New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-10-01
: At THE VARIETIES
Russ WhytaI Acts SuperbIy in
Grand GuignoI Sketch.
MRS. LANGTRY RETURNS
Mabel Taliaferro's Japanese
Play Pleasing-0ther Items
of Interest.


terday afternoon which was wholly I'M
usual TO vaudeville. lie selected his
sketch from among the dreadful little
thrlllers which terrify the audiences at
the Grand Guignol, Paris. 1t Is called
'Lui" QHe) and pictures an episode In
house Of shame" In the Rue La Fer
riere.
Mr.. Whytai played the part OF ;nu7-
derer who " wanted. dead or alive, by the
police. He takes refuge in this house,
beneath the windows Of which the street
crlers ara running with special editions OF
the evening papers and calling out, as
they run, the details Of the murder. Jean
Martinez. who is He. enters tho house as
a patron and is received by one OF the
young women who with Uncontrolled hcr-
ror has just been reading a description
Of the murder and the murderer.
The atmosphere OF tension, Of dread and
Of murder hangs in the house at his en-
trance. His face Is dark with horror and
biackened with the awful fatigue Of the
mind and the soul. For eight days he has
not slept lie orders champagne and begs
the young woman he haziiy sees before
him to be good to HIM"
The action OF the scene leads TO tho
girls discovery that her terrible guest
Is He, the murderer whom all Paris Is
seeking. In her terrifying effort 10
identify him and give news OF him to
the police, Martinez, who has lain down
TO sleep, awakes and stabs her With the
same knife with which he had committed
his first murder. He shoots the other girl
of the house and is shot by the gen
darme. who rushes In from the street
While the sketch is all blood and horror,
through Mr.. Whytals superb acting II en-
tirely escaped being grewsome. His por-
trayal Of the hunted man who had killed
and who had nearly gone mad after the
killing mounted 70 genuine tragedy.
Russ Uhytal. who was last seen as the
rainter in THE Pigeon" at the Little
Theatre last spring. has taken vaudeville
as .till another means OF proving himself
an artist. Any one who enjoys mssterful
acting should see him In "Luf' at the
Fifth Avenue this week.
There are many other Items on the bill
TO I'll out an entertaining afternoon. The
sketch known as Coyote Gussie, how
ever. is the most banal presentation that
has been seen at the varieties these many
years, and II stupidity were crime, as
professional stupidity should be, this
piece would be stopped by the police.
Mabel Taiiaferro. actress and author,
was the headliner at Hammersteins VIC
toria yesterday afternoon. and Miss Talia-
ferro. the author. was much indebted TO
MISS Taliaferro, the actress. for the sue
cess of her little play, The Return OF
Tori San" The whole idea OF the play
rests upon an absurd premise, but the
clever and def acting Of the winsome
little star saved the day. She was most
fetching IN her impersonation OF n Jap
anese, bu, she Was hardly perfect enough
TO deceive her dance into believing that
she was tho identical Madame Butterfly
whom ne had deserted
Possibly the footll4hts aided her In the
deception. IL is SO hard TO recognize peo-
pie Oh the stage. Anyway, IL vaudeville
characters We're not easily gulled, what
would become OF the snort play? The
fnal curtain finds Miss Taliaferro broken
llfdl hfb "t'pAhSs IL i''i'A'"o ~ ~
seen whether vaudeville audiences will
permit this violation of the long standing
tradition that a vaudeville play simply
must have Il happy ending.
The man who loved Tori San did not
know HE flancee when he raw her, but
the heroine OF The Live Wires" was
equally accommodating. for she was IN
able 10 distinguish between the voice Of
her brother and her friend of the after
noon. The detective could hardly be
blamed for being equally misled. The
play, after the manner of THE Woman"
is built around n telephone switchboard.
Its plot Is so irgenlousiy silly that one
might be led to suspect That the author
had intended to write another "Prune
Hat.r's Daughter" The Avon Com -dy
-Four, IN their familiar knockabout and
singing act, were distinctly amusing, AID
Jack Ward and Eddie Weber danced ac-
ceptably. The Chadwick Trio were
breezy and amusing In dancing and
singing act. Mae West was 1agranuy
vulgar. Pleasing features on the bill wee
Tom Nawn, In new skit, The Colll &c
Coach; Arthur DEACON. Alexander and
Scott. and the Flying Rogers, on the
rings.
Lily L.angtry. who rivals our own Lily
Moore In the art OF growing younger is
al the top OF an interesting bill at the
Colonial Theatre. Mrs. Langtry's vaude-
vile vehicle IS clever satir!c piece en-
titled Helping the Cause" I'm which she
plays the part OF suffragette who wished
10 be a martyr. but wanted to achieve
her martyrdom without pain or incon-
yenIence Her scene With the prison
ma,ron. in which she promised her a
10 shilling tip. and asked her II she could
do hair, was delightfully."- amusing. as was
the scene with the young doctor. who dis
covered that her heart fiuttered nj incon-
min 10