Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-07-01
Rya TIE TIL! mEIHEIfR

The hot weather OF the latter part of
last week did not seem to cause any dimi-
mutton In the audiences at the Columbia
Theater. Each night there was fuii
house, and the excellent stock company
gave a series Of brilliant performances OF
Pink Dominoes" which was thoroughly en-
Joyable.
Tomorrow night Jane" the amusing
comedy. Will be revived. Memories or
tombstone Bennett arise with the mention
OF this play. and they are pleasant ones
too, for Miss Bennett was then in the
height OF her success and was worthy Of all
the praise bestowed upon her for her per-
Torrance of the title role.
Miss Jessie Busley was the original Moira
Loney In Barrie's gastronom&c play on the
occasion of its American production by
Charles Frohman at the Empire Theater,
New York. In January. 1904 From the
moment that she made her debut upon the
professional stage Miss Busley has inyari-
ably served under the management OF
Charles Frohman. and In this respect she
largely resembles Mr.. Guy Standing. who.
from the moment that he decided to leave
England and cast his fortunes with the
American stage-some sixteen years ago
EFT In the management of the summer stock
season at the Columbia, served under the
single management of Charles Frohman.
Little Mary" was the talk of both New
York and London two years ago, and II was
the role of MORA Loney which Nina Bouci-
cault originated In London, and which was
created in this country by Miss Busley, that
centered interest in the performances. There
was hidden meaning In the title or Bar
rie's quaint and whimsical conceit. There
No in he ga t
Mary-iittle or big. Little Mary was SIM
ply a catchword, used to mean the stom-
ach and wherever one went IN London two
years ago Britishers, on greeting one an
other in the morning, were heard asking
How Is your Little Nary II ones
business took him to the city his stock
broker made the inquiry, and IL he strolled
in the West End Of old London town the
first acquaintance met asked the question
Indeed. the constant repetition of the title
excited hundreds of people to go and see the
play. which was running In opposition to
Lefty" which was the Ptnero play that
was also arousing the talk of the town.
The story of Little Mary was simple.
II was that OF a girl who knew how to live
and keep in good health That girl was
MORA Loney, who in the first act was in
troduced as child of twelve years with an
Irish brogue big enough for grown wo-
man. She lived with an old grandfather,
who was chemist with an oyerpowering
admiration for the noble English but the
victim Of a belief that the people he so ad-
mired were all very Ill. On account of this
belief he devoted his life to a labor of love
in compiling big book In which their cure
was prescribed. This book was consigned
to Mora, who was to study 1t six years,
and start on mission to the poor English
nobility, who did not even know they We're
I'll, and cure them. She becomes a celebrity.
Through a medium which she calls Little
Mary" a medium which no one has seen.
she effects remarkable cures. The denoue-
ment of 1t all is that she falls in love with
1rt ND n
she Is asked who is Little Mary'?' she
promptly replies THE stomach" And that
is why Londoners asked How is your Lit
tie Mary2" Finally, Punch perpetrated
set OF verses, which in a humorous way
summed up the whole bearing OF the play
and the whimsical idea which underlay It.
namely. that cheerful stomach is the lett
motif Of happy life.
In the original production of Little
Mary" in which Miss Busley had her audi
ences shrieking with laughter, Henry E.
Dixey played the part of the Earl. The char
acter was an ideal one in comedy character
work, of the kind in which Miss Busley ex-
GELS. She has portrayed all kinds Of
maids the stage, from the petite
French girl whose language has been An
giicized. to the demure English type. She
has done well in male roles and in series
OF comedy adVenturesses." Miss Busiey is
q native of Albany, n. Y. She never ap-
peared as an amateur, but tackled the pro-
fessional stage in the beginning. Her first
real Part was tDat OF the lnRe0uo, Wnicn
she created in Charles Frohman's produc-
ton of "Charley's Aunt" After that she
created a remarkably clever representation
that OF the otomboy,, In The New Boy"
bullying schoolmaster ultimately meets his
match.
Still under the management of Mr.. Froh-
man she engaged to play the part OF
Maude st. Trevor, the music hall singer.
an adventures role. in the first American
production of the Drury Lane melodrama,
+ rec Iva iTrstpfa ok hon
headed the cast OF this production. e. M,
Holland made great hit the villain, and
the company included Edwin Arden. May
Buckley and Eleanor Moretti She was a
member of the Empire Theater Company
along with Mr.. Guy Standing and w. H.
Crompton, and the influence Of that no.
dramatic development. Faversham was a
member OF the same company while she
was there, and when he went on his first
starring tour in "A Royal Rival, the Don
Caesar play which was having rivalry in
New York with Hscketts presentation of
another version of the same idea, she &C
companied Royal RIVAL company and
created the part of Pedro, the little Italian
boy OF the cast.
Another boy" role filled with great sue
cess by Miss Busey was that OF Fan-Fan
in the Frohman production of the 1.-TWO
Little Migrants" Miss Busley and Miss
Minnie Dupree were assigned by Mr.. Froh-
ragamutfiins mentioned in the title of the
piece Miss Dupree had the opposite char
acter of Claude. and It was In this piece
that Miss Busley made her first appearance
in any Washington theater. She made one
OF the hits OF her career as Fan-Fan. Her
forte is found in comedy parts with touch
OF character acting, and the most effective
OF these was her creation OF the English
maid in THE Brixton Burglary" In the
company which included Joseph Holland.
Eliza Proctor Otis. Ferdinand Gottschalk
and w. ]. Ferguson at the Herald Square
Theater.
Three years ago she was seen as Miss
Cullingham in THE Girl With the Green
Eyes" and after that she appeared as the
maid IN the Gillette production of Admir-
able Crichton." which was~seen at the Ma
tional IN this city. During the past season
she created the part of the maid In Mrs
Lefi1ngweh's Boots" and after that played
the part OF the washerwoman in Nat Good
wins production of "WolfYIiie" This is
only the second time that Miss Busley has
been seen in summer stock work. Several
summers ago she accompanied Henry Mil
Ter TO the coast for stock engagement in
San Francisco. in which she appeared with
him in Joseph Entangled" and Mice and
Men"