| Show Dramatic Club Scores Big Hit i lit In Augustus Thomas Thomas' Delightful e 1 Comedy one Three Successful Performances Of Her Husbands Husband's Wife Given At The Salt Lake Theatre On Friday And Saturday Audiences Are Appreciative Many Box Parties Given After two months of preparation which included a preliminary tour to the towns of Utah county the University University University sity of Utah Dramatic club gave three performances of A. A E. E Thomass Thomas's comedy comedy comedy com com- edy Her Husbands Husband's Wife in the Salt Lake theatre on Friday and Saturday Saturday Sat Sat- of last week According to the records in ill the archives of the historic his- his tonic oric dramatic organization this was the he twentieth time in as many years that hat the club has presented a play during the winter semester of the University During all these years it has been the good fortune of Prof Maud laud May Babcock to secure plays which are well worth seeing Though not so fine in quality as some previous pre pre- ious productions Her Husbands Husband's Wife deserves a place in that notable company company of past successes The comedy comedy com com- edy is well constructed a trifle slow however in the first act and abrupt inthe in inthe the final act The dialogue is brilliant brilliant brilliant bril bril- and affords excellent opportunity for a high order of work by the cast Play Well Received I Comedy of the higher sort is one of the most difficult kinds of drama to present successfully Very often a college college college col col- colI col- I lege club can sense much more easily the more violent emotions of heavier pieces than it can the subtle innuendo do of high comedy Nevertheless it seems just to say that the Dramatic club this year has caught the spirit of Augustus E. E Thomas more near nearly y ythan than it approached the dizzy heights of Ibsen last year This much is indeed evident that the audiences on Friday and Saturday appeared more appreciative appreciative appreciative than the audiences of a year ago Perhaps this is a risky criterion but it should have some weight in informing informing informing forming a judgment of the play Good Audiences And speaking of the audie audiences ces it should be said that good support was given at all three all three performances Saturday Saturday Saturday Sat Sat- evening the largest crowd was present but even then the house was not filled According to Manager Allen Allen Allen Al Al- len Thurman the performances were a financial success It is almost assured assured assured as as- now that the club will have a neat sum on the credit side of the ledger at the close of the trip to the cities in northern Utah this week At all three performances Professor Giles and the University orchestra furnished furnished fur fur- fished the music which was a distinct contribution to the entertainment The Musical 1 society has always been ready to respond to the beck and call of the campus organizations and is able to supply music of an almost professional nature Cast Well Drilled Now to the individual players To generalize the entire cast showed that they had worked hard and con con- On Saturday night the lines so far as one could judge without without without with with- out a manuscript were read without a hitch The principal fault was a alack alack alack lack of vim and fire needed to carry the play through some of the more trying situations The notable exception exception exception tion to this was John Cotter whose work undoubtedly was among the best Cotter at nearly all times was master of the situation He seemed to feel the part and were it not for a little unskilled work at the end of the second act the act the audience at this juncture juncture juncture junc junc- ture could not tell whether Cotter Continued on Page 2 DRAMATIC CLUB SCORES HIT Continued from page 1 was laughing or weeping whether h he was attempting to be serious or burlesque bur bur- lesque lie lesque he should be open for little destructive criticism One of Cotters Cotter's faults and it was not his alone is that he could conceal his own juvenility Time and again Uncle John Belden was twenty-one twenty years old instead of fifty Cotters Cotter's work in this comedy com corn edy nevertheless is the best that he has done during his career in dramatics ics at the University Orpha Kingsbury Pleases Orpha Kingsbury as the benighted wife who thinks she is about to die and sets about getting another wife for her husband has a difficult role to carry She sustains the part in a creditable manner and her transformation tion from the hypochondriac to the womanly woman again demonstrates that she has more than common skill The contrast however between the complaining creature and the well healthy woman might be more sharply sharp ly drawn There is too much hope in inthe inthe inthe the character shown in the first act and too little fire in that of the last In line interpretation Miss Kingsbury did exceptionally well She succeeded succeed succeed- ed admirably in bringing out ut the strange inconsistencies of the charac charac- ter The wailing and the clinging to old Uncle John were well done Pleasing indeed was Daisy interpretation of Emily It is rather dubious if her conception is that of Augustus Thomas but she creates creates creates cre cre- ates a character not at all inconsistent inconsistent inconsistent tent with the rest of the play Again in this character there is a decided transformation from the woman who is determined to be a spinster to the gay creature who marries Richard Belden Miss was far more successful in the latter part of the therole therole therole role than in the former Her costuming costuming costuming ing was indeed effective and one of the features of the play This is the first time Miss 1 has played before he collegians at the University One of the surprises of the production production production tion of Pillars of Society a year ago was the work of Angus Boyer as Annethe Aune Anne the shipbuilder At that time many commented on his fine articulation and feeling for his role In this years year's comedy Boyer carries over the same fine articulation and again a good feeling feeling feeling feel feel- ing for the part of Stuart Randolph But one cannot help but feel that he ae lacks something of the urbane suavity suavity suavity sua sua- vity which the man with a summer summerhome summerhome home at the racing and gambling city of Saratoga should possess This fault is shared somewhat by Henry in the role of Richard Belden Both of these characters are those of men around town town scrupulously scrupulously correct correct correct cor cor- in dress free and easy in manner manner manner man man- ner an and gait This is not so serious a fault as it might seem for both of the men have pleasing personalities and were well received by the audience The acting of Bo Boyer er when in the last act he returns returns returns re re- re- re turns home intoxicated was well done The ultra-realistic ultra touch added by by the heavy daubs of rouge on his cheeks denoting his drunken state was unnecessary and not extraordinarily ily good taste In this scene also his drunken dialect often verged upon a plantation brogue work as the lover of Emily Emily Emily Em Em- ily is the best he lie has done during the four years he has participated participated participated in varsity or spring dramatics He more nearly approached a complete complete complete com com- merging of self in his role than he has done at any previous time Miss Clara Kimball has at former times assumed roles similar to the theone theone theone one that is hers in Her Husbands Husband's Wife Many remember the high character character character char char- acter of her work in Mrs Bumpstead- Bumpstead Leigh and there has been much improvement improvement improvement im im- im- im provement since that time Miss Maurine and Miss Eliza Packard are new among the University University sity players and both exhibited talent which unquestionably proves their right to membership in that company Miss Packards Packard's work has a delicacy and refinement that is truly commend commend- able The low comedy character of the female osteopath was ingeniously handled by Miss Lastly comes Don Carlos Wood of Scribbler-Gleam Scribbler play fame Although he appears only for a short time in inthe inthe inthe the first act Wood injects so much life into his part that it is indeed happy to have such a character prelude prelude prelude prel prel- ude the complex situations that develop develop develop de de- de- de later in the play |
