The times., 1899-03-17
BEAUTIFUL DANCE
OF ALL NATIONS
Fashionable Society Witnesses
the Unique Performance.
die Puppenfee'' Given Before a
Distinguished Audience.
baltimore Presents, to Washington
the Most Successful Amateur
Company Ever Sent Here.


Fashionable Washington paid tribute to
Baltimore talent yesterday afternoon. A
| special car full of young society people
came over from that city with a unique
and altogether enjoyable production en-
titled Die Puppenfee." which they pre-
sented at the Lafayette Square Opera
House at o'clock for the benefit of the
Womans Branch of the Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of their
State. In the brilliant audience, which was
| large enough TO almost entirely fill the
| theatre, were representatives from the
various embassies and legations, including
Sir Julian Pauncefote, dean of the Diplo-
matte Corps. Each Of these foreign dig
nitaries had the pleasure, during the course
| of the entertainment. of seeing his in
dividual fatherland typified by a pretty
girl in national costume. who carried the
flag she represented through the mazes OF
Dance of All Nations" There were
Americans, good and true, of official and
social prominence, who paid enthusiastic
tribute to Miss Columbia, and everybody,
| regardless Of nationality, rose when the
color bearer of the miniature Seventh Reg
ment waved Old Glory while the band
played THE Star Spangled Banner
There were children, as plentiful as
posies in a summer garden. whose musical,
unstudicd laughter added no little to the
| general attraction CT the scene.
Die Puppenfee' is a sort of fairy wax
works show, presided over by an agile
| German shopkeeper, in place of Dickens
| famous Mrs. farley. There were two acts,
each showing the interior of a gay little
shop. The dolls were set around on
pedestals and when the shopkeeper want
ed to show them off to his patrons they
were moved about by a splendidly pictur-
| esque porter who was really and truly
| Prince Troubetskoy. only no one was sup
| posed to know. When each figure was
properly wound up it sang OF danced or
did both, to the intense satisfaction of the
proprietor and his customers, but there
| were disastrous moments when the wheels
failed to go round. Then the clerks got cut
an oil can and key and the puppet was
galvanized into doing its turn" Through
it all, whether motionless, or dancing or
running down, each performer was as ar
tistically stiff as any mannikin Mrs. farley
ever owned, and displayed no conscious
ness whatever of the audiences laughter
and applause. OF course there was fairy
queen whose magic wand endowed the
dolls" with life from midnight to cock
crow, and equally, of course, they held
high carnival, though no word was spoken
throughout the pantomime except by the
doll" who could sing Papa and Mamma
and a wonderful pig-tailed Chinaman who
sang an alluring ditty that everybody ap
plauded, though it isn't likely that any
body understood quite what it meant.
A group of Baltimores pretty young So
ciety bellies, gorgeous in scarlet and yei-
low satin and gold-spangled lace, gave a
tambourne dance to the inspiriting music
from Carmen, and another group. which
included red-coated huntsmen and lovely
maids in fleecy white,l with scarlet caps,
sashes and slippers, went through an eX-
hilarating tally-ho kind of reel, with such
splendid dash that they were compelled to
respond to an encore Dances, songs, and
graceful poses made up the body of the
piece, the accompanying music being large
ly from popular operas of recent years.
The costuming was elaborate and beauti-
full and specially artistic feature of the
performance wereithe .lrious tableaux, on
which were thrown exqusitely-tinted
lights. 1t would be difficult to enter upon
critical adjudication OF the merits of the
several specialties interpoated. as all were
admirable in their way.
In the play proper Sidney Ashbridge,
Norah Lemon, Randolph Mordecai. Arthur
Forrest. Prince Pierre Troubetskoy, Mrs.
Robert Dorsey Coale Charles Andrew Nc
Cam. Mrs. Kirby Flower Smith. Charles
/, Linthicum. Mr.. Bartlett. Newton Clarence
Adams Miss Shearer. Master Harold Lev
ering. Master Godby, Miss Ashbridge, Miss
Sydney, Vashti Bartlett. Maud Emery,
Marguerite Shryock, Nora Ward Miss
Muller, l.. Robert Jenkins, Dorothy TAFT.
Bessie Brown, Florence Woolford, Jesse
Cassard, Charles Ridgely, Horace Browne.
Miss Schermerhorn, Alex l.eftwich, jr.,
Master George Linthicum. Master Gordon,
Miss Pangboru, and Miss Miller appeared
to excellent advantage, both acting and
singing well.
The Spanish tambourine dancers we're
the Misses Abbey and Cameron, Helen
Denmead, Nina Hiken, Anita Mactayish,
Mary Nelson, Margaret Ridgely, Sophie
Sigourney, Carrie Vogeler. and Louise VIII
son, the number being under the direction
of Mrs. Kirby Flower Smith.
When the average masculine parsonage
attempts to indulge in graceful evoiutions
the result is generally a failure-hence the
surprise generally felt at the excellence of
, the Pierrot dance, which was in charge of
Mrs. r. Dorsey Coale. The Perrots were
, Raj Parr, William Walters. Mr.. Ternel,
and Francis de W. Theobald while few
better Pierrettes could have been discov-
cred than were Eleanore ]. Howison, Char
lotte Lindsay. Josephine Teackle, and Hell
en- Fraser
Slingluff collaborated in preparing the
flower dance, which was presented by Jen-
ME b. Hyde. Catherine Frick Linthicum,
Henrietta George, Augusta McKelIip. Ellen
, Boone, Elenor Brown. Julia Howard. An
ME Craighill Elsie Seeger, Sallie Amber.
Edith Sioussa, Bessie Matthews, Anna
Wight, Jennie Cook, Daisie Blake, Sadie
Browne and Mary McNeal.
With a careful study of the steps of the
several nations represented, Mrs. Frank
Redwood, Meta Flower, Mrs. Franklin
Leyering, and Mrs. Stewart Patton had ar
ranged really taking evolution, Fanny
Brown. Annie II. Lathrop. Miss Pangborn,
Virginia Wilson, Miss Dushane, Minnie
Whitman, Rena SlingIuif. Velera Sling
luff. Miss Dobbin, Miss Seldom, Emma
Wilson Rosalie Morris, and Mrs. A. New
ton Ridgely assisting in Offering the effect.
The block dance had as dice, ODonnell
Lee. FitZhugh Goldsborough, Willie Berg
land, Lilburn Goldsborough, Sidney Wal
ters, Johnson Orrick, Lewis Krenshad, and
Morris Miller, while Tilghman Pits and
Holmes Smith made very clever drums.
and Tagert Steele, Harry Orrck, and Bos-
} well Colt acted in the name parts.
The Japanese dance, the participants in
which were elaborately drapsd and cos
tuned, was performed by Nora Ward,
Miss Faconer, Mary Patterson Nathalie
. Lyons, Miss Jacius. Louise Robertson.
Elma Selurary. Dorothy Paine Dorothy
TAFT Bessie Allen Nellie Matthews. Julia
! Frarrie, and Annie Shryock. under the di-
rection of Mrs. Clinton i. Paine and Her
bert C. Dunn.
The closing terpsichorean number of tine
afternoon was the hunt dance. which was