The San Francisco call., 1909-09-29


The Society Vaudeville was given
for the benent of the reading room and
library for the blind at 1886 Sixteenth
street. And it was a real benefit for
the afflicted, as several hundred dollars
were realized for the fund to purchase
books of the sort which the blind read
with their sensitive finger tips.
Much Good Will Follow
While the vaudeville was notably en-
tertaining and amusing to the large
gathering of society folk who attended,
the mirth and laughter which sounded
in the auditorium will reverberate for
months to come in the dim world of the
blind. The afflicted spirits who go for
solace to the reading room in Sixteenth
street can now find there new glories
in literature, new heroes in fiction,
new wonders in science in the new
books which can be purchased with
the money drawn into the libarry fund
by the talent and grace of thessociety
performers.
The vaudeville show was not only a
charitable but also a bright social
success. It opened the social season
with a brilliance that promised fresh
glories in gowns and entertainment
for the winter season.
Richly Gowned Audience
The audience was one big, richly
gowned, delighted theater party. The
- tAo -,fx
and ability or the performers. the GU
riosity that is naturally generated
over club affair and which, in this
case, would be so amiably satisfied, all
contributed to draw together a daz-
zling house. And the excellence of the
attended. In fact, the audience was
surprised by the quality of the show.
The players had a splendid audience
to face. There was as much en-
thusiasm on one side of the footlights
as on the other-and that was some.
once been given made the people on
the stage more familiar with the de-
tails of their parts and more easy be-
fore a crowd. Mrs. Frederick McNear
and Willard Barton with their clever
society troupe proved that society folk
can give a show that has not dull
moment nor an awkward pause.
Showers of Flowers
The pretty girls of the show were
rewarded with wonderful clusters of
i
with rare blossoms. The directors and
executive board of the reading room
were particularly gracious and thought
full in sending tokens of appreciation
to the young amateurs who had been
SO generous with their time and talent.
There is no doubt of the talent, by
the way, for some of the girls who
appeared last evening were remarkably
adept in the dancing numbers and tune
full in the songs. They wore their
pretty gowns effectively. It came nat
urally for them to sing and dance and
Sextet's Merry Song
The first song, Don't You Think It's
l.
composed of Miss Jennie Crocker, who
wore an effective gown of yellow satin
and picture hat; Miss Enid Gregg. who
was chic and individual in a black satin
gown with silver trimming and a black
picture hat; Miss Jeanne Gallois, who
was in white satin with black hat,
and Ralph Mccormack, Harold Bing-
ham and DuVal Moore. The number
was popularity known as the see saw
song.o for the scene was laid in a wood
land nook and the six singers were dis
covered, two and two, on an old fash
ioned seesaw as the curtain rises. There
was a ripple of amusement at the end
of the song and two or three encores,
shake her head ruefulIy and refues to
rise from her perilous seat on the see
saw to receive or acknowledge her
floral gifts.
"HALF PAST TWO"
The next number was the clever
song. Half Past Two from The Ar
cadians," and four exceptionally good
vocaIists in the number, who were Mrs.
Worthington Ames. Miss Merritt Reid,
willard Barton Jr. and Frank Hooper.
Mrs. Ames has a local fame as mu-
sician and is gifted, while Willard Bar
ton sings and dances SO well that he
has become manager par excellence of
almost every amateur society venture.
He was one of quartet in the second
number on the vaudeville program, and
there was no doubt that every one was
agreed upon his cleverness, judging
from the applause.
Roy Folger's song, That's ALL" met
a fine reception, and hte fourth number