The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1910-10-18
THE STAGE
DETROIT OPERA HOUSE.

In The Captain" which Nat c..
Goodwin brought TO the Detroit opera
house, Monday evening. for weeks
stay. the comedian has gone as far as
Manila In search OF q good comedy.
He Will probably keep on travelling
until he gets right back to the United
States In his quest for second
American Citizen" The Captain.
written by George Broadhurst and
Charles T. Darcy, Ia far from meas
uring up to the good old plays OF the
olden. golden Goodwin days when Mr..
Goodwin was "twenty-one."
For several seasons Mr.. Goodwin.
by many competent TO Judge, conced-
ed to be Americas best light come
dian. In q strictly legitimate sense,
has been very unfortunate In the mat
ter Of plays. II has seemed impossible
for him TO secure just the right me-
dunn for his talents and the thing to
please the public. In plays, as well
as In matrimony and mining stocks,
Mr.. Goodwin seems to have been in
bad" The Captain" Is near-farcc,
prettily staged and with a clean hu-
mor--what there Is of II. II offers
the paradox or q complicated plot with
Chinese ''villyuns" and all sorts CT
weird mix-ups and q substance thin
as gauze. There is little to THE Cap
tain" as q play except some excep-
tiona!ly attractive stage settings.
Jefferson Lorrimer, a captain in the
National Guard of New York, finds
himself in Manila on a trip around
the world. While staying In hotel
there. recovering from a severe case
<,f ,oI Il ha al OH fria
John Hastings. a captain In the u. S.
regular army and chap whose hero
ism In the siege of Pekin brought him
international fame.
Hastings has just arrived from Hong
Kong, and has in his possession a
valuable ring belonging TO the reign
ing dynasty which a friend of his had
secured from the loot Of drunken
soldier and entrusted TO Hastings TO
take TO the United States to dispose
Of Three Chinese are pursuing Hast
ings to regain possession OF the ring
Hastings tells Lorrimer that IL he
can once get aboard vessel sailing
for America without the Chinese
knowing he has left Manila, he Will
be safe. otherwise he will probably
meet death from assassination. Lor-
rimer. In a burst OF enthusiastic
friendship, offers to impersonate Hast
ings for a few days until the real cap
tain makes his getaway over the
ocean. The subsequent events hinge
on Lorrimer's predicament In living
up to the Hastings reputation as a
hero. Incidentally, there are three
love affairs-that OF Lorrimer. alias
Hastings. for pretty American
widow, and of his two friends, DIR.
Brownlow and Raoul De Claremont,
for two American girls also.
Mr.. Goodwin's easy comedy meth
DDS are so well known 10 the average
play-goer that 1t is not difficult to be-
lieve that he is highly successful en-
comprising all that is required OF
1.-The captain" However, the part Is
about as 'juicy" as dried apple
and that spells calamity for an actor
whose brilliancy as star must be
kept as effulgent as any constellation
on the theatrical way or his feelings.
and the box office receipts too. are In
a sad way. Mr.. Goodwin's acting
ability Is far above the simple de-
mands made upon 1t by the NAME
part in this latest play provided for
him.
The cast contains the names OF
capable players but the playwrights
have provided little opportunity for
the actors to do effective work. Miss
Beatrice Morgan, whose auburn hair
has been the envy Of the matinee
going women for many day, plays
Sylvia Barton, the fetching widow to
whom Captain Jeff makes violent love.
Dodson Mitchell has the part of Peter
Banks. 1.-The gum drop king" meant
to be a satire on the American par
venu. but which somehow fails to be
much OF anything and. this. in spite
of the fact that, Mr.. Mitchell Is a
good actor.
The farce is set I'm two scenes
first. the courtyard Of the Manila ho-
tel, and second, the hotel sitting room,
both of which are charming In color
and furniture.
During Mr.. Goodwin's engagement
at the Detroit he will give one mat
inee only---Saturday. Next week, de-
lightful Miss Billie Burke In a new
Vaughan comedy. Mrs. Dot" will be
the Offering.
ELLA MAE HAWTHORNE.