The times., 1899-05-07

!
methods degenerate and misshapen YER
sicn of Harriet Beecher Stoves novel IL
kept before a public that patronizes- II for
a reason more obscure than the charm Of
the work.
For a considerable sime after .srneie
Toms Cabin had become nonenity the
thread of the story was used as a sxele-
ton on which to hang vaudeville perform
ances of n pleasing sort, but even this
means of strengthening the play has gone
out OF vogue, and at present any manager
who has yellow dog. property" baby.
and sufficient number OF soap boxes to
figure in the Eliza-crossing- the-ice'
scene. exploits combination presenting
the effort Al ". Martin. whose troupe
was seen last week at the Academy OF au-
| sic. began his experience in Uncle Toms
| Cabin with superfiuity of material
| Besides the objects named he possessed
Milt G. Barlow. a gigantic colored boy. a
small brass band. and an unlimited stock
| of that quality of impudence which the
| average American knows either as cheek
| or nerve" These more or less valuable
goods, REINFORCED by yellow-bacsed edi
| ton of the Cabin" constituted a nucleus
| around which 1t was easy to build
| The result OF that building is the produc
| tion which has been seen all over the
| country for several seasons pasta pro-
| duction more weird and awful than any
4 thing tongue or pen could describe Mr.
i BARLOW ION a tn1l Dat-
! fies expression. The one connecting link
between the ex-ministrel and the old slave
whom he irnpersonstes IS dialect which
bears about the same relation to the real
article that "Rag-time' does to genuine
! plantation music. Mr. Barlow Is assisted
| by a Marks. whose performance Is en-
| joyable to himself alone. and by a number
Of other persons who might be thought
| students at school of acting were their
| is only realistic in the case Of an out
door set that is SO weather stained at TO
| give the appearance of a constant rain
storm of real water" And the specialties
| introduced while Liza is being sold and
Tom whipped to death might easily have
! accounted for the pained expressions both
wore during the operations mentioned.
Briefly. Al. Martins rendering of Uncle
4 Toms Cabin Is worthy of the piece II
will take rank with the Davis and Keosh
presentations. and everyone who knows
anything about them understands that their
only use Is in the opportunity they offer
for one to avenge himself upon bis dearest
enemy.
And speaking OF one night stand attrac-
/ tioEs reminds one OF the Crane Brothers,
who were seen last week at the Grand In
| their delightful domestic drama. The
| Heart CT Midtown. The chief merit OF
| this entertainment arose from the fact that
II was absolutely novel-nothing OF the
sort had ever been seen before In the
/ heavens above or on the earth beneath.
/ This uniquity was considerably increased
/ by the apparent fact that neither of the
| performers had the faintest idea OF what
he was doing or OF why he was doing IL.
| A great deal OF real pathos was brough.
| forth in the jokes told and did duty there.
4 This pathos was the genuine article and
was neither maudlin nor overwrought. The
| auditor merely thought of the cruel man
| ner in which jests sufficiently antiquated
to be kept in luxury by their grand
! children were forced to serve and then he
was tempted to break down and weep. A
trifing relaxation was afforded in the
| dancing of the team. but 1t was only
trifing. Hardly had it begun before the
senior partner. who wore makeup that
might have represented anything from
Secretary Alger to clothes dummy, fired
| a revolver for dramatic effect, boy who
had been writhing about during the act
in an evident attempt to make the specta-
tors believe that he was a lay figure sprang
up and the turn was over
What was meant b. the sketch and what
| 1t served to introduce was left to the
| Imagination OF the house. But those WHO
| read the programme announcement that
| THE Heart of Midtown" was "a funny
take-off'' were much inclined to the be-
lief that it should have been taken of be-
fore 1t was ever put on.
There are on the American stage Just
now three young actors, none of whom
| have as yet become solidly grounded as
| leading men, who will bear considerable
watching. The most prominent of these Is
| William Courtleigh. whose connection
| with the Lyceum Theatre Stock Company
| is severed at the end of this season. but
W will mot cfN xrtet
termination of that engagement any more
than it began with the commencement
Mr.. Courtleigh has been seen in
| Washington very often OF late and local
reviewers in noting his work have obsery-
ed not so much that his portrayals are
always good as that they are never bad
With each succeeding season the player
has shown to better advantage until last
week he fairly walked away with the iarg-
| er share Of the honors which arose from
the presentation of "Tre.awny of the
Wells" In this comedy Mr.. Courtleigh
assumed the role of character familiar
to all who know much of the stage and its
people-a performer whose narrow vision
enabled him to see just one letter in the
alphabet and that the one with the least
width.
The impersonation was marked by three
distinct traits-its naturainess, its humor.
and its pathos. From the first viewpoint
it was admirable, for. though the portrait
ure was slightly exaggerated with the ap-
parent idea OF accentuating its second quail
| hcation, there was nothing about il to
| suggest a caricature. Mr.. Courtleigh had
mastered a dozen of the trifiing tricks
| which were once common TO all men of his
| profession, but are now glaring in but few.
These he brought out viyidly and in such
| way that they contributed not only TO
his individual characterization, but to the
atmosphere and faithfulness created by the
ensemble. That the portrayal was appre-
ciated for its comedy is attested by the
| laughter which greeted the actor from the
first to the final curtain. Even the most
unaccustomed theatregoers in the audience
were not slow in grasping the significance
of the strutting, striding, braying Ferdi-
nand Gadd and in taking him at his true
| worth. And yet. when, in the third act cf
| ''Trelawny. Mr.. Courtleigh merely threw
a touch of seriousness in his voice, when
Gadd realized that his resignation from the
company had been accepted, the spectators
were not averse to remaining quiet until
matters frightened for the unhappy rebel.
Briefly, Mr. Courtleigh is man of fine
presence. is possessed OF a good voice and
has plenty OF intelligence. An actor with
three such qualities cannot help but sue
! ceed and consequently the man who cares
| to pose as wiseacre in things theatrical
would do well to watch William Courtleigh.
Last weeks performance OF "All the
| Comforts of Home at the Columbia The
| atre was not up to the Frawley standard
! and. despite the universal chorus of praise.
with which Alfred Hickman was greeted on
the morning after the initial presentation.
his was one of the least adequate portions
OF it, Though an extremely clever fellow
| under ordinary circumstances Mr.. Eick-