El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-01-25

4
producing industry in New Yorl
the past week The falling off was no
only in quantity, but in quality. But
two new offerings were presented K
the well known long suffering public
and one Of them, at least seems to
have been born with the sardOnic grin
OF death on its face.
The mild, open winter has been play
ing havoc with the box office receipts
and it is a hardy manager indeed who
has the courage to put /on new pro-
duction at this time.
About the only sentiment Somewhere
Else" a new musical comedy. which
had its premier at the Broadway Mon
day night, under the auspices of Henry
". Savage was able to inspire in the
audience, was a wish that 1t might
have been put on somewhere else-Pat-
sgOnia, some suggested, although they
neglected to explain why they enter
tanned d grudge against our sister re-
public to the south
Somewhere Else was described on
the program as a musical fantasy And
to corroborate this idea, there was a
fairy queen who could confer on any
one who had her favor the power to
realize any wish he might make. The
purpose Of the authors was obviously
to get away from the conventional
in substituting the conventions OF 1885
for those Of 1915. The idea Of the
fairy queen musical fantasy used to be
admirably exploited by z Z. Rice a
quarter Of a century ago, and Some
where Else" seemed to have been writ
ten on the hypothesis that the idea
was old enough to be new.
There were a number Of rather tune
fuI things By Gustave Luders, who was
responsible for the music. but even
49, ID to esf7v Ia
As to the book, which was written
by Avery HopwOOd, If IT had been &C
cused Of being funny, it could have
proved a perfect alibi. If It contained
one CLEAN Of humOr It was not dis
cernible to the naked ear. But ever
since the confessions Of prominent
manager in recent court hearing, the
critics decline to hold the author re-
sponsible for all the frailties and
inanfuities Of his manuscript Accord
ing to his manager, a play, as produced,
bears about as much resemblance to
the play as written by the author as a
singed cat to a royal Bengal tiger 1t
seems that everyone has hand IN
hammering the play into shape" from
the manager down to the second assist
ant property boy. We, therefore. de-
cline to hold Mr. HOpwoOd solely re-
sDOnsible for the dull aridity Of the
hook Of Somewhere Else.
There we're II NUMBERS by Mr. LADDERS
aud some of them were not bad Those
which viii perhaps survive wherever
there are monographs are How Do
Won Do2" Love at First Sight, y
ssF3-ab-e-e." "Can You Do This?" and
somebody's Eyes
Most Of these songs were given to
Mile Flene Iseska. a little Roumanian
SoDrano. whose voice IS above the aver
eee of musical comedy Of this kind, ex-
cent in the upper register
The chief comic role was IN the
7,.15S of VIII PhiIbrici, who was the
sfen Uncle Of the mythical queen He
1Eas not sufficiently seasoned as an
scfor to be real funny without lines or
i+71a+ lions In fact, that is handicap
NAT very few can overcome
TavIor Holmes, who was uproarlou Us
IL fT1nv in 'rThe Million" got q few
1suel7s through sheer force OF MS
Incfuous personality, but when a come
alan of this sort is given no lines ne
fails into the habit Of repeating him
Cecil Cunningham, who Is woman,
toiIed hard to be humorous as the