The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-10-19
X 1Il:!sEYAEz{9A@5@zEzA@ ~ :

overlooking with fun, and her escapades
are productive of almost fncessant
laughter.
The serious interest never flags. the
comedy is bright and lively, and with
special scenery, thrilling mechanical
effects, including a monster steam en-
gine, sparkling music and specialties.
"A Barrel of Money" has proven popu-
lar and potent attraction.
The managers, Holden Brothers, are
striving to eclipse the past excellence of
their excellent attraction and promise a
company of superior merit in their pop
ular play.
Sydney Resented has put some of his
brightest work into the comic romantic
play, "A Modern Crusoe," in which
Thomas @. Seabrooke will open at SUIT
toms New theater Sunday, October II.
The facile flow of wit which scintillates
through this authors work in 1.-The Sen
ator" and AT the White Horse Tavern"
finds another outlet in this latest of his
comic plays. The great charm about this
playwright's works is that his charac-
ters are all genuine and that their utter
ings have the stamp Of spontaneity. His
chief ability as a humorist lies in the
fact that he creates situations SO ludi-
crous that the laugh comes long before
the spoken line and the deftness of his
funny phrasing supplements the sitrA-
ton so perfectly that the incipient smile
develops by perfect crescendo into
roar of laughter.
Theatrical men of this town read with
interest dispatch from Paris recent
ly saying that the reading committee
of the Coincide Franchise, which is COM
posed of actors who consider all plays
offered to the theatre, had been ordered
abolished. The minister of public In
struction and worship signed the decree
as the result of a newspaper agitation
against actors being allowed to judge
plays.
1t was charged that dramatic authors
suffered much at the hands of Ignorant,
cenceited actor-readers, who often did
not understand their native language,
and were pitifully unacquainted with
history. The French authors admit that
the theatrical manager might be no
better equipped with intelligence and
knowledge but at least he was not con-
sumed with egotism, and trusted some-
what to the ability of the writer.
Its about time they stopped this
libel on our profession commented
we'll known historian of Butte. There
are ignoramuses among actors just as
there are few in the ranks of preach
ers, lawyers and doctors. Some of us
make slips in Fluctuations and spelling.
Few could hope to apply to the chair of
history by a large university. But the
uneducated actor is in the minority, and
at least he knows many more things
than books will teach him. There have
been geniuses in our trade, as we'll as
others who were indifferently informal
in scholastic matters.
II believe actors are the very best
Judges in the world as to the merit of
plays, and every sensible writer holds
that opinion. Who judge large pro-
portion of the new plays brought out In
America every year If not the star
actors and actresses who introduce
them to the public?
1--WE have here no state theater like
the Coincide Franchise and no official
reading committee of actors. but the
persons of buskin and wig are the vir-
tual judges of the public's play enter
tainment.
"Of course the manager often sug-
gests dramas to his star, but 1t is the
latter's clear, self-formed judgment that
is final. Who selects plays for Mans
field, Sothern, Drew, Miss Marlowe and
Miss Allen? They themselves. And I
notice they do not make any more mis-
takes than other people in the mama
gerial line.
II suppose the newspapers in Paris
didn't have anything else to occupy
them, and SO they started tho foolish