Variety (April 1909)

VARIETY 13 Frank "Slivers" Oakley. -The Ball Game.* 34 Mine.; Full Stage, i *5th Street "Sliver*" Oakley, with a big reputation as a circus clown, hae been presenting "The Ball Game," a pantomime, for some time over the western circuits. Aside from a benefit or two, this is the first New York showing. A back drop shows a baseball field with crowded grand stands, bleachers and all the other requirements that go to gladden the heart of the en- thusiast. Entering in the spotlight, "Sliv- ers" secures a quantiy of first rate pan- tomimic comedy from the placing of the bases, although it is probably stretched out a bit too long. While Slivers makes a change to a grotesque baseball suit, Artie Nelson introduces a minute or two of ground tumbling. "Slivers" then plays his exceedingly funny one-man ball game. Assuming the position of catcher he plays the whole game, doing some of the clever- est pantomimic comedy work that has been seen. Every move is quickly recog- nised, and anyone who has ever been to a ball game cannot fail to grasp the humor. "Slivers" has been a close stu- dent of the national game. There isn't a pose or move familiar to the "fan" he misses. The game ends in a "kick" by the catcher, and his removal from the grounds by an officer. A drop is then lowered in three and Nelson is given a real chance to sfaow himself as an aeveamt. He turns off some routine stuff in fast order that gained him approval. Coming as he does right in the heat of the opening of the baseball fever, "Slivers" will do extremely well hereabouts. The act should be cut at least five minutes. Dash. The Vivians. Sharpshooters, so Mins.; Full Stage. Columbia. There is very little that is new to the Vivians' offerings, excepting the present Miss Vivian, a very good-looking woman, who handles herself nicely on the stage. The act goes along swiftly and smoothly until Mr. Vivian starts announcing, then it drags. There is no necessity for any talk whatever, and it should be dropped. The shooting itself is good, but there are too many difficult shots performed with seeming ease to dodge the ever-ready cry of "fake." It would probably be better showmanship to take more time and pains and miss once in a while. The playing of music on the targets caught the Columbia crowd and made the act a solid hit. Dash. Antoinette. Songs, Dances and Imitations. 13 Mins.; One. Columbia. Antoinette doesn't appear to be many days past the Gerry limit. She is a nice little girl with a nice little voice and a very good idea of a buck and wing dance. She also did imitations of Bessie McCoy and Anna Held, but Antoinette still re- mains a nice little girl. Being a nice lit- tle girl she won't complain when advised in making the change for the Bessie Mc- Coy number to remove the dress worn underneath. It doesn't look well. Dash. La Belle Troupe. Wire and Acrobatic xs Mins.; Full Stage. Third Avenue. If you should ask the members of the La Belle Troupe to describe their offering, they would probably say without hesi- tation that they were a "wire act." This would be true only in part, for the troupe get quite as much from their ground tumb- ling as they do from wire walking. The act is composed of a man, boy and two girls. The man works as a comedian, and while the comedy does not get very far, it is not allowed to interrupt the real work. The comedian makes up for his lack of fun-making qualities by some excellent eccentric tumbling. The actual work falls to the two girls, the boy figuring in a small way only. The smaller of the two girls is very attractive looking, and is on the go all the time. When she is not working she is dancing or keeping time with her hands to the music. Besides her very neat work on the wire she is a cracking ground tumbler for a girl. The larger of the two girls is the wonder. In fact her work is so good on both the wire and ground that it suggests a man in female attire im- mediately. The Third Avenue audience may not like acrobatio acts; at any rate the La Belle Troupe didn't get nearly what they deserved. The act is easily strong enough to play any of the better grade of houses. Doth, Burrows-Travis Co. (3). "A Trying Situation." 18 Mins.; Full Stage (Parlor Set). American. The Burrows-Travis Co. is indeed in a trying situation. They have ability and to spare, but they are handicapped by a vehicle that is not worth their attention. Arthur Burrows has an eccentric role which, from being of incidental importance in the farce, became the one item in the proceedings that aroused any interest. The sketch tells a very nightmare of a farci- cal story. All the stock sketch expedi- ents—the magic talisman, the quarrel- some husband and wife and the rest of the catalog are patched together to fill in the usual sketch time without sense or reason. Their singing and dancing finish in "one" was more interesting than the whole piece. The boy is a first rate ec- centric dancer, and should be given more of an opportunity to display his dancing accomplishments. Rush. Fritz's Dogs. 1 a Mins.; Full Stage. Third Avenue. Six or seven dogs make up for the lack of numbers by the way they work. The simpler routine strengthened by two or three new ones is run through in capital style. The animals require very little urging, and there is no sign of the whip whatever. A bag-punching dog and a three-round boxing bout between two of the larger canines caused amusement. A little fox terrier pulled off a couple of good tricks on the flying trapeze. The finish is a high dive into a net, also by the fox terrier. The animals are all nicely groomed and the apparatus is bright and new looking. The trainer might help his appearance by a different style of dress. The act will do exceedingly well for the smaller time. Danh. "The Six Pierrots." Songs and Dances. 