The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-02-24
THEATRES IN LENT.
Audiences Larger This Than In Pre-.
vious Lenten Seasons.
People Being Rapidly Educated TO Con.
iinuous Performance Idea.

something OF "rounder" as to thea
tres. and have been for some years;
and, as long as can remember. the adj
vent OF Lent has always peen marked
by tremendous falling off in the size
of the treatre audiences. This year,
however, something has broken loose
somewhere. Andrew Mack did an inn
mense business i'm the first week OF
Lent. and so did every other attraction
In Providence; and this week Keith'a
has been simply packed" every day
and every night. Is IL Neil Burgess
who has done II? is IL the general ex-
ccllence of the whole entertainment?
If not, what is IL? 1 am not one OF
those who believe that the world Is
growing less religious, and won't ad-
init II in this case; but, just the same,
l have no explanation to offer for the
fact that have stated.
Did you ever realize what a difference
may be made in character or IN n
vaudeville act by the way In which II Is
dressed? l ran into keith's on Mon
day; and, while l saw some real clever
ness in the act of Kline and Clifton,
yet / felt that ii seemed rather coarse.
Yesterday / saw them again and what
had changed from white-face To black
face; and what l didn't altogether en-
JOY before had become really pleasing
and entertaining act. ON Monday. the
act was not what one would look for
from people dressed as were these two
clever people: yesterday II was entirely
I'm keeping with what on would expect
from such characters as were present
ed. And in the failure to understand
the underlying principle of this is the
explanation OF the failure of many a
vaudeville performer TO get as much
salary and make as big a hit as others
of even inferior ability.
There can be no doubt that Provi-
dence is rapidly becoming educated TO
high-class vaudeville and the continu-
Gus performance idea. At first the new
departure Nyas something OF a poser"
To many who had not made it's ac-
quaintance in either Boston or New
York; and Providence conservatism
was very slow in yielding To its fas-
cinations sufficiently to give open evil
dence of its enjoyment and apprecia-
ton. And, by the way, do you know,
i thing we residents of these "provin-
ciar' plantations are rather inclined
any way To wait until We see somebody
else who "is somebody" do something
before we quite dare to do IL ourselves;
and | think ii has been so i'm the mat
ter of giving vaudeville performers the
need OF praise and applause they have
richly merited. or late however, the
ice certainly has melted; and the en-
thusiastic applause and hearty and al
most boisterous laughter one hears i'm
keith's makes il seem almost like Bos-
ton or New York. And If we enjoy an
act. why on earth shouldn't we take
the satisfaction for ourselves Of laugh
ing and clapping our hands and give
the performers who work so hard for
our entertainment the satisfaction of
receiving this manifestation OF our ap-
probation of their efforts?
And this reminds me that l have been
told that Providence has come to be
regarded and accepted az the
critic of the Keith circuit"
I am told that many an act is
booked with the distinct understanding
that IL IL does not go i'm Providence
that ends it as far as the rest of the
circuit is concerned. Experience has
actually shown that Providence audi
ences are much more critical, and more
intelligently so. than those I'm either
Boston, New York or Philadelphia:
and il has come TO be recognized among
vaudeville performers that If they can
make good" in Providence, they are
perhaps unconsciously. gained the
right TO stick one more feather in it's
cap. for this is really a distinction that
speaks much for the discriminating in
telligence and artistic taste of our peo-
pie.
This sense OF discrimination is dis
played in the fact that il Is not always
the "headliners' that make the biggest
hits with a, Providence audience. You
may print the names of performers i'm
as big and as black type as you please:
but your Providence audience pays no
attention to that. but proceeds to
judge them on their merits. Take George
{. Davis this week as an example His
name is far from the top: but his
bright stories cleverly told. his admira-
bly, lifelike representations of we'll
known stage celebrities and withal his
delightfully."- pleasing manner receive
their just reward, showing the audi
ences place his name in big black type
in their note books of enjoyment and
regardless Of the manage
rial announcements. And this is only
one of many similar instances this win
ter, for really the 'headiners" who
have made good are few and far be-
tween as compared with those Of small
er-sized and hghter-faced type. i tell
You. Providence knows a good thing
when il sees IL; and It doesn't think Il
sees IL when II doesn't, wherein IL diff
fers from some other towns that | |
could name.
/ didn't think much of the stereopti- |
ron as a vaudeville feature until lately: !
but the beautifully coored views Of |
foreign lands that have been presented |
during the past two weeks have been |
a genuine treat TO the eyes and thor |
Oughly interesting and educational. and |
now l try TO get in at a time to be sure |
and see them. Perhaps / too am BE- |
coming educated TO vaudeville"
Neil Burgess said 10 me. the other !
lay: "ln all my experience ! never saw |
theatrical press work equal TO what / |
have seen In Providence during this |
engagement" And ri-ht there lies a |
little fact worth noting. There are few |
cities i'm which * SO intellgently rec |
1gnzed the fact that the interests OF |
newspapers, performers. managers and |
public are mutual and in a sense Iden- |
teal. The performers succeed i'm like |
measure as they please the public: and !
he aim Of tho managers is to please |
their patrons--that same public The |
newspapers recognize ,he fact that the