OCR Text |
Show AMUSEMENTS H ORPHEUM m The opening bill at the Orpheum inaugurating 1 the season of 1916-17 is better than fifty-fifty to the H good, which is all that any vaudeville fan can H ask who appreciates a high class performance. H "The River of Souls," a Chinese drama by H John L Golden, which heads the attractions, made H instant appeal to the artistic sense of those who H like attention to detail and the atmosphere that M surrounds any Oriental or other exotic play prop- M erly produced. It was played, too, by people who H can act, and the denouement is really what M makes its success, for it is delightfully surprising, M tragic as It is. Of course, there is the regulation M trap door with the river below that must always H be in every Chinese drama. Aside from that the H little drama is entirely out of the ordinary. M Nate Leipzig, 'who is a brother of Hyman fl Leipsiger of this city, is a card expert so far re- M moved from the ordinary manipulators of the H paste boards that there is no chance for compari- H son. iHe has a- splendid personality and his tricks H are new, extremely clever and expeditouBly per- M formed, and not the least pleasing thing about m his performance is that he does not bore his au- M dience with exaggerated attempts at numor. m Everything he does is very finished. M Claire Rochester, the prima donna with a M couple of voices, captured everybody. Whoever M suggested that at her first appearance she sing H a commonplace song without showing what her H voice is capable of, had a fine ear for ellect, for M in the succeeding numbers the marvel over her IB accomplishments was all the greater. The bill opens with the Gadiators, frequently seen before in an exhibition of strength and they were followed by James B. Donovan and Miss j iMarie Lee, and the "Werner, Amoras company. M There is nothing worth seeing or hearing in the m Donovan-Lee act, though apparently they enojyed H it themselves, staying so long on the job that M they evidently forgot that life terminates. B The Werner, Amoras people have little to com- fl mend them, though one has all the Charlie Chaplin m tricks in his impersonation of that overly touted H comedian. In the company is included one of H those female impersonators who make a man H want to go out and get a gun. H Consul and his adopted daughter, Betty, finish H things up and do it in fine style, Consul acting as H bored as most old gentlmen with adopted daugh- H ters who raise the dickens as Betty does every H minutes she is on the stage. H The first of the motion picture programs which H have been scheduled for the Orpheum theatre H will be given at the house on Sunday, Monday H and Tuesday. The headliner of the picture bill H ' will be Anita Stewart in the Yitagraph feature. H "The Suspect" a drama of Russian life, love and M intrigue. j The second feature on the bill will be the H first episode of the spirit drama, "The Mysteries B of Myra," a serial for which many advance prom- H ises have been mad 3 Jean Sothern, the beau- M tiful star of the Hearst company, has the lead- M ing rols with Howard Estabrook, matinee idol, Mi opposite her. M The comedy side of the bill will be devoted B to one of incidents in the harum-scarum life of wf tne tramp comedian Hairy Watson, Jr, and is- RH sued under the brand name of 'The Mishaps of H J Musty Suffer," The current news of the day B in animated form will be shown in The Hearst M ' International News Pictorial, the live wire cellu- R loid- newspaper -which! s to be featured during the H season at the Orpheum. H j The vaudeville side of the coming -week at H the Orpheum, beginning Wednesday evening will m ' A be headlined by Melville Ellis and Irene Bordoni. who is as clever as she Is beautiful. PANTAGES The current bill at the Pantages theatre which opened Wednesday afternoon is largely musical. It is "mostly good music, hence an enjoyable bill. Likewise Mr. Charles F. Semon is an important im-portant Item on tlie program, with emphasis on the initial letter of the word, for that is what "the Narrow Feller" resembles most; that or the number 11, as he admits himself and does not have to prove when he glances down at the slender slen-der props which support his uppers. You do not realize it so much at first but he grows on you as you watch his antics and listen to his semi-soto semi-soto voice ruminations. He plays various and sundry musical instruments, all the while Avear-ing Avear-ing the expression of a dying calf until the audience au-dience screams with laughter. The 'Petticoat Minstrel Maids" add their share of fun and music to the evening's entertainment. Elwell and Kenyon, two gentlemen of generous proportions or much shoulder padding, it is difficult dif-ficult to decide which, render several vocal numbers. num-bers. The three Rlanos open the bill with a scenic acrobatic turn in which they assume the role Of animals of the jungle. They are rather amusing amus-ing at times. The Venetian four call to mind pictures of .the canals of Venice, until they begin to syncopate, then every one begins to sway. It is something for a lad of fifteen to get that teasing syncopation on the strings of an eleven hundred dollar harp. Thalero's dog and pony circus, which is a sprightly act with lots of pep and action, and the moving pictures complete the week's offering. Too much is plenty. In the first place Frank Newman had a birthday on Wednesday, and incidentally in-cidentally it was the third anniversary of the arrival ar-rival of the representatives of Mr. Pantages in our midst. For the initiated its enough for them to know that there was a party with Mr. Newman New-man as host. For the uninitiated there is no occasion oc-casion for them to know, for if they weren't there they don't belong. Mr. Newman specialized in his list pi Invited guests on musicians, writers, actors and as many of the good friends that he has made since his ai rival here as the theatre would hold, and they were all there. Festivities began at midnight, and for most of those who attended there was a glorious sunrise over the Wasatch range. Those who know him know that he is a perfect host. The entertainment was in entire accord with the precedents set by the host and Mr. Pantages. AMERICAN The program at the American theater Sunday and Monday has for the main feature "The Silent Battle," taken from the book by George Gibbs. The producing company sent three weeks among the Cuyamac mountains, seventy miles east of San Diego, in gathering scenes to represent rep-resent the Canadian woods where considerable of the action in "The Silent Battle" is presumed to take Dlace. Immense trees and rocks, with abundant verdure ver-dure and brooks tumbling down rugged ravines, provide the settings and the weather did the rest. In the piece a driving stoim is presumed to drench to the skin the hero, in order that the heroine may feed him copious draughts from her pocket-flask and renew within him the inherent appetite for liquor that he had managed to subdue. sub-due. Not only were there several heavy rain storms, but snow and to southern Californians I" snow is a great rarity. J. Warren Kerrigan, Lois Wilson, Harry Carter, Car-ter, Maud George, Ray Hanford, and J. F. Connolly Con-nolly will be the principal players in "The Silent Battle" and their efforts will have added force-fulness force-fulness in the truthful .scenic equipment nhture has so opportunely provided for the ruggod and exciting episodes, f |