33 Mins.; Full Stage. Columbia. The act of "The Six Pierrots" is simply the former offering of Keene and Adams (featured in this offering) made over, with a quartet of men added. It isn't plain just what the idea was, for the pres- ent turn is of no more value than was the two-act. The same numbers are used, with two new ones added. They are de- livered in the same manner and with the same dances. Keene and Adams are al- ways fn evidence, the four men figuring incidentally. One plays the piano through- out, which rather detracts than helps. One also essays a Harry Lauder imitation that is just as much out of place as though E. H. Sothern were to pull it in "If I Were King." Keene and Adams showed a very neat specialty at Pastor's on one or two occasions, which only needed a lit- tle dressing and fixing -up to place them in New York on the big time. If this was their idea when they produced "The Six Pierrots" they seem to have gone about it in a wrong manner. Four lay figures, a few Chinese lanterns and a poorly painted drop have added nothing to the former act of Keene and Adams. Dee*. OUT OP TOWN The Four Luby Girls. Singing and Dancing. is Mine.; One and Full Stage. The quartet of singers and dancers have three expensive-looking changes of cos- tume, but that's about as far as they go as a vaudeville act. One of the girls has a well-trained soprano voice and her solo, a straight number, went nicely. The other voices are indifferent and the series of dances in all cases not better than medi- ocre. The routine is largely made up of legmania. Some one else might do some- thing with the four sisters as an act. They look good. Ru$h. Tyler and Ward. Singing and Banjo Playing. 14 Mins.; One. Hammerstein's. Tyler and Ward have a neat, quiet rou- tine of singing and instrumental work, nicely varied. Opening the Hammerstein bill this week they were at a distinct dis- advantage, but they did a whole lot better than the usual run of turns in that place. The pair open and close with a banjo duet, and between the woman sings several of the new popular songs most agreeably. She has an unusually attractive appear- ance, and handles her songs with quiet, graceful effectiveness. One defect in the layout of the act is the habit of mak- ing an entrance to the accompaniment of chords. At the first appearance the pro- gram was the only thing that indicated the number was not an acrobatic act. The turn, however, went down as an un- doubted success. Rush. "The Mnrathon Race," a new vaudeville production by Tim McMahon and Junie McCree, is playing its first engagement at Miner's Empire, Newark, N. J., this week. Donovan and Arnold. "A Box Office Attraction-" „j, < ~ Shea's, Toronto (April 15). ' J Thursday night, April 15, James B. Don- ovan and Rena Arnold successfully "tried out" a new sketch written by Bert Levy. The material provided by the author fits the couple like the proverbial glove. The title is "A Box Office Attraction." The scene is laid in the vestibule of a music hall. Laughter greeted Mr. Donovan's sketches of the people who buy tickets, while Miss Arnold gave some excellent imitations of the different types of fem- ininity seen in the line. An excellent foil to Donovan is provided in the colored house attache who sweeps up the lobby and dusts the photo frames while engaged in a cross-fire of witty remarks with the comedian. A flirtation at the window with telephonic interruptions wsa a scream and went big. Miss Arnold is gowned as a chorus girl who has gone into society. The sketch is novel and a departure from the usual act in "one." Donovan and Arnold will use their new medium next season. Mr. Levy, whose clever drawings were the feature at Shea's week April 12, has proved equally clever as a writer for the vaudeville stage. Hartley. 1 Nellie Songs. 13 Mins.; One. Young's Pier, Atlantic City. Nellie Beaumont, prettily* robed, re- appeared Monday in vaudeville. Four songs are Miss Beaumont's contribution to the program. During one several imi- tations are sandwiched in. With another she executed a graceful little dance. Miss Beaumont should go in altogether for the talky or conversational style of song. It would be better, and make her dancing a nicer fit. She is doing very well here. /. B. PuUuki. Lillian Loo lias boon engaged for the part opposite George Monroe in the forth- coming Low Fields' production which opens out of town May 17. William L. Lykens acted as agent in the transaction. Lillyan Shaffner and Co. (4). "A Pair of Corsets" (Sketch). I aa Mins.; Three. American, Chicago. The remarkable thing about the presen- tation of this alleged comedy sketch is the temerity of the author, whose name is omitted, and the stupidity of the subject. The probable excuse for bringing the vehicle before the intelligent spectators at the American is to introduce a very beautiful and costly gown made of gold. This is worn by Mrs. Shaffner, who fig- ured recently in a divorce trial, and is or lias been more or less popular in South Side society circles. The connection be- tween the stage and the sketch concerns (he finding of a pair of pink corsets by a married man who imagines he is trailed by a blonde woman. The farce, or what- ever one chooses to call it, is entirely too blunt. Every weakness attending a dull sketch is heaped on it, and the cast is far from capable of even doing justice to it. It would not be unfair to compare the vaudeville debut of Mrs. Shaffner with the species known as the tiny grape fruit. The act played in Kenosha and other live towns like that some time ago and en- lovcd one performance at the Majestic Theatre. Now, it's through, or ought to be. Frank W'ii'*hcrg.