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Show II Nfe 'With the First JVighter. I THE "TOM" SHOW. .No one who was not sordid of soul and pitifully piti-fully devoid, of all estheticism and an appreciative apprecia-tive conception of all that is superb in histrionic display coujd utter one word otheVwise than lauditory of the ''Tom" performance. Besides this, if he did he would probably wizard his chances for immortality and undergo a violent personal chastening. But the enactors in this ifnique performance received only volleys of praise for their weird rendition of the Ethiopian-liberation classic. Never la the history of the firmament, to 4he beginning of which the story d-tes, has there been so remarkable re-markable a portrayal of the play which deals with he devotion and the thrillingly pathetic demise of the brunette slave. If the peaceful shade of Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe could for one ecstatic moment have looked upon this rollicking collection of fun and farce makers, it Is probable that she would have sobbed aloud on the fluffed shirt waist of lovely little Eva or uncoiled vats of tears on the bestarched linen of Uncle Tom. Seething and sparkling were the ebullitions of wit; the situations were funny enough to make an obelisk smile, and the songs, choicely laden with pungent local hits, bubbled with mirthful humor. Everyone knew that any performance given under the chaperonage of the Press Club would be one of meritorious grandeur, but they scarcely looked for an all-star cast which would keep one of the laigest audiences of the season In an uproar up-roar of infectious good humor. Nothing -could have been moie laughably grotesque gro-tesque than the appearance of that faithful impersonation im-personation of a human sycamore tree, one J. Critchlow, arrayed in feminine habiliments as litle Eva, who is now starring with the Elysium -Stock Company. He was beautiful to look upon, from the topmost spire of his beautiful ringlets to the most southerly point of his mammoth feet. He was also guilty of some itylographic attitudes and of some songs which were grand for several other reasons than a notable robustness of voice. He was especially good in the scenes with one frolicksome Todman Goodwin, who danced unlnter-mittantly unlnter-mittantly for two hours In an impersonation of Topsy, in a set of black tights, more or less concealed con-cealed by an Empire effect in burlap, But as Mr. Goodwin occupies an adjoining desk to the writer, and has a terrifying development of by-ceps, by-ceps, this phase of the drama will have to be dropped. Uncle Tom himself was no very much in evidence in the drama, on account of a major portion of the type containing his speeches being pied when the revised edition of the play was composed, but Mr. J. D. Spencer was extremely funny as the lugubrious old slave, especially in the transformation scene, which ho watched with lively and acrobatic interest. Alan Lamson Lovey, of wonderful attenuation and the avoirdupois of a good-sized whisper, played poor Eliza with great feeling, and the scene when 'she adroitly pilots her beautiful son (T. R. xJlack, 305 pounds to the good), followed by a pack of bloodhounds, in the person of a lone handful of sky terrier, was delightfully ludicrous. There was also a very clever exchange of dialogue dia-logue between Marks (E. C. Penrose) and Mr. Phineas Fletcher (George E. Carpenter), and Penrose was particularly happy in his impersonation impersona-tion of Mr. Arthur Brown, whose classic scowl he reprinted with multiple variations. Mr. B. S. v ung made a very great hit as Aunt Ophelia, and fractured the customary impression of that delightful old spinster by having her ride her IIIHHHHHHillHKHi lines on an Irish brogue so fat and lusty that it would have broken a boiler. Arthur W. Copp looked the part of a Kentucky Ken-tucky moonshiner on the warpath as fiercely be-whiskered be-whiskered Simon Legree, and one of the funniest scenes in the performance Was the one in which he perpetrated the damnation of Uncle Tom's undoing by blows upon the shoulders of the slave which would not have disturbed the serenity of a gory New Orleans galley nipper. Likewise u was compensation for many mundane griefs to see the light gleaming upon the spectacles of the emparadised Eva, as one Critchlow gazed -through an aperture in the portals of bliss upon the prostrate form of Uncle Tom. Captain I. M. Barratt auctioned off the slaves with 'some good improvisations. The pickininny band and mandolin club were great hits, and also the Apollo Quartette, composed com-posed of Boman Johnson, Lawrence Beck, Jack D. Farrell and William C. Farr. Besides all of which there were some clever solos and specialties by local artists and scenic effects that brought tears to eyes accustomed to the melting mood. Too much praise cannot be given Harry Culmer and Joel Priest for their work in making the Tom Show a success. Of the whole performance we might say, as did