Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1913-11-12
MAKES HELPLESS HYsTERiA.
"StOp Thief" kleptomania Farce
at the Metropolitan, Minneapo-
lis. Best Tang of Its Kind
in Long Time.

stop Thief" fairly devastated a
large audience at the Metropolitan
last night with laughter. And yet
you had to be rather careful not
to give way too unreservedly, for
fear you would miss something
good on the stage Things were
happening all the time, each more
unexpected and more homogeneous
than. its predecessor. One laugh
did tread upon another's heels, so
fast they followed.
1t is carnival of kleptomania,
with two real thieves to start
things, and two absent-minded
men to take the blame for the sud-
den disappearance of valuables.
There is to be a wedding, you see,
and the house is full of presents.
iewelry, money. bonds and so on.
One thief comes as a ladys maid
and her pal arrives later. When
discovery of their thefts seems i'm
intent, they deftly plant the loot
on the persons Of the bridegroom
or the brides father, each of whom
becomes convinced that he is tax
ing things" without knowing it.
The complexities and perplexities
that ensue run through three acts
without change of scene or hiatus
of time, and result in the funniest
farce that has been evolved In
many a day. The special clever
ness of it is that it satirizes so de-
liciously the popular crook melo-
drama of the day. The two thieves
have agreed that this is to be their
last job. After making thorough
cleanup of the house, they are to
marry and run straight" forever
after. The plain clothes man from
police headquarters is gullible
bamboozled by the thieves and
even relieved of his watch. The
story. absurdly improbable as it is,
and full of sly hits at crooks and
cops as stage characters, is absorb
ingly fascinating The unexpected
and the incongruous are always
happening, until the spectator is
reduced to a state of helpless hys-
terra
If Carlyle Moore has achieved in
Stop Thief one of the best farces
seen in many a day, and one in
which there is no slightest sugges-
ton of offense, a generous share of
the credit for its contagious sue
cess must be awarded to the play
ers who put it over with such YER
satile earnestness. Each brings to
his role that deadly seriousness so
indispensable in farce, while the in
dividual characters are admirably
mr. OF IL m NNohC4Lar
Susanna Villa are the two thieves,
resourceful, adventurous, indefati-
gable. Mr. Webster was last seen
here in the title role of 'Get-Rich
Quick Wallingford," while Miss
Villa was the soubrettish black
mailer in the first production seen
locally of within the Law 1t
cannot be said that Mr.. Webster
betrays much of the real crook,
but he is suave, deft and good
looking, and he has a gift for nat
ural comedy, while Miss Villa is
sufficiently white-faced and furtive
to suit the case.
One of the finest characterize
tons of all is that by John Findlay
of the bland and childlike old gen.
tleman who is constantly mislaying
and misappropriating things. Mr..
Findlay's work reminds one some
how of Joseph Jefferson in one of
his ingratiating characters. Anoth-
er capital achievement is that of
Charles Brown as the young Eng
lishman, the bridegroom, whose
antics when convinced that he has
hereditary kleptomania are funny
beyond description Scarcely less
likable is the best man of William
Wagner, while Michel Lewis as
the police sergeant is quite irresis-
tible.
The four women Of the family,
the mother by Dickie Delaro, the