The Washington times., 1901-09-29
THE PASSING SHOW.
"Libretto by Harry r. smith,,

|
of theatrical doings who have not OBJ
served this announcement on advertise.
ments of most of the comic operas and
musical comedies of native manufacture
that have been given during the past dec
| ade. Mr.. Smith is commonly credited with
| being at the head of the Harry B. Smith
| Libretto Factory, where the laborers oft
| times work longer hours than the union
rules permit of, especially when the
| American people are clamoring for some
new amusement in the Smith line There
is no more beautiful sight In this COM
! mercial age than to see the laborers at
| the Smith Libretto Factory trudging to
1 work every morning, bright and early
| with their dinner pals well stocked with
| the latest merry quips and plots and nice
| ly polished situations that human in
genuity can devise. While the lyric
| lathes in the other factories that make a
speciality of librettos are covered with
rust and dust, the Smith concern is send
! ing admirably turned lyrics to all parts
| of the world.
Harry b. Smith was in Washington dur
| ing the greater part of * t week looking
| over the latest output of his wc.iSs, The
Liberty Bellies which delignte large
audiences at the Columbia by its origi-
nality, splendid Interpretation. and its
commendable effort to break away from
| all the traditions that the American mt
| steal comedy is surrounded with. Nobody
| who attended the performances of The
| Liberty Bellies" cared because Mr.. Smith.
after furnishing decidedly novel and
| deftly handled first act, resorted to the
! same sources from which Jane, Lend
Me Your Wife" and ''Charley's Aunt
| came from for the further development of
| his story. 1t was sufficient that he gave
| his audiences an entertainment that en-
| gagged the services of score or so of
| the most fascinating young women of
| the native stage and permitted half
| dozen of the best known American COM
| posers TO try their hands at contributing
melodies, after the manner in vogue in
England, where one man supplies the IL
bretto and any number of musicians fur
the first of Mr. Smiths works in which
he Is interested beyond the collection of
royalties, and naturally he shows more
than ordinary interest in it's future. The
llbrettist was seated in the office of the
Columbia Theatre. admiring Manager
Lucketts desk, with its welI-arranged
and unique collection of press agents
quired when he was going to quit writ
ing all the musical pieces and give some
,ther person an opportunity to distinguish
sation of collecting royalties.
Well, you see, as the comedian in the
COMPANY would put it, I'm in sore need
true that this season l am getting royal
ties from The Liberty Bellies The Little
Duchess, Anna Held's nsw piece; The
using; Robin Hood. The Eerenade, and
The Viceroy, of the BoSoniaps' roper
toire, and will soon add Maid Marian to
the list, Foxy Quiller.' The Casino Girl
nd ,fb at
attained my one ambitioS. (which is to
get enough money to retire from the mu-
steal comedy and comic opera field and
devote myself to the more serious side of
the drama. 5a
But. after writing about all Of the sue
cessful musical productions of the past
ten or twelve years. surely you must have
accumulated enough coin 10 permit you
to forget that there is such a; thing
the proverbiai wolf" ventered the news
paper man. J+cA
money yet. Perhaps by theetime 1 think
am able to own two pairs of suspenders
may decide that it is time for me to
turn to another style of: work, but can
see no hope in the future assyet. l have
been grinding out librettos ever since
1858, when l supplied John McCa.ll with
The Begun Bocaccio, and Clover. in
which trio Of operas DeWolf Hopper, Dig
by Bell, Laura Joyce, Mathilda Cottrelly.
and numerous other excellent artists made
great successes and paved the way to
their present prominence l had been
writing daily column or so of verse,
jokes and the like, for different Chicago
newspapers when Mr.. McCaull was at
tracteG by my work and suggested that
time. among others. / have written Don
QuiXote, Robin Hood The Serenade,
The Knickerbockers. The Viceroy, and
Maid Marian for the Bostonians; The
for Frank Daniels: The Little Corporal
and Half King for Francis Wilson:
The Tzigane' for Lillian Russell; 'Papa's
Wife and The Little Duchess for Anna
ing Girl for Alice Nielsen: The Round
iyers, The Casino Girl The Belle of Bo-
hemia,' and The Strollers' for George
Lederer, who formerly directed the for
tunes of the New York Casino; The High
wayman' for the Broadway Theatre opera
company, and The Liberty Bellies and
Foxy Quiller' for Kaw q Erianger:
Then. too, l wrote the lyrics for the last
named firms production of The Rogers
Brothers in Washington, and among other
achievements, succeeded in marrying the
Reuben of the song to the Innocent Maid
with what appears to be q good deal of
popular favor
Mr. Smith does not see much of a fu-
ture for the old-time comic opera-those
musical entertainments where the chorus
of village maidens gayiy troop on the
stage, singing about the festal day or the
approaching marriage OF the town beau
ty and then proceed to ouaf stage wine
from battered tin cups, the while singing
| a melody that would seem strangely out
Of place In these rag-time days. Says the
| librettist:
u don't believe we are going to see
| much more of the conventional comic
| opera, first because the people evidently
| do not care for 1t. and again, because
there are no singers capable Of rendering
the music. Since the withdrawal of Alice
| Nielsen from the native stage, where is
there really good prima donna? That's
| one of the difficulties We had to overcome
! or tried to, anyway-in The Liberty
| Bellies We could not get singer who
was able to play the part done here by
| Sandol Milliken, and we had to cut out
some very delightful soprano solos on this
very account.
Without wanting to be considered
| to the fact that there has not been a sue
cessful foreign opera presented here since
| Mr.. DeKoven and | wrote Robin Hood. "
| Gilbert and Sullivans THE Gondoliers'
was the nearest approach to success
! that has since been sent from across the
/ water. The English composers are not
! doing anything In the line of comic OPP
| eras, while the Frenchmen- have donS
| nothing for the last ten or fifteen years
| They now have Narney and Messenger
| the latter the director of the Theatre
| Cornique and a composer whose music
while high class and decidedly musician
! ly is not appreciated by the people. and
! consequently there is not tthe encourage
| ment that there would be- if the French
| public responded more cordially TO his eff
| forts In England for number of years
| now the great thing has been musical
| comedy, with one man furnishing the
| score another the lyrics and any number
| supplying the music fors ths different
| numbers We have tried this, same plan
! in The Liberty Bellies. sHlids Y am sorry
| to say it has not turned ont as well as We
| be continued. Messrs. Raw sand Erlan-
ger propose to make other Productions