Omaha daily bee., 1903-03-16
Al The PLLYHQuStS
sour New Minister AZ the Boyd.


Miler & Cunyers' production Of our
New Minister, a comedy in three acts. b.
Denpan Thompson and George w. Ryer.
Thaddeus Strong, our new minister. &C..
Lem Rahsomy a returned convict. -.
Darius startle. a country detective,
Joseph Conyers
Curt Hoten. ''shy on belief .John Barker
Obadiah Burton. with settled opinions.
Hannibal Chapman, a pretender
Calvin Adbai. our old minister. "a.
-. Grant Foreman
s%yivanus Bartlett. postmaster aid
skeeslcR :. a Billy Baxter lad.
Observation-Disclosures. John p. Drawn
Jack Frazier, an escaped convict.
Nance Ransom. LENS daughter........
.............. Ethel Brooke Ferguson
Doreas Tattleby, name and nature alike
Esther Strong. our new ministers sis
ter Phila May
Just as The Old Homestead" differed
from other plays Of it's kind in it's day. 40
does %Olr New Minister differ from all
plays Of its type today. 1t is a most joyous
comedy of the quiet sort, and is wholesome
in its every aspec', while its humor is OF
the variety that imperceptibly envelopes
one and sets him 20 laughing before he
Is aware. Its characters are clearly drawn,
and each one fits with exactness in the
picture. Best of all, It does not carl
cature anybody; II is merely true to ma
ture, and It does not exact its heart IN
~terest" through hystSria on the part OF any
OF its actors. Only one boisterous scene
ia admitted, and that is a survival of the
'~rasslin' match" from Old HOMESTEAD"
The town constable and the local kill-joy
engage in a fight that lie quite as true to
life as one would wish, and which ends
with the hat OF one Of the belligerents
teing knocked of. II has a love story. and
a criminal and a villain, but these are
mere incidents. Overshadowing all are the
village postmaster, the town constable (who
has Sherlock Holmes beaten out of sight,
the good-natured fat man, and the re-
ligious fanatic who gets his satisfaction in
life out of contemplating the fiery future
to which he has consigned his compeers.
Add to these a v~inegary village gossip.
who leaves her husband to shuck peas and
attend the household affairs while she ped
dies her news and views, and a bright
boy from New York. who has been stranded
in the village, and you have a splendid
combination for good ~funmaking. And 1t
Is taken advantage Of TO its utmost.
The piece r~erolves around the expert
ences of a voting minister who has taken
his religion from the New Testament and
his endeavors to establish himself in a
community wherein the people demand they
be given sermons based on texts from
Exodus, Deuteronomy and Leviticus. He
wins in The end. through the usual CON-
bination Of circumstances. John Terris
has the part, and makes It a strong, manly
one, just as the authors intended he should
Miss Ferguson lie good as Nance Ransom
and Mtau Map az the v,4,3gYopso giefar TIL
real work of the play devolves on Messrs
Convers. Barker, Fierce and scott, and Miss
Rainford. They have the character cr>a-
tions, and merit the highest praise for the
taste and finish with which they present
the parts.
Our New Minister" will be given again
this evening, and IL 1t gets patronage &C
cording to It's merits. the Boyd theater will
be jammed.