Antony over the slashed form of the demised Caesar: "When comes such another?" N. 5 v v A reyiew of "The Altar of Friendship" will appear next week. We regret having to go to pi ess before the first performance. & 2fc 'Why didn't the Warde Company play at the Salt Palace instead of at the Grand?" asked a theatre-goer the other evening. "Oh," replied another, "I understand that Jones got his Hammer Ham-mer out." &w w O The rehearsals for the production of "Little Christopher" at the Salt Palace are going on daily, and a clever performance is in store for the patrons of this summer theatre. iv 2& w The theatrical season comes to a close week atter next with the appearance of Amelia Bingham Bing-ham for three nights and a matinee, presenting "The Climbers." Mr. Pyper will endeavor to I have the company vary the engagement by pre senting also "The Frisky Mrs. Johnson," but nothing "definite Is decided upon as yet. , tw tv A sacred concert, with solos and music by Held's band, will be the pleasing form of entertainment enter-tainment at the Salt Palace tomorrow night, tv Y. i People tired of the growing heat of the city have found Lagoon, Calder's and Saltair very pleasant spots to visit during the week, and the attendance at tho resorts has been unusually good. The Lagoon has undergone several improvements, and presents a very refreshing scene, with its amplitude of green foliage and shrubbery and cool shade. IV tV v Down at Calder's the attraction during the week was a clever dog show, and some good-sized crowds visited the resort. & & & The bathing at Saltair is excellent. The temperature tem-perature of the water the past week has made a swim comfortable and refreshing. & ic& I0& A pleasing event of the week will be a concert by the musical organization of All Hallows college col-lege next Monday night at. the Tabernacle, assisted as-sisted by Prof. McClellan and other musical artists. art-ists. t tJ tv George Ade, whose "Sultan of -Sulii" and "Peggy From Paris" have been among the two great successes of the season of musical comedy, gives in the Theatre Magazine for June what is doubtless the true reason for the inferior quality ; of most of the. musical pieces put on the stage ft during the last wo or three years. Mr. Ade says: I "Gilbert and Sullivan did not labor to invoke 'Mi boisterous encores or dazzle the public with m catcny 'song hits.' They were not compelled to I provide special scenes for the pulchritudinous I show girls.' Neither did they feel impelled to I alter the construction so as to give more 'fat' to I the insatiable 'Broadway comedians.' The im- "mense success of pieces such as those offered by Rogers Brothers, Anna Held and other money- making stars has served to convince managers that no matter what happens to the 'book' civ the story, the stage must bloom at frequent inter-B inter-B vals with lovely girls in expensive raiment, and the songs, no matter by what pretext brought B into the piece, must receive that loud and era-B era-B phatlc applause which is the sure indication of a 'hit.' And though critics may rave, the astute manager defends his policy by producing the box office statement. When I started to write 'The Sultan of Sulu,' about two years ago, I had an ambition to follow the methods employed by' Mr. Gilbert, without imitating any one of his works. It seemed to me that at least a portion of the theatre-going public might be willing to pay for a performance in which there was a story of cumulative cu-mulative interest, the dialogue free from slang, 'gags' and local allusions, in which the musical numbers should lit the situations and be made an integral part of the dramatic construction. There was no provision for 'ad lib.' scenes, in which the comedians were to draw laughter. It must be confessed that since the first performance of the piece the Gilbertlan, model has been more or less patched up." t tw Playgoers who saw "David Harum" when it was presented here recently will remember that Charles Jackson was Mr. Crane's only real "support." "sup-port." He personated most admirably the perky, self-satisfied young clerk, diet Timson. Mr. Jackson Is a nephew of Joseph Jefferson, his mother being Mr. Jeflerson's only sister and she having been for years a member of her brother's company. Mr. Jackson spends his summers in the Jefferson colony at Buzzard's Bay, and he says that he copied Timson after a young clerk employed em-ployed in the general store at that picturesquely titled summer resort. According to Mr. Jackson, Mr. Cleveland, while President, came one afternoon after-noon to the general store, which contained at the time its full quota of idlers and gossipers. As soon as the young clerk spied Mr. Cleveland he 'perked up, and, swelling with ii portance, strutted forward and greeted the distinguished visitor with "Good morning," and then added, with a tremendously impressive and patronizing air: "I want you to know, Mr. Cleveland, that while I am a Republican, I do not mind waiting on you." |