Truth. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1901-1908, 1906-10-13

as a prodigal, but as a prima donna,
the ticket buyers of the town killed
the golden calf at the box-ofiice of the
Salt Lake theatre. The house which !,
greeted the opening performance of |
The Girl and the Bandit" was fat
teringly large. In point of numbers |
it rivaled the attendance of the night
beforehand that was record-breaker.
Miss Glllette-the program does not
officially recognize Mrs. Gillette's mat
rimonial alliance-when she made her
first appearance before the audience
could not mistake the wamth of the
greeting she received. AS she lightly
stepped from the gondola, to the tune
of dreamy music, with the Venetian
moon throwing its silver shadow on
the waters of the dark canal-as she
for moment stood hesitating, yet full
of glad eXpectancy-she must, for the
time, have forgotten the dangerous
music from the rchestra-forgotten
the stage, the scenery and the foot
lights-forgotten everything but the
magnificent applause which greeted
her-forgotten everything but the wei
coming tide which ebbed and flowed
from all parts of the house, carrying
with it the love light from sea of
upturned, eager faces. 1t was some
minutes before Miss Gillette could
resume the vocal thread of the OPP
erd-sone time before she could even
hear the wailing violins, the clamor-
Gus horns or the rioting of the drums.
But what lyric actress would not be
joyful at such an interruption? Sure
ly not Viola Gillette
,x ,x
If one looks for the unusual in "The
Girl and the Bandit" his eyes may not
be disappointed, but his mind feels
an aching void. And, while the lyric
drama is full of Venetian moons and
stars, dissolving rainbows, and all the
mad riot, of changing form and color
which make the stage moving pic
ture of dressy animation, one seeks
in vain for the peg on which to hang
the meaning of it all. The plot begins
nowhere and ends in the same place.
In this respect this comedy opera"
does not rise above the drivel of must
cal comedy. Naturally Miss Gillette
most frequently holds the center of
the stage. The writer of the hcrk has
given to her all the possibilities, and
the impossibilities as well. But nature
has been so generous to Miss Gillette
in personal graces, voice and figure
that the center of the stage as well
as the circumference is all her own.
How queenly she wears her costumes,
every eye in Salt Lake will swear with
uplifted eye-lid. And when she ap-
pears in the silver dress, outshining
the Venetion moon, there is no wonder
that her operate lovers crack voices
and break swords in mad rivalry for
her smile.
In the second act Miss Gillette is a
revelation in white tights, saucy plume
and little whirring blade. Prince
Charming indeed! Miss Gillette has
the reputation of being the most stun
ming figure, in male attire, on the
operate stage. With the support she
receives from two such shapely under
studies, let none deny the physical
reputation she has acquired. Mr.
George McFarlane, the successful
lover, has a baritone voice that is re-
markedly sweet and sympathetic. His
Venetian Rose" song is the lyric
gem of the opera. And he sings it,
too, with a vocal fragrance that intoX
icates. The comedians. William Sci
lery, the bandit chief, and Sam Mylie
the millionaire contractor, work as
hard nc II thew were doing overtime