Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-17
MUSIC

The unusual record or Two WEEKS eh
gagement will go Down to the credit OF
the big Drury Lane spectacle. Mother
Goose" at the New National Theater a
week from tonight Mother Goose is
purely diversion and is obviously one OF
the most costly spectacular creations since
the days of the Kiralfys Probably if cold
figures We're shown it would be found that
the expense of the Klaw & Erlanger
productions surpasses that of the .kiralfys.
It has been the experience of the manage
ment that, the second weeks business Is
larger than that of the first and there are
numerous indications that this will be the
experience in Washington.
Y i; X
Chauncey olcott played Terence" at the
Columbia and charmed large numbers of
susceptible ears by the gentle melodfous-
ness of his tenor voice. Mr.. Olcott salts
fies the first crude cravings Of the artistic
sense. He is the llaoitual and impossible
hero that delights the unsophisticated mag
ination, and his songs appeal to the sympa-
thies as treacle and taffy appeal to the Ju-
venie sense of luxury. Mr.. Olcott fills a
niche In popular esteem from which no ri
val can hope to bulge him. OF his espe-
cial histrionic school he is the beau ideal.
* X
The whirligig of time brings strange re-
venges. There was time when Char
mion" was repudiated by theatergoers as
a horrid creature But this week she has
been undressing without protest in the
same bill with Shakespeare at Chase's
Theater. 1t is true that Charmion has
modified her act so that it is little different
from that of the slack-wire performer
at the circus, who breaks into the ring
from the audience and removes garment
after garment until he appears in the Gus
tomary spangles and feshings of the arena.
Yet the storm Of Indignation that Char
mion' created when she made her first APP
pearance in this city years ago made it
seem highly improbable that she would
succeed in securing IL place in good theat-
rical society as she has done
4 x
Mr.. Belasco announces his intention to
appear in Washington with an emphasis
that seems conclusive. 1t is a somewhat
remarkable fact that the Iroquos Theater
fire, which at first seemed an irreparable
calamity to Klaw & Erlanger, whose mann
moth spectacular production of Blue
beard" was then destroyed, may prove the
most effective weapon which the interests
with which they are identified can WELD
against Belasco. The stringent precau-
lions with which theaters were surrounded
all over the country immediately after this
disaster will require him to meet enormous
expense in order to comply with the regi-
lations in any city he may visit where the
recognized theaters are not open to him. "A
certain amount of liberality was found nee
essary in the restrictions In this city the
regulations prescribe an Ideal construction
for any theater hereafter to be built. but
some of those already established are per-
mitted to fall short of these requirements.
This is only reasona Bile, as Il complete re-
building would he an inpracticable hard
ship. Mr.. Belasco claims that his occu-
pancy of Convention Hail for a short series
of representations of his play does not make
it theater as defined Gy the regula tons,
but expresses himself as willing to take
every precaution that Will not necessitate a
complete Reconstruction of the edifice.
There is no evidence that the theatrical in
terests that decline to provide theaters for
Mr.. Belasco's use have made any active or
| unseemly efforts to prejudice his enterprise,
It would be unfortunate IL a question of
legitimate!y safeguarding the public should
come to be regarded as merely an issue in
theatrical politics. Washington theater-
goers have no interest in the contentious of
managers. and the iheater "A popular in
stitution IS likely to suffer from the dis
illusonment which attends a revelation of
its private quarrels.