Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1907-01-15
THE MATCHMAKER PLEASES.
Mr.. SuIIy As Father Daily Made Many Friends
..-Good Story Well Told

The genuinely mlrth-proNoking
causes for laughter. the strong touches
of the best in human nature, leading
through the action of the play to where
Father DAILY settles on the text
Love one Another" for his next days
sermon. made fair-sized audience at
the Colonial Theatre last night forget
for time both the heavy clouds out
side and the other moro burdensome
clouds of life. Ii is To be regretted
that the audience did not contain more
people. but more 10 be regretted is the
fact that there are not more comedy
dramas like ''The Matchmaker which
was the Offering last night.
Mr.. Jerrold shepard, the author,
wrought well with all of his charac-
tiers. and the management is to be con
graduated in the gathering of SO good
a cast, but the rich conception of the
big hearted priest with a vein of eN-
cellent humor as portrayed by Mr..
Daniel Sully, might safely be called
masterful.
The story of '-fhe Matchmaker is
a pleasingly constructed romapee
which treats of the lives of the young
and old in a small village in the wes-
tern part of Idaho. The wild, pos
sibly crude and venturesome, but
manly men of the growing Western
world give opportunities for some
strong characters and il is in the FIX
ing of the wrongs done by these Wes-
terners that Father Daily, about whom
the action works, meets with all kinds
of reverses. His ever kind and es-
sentially true nature eventually win
him laurels as a paciticator and the
matches that result places all in their
seemingly correct marriage bonds.
As may be imagined some very good
characters are pictured-the locale be-
ing especially conducive for such re-
suits. The hard-hearted miners and
Indians are soon softened by their as
sociation with the clever priest and
they are eventually shown the proper
way to good homes and happiness.
To insure the proper Interpretation
to the various and strong characters,
| last nights production showed an eN-
ceptionally strong company. Those
who saw Mr.. Sully's portrayal of
Father DAILY so thoroughly enjoyed
| the performance as TO be convinced of
| its entertaining propensities. The
| comedy lines and situations woven
| about the priest are made strongly evil
| dent in the handling of the part by
| Mr.. .Sully. who has much to do in
| bringing the brighter side of mis-
| parishioners to View. He is seen at
his best as is also the character he
| portrays in his rendition of the hon
est. whole-souled, easygoing priest.
Those who saw the production last
night will be glad to learn that there
is a possibility of a return engage
ment, and that they and others may
see 1.-THE Matchmaker again this
/ season.
Those surrounding Mr.. Sully dee
Iserve equal credit, and choice be-
| tween their work would be difficult.
/ Mr.. Richard Garrick as Jim Carter,
has his stagecraft well in hand, and
/ gives finished Interpretation of a
rather dicfiult character. The same is
| true of William +. Kohman's S handling
of the shifty black-hearted but not
| thoroughly bad halfbreed Indian, Perre
Wolf. Arnold Leslie,.a young mining
expert and the first unknown nephew
| of Father Daily, is capably presented
| by T.. A. Turner. While Father Daly's
| lines are full of good comedy, he
shares the real laugh producing work
with Miss Gertrude Earle, mis- ward,
| Dollie. and Willie BeeSman, the ten
derfoot." The, latter character was
| taken by Mr.. Robert Strauss, whose
work was excellent, and makes it safe
to predict bright future for this
young actor.
Miss Ethel Wright,a as Margaret Man