The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-12-30
Theatrical Notes.

Ray, is scoring a big laughing success in
the Grands vaudeville bill this week, says
that he is growing somewhat tired of
vaudeville and will be glad to get back into
musical comedy next season. Il want to
get hold of good, bright two-act musical
farce" he said yesterday in his dressing
room, while making up to go on the stage
as the funny little Irishman in Casey, the
Fireman" MY wife and | will appear
next season under the management of E
d. Stair and will once more have comedy
parts in a real musical play. Two news
paper writers-one in Cleveland and the
other in ChicagO-are now at work pre-
pairing farcical pieces for our consideration
and we'll probably accept one of them
perhaps both. Vaudeville is all right, but
1t doesn't give a comedian the opportunity
TO show what he can do when he is COM
PEELED to crowd his talents into one brief
sketch. Our new piece will be much more
pretentouS one than was our old faVorite,
A Hot Old Time We will have sup
porting company of forty people and the
show will be staged in elaborate style. We
will close our vaudeville tour much earlier
this season than ever before and go TO our
summer home in Massachusetts,, where the
rehearsals for the new piece are to be held
Our tour, under Mr.. Stairs direction, will
begin next August"
There are several very well-known comic
opera people with Marie CahilPs company
in Nancy Brown" which plays its loca
engagement tomorrow night at English S
Julius Steger, who sings the leading tenor
role, has often been heard in Indianapolis
the leading man for various comic op-
era prima donnas. George c. Boniface
jr, is very familiar TO local theater-g oers
He has played In this city many time;
within the last three seasons, and was
last seen here as the chief comedian with
Marguerite Sylva's opera company. Harry
Brown, who will appear in one of thS
leading comic parts, was for years with thS
''Bostonians," and is about the only mar
who every succeeded in playing Mr.. Bar
nabee's role Of the Sheriff of Nottingham
in robin Hood successfully. He was
Barnabees understudy for several sea
sons. ALT Grant, still another funmakel
merly a great favorite on the vaudeville
stage. Clara Palmer, Donah Benrimo and
Helen Sherwood, the three leading womer
of the company, are not well known in this
city, but have won successes elsewhere.
XXX
De Wolf Hopper is said to have person
ally selected every player in his Mr.. Pick
wick" company, which comes to English's
for four performances beginning with tn,
New Years matinee. 1.-THE piece is found
ed UNION too serious and too well-known z
representative of Mr. Hopper last night
1.-THE majority of theater-goers are ia.
miliar with Dickens and they are capable
of judging whether an actor looks anC
acts a Pickwick character with any degree
of naturalness from Dickens standpoint
In ordinary musical pieces and comic op
eras 1T doesn't seem to matter very much
about details: audiences don't bother about
tradition and history in the pieces by mod
ern authors; they consider only mirth
music and the merry maiden, but with thi!
production of Mr.. Pickwick they not only
look for the glOries of ordinary comic opera
but they demand historical atmosphere
and they get II.
In all likelihood William A Brady, tn,
theatrical manager, will pay a special visit
to this city the last of this week to consult
with De Wolf Hopper, who will be playing
an engagement here. Mr.. Brady has JUS
sent to the comedian the manuscript of {
new comic opera, written by Melville Baker
of Boston, which Brady thinks particularly
suitable to Hopper and his peculiar style
of cOmdy playing. The popular comic opera
comedian will be under the joint manage
ment of Brady, the Shuberts and JOSEPH
Grismer beginning next March, and an effor
is being made to provide him with a new
vehicle. The Hbretto of Mr.. Baker strike.
Manager Brady as being very excellen
ground work for successful new musica
piece and as the hustling little manager il
TO leave New York for ST. Louis tomorrow
il is not improbable that he will stop off il
Indianapolis long enough to talk things owe
with his new star.
Thomas ]. Ryan and his WIFE who il
professionally known as Miss Richfield. ar
rived in indianapolis yesterday and will en-
joy rest here all week. Mr.. Ryan is on,
of the best Irish comedians on the Ameri
can stage. He will be the Headline" at
traction at the Grand next week He Il
well known here, having scored a grea
hit last season at the Grand in a de
liciously humorous sketch called Ma,
Hegertys Father" This season he am
Mrs. Ryan are presenting a sequal to thei
first success entitled Mike Hegertyi
Daughter" which is said TO be even fun
nier than the sketch Of last year. Mrs
Ryan and l found an opportunity to la
off this week" said Mr. Ryan yesterday
land so we decided to come on TO Indian
apolis and take things easy here. Thi
is a mighty good town to rest in
Julia Marlowe has not changed her min,
regarding her starring tour with +. II
Sothern, as has been limited at various time
since the somewhat mysterious ending o
Miss MarlOwes tour in st. Louis. On tn
contrary she has had several conference
with Charles Frohman relative to the de
tails of the new venture. Manager Froh
man expects TO make this tour OF the tw
stars the most notable undertaking in hi
long and successful career. He has alread
begun TO engage members of the support
ing company as well as To outline the book
ings of the organiZat ion. Ii has been def
nitely settled to confne the repertoire ex
clusiyely To Shakspcarian plays.
2
The engagement of Howard Hall. in 9TH
Man Who Dared. which begins at tn
Park on Jan. IA. will be its last appear