Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-08-17

But one place OF amusement has been
open for business during the past week
kernan'S Lyceum, and the excellent show
attracted several big audiences The next
theater to throw open its door will be the
Academy of Music, August Is, which will
be underline local management of Whitman
OSgood. the well-knOwn newspaper man who
has been with Manager Chase at the New
Grand for several seasons. The house will
b" run a family theater. and Mr.. Os-
good says particular attention will be paid
to the comfort OF ladies and children The
attractions booked are unusually strong.
and the Academy will doubtless enjoy a
season of big business. The other local
play houses Will not throw open their doors
until next month.
Washington will be in the foreground
this winter as the scene of dramatic action.
Since the good old days when Crane rs the
senator braced his right hand his
hip and threw his glance and his left hand
out toward the gallery this city has been
conspiCiously absent from the stage. The
Rogers brothers going to make little
fun on the subject this winter, and one of
our best actors and an erstwhile resident of
the capital city, MIR. Tim Murphy, is to be
seen in Washington play bearing the sig
nificant title. ~ Capitol Comedy"
There has been a well-sustained silence
about the story in the midst of a well-sus-
tanned acclaim about the merits of the new
play. This is good judgment on MIR.
Murphy'S part. Nothing is more inefficient
than an effort to tell in a dozen lines
story that requires over two hours for the
telling the stage. But everyone in
terested is satisfied that "A Capitol Come
dy Is not only one of the best Washing
ton plays yet written. but that it is
of the best plays to be seen this year. Mr..
Murphy gave it four trial performances and
expressed himself thoroughly satisfied
with his property.
He has one of the quaint, lovable charac-
tiers with which his admirers associate his
gentle art, a thorough American type and
a readily distinguishable Washington type
"A Capitol Comedy is to be produced next
month a magnificent scale. One cspe
cially familiar realistic scene will repre-
sent the lobby in the Senate wing of the
Capitol. complete even to the actual re-
production of the tile designs in the floor.
"A Capitol Comedy is the work of Paul
Wilstach who is well known in this city,
where he formerly did good newspaper
work. and where he gathered the material
for this play. Although MIR. WilStach has
written several other successful plays. he
feels that he has put into "A Capitol Come
dy'' mis- best work and believes that in the
hands of Tim Murphy 1t will be both an
artistic and a financial success.
The forthcoming metropolitan revival of
THE Mikado recalls the claim made by
Willard Sponsors friends the occasion
of the original production of the Gilbert
and Sullivan work. Mr.. Sponsors opera,
The Little Tycoon" had been in possess
sion OF the late D'Oyley Carte with a view
to production at the Savoy Theater. Lon
don. and when the English manager pre-
sented The Mikado" the Spenserites de-
clared that the Japanese locale some
thing more than a mere coincidence. This
stand seems TO have had some foundation
as The Little Tycoon was Japanese in
atmosphere and Mr.. Spencer's subsequent
operas. THE Princess Bonnie and Miss
Bob White, have been ample evidence
that the American author-compOser pos
sesses the qualities of originality and spOn-
taneity TO a remarkable degree. Besides
this. his reputation for honesty and YER
acity is practically unimpeachable.