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Show M: 'Ben Hur The Orphetim Opening Louts James Hi , ' . I THE PLAYS OF A YEAR. i 'The number of theatrical failures in New York during the season of 1904-05 should not have affected us materially, because there were numerous successes the two years before that, ! and we seldom see anything until it is a year old at least, f But that it had an effect is certain, though the I year as a whole has been one to rejoice over. I There have been long waits, often with bad I plays at the end of them, but when it is con- i s'idcred that there have been seventeen or eigh- I teen productions worth sitting through, we are in- 1 clined to feel that we are more enlightened than formerly, and with five theaters going full tilt, with every seat occupied whenever they are worth taking, we should feel glad for blessings received, re-ceived, a:d think only of what we are spared by so many more failing in the metropolis before we had a chance to lose money by placing a small bet on them. It may revive a few pleasant memories to men- Bj tion some of the good things of the year now Ml closing, and if any are missing from the list it is by intention, for the vast majority of the plays have been worse than worthless. HI "The Earl of Pawtucket," with D'Orsay in the title role was the first real attraction of the year, Hj a morsel delicious enough to spoil the average taste for poorer things for a long time that fol-Hj fol-Hj lowed. JB' Next came Willie Collier in "The Dictator," Hfj then Cawthorn with "Mother Goose," and then the Savage Opera company. But that all took three months, and it was the end of March. We had a dose of Melba and the Conreid people peo-ple during that time, but in concert which could be scarcely included in a list of real dramatic events. The other notables in concert were Emma Em-ma Eames and Ysaye. To return, "The Virginian" and "The Other Girl," the former with Farnum and Campeau, and the latter with Lionel Barrymore, came in April, A Sothern, and Marlowe, and John Drew closed the season. Goodwin with his "Usurper" was here in the merry month of May, but his play was not among the great ones of the year. "Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch," right in the middle of August, took a firm hold on the first nighters, followed by another long delay, until the home company burst into song in "The Jolly Musketeer," shaming the many road companies that happened along about that time. And then Ethel Barrymore a bad play, but a great woman so she gave it class. Next Ann La Mont a good play spoiled by a man and woman who played it, and following, Lackaye in" his mar- I MAY. HENGLER At the Orpheum next week. velous creation of Svengali, and his less interest-,, ing Curtis Jadwin. From him to the present, ours has been a feast of Ade, for there have been no plays here that weren't of his making. "The Prince of Pilsen," "The Sho-Gun," and "The College Widow." If we could have a couple so good as the last two named every month in -the year, life on the padded loge would surely be the height of bliss. All in all, we could have done worse, and the future looks even better, so renew your ueason seats next week -you might want to use them sometime again. THE ORPHEUM. "The opening of the Orpheum theater here in Salt Lake will be gladly welcomed by all classes of theater goers who have waited patiently for the time when this city could take care of a fine house of high class vaudeville. And now we will receive the same class of at- i' tractions in the same order as are furnished by the circuit people to the Orpheum in San Francisco, f that at Denver and in the larger cities of the east. X The house, which is thoroughly modern throughout, will be ready for the initial performance perfor-mance on Monday, and the bill provided for that evening is a most attractive one. It is composed of the McCord company in a one-act play called "The Night Before," "The Hengler Sisters," the famous dancers who have never u m seen here before; Nelle Florede, the comedienne; a troup of grand opera singers; the three Jacksons, and the Kinodrome motion pictures. pic-tures. A fine bill to start with, and the theater will be open every night in the week but Sunday, with three matinees. The Orpheum idea has been a great hit wherever wher-ever started, and it may be safely predicted that Salt Lake will not be unappreciative of a good thing. J 5 LOUIS JAMES. Mr. Louis James appeared at the Salt Lake theater during the Week in 'a varied repertoire, presenting some characters, mostly Shakespearean, Shakespear-ean, in which all conscientious play-goers of the present decade had seen him at least once before. During three nights and a matinee the old tragic veteran went through the entangled meshes of Richelieu, Ingomar, Virginius and the Merchant of Venice. All that can be said of Mr. James in these diverse di-verse