Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-07

The regular theatrical season may be re-
garded as closed The lighter attractions,
such as are popularity associated in Wash
ington with renewed verdure In the parks,
will be supplied in abundance. The Co
lumbia Theater presents old favorites and
number of new ones in a series of light
comedies, with Edwin Ardens as the chief
player. Besides Mr.. Arden there are Mabel
Roebeck who was seen here only a short
time ago as Mrs. Tudway, with William
Faversham in Lord and Lady Algy.'
Miss Olive Oliver who was member of
William Morris company at the Columbia
some seasons ago, and who has since been
engaged in some of the most important at
fractions on tour, has resumed her place
in the theater where she has been so
strong a favorite. The other players have
made records for themselves which are
more or less familiar to the Washington
public. and the Organization promises a Sc
ries of highly enjoyable entertainments.
For those who require music as warm
weather diversion the Lafayette Theater
will provide summer opera with the Aborn
Company, whose productions are already
familiar here.
Chases Theater will continue with vaude-
vile well into the summc. The early clos
ing of SO many of the regular theater COM
panies has caused an invasion of polite
vaudeville by numerous actors who are un-
easily facing long summer. There should
be no difficulty in securing programs for
the vaudeville houses of the country until
they close their doors in July or August.
x x
The National Theater, after a series of
productions by Robert Downing next week.
will devote itself to the sweet girl grad
,Io fc a nd n,-otn r Mr.
Fawcett's Baltimore stock company has
the distinction of playing the last regular
engagement of the season. with Percy Has
well as the star in Japanese-American
drama, which had won the prize in play
competition. 20 Kiku San is picturesque
and to a large extent plausible. 1t is be-
yond the capacity of the average American
to criticise the Japanese dialect employed,
but 1t has a very familiar ring, being remf-
niscent OF the piquant French chanteuse to
q degree that sometimes overshadows the
impression of orientalism. The play has
a pretty theme, but is not yet worked out
with the completeness and finish that it de-
mands. There are rough spots in the ac-
ton. and the players themselves lacked
confidence on the first night. Even Mr..
Fawcett, who played the Secretary of the
Navy, exercised what he may have as
sun1ed was privilege of his Office and was
occasionally at sea in his lines Some of
the Japanese In the auditorium wore a con-
slant smile during the action of the piece
on Monday night. but 1t is impossible to
say whether this is their method of ex-
pressing approval or responding to an i'm.
preston of the ludicrous. To American
eyes the comedy is very pretty conceit.
X *
/ At the Columbia Theater Mr.. Leon Herr
mann. who has appropriated the ancestral
title of Hermann the Great, gave a week
of magic which found degree of approval
such as to warrant the expectation that he
in mystical entertainment.
At the Lafayette Theater Miss Eugene
Blair has been engaged in rortraying the
sorrows of the Lady Isabelle to fearful
but admitting audiences, and at Chases
Annie Abbott has performed nightly a num-
Der of interesting experiments in leverage
centers of gravity and possibly other phe-
nomenon of more mystical character Miss
Abbott herself does not make any occult
claims, but frankly says to her spectators
1.-THE mystery is for you to solve"
The industrious melodramatist, Theo.
kreme-, again had his innings at the
Academy
The Empire has been having a gala
week The Black Patti entertainment is
the grand opera of the colored population,
and well-dressed orderly audience that
completely filled the theater, was in attend
ance nightly. The performance was one of
exceptional merit in many respects.