The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-04-11
"FI-FI' BY ART :. LEAGUE PLEASES
 GREAT AUDIENCE
Park Theatre Crowd Views Excellent Performance for
 College Fund.

With a capacity house and a well 1 finished performance, "F1-Ei Of the Toy Shop" given last night in the Park theatre. for the beneGt of the Ann
 Hathaway cottage fund of the Bridge port Art League, proved one of the most successful productions which Bridgeport has seen in several years.
 It could scarcely be- called amateur, ",
 with so well known a professional as
 Mrs. Lena Mason Barnesley. in the
 title role, Mrs. w. B. Ferguson in the
 character part, Mrs. Richard Howell
 as the: Laughing Dolls Head and Otto
 Paul Schubert az the; Sandman.
 Despite the fact that it was the
 first performance every participant in
 the play was as thoroughly at home
 in his part as though he had been appearing in it daily for weeks. The
 musical numbers were especially well
 sung and acted and several encores of each were necessary to satisfy the members of the audience. There were number of attractive settings, perhaps the most beautiful being that of the Milky Way with F1-Fi and the Man in the Moon.
 The part of Bonnie who kept the toys and dreamed the wonderful dream, was cleverly played by Mrs. w. B. Ferguson. Mrs. Barnesley'S Fi-Fi was as charming as could be imagined, while Miss Betty Ferguson as Loosey, a rag doll, made a very difficult part a most entertaining one. AS Inkspot, black doll, Miss Dorothy Smith was extremely funny Miss Helen Hannibal made an especially pretty Bo-Peep doll and her two songs won several ehcores. As Laughing Dolls Head it was Mrs. Howe1rs part to sit at one side of the stage and laugh almost continually. Of course she succeeded in getting the audience laughing as much as herself. Miss Marjorie Boyden gave a creditable performance of the old witch and Miss Ethel Beach of Aurelia, the fairy. Miss Anna Beard was a talking doll and Miss Lena Scheere, as Japanese doll
 Harold Edgerton was especially in teresting in the part, of LeAt. Tin heart, a soldier, doll, Stewart Swain as Capt Barnac1e and Kent Bachelor as Prince Lollypop, kept the audience in continual laughter with their funny antics.
 As the Man in the Moon," George Templeton was especially good, while Harold Santry, as Bonnie's father was seen at the beginning of the play. 1 Otto Paul Schubert's splendid voice; heard in the opening and closing solos as "The Sandman made every one | wish that be might have had more songs. II. 1T, >...,szs :. -.
 The dances of Frank Armstrong and Frank Clark, who had clown parts and the solo dances of Miss Agnes Marsh and Mrs, Albert Hodg- lxins were vigorously applauded. At, tractive, tos, were the dances of the various groups, the bridesmaids, China dolls marionettes, Jumping Jacks, animals, paper dolls, winds, Christ! mas fairies and letter blocks ..<-e.:
 The performance was repeated this. afternoon and will tbe given tagain this evening for the last time.
 The officers of the Art League in- clude Mrs Philip L. Holzer, president; Mrs. F. M. Hammond, first vice presi- dent: Mrs. W. B. Coggswell, second vice president; Mrs. William Sailer, third vice president; Mrs. w. J. Taft, recording secretary; Mrs. Belle Fletcher, corresponding secretary; Mrs J. C.. Chamberlain, treasurer, and Mrs. George F. >Had1ey, librarian.