Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-31
SINGER MAKES DEBUT
IN MUSICAL COMEDY
CATHERINE EDMOND APPEARS
IN THE WIZARD"
AS Cleopatra She Scores Great Sue
cess at Initial Performance
with Ferris Hartman
Company
.El rlorence nosard Lawrence


Catherine Edmond, a singer well
known to the local concert and recital
stage. made her debut with the Ferris
Hartman company yesterday in The
Wizard of the Nile Interest in the
first operate appearance OF TINS new
prima donna has been keen, and a
crowded house greeted her with most
encouraging applause upon her en-
trance. Nocally the singer needs little
introduction to Los Angeles audiences.
She has a beautiful soprano voice
which is clear and fresh and remark
ably true in pitch. The difficult mid
die register wherein so many high
voices waver showed an absolute ad-
herence to purity and accuracy. Miss
Edmond made a charming picture
as Cleopatra the princess who knows
naught of love, and acted the part
with naivete and a delightful assump-
ton of innocence.
For a first appearance her work was
remarkably satisfactory There are
some places where familiarity with the
footlights' glare will make for improve
ment and more modulatiOn in the
speaking voice will be effective. These
are but trining flaws, however, in a
performance for which the singer de-
! serves hearty congratulation.
Practically all the vocal honors of
the evening went u MISS EulIuIlu anu
George POultney. Miss Edmond's first
song, "Tve Been Maying." is one of
the prettiest things in all of Victor
Herberts music. and she gave it a
most effective rendition, while her duet
with Hartman in What Is Love ?"
and with Poultney in the second act,
IF / Were King" gave her opportu-
nifty for lighter and more spirited work.
Each of these. as we'll as the DREAM
10, in, tl,al ST 1pf "
applauded, and recall after recall de-
manded.
George Poultney as the dashing
young singing teacher sang his one
SOLO "When the Bugles Are Calling, +"
with spirit and a discriminating use of
his fine voice. In his duet with Miss
Edmond, however, he might subdue
his voice a trfle to advantage.
The opera contains more than twenty
musical numbers, and each one is in
the type of the earlier and better Her
bert work, so it is distinctively a pro-
duction which musicians and. music
loving folk will enjoy although the
comedy of Hartman Walter Catlett,
the King, and Joseph Fogarty as
Cheops is still something to delight
those who wish to laugh.
Ferris Hartman found the grotesque,
rather broad comedy of Kibosh much
to his liking and played the role so
| that his audience liked it as we'll as
he and laughed contoinually with and
| at him. His topical song, That's one
| Thing a Wizard Can Do introduced
| local hits which We're distinctly anus
ing. and touched up the Los Angeles
| annexation habit the meat strike,
some good government topics and the
| police force with keen satire
Dainty Muggins Davies, very blonde
for her age" was the sweetest and
| most impudent boy on the stage, and
Miss Myrtle Dngwell as Myrza, a
maid of honor, sang an interpolated
song most effectively receiving three
| encoreS.
! Josie Hart was a beautltul "Slmoona
| and wore the robes of royalty with
| stunning effect. Walter De Leon in
| troduced a speciality with singing and
| eccentric dancing.
Scenically the production is very ef-
| feVtive with it's glimpses of pyramids,
graceful palm trees and other Egyp-
| tian suggestions. The costumes and
the chorus are both ornamental to a
| degree, and in general the company
| maintains the high quality of work
which made the recent Woodland pro-
duction so admirable, although vocally
the chorus might be little stronger.