The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-03-17
|WAY DOWN EAST IS
AS POPULAR AS EVER
The Play Draws a Large Audi
encc at the Academy.
Crane Tonight.

away Down East" shows no signs Of
losing Its hold upon the people, and TO-DAY
the piece seems to be as popular as ever.
The play does not depend for success
Upon the patronage of regular theatre
nocrs. This drama and THE Old Home
stead" have patronage peculiarly their
own. They both appeal to the masses,
rather than to those who frequent the
theatre with more or less regularity "A
large audience may always be counted
.upon TO witness either play. It was such
mn audience that gathered ut the Acade-
my last night when Way Down East
was produced by a thoroughly capable
company, headed by Phoebe Davis who
has Identified herself with the part OF
Anna Moore until her name Is almost In
separately linked with 1t.
Mr. Robert a. Fisher, as the stern,
Scripture following, iron-wllled squire.
did n most convincing character portrayal
or this role. Uric b. Collins was the
plain blunt, honest country lad, David,
John t. Brennan, the fat, awkward, blum
derinE, laughing HI Hollcr; c. b. Craig,
tho nbsent-mnded professor; c. g.
Blanchard, tho hobbling town constable;
JoscphIne Bacon. motherly Mrs Bartlett;
Kate Bcneteau, the pretty niece. and Ella
Hugh Woods the gosslpng Martha Per-
kins. All were exceedingly clever In their
iimpersonntlons.
Crane Here To- Night.
The number of actors of tho old school.
the mcn'nnd women who were known ana ana
liked by the great ana
Z tIon, has been greatly diminished within
n few years. Father Time has made -
wide swnth In their ranks Tom hcene,
Sol! Smith Russell and Stuart Robson haze y,
Joseph Jefferson has retired to enjoy a
&weIl-earaed rest, leaving as one OF the
oldest actors in point, of service before
the public, who is stu IN harness ana
whose youth seems perennial, William IL.
Crane. The latter.was an actor OF rk2'l-
statlon at n time when most Of the present
day stars were in their swaddling clothes.
Mr. Crane l prssent huEneys ana y
morrow, matinee and night. In this
drama the actor is seen as a capitallst
who has devoted his life to the building
up Of g vast fortune. lie Is q hard man nan
ono thought, to the exclusion of all else
ids the making Of money. He 4 sacrlfl ces
family and friends and the lesson tina
lis pointed out Sbetween the lines Is q now
5erful one. Mr. Crane Is said to have
scored n most emphatic and artistic sue
cess In this play, which is entirely unlike
any of Ills offerings OF recent years. the
role being. anything but a humorous one.
Week of Comic Opera.
(. EEL Captain and 1.-THE Telephone Girl"
+ will share the week at the Bi1ou Theatre,
commencing Monday night A more
amusing and picturesque combination Of
comic opera and musical comedy could
scarcely be imagined sfspec ially true is
this. where the company Is sufficiently
strong to cope with the situations, such
as is the case with the Olympia Musical
Comedy Company, composed Of such
artists as Lottle * enda.l, Edward Eagle
ton, Eleanor Jenkins, Carl Haydn. The
reese Barker, Carrick Major, Helen Pin
gree. Leo AIDE, Bertha Weisback, Joseph
Alexander and a large and shapely chorus
of Y dashing mil tary ma.us, pretty hello
girls, all trained unt.s their movements.
both yvocally and actually, are executed
whit the precision sof, a 7. crack military
corps performance gsof The maqqual.
Carrie We Eber as Paree.
Miss Carrie Weber, who 4 is playing
Mamselle Parce j na"Busy Icy, at the
Bijou this week, has a, wink and a smile
that suggest that don't care what hap
pens sort of state, one nearly always
associates withsthe gay Partisan girl. The
mental picture one is: apt to see when
witnessing the portrayal Of such role, is
an overturned table, broken wine glasses,
and chaos generally. out OF which rise a
woman's head, and a sap-headed, johnny,
in lnaudlin condition. who thinks he is
having a deuce of a.time."