The sun., 1902-03-14
NOVELTIES AT THB THEATRE.
4 PIECE or NONSENSE NJ THE
WEBERFIELDs MIMICS.

rnent Of fun and song was added TO last
evening, and In 30 doing only little Of the
Familiar material was sacrificed. The
changes were In sHoity- -Toity.' The Curl
ana the judge being retained a. the sec
ond half OF the bill. The fret novelty
vas a song for John T. Kelly In place OF
-The King of Kakaroo,' bright ditty
vitb words by Edgar Smith and music
nv John Stromberg. The important new
thing was a burlesque Of 'Du Barry,
which came at the end Of the first act.
The scene was Du Barry's bedchamber.
and the visits OF the court ladies were
,,ou,icaily parodied. Lew Fields was laugh
able AZ the faithful Denny, who cooked
Mrs. Carter's morning eggs over her
flaming red hair. and they steamed IN the
r,rooess and appeared eatable when he
remoyed them. The visit OF the fortune
teller was shown, and tho quarrel with the
king.
sam Bernard played the monarch. part
that either limited him or appealed 10 him
40 little that he was almost totally devoid
Of humor in II. II he did not appear in the
same play in his wonderful performance
OF an illiterate German and in his hardly
Iees comical travesty of Mrs. Mckee Ran
kin In 4The Girl and the Judge" two inn
presentations that are as funny or funnier
than anything In burlesque this year, people
might forget what an extraordinary humor-
list he usually is. Joseph Weber had a
better opportunity than he has had for
some time as Gnssis, the wounded lover
whose blue blood discol olored his white
shirt Of melodrama heroism, and justified
his selection for the role. John t. Kelly,
Bonnie Maginn, Lee Harrison and Fritz
Williams filled small parts amusingy.
This burlesque, funny as it was, might
have seemed rather useless had 1t not been
for FAY Templeton. II was one more
triumph for her. In the same perform
ance that she graphically initiates Ethel
Barrymore, Anna Held and Annie Russell,
and recognizably reproduces the voices
and mannerisms Of Edna Wallace Hopper
and May Robson she mimicked Mrs.
Leslie Carter with wonderful fidelity.
Cissie LOTUS stands alone as a mimic, and
vet Miss Templeton has mounted TO just
as great heights In little different way.
Miss LOTUS reproduces, Miss Templeton
mimics with that spirit Of mockery that
accentuates the absurdities OF her subjects.
Thus, she represe nted Mrs. Carter in her
dramatic tantrums to US, and yet made
her ridiculous. II was indeed triumph.
An amusing point in the entertain ment
escaped more than half of the audience
The programme mentioned one Of the
chorus girls as the player Of the sorceress,
and she was to have played the part. But
at the ehearsal yesterday Julian Mitchell,
the stage director, objected to her reading
4 disagreement followed and she refused
20 appear. SO the witch was acted by Mr..
Mitchell himself IL was only bit, but
really cleverly done, with such weird effect
,k.t ~ s,k ma inn
portant would suddenly withdraw and force
this clever actor back TO the stage. Many
people who know Of him and praise him as
brilliant and original stage manager do
not spow that he was at one time sue.
cessiGi actor particularly popular In HOyt
farces. Last night his early training was
Of good use and made possible the first
performance OF a little burlesque that may
not be the funniest that this company has
acted, but gives a chance TO Fay Templeton
Of which no one should miss seeing her
take advantage.
Interest In yesterdays matinee at the
Empire centred in a new one-act play by
William C. DeMille, in anticipation because
II was one OF the two novelties in a long
bin, and in result because II was the most
meritorious Mr.. DeMille's mother and
father had won distinction as dramstists,
the late Henry c. DeMille for the several
for the Lyceum, and Beatrice DeMille for
her part authorship in The Greatest Thing
in the World" and the assistance she il
supposed TO have been to her husband
IN his dramatic work. The son has made
ome unsuccessful efforts in playwriting,
Al In unpretentious ways, but Forest
Flower" which vas revealed yesterday,
showed positive merit. II was far from
faultess. Dwelling on point to accentu-
ate II and thus running II by monotony
-. l..lxx
for new author in creating atmosphere
aud coherent, progressive and culmina-
tive arrangement OF story were positive
merits. These technical excellences would
OF course avail nothing II the author did
net POSSESS ideas Forest Flower" is con-
ventional in motive rather than in plot:
A New England Puritan and his wife and
baby live in the wildwoods Of New England.
IL is Christmas Eve Of 1852, and the father
goes out into the storm 10 cut a holiday
tree for the child. In his absence an Indian
girl comes to the cabin, exhausted with
long, hard tramping. She Is the daughter
Of chief, cast OF by her people because
she has persuaded them TO free white
captive who promised TO return and wed her,
The Puritan Is the man. He tells the girl
that his words Of love were spoken only
20 help him get back 10 his wife. In anger
the Indian maid stabs her rival with q
poisoned arrow, but through love Of the
man repents and saves the woman's life
cast off by people and by lover. Mr.. De
Miles deftness In telling this simple tale
land after all IL was the manner rather
than the matter that commands attention)
was ably seconded by student actors of the
american Academy OF Dramatic Arts.
Stewart Cameron, Alice Harrington and
especially Rachael Acton as the Indian
gsyl were excellent.
The other new play was sIn Old Segovia,'
rather conventional tragedy of Spanish
jealousy and revenge, by Thomas +, Fallon.
Jr John Pools old comedy OF Simpson
n Co. familiar 20 the last generation
was creditably revived. The principal
emotion II reused was gladness that we
live In the day when English farces of in
trtgue are written by cleverer authors.
Surely our grandfathers were content with
very obvious plots II this one may be accept-
cd as fair example Of those rollicking old
afterpieces that we hear about A man
waits outside a womans house while his
business partner calls on her. and there
upon, without questioning or further in
veetigation, his wife believe him unfaith-
ful. Then this same partner hands over
his pocket book containing the woman's
picture and that makes more trouble.
That Is all. In two long acts eight charac-