The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-09-20
Theatrical GOssip.


Rehearsals of Mr.. Pinero's new drama
are now in daily progress at the Duke of
York's Theater i'm London, and it is eN-
pected that the piece will be ready for pro-
duction next week. 1t is to be called
Lefty, and the story is told in four acts
and an epilogue. The four principal parts
have been allotted to Dion Boucicault, the
American actor, Miss Irene Vanbrugh, Miss
Nancy Price and II. b. Irving. The play
will be produced in America later on by
Charles Frohman.
Sarah Bernhard is to act the coming
winter in one-act play by the Marquis de
Castellane called 1.-The Feast of DEATH
The period is that of the revolution. and
the hero is Montjourdin, a chief of the
National Guard confined in the Lazare
prison. He is condemned to death, and
on the eve of the execution he gains per-
mission to celebrate a death banquet and
To invite his neighbors in the prison. who
also are sentenced to die by the guillotine,
to partake of it. What a cheerful little
piece this will be.
Amelia Bingham and her fine supporting
company will play an engagement of two
-,
tomorrow evening. Mrs. Bingham will
present Clyde Fitch's comedy, 1.-The Frisky
Mrs. Johnson" On Thursday evening next
week Walter Jones and his big opera COM
pany will give a single performance at Eng
lishs of the new comic opera, THE Sleepy
King" The next attraction after this will
be the favorite rural play, Way Down
East" which will come for three evening
performances and a Saturday matinee.
XXX
English's is to have a large number of
big musical productions during the season.
This will be good news TO local theater-
goers, as nothing seems t. please Indianap-
oils people much as a musical show.
Reginald de Koven's new opera, 1.-THE Red
Feather" Anna Held in "Mam'selle Napol-
con-" Frank Daniels in THE Office Boy.
Francis Wilson and his all-star cast in
''Erminie,'' Klaw and Changers blue
Beard" Jerome Sykes in THE Millionaire. .
1.-The Prince of Pilsen'' and 1.-The Rogers
Brothers in London will all visit Eng
lish's between now and the early spring.
May Robson has been a stage caricaturist
for so long time that even her associate
players refuse to take her seriously, and
she has been having her troubles during the
last week while rehearsing her new char
acter of Queen Elizabeth in Dorothy Yer
non of Haddon Hall" The eccentricities of
Queen Elizabeth appeal very strongly to
Miss Robson, and she hopes to make the
success of her career in the part when the
play is produced this week. But her asso-
ciates are not disposed to grant dignity of
IN her iS in he
new drama where the Queen rushes into a
room in the royal palace and imperiously
commands some fighting couriers to sheath
their weapons. When Miss Robson attempt
ed that scene the other day for the first
time during the rehearsals i'm New York,
and with hand in the air cried: Put up
your swords.'' there was a roar of laughter
from everybody in the company The scene
is supposed TO be a very serious one. but
Miss Robson's acting of her part in it struck
the actors downright funny that some
of them held their sides with mirth.
1t has been long time since indianapolis
has sheltered so many chorus girls as it
did during the week just ended. There were
three big productions i'm town, each one of
which had with Ii a crowd of the merry.
merry maidens." THE Sleeping Beauty and
the Beast at Englishs had whole stage
full of girls: the old pantommic show of
''Superba" at the Park had large number
of feminine singers and ballet dancers, and
the Tiger Lilies" combination at the EN-
pire-an unusually good burlesque troupe
was i'm the counting with twenty-five good
looking misses. Pretty chorus girls are in
greater demand this season than ever be-
fore, and any young woman of good APP
pearance and graceful carriage will have
little trouble in securing a stage position.
The pay is usually from SIS TO SIS week.
but when on the road about so of this
amount must be- deducted for living ex-
penses. If a girl is earnestly ambitious to
succeed in a theatrical career this is the
time for her 10 start i'm upon it, But the
trouble with most chorus girls is that they
are not in earnest at all, and that they
allow their ambition TO become sidetracked
while enjoying the fattery bestowed upon
them by the "Johnnies' of the various
cities which they visit. indianapolis. like
all other large towns has it's "Johnnies. -
and they were out in full force last week
a noble army.
London's latest melodrama must be what
local audience at the Park Theater would
term "a corker." The piece is called "A
Great Sensation" and it would seem that
the title has been we'll selected. The plot
is built about lady of a kind not entirely
unknown TO the patrons of melodrama-a
person of scanty morals and no surname
She is provided with two husbands and one
lover. murders the richer of the two hus-
bands. having previously forged his will.
and puts the credit OF the crime on her
lovers shoulders. This gent-the word is