
from anything offensive, it brought out
the very strong characteristics of the
lady who insisted on green tea," and
would not listen to the idea of an "or-
ange tea," as she never Switched her
| colors." The act was entirely too funny
to be described and must be seen to be
appreciated. The audience took to the
performers with the greatest enthusi-
aSm.
The last act by the three Avalos was
gymnastic performance, unique of it's
kind, being a series of feats Of strength
and agility upon series of half dozen
bars placed perpendicularly. The skill
and daring shown in this turn are won
derful, and the ease with which every
thing appears to be done gives an added
zest to the performance.
y y \
BURBANK KTHEATER.-At thorough
ly appreciative audience greeted the
first production of ''The Phoenix" at this
house last evening. The piece is not a
new one to Los Angeles audiences hav-
ing been given here by it's author, Mil
ton Mobiles, but it contains so much Of
fun and sparkle that it will always prove
a favorite. 1t is practically a one apart
play, the other characters acting simply
as aids to the hero in his work of ferret
ing out great crime. AS the hero in
question, Sam T. Shaw appeared to ex-
cellent advantage and won rounds of
applause, especially in the scene where
he writes his novel, which was capitally
worked up. Jennie Kelton made a pref
ty flower girl and carried off her part
With all the life and feeling necessary.
Nellie M. Shaw was a ballet girl. but
masqueraded most of the time in boy S
clothes, which were exceedingly becom-
ing, and in which she easily scored a
hit. The villain was rendered sufficient
ly cold and schening by Fl. w. Gilbert.
The chief character work of the play,
that of Moses, the Jew, was we'll done
by Al H. Hallett, who easily excels in
this line of characters. Harry Lewellyn
and the balance of the cast filled their
respective parts in conscientious man
ner. The piece was well staged, the
scenery all being appropriate. The fire
scene in the first act was particularly
effective and ingenious in it's construc-
ton. "The Phoenix" will be continued
until Thursday, and, as the theater is
now comfortably heated, the piece will
no doubt prove good drawing card
Commencing Friday evening, "The
Pavements of Paris will be given.
MUSIC NOTES