roles is that his impersonations were about the same as they have always been, never reaching reach-ing any lofty heights, but maintaining always a commendable mediocrity. His support was quite as good as usually clusters around the celebrated tragedian, which does not indicate that there was. anything brilliant in its personnel. Mr. James himself appears a little more subdued than during previous years, which gave augmented strength to everything in which he appeared locally. Mr. Norman Hackett was advertised as his leading support, though for what reason the uninspired mind cannot readily grasp. Still, the tragic Mr. Hackett has improved just a little since his tour of last year with Miss Marlowe and Mr. Sothern, Soth-ern, who probably talked the young man out of his strut and instructed him that acting did not consist of trapeze performing, and that it wasn't really necessary for an actor to articulate like a megaphone with a crippled mechanism. One wonders for a moment why he left the stars of his ; last year's association to join Mr. James, but on ' second thought, it isn't difficult to surmise that Sothern and Marlowe figured that they could drag through a second season without his distinguished services. But, however that may be, the young gentleman does not get on one's nerves as he ,' did in the days of yore. . Mr. Young did very well in all the roles he attempted, at-tempted, and gives promise of becoming in time quite an acceptable actor. The same praise may not be justly accorded to Aphie James, whose stage presence is almost appalling, and whose version of talking the English language is about as perfect as is usually exhibited by an elevator boy. Equipped with an education, A. James in time might do right well in some part not requiring requir-ing any charms either of face or figure. The very best portrayal of Mr.. James is that ' of. the noble Virginius, which he does with con-' con-' siderable strength and intensity. In other words, he is Louis James, who lacks not a great deal of being considerable of an actor, and whom, with all his shortcomings, Salt Lake is ever glad to welcome. 8?. af -a? BEN HUR. 1 Monday matinee, Dec. 25th, the theater-goers of Salt Lake will again have an opportunity to r witness the Klaw & Erlanger spectacular produc- I fcion of Ben Hur. I; It is a matter of pride with the owners of the dramatic rights of Ben Hur that the high stand- Von Nordon ard of the production should be kept up from year to year. It is safe to say that never since the original opening of the play at the Broadway theater, New York, has the spectacle been graced with such a scenic investure as it now possesses. The company com-pany is said to be better than the one se'eh in the original production. As this is probably the last opportunity that the theater-goers of the west i will have to see this world renowned spectacle, jj" the engagement should be a memorable one. Of the play, itself, for the benefit of those who have not seen the performance, it can be said that the pictorial surroundings of Ben Hur are of a sin- gular beauty, notably "The Star of Bethlehem, ' the Groves of Daphne and the Mount of Olives. Music of a devotional nature outlining the motive mo-tive of the play, to which at times an invisible chorus is added, lends an additional charm to the entire performance. The play is given in six acts and eighteen scenes. J J CALVE AND HER COMPANY. I Everywhere that Calve has appeared she has been greeted by enormous audiences, and so much enthusiasm that already the tour, which is her first in this country, has taken high rank among the most successful. For one thing, the singer herself is in most glorious voice, she is a young woman, and her wonderful voice is in absolutely perfect condition. She is not worn out by a long season of opera, and her success is a sensation all over the east. Then, too, it is said, her company is a fine one. She has beside M. Bouxmann, who left so favorable favor-able an impression when he was over with the French Opera Company, young Berrick von Norden. Von Norden is of Swedish-American parentage, parent-age, though born under the stars and 3tripes, and has studied abroad with the best teachers in the land. He has been singing on the continent and 'meeting with great success, and many authorities proclaim him the coming grand opera tenor. He has a glorious voice, and splendid physique, which, with his handsome features, fit him admirably ad-mirably for the heroic role. Mile. Vermorel, the Russian violiniste, is another an-other splendid member of the Calve company. She is a young woman of uncommon beauty and an artist of marked talent. The concert here will be on Friday evening, the 12th of January, at the tabernacle, and is under un-der the supervision of Lois Steers-Wynn Coman and J. J. McClellan. Seats will be on sale at the Clayton music store on Tuesday morning, the 2nd of January. : : |