The Detroit times., 1913-04-15
THE STAGE
DETROIT OPERA HOUSE


The blithesome Billie Burke has
something a bit more SERIOUS than
usual 10 encompass in the character
OF LILY Parradell, in Sir Arthur Ming
Pineros serious satire on conditions
which obtain in the musical comedy
world or London and OF eyeryW here
else for that matter-'The Mind the
Paint !Grl. which is being presented
this week, in the Detroit opera house.
The first performance was given Mon
day evening before "A large. and one
OF the smartest. audiences of the sea-
son. Miss Burke seems 20 have =
/ potent fascination for an classes OF
theateFgoeFs, and she has successfully
demonstrated her powers as hoN-
Office winning star IN Detroit as she
has elsewhere
4 young woman TO vham nature
| has been particularly kind IN The be-
stowal OF pretty face and 1.-the.
! graceful figure, Miss Burke has a
charming insenuousuess oi express
sion, bouyancy OF movement and man
ner and the ability 70 always look
! Just sweet sixteen. no matter how
many seasons come and go In "The
Mind the Paint Girl. as Lilly Par
radell, who plays all the leads, III
the musiCa. shows produced IN the
Pandora theater. in London. she has
part which calls for just those al
tributes which Miss Burke possesses.
hence. her impersonation seems TO be
the very embodiment OF naturalness
and truth When The Mind-the-
,s... 81
london. the whole town decided that
Pinero was boldly holding up the mir.
ror 70 the famous Gaiety theater the
place where the scluns OF nobility ana
first families generally. seek their
sweethearts and, in far too many in
stances 10 be agreeable TO British
mammas, their wives The same con-
ditions applied 10 New Iork's Casino,
a decade ago. substituting American
millionaire's sons for the tilted john
MES And. II is not that the Casino
OF the present is any different 10 what
Il used TO be. simply. there are 80
many more Casinos on Broadway.
In the Pinero play. Lily has her Wis
count Francombe hear-over-heels in
love with her For several years she
has had laver, Captain Nicholas
Jeyes, hanging around her She would
not marry Jeyes and she would not
send him adrift altogether When she
meets the young visCount she realizes
her mistake with Jeyes The Captain
is decidedly disagreeable person 70
have dangling around anybody
skirts or premises. and not even the
manner in which he takes himself and
his caddishness and jealous temper
of to Africa. just before the final cur
tain, and leaves Lily free field with
her viscount, awakens any sense OF
liberation in the mind OF the long-sut-
fering onlooker lily made her first
stage success singing a ditty called
"Mind-the-Paint and so. the some
what curious title of the play. Lily
rose from a two-by-four room over
green grocery and fish shop. kept BY
her father and mother. 10 position
OF prominence in stage-door society
and considerable affiuence in pocket
| money. Pa is dead but, Ma is very
much in evidence. and is capitally
acted by Lydia Rachael, who brings
out all the low-class "H"-less traits of
Ma and also her good nature and
| good heart
! There are 81 persons appearing in
the four acts OF the play. most Of
them in speaking roles The acting
honors must be conceded Morton
Shelton as Ilonal Roper the elderly
friend OF Lilly aud her Ma. Shelley
Hull plays Viscount Francombe with
boyish difference and is very likable.
II. r. Herbert succeeds excellently IN
making Captain Jeyes thoroughly
"nawsty." as our British cousins have
t.
For Pinero. master OF playmaking
that he is, The Mind-the- Paint Girl
has very lame finish. However.
Sir Arthur's eminence will neither 90