The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-05-02

TtHE Woman Hater,' the farce by
David D. Lloyd in which Roland
Reed commenced his second and
Il last week in the Columbia Theauer
last night, is not new to the play
goers of San Francisco. Mr.. Reed has
played it here before, and unless L am
badly mistaken a local stock com
pany essayed it not very long ago. 1t
is farce of no particular novelty. The
woman hater, you are soon given to
understand, is not that at all. but a
veritable Romeo in middle age. who
through misunderstanding and comic
circumstance becomes engaged to no
less than three bouncing widows. He
eXtricates himself by means Of the old
insanity dodge, but winds up in an
asylum, from which he finally energies
with the woman of his choice.
The first two acts are slow. even ur-
interrupted by applause, as they We're
last night; but the third, which reveals
some rather ingenious complications III
the capture of the woman hater by the
attendants from the asylum. and the
fourth, which shows him tuning in
captivity, mistaking his friends and
tianceeS for lunaticS, are much funnler.
if indeed they offer little that has not
been done as we'll and better by otner
playWriterS.
Mr.. Reed throws himself earnestly
into the principal part. Earnestucss.
strange as il may sound. is Just the
quality that is needed in the PRINCIPAL
parts of most farces. The character
is usually the victim of circumstances.
and the more complicated these become
and the more dead-in-earneS the
amazement and resentment he meets
them with, the more ludicrouS the eff
feet. Unfortunately Mr.. Reeds part in
abundance of knowing soliloquys and
asides that make this mode of treat
ment not always possible. Much of the
time he is engaged in explaining things
to the audience | have noticed that
the best plays are those that the audi
ences find out for themselves. Miss
Rush and the other members of the
company furnish a well-ensembled if
not individually notable support.
That this is the last week of Miss Lii
liam Burkhart's engagement al the
Orpheum is "a matter of regret, not only
TO the regular patrons OF this Vaude-
vile theater, but to all admirers of re-
fined and distinguished comedy acting.
The fourth week at the Orpheum, and
yet this remarkable young woman is
now, as she was at the first, the best
and most artistic personality in the the
alters Of San Francisco! The Orpheum
has given house to many enViable rec
ords, but to none better than this le
Ultimate enc of Miss Burkhart. l can
think of no finer triumph for any act
ress than TO grip the attention of the
Orpheum- goers for four consecutive
weeks, as Miss BuIkhart has done. in a
class of work that has little if any nat
ural place in the go-aS-you- please of
vaudeville. She has resorted to no Vul-
garity, to no extreme personal display
to nothing in fact but the cleanest and
keenest of legitimate craftsmanship
And she has held the attention and ad-
miration of all, from the casual play
goer of cultivation who drifted into the
orchestra to the toughest god of the
Sunday might gallery. Her work will
leave a fragrant memory a wholesome
tradition for the house that had the
good sense TO risk month of her deli
cacy and refinement. Whether Miss
Burkhart comes back to us as vaude-
Vile star, or, as many of us would
hope, a principal actress in a full
fiedged play, her welcome is assured.
This weeks piece is an adaptation
from the French Of Eugene Pierron
and Adolph Lafferrier, entitled My
Aunt's Advice" l have seen the play
somewhere under another name 1t
tells of young bride who, to rid the
house of her husbands chum, pretends
love for him. He discovers the letter
from her aunt which suggested the
hoax, and returns her affected passion
with unexpected good will. The hus-
band challenges, and there is a lot of
excitement before the general explana.
ton. The dialogue is rather formal and
Miss Burkhart has fewer individual
chances than in her other plays, but
nevertheless she gets a deal of graceful
fun out of the part and pays another
distinct tribute to her apparently limit
less versatility. Mr.. j. K. Macurdy as
the friend, is still inclined to fierce
facialism and a vast webbing of the
eye and disesteem fer real, effortless
humOr, but on the whole he is much
easier than in the other plays. The one
disaster is the husband, played by a
Mr.. Tracy, who in speech, feature and
action bears a fatal resemblance to
Mr.. Jeffries the pugilist.
The other theaters will be noticed in
tO-mOrrOw'S Call