The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-10-19

Jean De Briac
Eddie Kettle. ........ George Mack
Georgina Kettle, his wife.
............. Helen Raymond
Percy Darling. ....... Harry Llnkey
Elsie Darling, his wife. .........
..... Theodore Warfield
AL Cleveland, clerk at Rip Van
Wrinkle inn. 49,. .Denman Maley
Synopsis Of Scenes.
Act /. Deck Of the Hudson river
! boat, Catskill. zone summer after
noon.)
Act III. The Rip Van Wrinkle inn.
Scene THAT evening Scene 2
The next morning.
The dictum of Charles Lamb that
"a laugh is worth hundred groans
in any market was demonstrated a.
the Grand opera house last night
when Very Good, Eddie a lively
musical comedy, was given cordial
greeting. There rs more than enough
gloom just now, owing to conditions
unnecessary to particularize IN the
writing of notice" of SHOW"
and anything that tends to dispel
for the moment the altogether too
nearness of the high cost Of living
and it's elder brother, the low stage
of income, is to be welcomed. That
is the spirit in which we should re-
ceive all entertainments of the Very
Good, Eddie" brand. Last nights
audience found the situation of
stranded little bridegroom and an
equally little and strangely stranded
bride very laughable. The story of
the two young people was there with
smiles, giggles, gurgles and laughs
to atone for anything stupid that may
be laid to the authors Of the comedy.
Taking the production for just what
it is intended to be, farce with
music, Every Good, Eddie" is a cheer
full entertainment. funny without
being vulgar, clever without being at
all brilliant.
There is a plot (Which is an un-
usual feature in musical comedies)
running through the vehicle that adds
interest to the production. The tale
is this:
Two newly welded couples, Eddie
and Georgina Kettle, and Percy and
Elsie Darling by name, meet on the
boat where they are to stage
their honeymoon.
Because of a forgotten trunk or
something Of the kind, Percy Darling
and Georgina Kettle leave the boat
together, and before they return the
boat leaves port. Eddie and Elsie
are on it, one without his wife, the
other without her husband. The en-
suing complications are amusing.
But, Of course, it turns out all
right and the couples meet and are
united each to his mate in the last
act, after catchy song hits, graceful
dances and lively bantering comedy
have run the length of the play.
Every Good, Eddie" is amusing
that's all. 1t is not SO artistic nor so
satisfying unsteady as "The FREELY
or High Jinks," nor so correctly
polite as my Home Town Girl"
which have been seen here. The
best thing about it is George Mack,
who plays the part Of Eddie Kettle.
Mack is diminutive and lively and
so the audience sat up and took
notice. Mack got more laughs than
anyone else in the show except the
young man who appeared as clerk
at the Rip Van Wrinkle inn, and de-
served them all. He knows the
technic of the farceur and never
overplayed or forgot for a moment
that it is his troubles that make the
fun. In the cocktail scene his act
ing was so carefully calculated that
he just reached but did not overstep
the frontier Of good taste.
Theodore Warfield as the tiny
bride did consistently amusing
piece Of work The rest of the cast
was composed Of the usual gathering
of average actors doing things in
conventional way. The members of
the chorus were lively. attractively
costumed and of fair voice and the