Variety (March 1909)

VARIETY 15 Dancing Davey tad Pony Moon* If oveltj Sketch. s6 Mine.; PnU Stage (Special Drop). The real value of the offering is con- cealed in a maat of unneeeeaary material which delays matters and extendi the running time unduly. Davey ii a capital dancer. He has a first rate eccentric routine of hard shoe stepping about mid- way in the act. This might be used later toward the finish if it can be so arranged. A suggestion of story-plot runs through the sketch. Davey is the college boy, just arrived in the west, having come out to the wilds after a disappointment in love. Here he is met by a cow puncher who proves finally to be none other than the girl of the collegian in disguise. At the finish she changes from cowboy at- tire to dresses in view of the audience, leading up to recognition by the east- erner. The finale is much too long in prep- aration. This could be cut, as could also the greater part of the comedy and dia- logue. With Miss Moore's number, Davey's dancing and a more consistent sketch vehicle the couple would be well provided for. Rush. Hoey and Mosar. Talk, Songs and Dances. ao Mins.; Pull Stage (z8); One (a). Columbia. There is a little sketch structure, quite familiar, to the specialty of Hoey and Mosar. Jeannette Mosar is an actress, in vandetiUe, tar nasnnar doss met appear and she presses into service a boy who has come to the theatre to deliver a pair of shoes. Johnnie" Hoey is amusing through- out as the simple "kid," playing well within bounds and making his points count. Miss Mosar is a lively little party. She contributes a very dainty Highland fling. The couple have a two-minute finish in "one" that sends them off in good shape. It is a sort of a conversa- tional song with a snappy dance attached. The act makes light, pleasing entertain- ment, and scored big at the Columbia. Doth. The Ballots. •Strong" act. ia Mins.; Pull Stage. Bijou. There are several striking feats of strength in the "strong act" presented by The Baliots. A man and a very pretty girl compose the team, the young woman possessing a figure which must cause a crick in men's necks when she is in street clothes. They dress in white, with a flashy spangle adornment on each costume of tights, the man wearing in addition, to correspond with Jus partner's, white garters. Why probably only he knows, unless they came with the suit, and there we* -not room enough in the dressing room to leave them behind him. For an anti-climactic finish, the girl, holding by her teeth to a halter around the man's neck, swings rapidly about almost horizontally in the air. This should be the finish, for the final trick, that of the girl carrying the man off the stage partly supporting him on her hip, makes a poor ending for the good work done.ahead of it. The act with sparkling apparatus ought to find a place on the Rood time. In the cheaper class of houses it should become a feature number. Sime. Mario Pftlt*n. Imitation* ao Mins.; PnU Stage. Colonial. As if we didn't have imitators, mimics and impersonators in plenteous profusion right here in our midst, they have gone far afield in foreign lands to bag others for our entertainment. In appearance and general get-up of person and presentation Miss Dainton closely resembles Cissy Loftus. But there the likeness ceases. Her effort to show forth Eva Tanguay was painful. Miss Dainton started with Anna Held, by far the best thing in her series. Her "suggestion" of the little star was really a startler. It prepared the audience to expect a good deal, and the subsequent proceedings came as a shock. In succession she "did" a miscellaneous collection of others, who would have been only vaguely recognizable but for the an- nouncements. The list has been poorly selected for use before a vaudeville audi- ence in New York. Nevertheless, and in spite of all which Miss Dainton's efforts were greeted with a fair amount of ap- plause, thus proving that the imitation thing is still right along with the dear old flag and "song plugging" as an easy applause getter. Ruth. Louis Calvert. "Ezra Solomon" (Dramatic). Palace, London. The little playlet which Louis Calvert, a legitimate, is playing at the Palace this week., deals. wiU^ the Hebrews and their treatment in Russia. Calvert, the old Hebrew in the piece, who has an audience with Prince Saratoff to plead for his peo- ple's rights, proves himself an actor far above the average in the halls at present. The act is built on one situation. The Hebrew must plead his cause in one word only to the Prince. If he says more than that, he will be thrown off the Prince's estates. It is very well worked up. When the Prince asks what he would have him do at the council meeting or, rather, what the Hebrew demanded of him at that meeting, the one word answered is "Silence." It is understood the Prince is the sole objector of the four councilors against granting equality to the Hebrews in Russia, and if he does not speak at the meeting the Hebrews will be granted their requests. The sketch was very successful Monday night. William Haviland does well as the Prince, and the other two in the cast, Lucille Caine and Sebastian Smith, were well received. Hammond and Forester, Paul Stevenson and the Three Keltons have been engaged for the Anna Eva Fay road show, which will be out for ten weeks. Creatore, at one time a premiere dancer at the Metropolitan Opera House, has an elaborately gotten up.dancing act. she in- tends presenting hereabout. Since premi- ering, Creatore (if the name is spelled that way), has been living in the west at some place called Ottawa in some State called Illinois. The noise of the 12 o'clock train on the Illinois Central rushing through tin town once daily reminded the dancer of Broadway, so she has come back. Ina Claire. Singing Comedienne. 