New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-12-27
BY HAYWOOD BROuN.


I. was a white Christmas, pink and
white Christmas. when Gaby Deslys ap-
neered at the Globe Theatre Saturday
night in "Stop! Look! Listenl" Only
the "Stop!" and the Look" have any
thing TO do with Gaby. The Listen!
refers to Irving Berlin, who wrote the
lyrics and the music.
Among the characters Mile. DesIys
appears as "Gaby, only chorus girl
row. but Just wait" We waited, but
finally man came around and locked
ND the theatre. Gaby il passably
rrettv. but distinctly a minor artist.
One cannot watch her oyerlong with
out impotence. Her Puritanism grows
tiresome.
Flamboyant virtue is seldom sttrac-
tive. and one cannot fail to be i'm
messed by the fact that the most con-
spicuous element in the personality OF
Gabv is conscientiousness. There Is
no one on the stage to-day who tres
so intellectually to give others pleas
IRE as Mile. Deslys. Her desire that
the public should get its moneys worth
is almost passionate.
Ethically admirable, such spirit IS
not the shirt of an artist The ARTIST
nleases himself Gaby has sacrinced
everything for the public. Simply be
cause IL gave people pleasure she al
lowed those ridiculous stories about
/ herself and the king of something or
other to 90 undenied. She had only
70 saw tho word and her name would
have been cleared, but Gaby was too
unselfsh to spoil a good story.
One sacrifice led to another, and so
to-day the lot has been forced upon
Mile. Deslys OF forever wearing a
wickeder-than-thou aspect for the sake
+ e world which little knows or cares
1 that silks and satins hide many an
/ honest heart -,
But. after all. "Stop! Look! Listen! "
does not rest upOn-shall we say the
ankles of Gaby? There are other legs
/ in the show. Ayers and Steele, for IN
stance. were unanimously applauded'
as was Joseph Santley in his dances
with Gabv. Harry Fox is distinctly
amusing. and so arc Frank Lalor and
/ Florence Morrison. The show is pleas
ant throughout. much Of il Is good
/ deal more than that At moments II IS
/ delightful, but there is nothing in book
or score to compete seriously with the
costumes and scenery Of Robert Nc
/ Quinn. a set in the second act, at the
/ farm. is the most beautiful stage pict-
ure we have ever seen. Done in fiat
| browns, dark gray greens, with
splotches Of lilac and one dot Of red
/ this picture fondled the eye as Gaby
/ in all her glory never carcssed II.
/ With the Look" emphasized In such
manner one felt like applying the
/ "Stop!" for the moment TO Irving Ber-
/ lin and TO Harry B. Smith. For one
minute. two minutes, three, we were in
/ a state where we felt that we didn't
care if we never heard another Harry
/ B. Smith joke or another tune Of Irving
/ Berlin's. A second wonderful picture
showed a strip Of beach at Honolulu
with ocean and palm trees. Fortu-
natelv. the effect of the scenery was
heightened by the artistic coordination
of the costumes. Some blues the po-
/ licemen wore in the farm scene seemed
/ in atrocious blend TO our eye, but for
/ the rest the fundamental designs were
/ carried out by the costuming.
| At one time we felt as If we could
speak freely about regtime music, par
( ticularly that Of Irving Berlin. We
| thought that If we could hum the tune
| after hearing il a reasonable number OF
times it was a good tune. and # not,
/ then no. But it seems the question is
/ not nearly so simple as that Only the
other day we read an article BY Hiram
/ Kelly Moderwell defending ragtime and
/ Irving Berlin from something or other
and urging musicians 20 pay serious at
/ tention 10 "Alexander's Ragtime Band. y
/ The matter has, therefore, gone out OF
our hands We could catch the tap of
most Of Berlin's tunes, and after a
while we are going 10 be able 20 sing
Everything in America Is Ragtime.' Il
Love a Piano" was another effective
/ number and so was "The Hula Hula,
we'll sung By Blossom Seeley.
/ Best Of all was melodrama in rag
/ time in which Frank Labor, cast as the
/ father. was shot while defending Gaby 3
/ honor. II was most amusing. Mile
/ Deslys did her best work in this mum
Der. II was she who announced, HE
/ has shot my fsrzer."
Charles Dillingham;, the producer Of
the show. is 20 be congratulated that
/ I'm all his lavishness he has never lost
/ sight Of good taste. stop. Look!
/ Ifstenl" is beautiful even II il is ex-
pcnsive. II is conspicuously clean.
/ Gaby has song entitled Take or q
Little Bit" but the producers have
/ kindly considered her feelings, and she
I IA warmly apparelled even at the end OF
/ the number
The fun Of the first night was some
what impaired by an attempt upon the
part Of the friends Of Harry Pilzer, q
male dancer. 20 stampede the show IN
( his behalf For some reason unknown
10 us his few appearances were greeted
tumultuously by small but ever 80
! faithful handful Of followers, who once
or twice attempted 20 hold up the show
By loud cries Of "pilzcr." Upon one
occasion whom ho fell down O pair OF
stairs the applause became general.