The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-11-05
The TheQtPrS

Mr.. William Hawtrey as Dear Old
Billy" in q matinee and night appear
ance at the Gennett yesterday Is Dear
Old Billy" sure enough. The delight
full simplicity Of his presentation OF
the title role Is only exceeded by that
OF the play itself-a charming. anus
Ing, old-fashioned example Of the
theatric art, although capital farce
comedy.
The story Is not complex-being all
about dear old Billy" and his various
mixups in a clearinghouse at sea
side place where he has gone for a
rest. His wife, from whom he has
separated, also appears although &C
cording to a sort OF post-matrimonial
creed she is not allowed to ,eak to
him since she is always appearing al
inopportune times when other women
are putting him in a false position
through their infatuation for him.
For dear old Billy is one of the
sort OF men whom women of all ages
and previous conditions of servitude
like-and pursue. They won't let him
alone and he is too amiable to rebuff
'em. Because. after all, he rather
likes them in return II they're young
and pretty.
The battling psychology Of the at
traction that certain men have for
most women is here illustrated in per-
lection Also the celebrated pro-
nouncements of Mr.. George Bernard
Shaw to the effect that it is the women
who do the pursuing. Things are all
Strengthened out. however. before the
curtain falls and Mr.. Hawtrey again
falls into his wifes embraces-if a
tribe observation-disclosures he Is what
he ia, a helpless kind of man whom
women like to pet and fuss over.
That Mr.. Hawtrey and his excellent
and we'll balanced company do not
permit a play with so tenuous plot
II 1t could be said to have a plot
rather than a series of cleverly con-
trived situations-and so little sub
stance degenerate into faulty or
scrambling farce. is indicative OF
theatric finesse and histrionic discrim-
inAtion. as unusual as it is satisfying.
While the cast was a we'll balanced
one and none was especially conspic-
nous. Mr.. e. II. Kelly. as christopher
Crock" was noticeable for his depic-
ton of a middle class English bounder.
Mr.. Hawtrey is a delightful and ap-
pealing actor OF a school not often
seen here and we hope he may visit
this city again.
Certainly. however, he can have
little desire to do so if the size of
the audiences yesterday is criterion
OF interest.
The theater-going people OF this
town deserve little consideration at
tho hands Of the Gennett management
for when the best things come here
they are notably absent from the play
house.
And yet they say-"nothing good
ever comes to Richmond" And pre-
tend that the only place they have to
60 is to the ten cent vaudeville.
Their sincerity is questioned. how
to see Mr.. William Hawtrey, one OF
the best known and most accomplish
ed Of English comedians, when only
a beggarly few turn out to hear one
OF Frohman's best companies in Thy
Neighbours Wife" and. indeed, neglect
all the really excellent theatric at
fractions that are brought here.
Theater managers, as has been said
are not phtlanthropists. They are
willing to give the people what they
want. II they want clap-trap, they
can have it. If they want "high-brow"
stun they can have that. The theater
out so he gets the coin" in return
The public, to be sure. has been
handed so many theatrical gold-bricks
that 1t is wary. or thinks it's wary,
The public. however. should Turkish
up and know what is a goldbrick and
what isn't.