13 Mian.; One. American. Ina Claire is sweet and winsome look- ing and youthful. That's nearly always about sixty per cent, of the vaudeville battle for females, these necessary at- tributes to the "single woman act" com- posing the prescription as a rule for "mag- netism" or "personality." Miss Claire has played about outside New York. This is her first local showing. She is listed as an impersonator, with Harry Lauder and Eva Tanguay mentioned on the pro- gram. But Lauder was shown Monday. In it, as the Scotchman singing "She's Ma Daisy," Miss Claire executed the imi- tation in costume as well as it has been done, and one might say, without con- sidering the vocal resemblance (which Miss Claire cannot secure) as well as it could be. 6he scored immensely with this. Opening the girl sang of "Barney McQee" very prettily, with a nice brogue and had she thoughtfully worn a green dress while warbling the number, Ina would have looked a bewitching colleen. She wore a handsome affair of a shade of pink in- stead. The other song, a "kid" selec- tion, with Miss Claire in a short dress, should be taken out. It is not strong enough for the others. The reason is that as Miss Claire looks a "kid" naturally, it is almost impossible for her to give an acceptable "kid impersonation." Ina will do nicely now. She might cling to Lauder only; allowing other imK&loTs to Imllate the others who have been imitated so much, and go in for simple ditties of a character nature, always careful that the melody shall be of the jingling sort with the costuming calculated only to bring forth her girlish sweetness. She is doing a great deal for a "single act" (without having come to New York from London), and Ina is capable of a great deal more. Sime. Virginia Sargent. Songs. 14 Mins.; One. Keeney's. Virginia Sargent makes an especially graceful and likeable vaudeville number. She has in a high degree the very desir- able qualities of youthful spirits, grace of bearing and personal attractiveness. Four songs make up her offering. The second and third are kid numbers. She sings both prettily, but perhaps one num- ber of that sort would be enough. If Miss Sargent could secure a selection or two with just the right flavor of spice In the lyrics, she would be "made." She can handle songs in neat, snappy style, and her getting there is merely a matter of fixing upon the right line of snaftsfasi. Her present material is a bit conventional. The costume scheme is attractive and neat (she makes two quick changes), but there is no novelty. A novel character num- ber with a touch of subdued comedy would do wonders in brightening up the routine. Rush. Campbell and Barber. Comedy Bicycle. 13 Mins.; Full Stage. American. An act made new in Europe by two American riders, forming a partnership over there, had its first home showing Monday at the American. The comedian is Campbell, formerly of Campbell and Johnson* While in this c ountry with that team, Mr. Campbell became noted for at- tempting to secure attendance at a hos- pital through turning a somersault from the staxe to an orchestra aisle during each performance. In the present bicycle torn, Campbell is acekteg the doctor through other means, almenVWtain to assist him in time. He in si "Jimmy Rice" awheel, making all kinds and manner of falls while on the bicycle, with new ideas for comedy astride, and brings the act into large prominence ,aa a comedy number. Not an inconsiderable part of new fun for a wheel-comedian is that obtained by Mr. Campbell from a step-ladder during his maneuvers on it, man and feet-haul- ing a stage hand. And Qlory Be, Camp- bell is another who has found something different to do with the chair he jumps over with and lands on. Instead of seat- ing himself on it When landing, Mr. Camp- bell is standing ujxm it. Everyone in the house knew the *>ld trick so thoroughly, the new was recognized and applauded at once. Dai n u is<«he "straight" rider, up to date with his tricks, of good appearance and a skillful worker, doing a nice single around the handle bars anji rjglngJhack- wards from the kind wheel while rapidly revolving the front; also reversing the style in this trie*, one of the latest in use. The laughs And the applause gained by Campbell and.Barber Monday evening placed them in the "standard comedy act" class without a ojuestion. 8ime. • .*• Heverly and Lee form a new team for vaudeville and will play at Baltimore next week, booked through the Morris office. Miss Lee was formerly of Villiers and Lee. Mr. Beverly was the "Scott" of Bissert and Scott at one time. "The Hook." Burlesque. : 1 as Mins.; Full Stage. Thicd Avenue. The trial week at the Third Avenue for this attempt to travesty "amateur night" is likely to prove its last. Certainly It should. The affair is a shabby bit of comedy. The program says twenty-thfoe people are concerned. The number It an omen. Two tiers'of stags boxes are or* ranged at right and left. In one appear a rube, a girl and d mischievous boy, while miscellaneous characters (nondeeeilst would be better) occupy the others. Bo- fore this "audience" various and sundry amateurs appear. The "amateurs 4 * 1sxve every appearance of being on the level, with all that that implies of misdirected effort. The memb ers of the "audience" are quite as naively "amateurish" aa the actual performers. While the mock actors cavort about clumsily, the "audience" ventures in a half-hearted, shame-faced way to make fun 4>t them. The proceed* ings were too utterly, utterly hopeless for discussion. At the finish an impersonation of Eva Tanguay by a nice-looking young girl aroused momentary attention, thanks to a well-filled suit of tights. Rush. (fontin ihm! on puge XI.) II. IT. Fcioer will import Rudenyi and Co., a foreign turn railing their act "The l'nwcr <»f Mn<ir," to open on United time.