The times., 1899-02-12
FRIENDS OF LAST WEEK.

II mas OIJen Deen SAID tnat, In so lar aS
artistic work is concerned, a nonenity is
of more value in a theatrical organization
than a celebrity would be- The reason
given for this remarkable statement is that
the man who has yet a reputation to make
will labor more zealously and endure more
patiently than his fortunate rival could be
expected to do. Some ground was certain
ly given to this argument by the perfect
manner in which George II. Broadhurst's
players gave THE Last Chapter last week
at the Lafayette. Every member OF that
company was well known to the profession
and to people connected with it, but-un-
less Edgar Davenport and Grace FiIkins
be excepted-no one of them had succeed
ed in making his or her name familiar to
the general public. Some few regular
theatregoers may have remembered that
Thomas a. Wise was the political sheriff
in THE Jucklins;" that Clara Emory had
been at Days for several months, that
Harrison Armstrong was of one of the
old Stuart Robson supports that Ellie VII
ton had spent many years with Edwin
Booth and Lawrence Barrett and that even
Harry McArdle was the city man" of
"One Summers Day But these histrion-
ic historians were no larger in numbers
than may have been those amateur critics
who did not recall Grace Filkins in The
Royal Box" or "A War Correspondent,
and Edgar Davenport in Diplomacy"
.Pudd' 'nhead Wilson," and Cumberland
81"
Notwithstanding the strangeness of the
combination. however, each OF the indi-
viduals mentioned contributed a character
izatiOn that deserved recollection First OF
these was the Timothy Salter of Mr. Wise
"A creation of undoubted humor and vet
so faithful to nature; so spontaneous and
delightful that audiences were constrained
10 rank it above even the frank reserve OF
Mr.. Davenport and the quaint charm of
Miss Filkins. Miss Emory's impersonation
Of the typewriter. too. brought out that
young lady's personality strongly in a few
lines, while the opposite done by Mr. Arm
strong impressed for its awkwarduess and
its honesty. The mother contributed by
Miss Wilton proved pathetic without being
maudlin, and Master McArdle's Office bow
was creditable. Then came the delightful
gentleman of the old school beautifully
done by Horace Lewis. the two cIear-cut
comedy representations of Laura Case and
f. Newton Linde. and the extraordinary
scoundrel of Edwin Holt. Indeed the
whole organization was so admirable that
one could not well select a single person
for especial commendation. The rendering
given The Last Chapter was conclusive
proof that some of our best actors 90 on
doing good work year after year without
being recognized-just as men do in every
other field and walk of life.
Contrast Is great detective. and often
in dramatic productions worthy or unwor-
thy endeavor that would not be noticed
were it general becomes very much pro-
nounced because it is confined to indi-
yduals. Had THE Little Minister" which
was seen last week at the National. been in
the hands OF a stable-storming company.
not even the most critical would have OBJ
served Kate Ten Eyck's absurd caricature
of Mamie Webster But when the charac-
terizatiou was thrown forward by the
largely natural efforts OF those about her.
it became artificial and assuming and ri
diculous. Miss Ten Eyck affected an &C
cent that might have been anything from
Welsh to Australian. a walk that resem-
bled those of Japanese jugglers more than
anything else. and n manner that made
one think of Neil Burgess and George
Monroe. Altogether, her portrayal of the
queer old woman whom ]. VI. Barrie drew
could not be said to have awakened much
Miss Adams would do well TO
look the actress over when she begins
making some much-needed changes in her
cast.
Those who went to the Grand last week
and VINO glanced at their programmes suf-
fciently early to note before seeing her
that Eleanor Falk was billed as the
charming comedienne" probably fe't cold
chills playing tag on their spinal columns.
The average charming coincidence is
never less than forty Years of age. always
has from two to five gold teeth in her
nm y-Ot, - -