The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-01-28
"Throuuh Death ValIey.v

There is excitement in large gobs at the Bijou theatre this week. What with Mormon elders. Destroying Angels real live Indians rattlesnakes, etc., it is no wonder that thrills are plentiful. The play tells the story of a young girl-she is always beautiful in melodrama-who is pursued by the attentions of a rascally old Mormon who already had full com plement of wives. However, 1t appears that he is greedy. The said elder and his son, who is a chip off the old block, make life round of tribulations for the hero inc and there Is no telling what they might have accomplished, were it not for the strong right arm of hero who loves the girl with a pure and holy affection He Is on hand when the most exciting climaxes are brought about and the fight he makes for his love is immense, even without the scenery.
 The Destroying Angels" get upon the trail of the hero and he is captured in Death Valley. Then is prepared a death which is awful to contemplate. The fiend- fsh Mormons tie the hero to a stake and nearby is a rattlesnal1e whose venomed fang must ultimately sink into his flesh. But does 1t? No! At the opportune time behold noble red man who can shoot like the dickensl He snips off the head of the rattlesnake with bullet when 1t is only few inches from the head of the fettered hero.
 This is the principal event of the per formance. After that matters are pleas antly wound up and it goes without say ing that such a deserving hero is reward ed with the hand of the heroine, a crea- ture of many graces.
 The play is exceedingly well staged In fact nowadays, the best scenery is to be found in melodrama and Through Death Valley" is no exception to this rule. The company is up to the usual standard of such organizations, being distinguished by the picturesque personality of the Indians, two of whom are important in the play.
 For the kind of "heart interest," that tine press agent tells about. Through Death Valley is cheerfully recom- mended
 At the Gayety.
 If Fred Irwins big show, which opened at the Gayety yesterday, can't please it is hard to tell what kind of show 1t takes to please. Snappy all the way through, and jingling with music that is tuneful and new The chorus is large, numbering nearly thirty girls, who for once accord with the vivid descriptions made by advance agents. They are young, good looking, sing, and are any thing but lazy. They have a prominent part and are on the stage large portion of the time.
 The comedians are really funny, and do not overdo their parts, Harry Campbell in the leading role making up as a splendid 1rishman. There are two farces, The Great White Way and The Actors Club" with the olio between.
 The entire show is remarkably clean and evenly balanced. Perhaps the very best part is a little one-act melodramatic comedy. "Huckins Run" put in the olio by Billy Walsh, Frances Hooper, and Frank E. Lynch. A whole play is boiled down to a few minutes acting, and shows a slangy city boy in a rural village, where he falls in love with a country maid This act alone is worth the price of admission. Campbell and Kenny, Brady and Mahoney, and the dashing Watson Sisters round out a bill of vaude- vile that is meritorious.
 Both the first and second acts are full of musical numbers, the chorus wearing some fetching costumes, especially in the French song led by Carmen Creatore Tn the first act Carmen Creatore was very good in this act, but failed to come up to expectations in the last.
 Murry Livingston made splendid Itai- ian, had the broken English down fine, and sings well. Frank Young, Joseph Brady, William Kenny, Hazel Sangoro. Kittie Watson, Famine Watson, and Lil- Han Carter complete a cast equal to any burlesque troop the Gayety has had this season. The cracked voice is missing, and everybody sings with spirit. i
 s'The Great White Way becomes ex- ceedingly lively under hotly contested election for aldermen. Dan McCann, Louie Krausmeyer, and Hezekiar Coffi- nail, a prohibition candidate, being the contesting politicians. McCann and Kraus- meyer have things their own way until the last box comes in, where prohibition gets little over 100000 votes, and ev- erybody faints
 'The Actors Club" takes one behind the scenes, and is a mixture of hilarity. The Bennett Sisters, in a fencing, boxing and wrestling exhibition in this act are very entertaining, the sparring bout be- ing exciting. tThe Spirit of '76, by the entire company, forms a fitting finale to a real good show.