The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-10-25
A BERKELEY RIP SHORTER.
"HAMZELLE CHAMPAGNE" WITH
A TOPICAL CURTAIN RAISER.

May YOhe RediVlVus- "A Chorus OF Squads
LIN Father Used 10 Johnny --GrOund
N Lofty EmOIIOnallsm From Aus
trRlIa, with AIluslOns 10 BygOnes.
This is the poetic season Of the bursting
Of the chestnut burr. and annually at this
time the Berkeley Lyceum, refurbished with
hope, is reopened with a theatrical pipe
dream. Hitherto careful inspection has
Always revealed within the poetic burr the
same old chestnuts. Whatever MAY be said
of -The Day Before" and the new version OF
"Mamzelle Champagne" they made those
same gloomy cid walls, mausoleum Of dead
shows, rock with laughter.
The day. before which the curtain raiser
was supposed TO take place. was the day
on which the original version OF -Mamzelle
Champagne" was produced last summer on
the Madison Square roof garden. The play
presented n newly welded couple, the wife
of which was a chorus girl who had a past,
and was jealous Of her husband, who re-
ceived the long green from a mother abroad.
The scenery was rocco, and almost wicked.
1t looked like your maiden aunt trying to be
naughty. The chorus girl wife was i'm
personated by Miss Ethel Hunt, said to be an
Australian emotional actress. She was a
lady OF architectural proportions, SYM
metrically massed, and with an animated
sky line. She was very much in love with
new husband, whom the programme, how
ever. called The Unfortunate"
Then appeared the Gentleman About
Town. He was played by the author,
Alfred NJ. de Lisser. who wore a low fore
head and high heels. He said dreadful
things about Husband. He had seen hus-
band in a cafe. With companions. Drink
ing. Wife believed. and consented 20 go
back TO the Gentleman About Town. But
Husband meantime had cotne in, disap-
peared behind a curtain and overheard the
accusation. When husband appeared at
the dramatic crisis he was livid with rage,
and his Jaws we're chewing tacks. Emotion
had shaken his front hair down upon his-
Architecturallv massed wife disappeared
from the sky line and rolled emotionally on
the carpet. Husband, however, did not
shoot. He had a bang on his forehead but
none in his gun. He said he would wait till
Mar About Town was prepared to meet him
far &c Man.
Man About Town went out about town
with a cynical sheer. Husband fell upon
Wife's animated sky line. They both emo
tionally quoted the New Testament; but one
feared for what might happen when Nam
zelle Champagne came on.
II in not the expected that happened.
There were explosions. but only Of laughter.
The show was, IL anything, funnier than the
n act emotional drammer which preceded
it. Such a collection OF SQUADS has not been
seen since father wooed the chorus girls
whom grandfather had courted. and both
together surprised grandson, as Horace
would say. IN loco PARENTS. Onlyth these squads
danced like Maria on her Thursday afternoon
out. There wa a chorus of football girls in
college sweaters. Alma mater! Alma materi
IL could not be forgot that Harvard Ia AL
most three centuries old and Yale has passed
her bi~centennial. There was a chorus OF
Peter Pans who should have been Peter
Pants. But enough. The Berkeley chest
nut burr opened upon chestnuts Of a rarer
vintage. Here were the SHOWS Of yesteryear.
Flowers were presented to all hands, EN-
powered, with humor that can hardly have
been unconscious, in autumn leaves.
Miss May Yohe was Mdm'zeUe Cham
pd0ne. 1t has always been unkind to
describe her voice. During most OF the
play she was i~nconspicuous by her absence.
Everybody worked but Miss Yohe. At the
end Of the first act, however, she appeared
from a gigantic champagne bottle. 1t
was conspicuously labelled, but with the
vintage not specified.
Into this ~assemblage, somehow or other,
wandered Miss Isabelle diamond. She
was youthful, spirited and charming. She
sang a play wiz me" song with n vivaCity
and allure hat provoked real applause.
Is it possible that she is the tabled show girl
in search OF a manager who 70 md a me-
nagerie? She deserved the manager.