The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-03-16
nENTTCT DIR. A. E. BUCHANAN
NAAAANA $3.50 When Building.
ADJUSTMENTS.
Ensii.h's-"The French Maid.v

Somewhere on the face of the earth there
may be a more eccentric comedian, and
somewhere there may be a more grotesque
interpreter OF comic songs, but no one has
showed up in Indiana who could combine
both gifts to a more artistic degree than
Charles Bigelow, the real star of THE
French Maid" which returned to Englishs
last night. This is Bigelow's second visit to
Indianapolis In a number of years, but now
that he seems to have learned the way he
should drop in often. II is the custom in
the big cities where this skinny artist makes
faces like cartoon of a newly-hatched
robin, 10 mention his mouse-in-a-trap
squeak being as funny as ever. and then
run on with the usual perfunctory notice OF
the score or more of "also rams in the COM
pany, but that is an insult to Bigelows art.
he has studied the effect of queerly imita-
tive poses on an audience until he is able to
give just the ones that produce laughter and
do IL as naturally as IL IL were his every -day
habit. Bigelow used 10 do a stork pose that
was so near the real thing the audience
gazed in admiration and forgot to applaud
He has cut that out. His modulatiOns OF
faces are just as accurately contrived as
any OF the rest CT his fun-makng and he
tRan any Sm erins srsaI character &C actor
comedy, burlesque or comic opera. He
makes the uninteresting role OF an English
waiter as continuously entertaining as the
1attest part ever written for a star. He
can get his finger fast in a bottle neck and
MAKE make more fun out Of Il than some COM
songs are all so intensely amusing that en-
cores become too numerous to count. The
him back for half-dozen extra verses. In
Is better piece OF musical nonsense than
Dan Days Why Does Chicken Cross the
But Blgelow is only part of THE French
Maid Anna Held by the force of her fas-
cinatlng beauty would be joint star in the
ha ha6
speak nor note 10 gurgle- The cherries
on her lips are always ripe and her glorious
mirror. She il the queen of all soubretfes
from her dainty school girl ankles TO the
top Of her matchlessly poised head. No
press agent has yet done justice 10 the
ravfshing swell OF her torso nor the variety
or chic expressions Of her Gallo features.
with BiSelow and Mostyn, but easily furn-
ishes her full third OF the song with panto-
mime and dainty steps In the second, SGT
dress with open skirt made OF roped gems
She sang one OF her Frenchy French songs
with remarkable artistic effect and followed
II up with her new coon song. MY Honolulu
Queen" which she did not sing so we'll but
which was one OF the greatest hits OF the
show when the five pickannnies including
one no higher than Held's knees came cut
In the cake-walk chorus. These darky
urchins were nine-tenths naked and the
fattering uproar caused by this display OF
mulatto beef was greater than any that
greeted Held during the entire performance.
20 the audience, for the world Calve did
at Tomlinson Hall when the people shouted
for more. and exclaimed. II will seeng some
more gong tomorrow night" Those who
had come TO hear her Come Play Wiz Me-"
went away disgruntled.
Eva Davenport who talks bass. Hallen
Mostyn, with Her Portrait Next My
Fart" VIII Armstrong. Yolanda Wallace
George Honey. Herr Sohlke and the many
others held up their end OF the show in the
same excellent manner OF last year. There
VIII be one more performance OF The
French Maid" tonight.