Los Angeles herald., 1908-06-02
THE CAST

Mrs Merriden ... Helena GOllier-Garrtck
Nellie Gardiner .............'An Anne or"u'eS
BY sIDLE LAWRENCE
UTILLIAM COLLIER, in farclcal
w difficulties on the stage OF the
W Mason opera house last night,
was advised by a character in his play
to marry and settle down.
What" he saws. take wife when
I'm in trouble, Would you wake
man out of sound sleep to give him
medicine for insomnia?"
what is club compared to
home?' asks the loquacious WIDOW
"I'll leave it to you
You'll leave it to ne?" repeats Col
ler II make it clubs"
Earlier in the play the widow ex-
plains that she doesn't care much for
the east, though she had passed a
winter in Omaha"
I'D hate to be a farmer" says Col
lier. They're the most unhappy peo-
pie in the world. They never had the
right kind of weather yet"
And at the end. when Collier has
won the girl, he halls her parent as
Father" The old gentleman waves
him away.
"well, nearly father" he amends;
and then, with fine enthusiasm, adds:
You'll make d grand father"
Dramatized Witticisms
This brings down the final curtain
upon Caught in the Rain" which, in
reality, Is merely the dramatization OF
a series of witticisms. There is a plot
perhaps more of plot than is usual
in farce. and certainly better worked
out, but It Is the jests that carry the
play to success. Ii it Is permissible to
paraphrase the president without COM
mitting grievous lese majestic, 1 should
say that in farce the jokes that count
are the jokes that hit. Incidentally Mr..
Collier is an adept at this sort of jocu-
lar gunnery and he has been well sup
piled with ammunition.
For some reason or other the locale
of Caught in the Rain" has been
changed from Denver to Helena, Mont.
So far as the lines of the farce are con-
cerned this makes little difference, but
a Helena pioneer probably would have
considerable difficulty in locating that
country club anywhere within several
hundred miles of his home town. Simi-
larly, the man from Denver might de-
clare the street scene a libel--so after
all 1t seems to be about six one way
and half a dozen the other.
sents Collier as an exceedingly bashful
young man, who is driven under a con-
venient awning to escape heavy rain,
only to find there a young girl in search
of similar sanctuary. Collier can't get
away. and finally he ceases to want to
get away He is still bashful In the
second act; but in the end he gets
bravely over it, outwits the arch trick
ster who had thought to marry the
rainy day young woman for business
reasons" and of course carries off the
girl himself.
Characters Well Drawn,
The farce relies largely for it's sue
cess upon skillfully drawn characters,
skillfully played by Mr.. Collier and the
members of his company. Collier him
self has done nothing better since THE
Man from Mexico than his Dick Craw-
ford. Perhaps, however, this Is be-
cause he has had nothing better worth
doing. He is, l believe, the most
natural farceur upon the American
stage. He has a persuasive knack of
making the ridiculous appear plausible.
He never overacts and he never falls
short.
Helena Collier -Garrick plays the talk
ative and breezy widow In a fashion
that Is good for the blues. Incidentally
her hay fever is quite as convincing as
Wilson tickled our risibles on the same
stage few weeks ago.
Reginald Mason and Jane Laurel bur
lesque Il love affair in amusing style,
and Ellen Mortimer plays the girl
simply and unaffectedly.
Caught in the Rain" is here for the
week. 1t is a lightsome, frolicsome
farce. very well acted. The stage set
tings, except for the set used in the
last act are shabby; but you don't go
to farce to look at the scenery, and If
you did this one would take your mind
off it in short order.
Before and After" Leo Ditrichstein's
amusing farce, first presented in Los
Angeles at the Belasco theater about
year ago, was revived last night upon
the same stage A review of the per-
formance will be found in these col
umns tomorrow.
A Los Angeles girl, Bessie Bulpin,
easily carries off the honors at the
Orpheum this week. Miss Bulpin sings
three songs, one grand opera selec-
ton that gives her an opportunity for
the vocal gymnastics so dear to colora-
ture singers, and two popular ballads.
Her voice has all the freshness of
youth and her debut was an emphatic
success.
There is much quality mingled with
a great weariness in the rest of the
bill. But the two are so cleverly in
termingled that everyone goes away
contented at the end, and for the most
part fully believing the program is bet
ter than usual. Avery and Hart. held
from last week, have a new dialogue
that Is quite as good as their last
weeks offering. The others are re-
peating.
Shields and Rogers, newcomers this
week. do a clever cowboy act, opening
with a smart exhibition of lassooing
and going through the whole repertoire
of the cowpuncher's diversions with the
rome. The eight Bedouin Arabs are on
hand with a swift and daring acrobatic
turn The worst that can be said
against these two acts is that they have
been seen here within year. This
seems too often, considering the fact
tina, they remain two weeks and that
the Orpheum has the whole vaudeville
world to choose from.
The English Rockers justify their
title. but not their position on the pro-
gram. by the final scene of their act
in which they do a loop-the-loop in u
natent rocking chair. The main idea
in the scene is apparently the display
Of black hosiery and white lingerie.
There is nothing particularly worth
mentioning in the hosiery, however.
Nellie Florede sings between the dane
ing turns OF the Rockers. The act is
we'll staged but badly dressed.