New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-08-24

By HAYWOOD BROUN.

out of the house here and there like
Alice in the cottage of the White Rab-
bit.
Miss Irwin could and did carry the
whole structure upon her back more
than once, but she had valiant aid in
her feats OF house moving, for the back
of FfolliOt Paget is almost as broad as
that of May Irwin herself and her act
ing was little less delightful. Leonard
HOLSTER, a mere MAZE, added much to
the humor of the occasion.
The play is farce and it is lie Roy
Scots first bit of writing for the stage
No fault need be found with the
technique of Mr. Scott. for his play
abounds in humorous complications and
moves with speed through mazes Of
plot and counJerplot. Indeed, for n
time it seemed as if there was no way
out of the many troubles in which Mr..
Scott had involved his characters, but
May Irwin attends to that and marrIes
her man in the end He is a coachman,
while Miss Irwin is a housekeeper.
Unfortunately, all her cooking was
done off the stage, but it was described
in detail for the benefit of the audi
ence and knowing that Miss Irwin can
cook just as well as she can act, many
a mouth watercd.
We liked Mr. SCOTS first play, but
we are just a little annoyed with MIN
just the same. From the advance no
tees we understood that he was once
u newspaper man. If that be the case
we ask him man to man where he got
the reporter for the play. 1t looked
as If Mr.. Scott were trying 10 play q
mean trick on the city news.
All the many troubles of the charac
ters in mo. 13 Washington Square"
arise because Mrs. De Peyster has a
social position to maintain. Mrs. De
Peyster is played BIZ Ffolliot Paget. In
the vernacular of the stage. it Is a fat
part. AS the play opens, Mrs. De Pey-
ster is about to sail for Europe, as So
ciety once prescribed, for the summer.
Before she leaves the house, her man
of affairs informs her that her income
has been curtailed. II seems, he has
invested her money in a Eighty rail-
road, instead of sumo sober industrial.
II
railroad has passed its dividend, and,
although there is sufficient money for
Mrs. De Peyster TO 60 abroad, it will
be impossible for her to live there in
the style to which she has grown ac-
custOmed.
Accordingly she sends her niece un-
der her name and stays at home in hid
ing. In order to get a bit of fresh air
Mre Il Il 80. u. 4 -,
one Of her hOusekeeper's dresses be-
fore going for drive. Unfortunately
the coachman, deceived by her heavy
veil, attempts to make love TO her, and
then the complications begin. The
keeper of a boarding house, crook,
n detective and two policemen all figure
in the complications which follow The
climax comes when Mrs De Pcyster
learns that she has died in Paris and
that her body is being shipped home
for burial There is no note Of tragedy
in this, however, for the dead woman
turns out to be a perfect stranger to
all concerned.
Miss Irwin and Miss Paget were well
assisted in their funmaking by Lark
Taylor as the coachman and Leonard
HOLSTER as the crook. "No. 10 Wash
inGton Square" will be wholly enjoy
able to everybody but newspaper men
and members Of the School Of Journal
ism.
II is a long way from the Salome
which Gertrude Hoffman, danced some
years ago to the beautiful slave IN
"Sumurun," which she played at the
Palace Theatre yesterday. The jour
ney is all upwards.
In her Salome days Miss HoTmann's
idea of DANCING seemed to be to imi-
tate George HORNE, the California
high jumper. Miss Hoffman, no
longer leaps for height or distance.
Her dancing and her acting in "Sumu-
run" yesterday were wholly admirable.
"Sumurun" was on Broadway some
years ago and left little behind it ex-
cept a song and a runway for the
chorus girls OF the Winter Garden.
IL was at that time. as we remember,
wholly an artistic success. Gertrude
Hoffman, is above all things a show
man, and obviously she believes that
her production of "Sumurun" has ele-
ments which will command popular IA
vor. The audience at the Palace yes
terday seemed 10 share this view.
The first performance of the word
g
been trained by reels and reels of
moving pictures to follow plots with
out the aid of dialogue. "Sumurun"
puzzled its audiences then. but it will
do 50 no longer. To the movie mind
its story is absurdly simple. Cuts
here and there have served 10 speed
up the action. Certainly no one could
have asked for swifter movement than
that shown on the stage of the Palace
yesterday.
The play was produced by Richard
Ordynski. a pupil of the great Rein
hardt. who has not hesitated TO de-
viate here and there from the manner
of his master Ordynski plays the
hunchback admirably, but the honors
OF the piece fall to Miss Hoffman,.
In colorful setting, tense plot and
incisive acting "Sumurun" is among
the very best things which have ever
been done in vaudeville.
The public Of the variety theatres
owes Miss Hoffman, thanks on two
counts. She should be praised for
realizing that vaudeville audiences
would like "Sumurun" and she should
he konored Cor her ability 10 make
that realization good in a finished per-
Torrance.
"Sumurun" takes up almost all the
time following the intermission. but
there are other good acts on the bill'
at the Palace. Belle Baker, the popu-
lar forty-tVo centimetre singer, was
we'll received. and so were Francis
Dooley and Corinne Sales. in That's
Sillv." Mercedes and Mile Stantone
performed their clever thought trans
ference trick Perhaps it is not
....L - which case wonderful may be