The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-02-23
AnuSen7enfS
Polly of the Circus at the Grand.

Polly of the Circus at the Grand. A petite. winsome girl, starring for her first season and not yet out of her teens, so captivated the audience at The Grand last night that not a single person. though every seat was taken. stirred until the curtain fell on the last love-scene.
 She made every one forget that the spectacular circus scenes in the final act were anything but atmosphere and that 1t was she. Little Polly of the Circus, whom they wanted to watch and sympathize with. It was refresh ing also to see her build her character part originally, despite the handicap of having had a sister win phenomenal success in the same role. If anything, Edith Taliaferro made her Polly" more girlish, more disingenious even, than did Mabel. the creator of the part.
 Unfortunately her voice has not yet attained the strength which experi- ence and training will give 1t. In the delightful scenes when Polly sacri- fees her love for John Douglass. the minister that she may make his name immune to scandal, her voice quavers so pathetically that the most stony hearted man in the audience must have gulped or felt ashamed of himself. But when she raises her voice and laughs out to hide her sorrow and to make the minister, who has sheltered her. believe that she is leaving him willingly to return to the tents. the audience is somewhat disappointed. Then her voice becomes too strained and one wishes that she had not tried to speak loudly. But so natural Is her acting. and so carefully modulated. the reading of the rest of her lines. that it Is impossible to believe she will not quickly improve this defect. Always she succeeds in making her appeal as the untutored bareback rider who remained sweet and simple in the midst of the flare of the circus.
 She Is brought to the home of Rev. John Douglass after having injured her foot in leaping through a hoop in the sawdust ring.
 After she has lived in his house for some time she comes to love the min ister, but she learns that the breath of scandal has begun to be loosened re- garding her relations with him. In a touching scene during which she final ly Is influenced by the deacons of Doug lass's church to leave the parsonage she goes back to the circus.
 The final act has three most realis- tic circus scenes, the post, outside the tent with the banterng clowns. the practicing acrobats and the paving po- nies and horses; the second, a complete ring with the woman juggler throwing knives and the acrobats somersaulting about it. the third the circus wander ing over the hill roads on the way to the next stop. But. despite the singu- lar charm of these scenes, they are dominated by the admirable acting of the minister, who is Earl Ryder. and of Polly" the one willing to renounce his clerical position and make her his wife, the other, torn by passion yet resolute on saving his good repute. As in most plays with sweet girlish he rnine and a virile hero. the man has his way The curtain falls on the star lit field where the circus tents had been pitched, with Polly" and the minister trysting
 No small praise should be meted out either to Earl Ryder who has the part of the minister, or to Charles Lamb who has the role of the boss canvass man. whom Polly had called mother" ever since her regular mother" had died Mention of Thomas Hoier is also much deserved. He takes the part or the spineless deacon that must see the circus when 1t comes to town. even if he has to peek beneath the tent flaps. Otherwise the cast is not particularly strong.
 The next attraction at the Grand will be the Rogers Brothers Tn Panama" tonight.