The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-09-29
MONTGOMERY THEATRE.
Popular Applauss For Al wiIsen's Sing

ing.
 Just the sort of an entertainment "The Watch on the Rhine." would be if Al Will son and his ballads were subtracted from drama of the conventional sort with an unorisinai villain. the accustomed heroine. prosecuted and unhappy. the comedy ser wants with their usual jokes. presented by q company which two or three good people could not redeem from mediocrity would De the German play without ballad singing Al Wilson.
 graceful person. There could be no doubt of this, because the ballad singing had the charm which no other player or singer can give. The walls of the Montgomery Theatre echoed with the melody of his sym pathetic, appealing voice. And because of Mir. Wilson's presence two large audiences at the Montgomery Theatre thoroughly en- Joyed the allotted two hours and half To tell the truth. the play in the fourth year of the new century appears trifie time worn but Al Wilson is not one of the things that has deteriorated with the pass ing years.
 Mir. Wilson's talents and abilities are pecu- liar to himself There is nobody just like him. He is in . class by himself. He reaches the heart of the public. the great mass, as no other road singer does. He has . way of. natural and an effective way Of making the sentiment and the ten- derness of . ballad. SO delicate and ap- peaiing that 1t is not to be resisted. Al Wilson might be . failure in grand opera, but who wants to hear him in grand opera?
 The public want the charm. the freshness and the tenderness of the fireside ballad or the love song which Al Wilson never per mits to become maudiin. or sickening.
 The singer in ease and grace chains the attention of his audience and compeis their admiration with his debonair power.
 This was so ten years ago. With each succeeding year Al wilson has sung to the hearts of his hearers. He sings with the grace and the effect of decade ago The applause is as quick and as spontaneous as 1t was on his early tours.
 MT. Wilson's admirers, some of his sim cerest admirers. wonder if he Is making the very best use of tho talents which have been entrusted to him. They wonder if he has broadened and grown as they would have him do.
 The public is tickle. Mir. Wilson may grow stout. His voice. golden as it now is, may become cracked shriil. Then we'll then. plays like "The Watch on the Rhine will not be successful
 Al Wilson is more than a singer. He is an actor as well. 6 comedian capable of clean, strong artistic work. That bit of buriesque in the third act was rich and humorous. TheEe was hardly . scene in which he did not display histrionic tall ents MT. wilson. however. takes his act ing lightly. His air is "oh. I can do this we'll enough. but whats the use" The growth and broadening of his powers would mean . great deal to his thousands of admirers. seme of them see in him with his splendid voice. his stafe ability. high artistic possibilities. David warfieid did the buriesque of an old Hebrew second hand clothes dealer on the vaudeville stage for a few dollars q week. but he thought and studied. Today he is one of the few req lartists on the American stage. MT. Wilson may so year after year in mediocre German plays singing ballads to popular applause. but he is worthy of a better fate than to be turned into sort
 of an everlasting ''Daavirs Auction by Charles H. Yale. going year after year. And after all there is some point of diff ference between Charles H. Yale and David Belasco manager.
 There Is co asiderabie room for improve ment in Mir. wilson's company. Miss Blood. good as Telka was really the best of the lot The others did their work in an un- ambitious way.
 At the matinee performance Mir. Wilson was given an ovation by his audience, which filled every seat in the house. ine house at the night performance was we'll filled and the singer was accorded two cur tail calls.