San Francisco dramatic review (1899)

i6 THE SAN FRANCISCO DRAMATIC REVIEW July 9, 1 910 111a 1 room, but a stretch of dark country road, the sparkling lights of a distant township and a railway station, sprawled, as they usually are, beside four gleaming tracks. Eltinge to Open Savoy The announcement is made that Julian Eltinge and an all-star bill of vaudeville novelties will make a transcontinental tour of the first-class theatres, commencing August 1st, under the direction of Rogers, Leonhardt & Curtis. It is a matter of much interest to the theatregoers of this citv to learn that Mr. Eltinge and his allstar varieties will appear here at the Savoy. August 4th. Julian Eltinge. it will be recalled, was co-featured with Harry Lauder last season. He has recently refused an offer from a prominent management to appear as a Broadway star in a new play, in August, and he is most enthusiastic over the coming record of the West. MrV Eltinge has prepared an entirely new act for this tour. His first appear-^ ance on the bill will be in a series x|f six feminine characterizations, among? which are a Colonial girl, a Spanish girl, a new bathing girl, a new girl of the Nell IJrinkley type. Later in the performance, he will present a group of classic dances, of which the cobra dance is the most fascinating. All of the star acts appearing with Mr. Eltinge are new to the West, so that the bill will be in every sense an aggregation of real novelties. The complete program will be announced in the near future. Among the most prominent of the feature acts that have been placed under contract for this transcontinental tour are the Five Columbians, featuring La Marilynn in her dancing and vocal imitations of I'ritzi Scheff. Adeline Genee, and Bessie McCoy: Riccobona's Horses, Middleton and Spellmeyer in their comedy playlet. A Texas Wooing, and Almoin and Dumont. The management is also negotiating with two other headline acts. will open his season at the Globe Theatre, Boston, on Labor Day. for an extended engagement, after which he will be seen in a few of the smaller New England cities, and the principal cities of the East until the first of the coming year, when Mr. Cort will produce for him a new play of French origin, in which he will be given a metropolitan hearing. When Thomas A. Edison, "the wizard of Menlo Park," was a telegraph operator, he cherished an ambition to become a theatrical manager, and made application to M. B. Leavitt for an executive position with one of that manager's numerous companies. If Mr. Leavitt had assented the great electrical inventor might now have been an impresario or perhaps a theatrical syndicate, for at the time he sought to enter the field Mr. Leavitt bad a chain of theatres stretching clear across the United States, and in addition was the director of a score of traveling companies. It is now a half century since this manager became associated with amusements in. America, and it is his intention to mark the anniversary by issuing a book of some 400 pages, called "Fifty Years in Theatrical Management," covering this period of his career in this country and Europe. In addition to the letter press, upon which the author has been at work for the past two years, the volume will contain about 200 portraits of celebrated persons with whom Mr. Leavitt has been associated at some time in his long and busy career. Henrietta Crosman, the talented actress, who has made such a fine impression with her newest comedy. Anti-Matrimony, goes in strongly for athletics and golf. The little lady with the sprightly manners on the stage loses no time in getting close to nature upon her arrival in any city, and the fact that she is in constant receipt of invitations to country clubs in various towns makes the indulgence in athletics simple. Charles Hoyt Found No Bed of Roses The late Charles Hoyt, phenomenallv successful author-manager of musical plays, had ever a dry, humorous and unpretentious manner of looking straight at the facts of life, himself included — and dealing with them. A voting playwright was transacting some business in the office of the partners— Messrs. Hoyt and Thomas, one morning, when details arranged, the conversation veered to personalities, the former having a desire to understand a little better the workings of professional ropes. "Mr. Hoyt. commenced the embroyo author, '^knowing you hail from a town in New J lampshire with which my own family have been somewhat connected, it sceius to me that I recognize a good many of the scenes in your musical plavs — ,)r rather what may have served as models?" "Correct." answered the author-manager. "I just picked up all the characteristic people in Charlestown and Bellows Falls and set them bodily on the stage." "I was sure of it." exclaimed his visitor delightedly, "and they are absolutely true to nature. But. tell me. in 'The Temperance Town.' that part where two men sit on logs on opposite sides of the stage, silently whittling bits of wood, and finally one looks up and asks the other. "Say, Bill, do married men live longer than bachelors?' and Bill replies, after a long pause. 'No, it just seems so.' were the originals of those, old and ?" "Now." responded Mr. Hoyt, "we're getting a little too far — some of these folks are still living, and I don't want to have their marital difficulties brought to me to. referee." "Well, shall I be asking ton much if I beg for some advice ?" urged the inquiring one. Tor listing been so successful, you can affoffTTo give it." Mr. Hoyt inquiring, "Upon what subject." was told that his interlocutor was possessed of plays that good critics spoke well of, and yet it seemed an impossibility to obtain production for them. "Well," replied Mr. Hoyt, briskly. "I went all through that stage before reaching the one where we set our plays, and I don't know that I can be of any service to you. No one ever would take any particular notice of the plays I wrote " "The managers !" gasped the astonished visitor. "Not one." said he. "Do you mean to say they let slip The Trip to Chinatown, The Brass Monkey. The Midnight Bell — — " "And all the rest of them," rejoined the imperturbable Hoyt. "So Charley Thomas and myself, realizing that we were going by the boards and not on them, formed a mutual admiration company of two, saved about a thousand dollars out of our modest stipends and then just hired our own theatre on golden promises, and brought my plays out ourselves." The result of Mr. Hoyt's policy, which brought the wealth accruing from unanimous public applause and delight in his works, requires no comment. Before the interview closed. Mr. Hoyt, with the merry little twinkle in his eye, said, "I have one very promising member among my theatrical companies, and I am considering the propriety of becoming his patron, so that he may not have to tread the lonely path to fame that fell to my lot." "Who is this fortunate personage?" was the inquiry. "Well, as yet he is hardly a personage, and then again he is. As you are aware, my Midnight Bell is running here at present, and I have a little chap employed who sits up in the steeple ami rings it every night. A lew day> since I was standing inside the box office of the Bijou Theatre during the selling of tickets for the matinee, talking to one of the men, when we heard a small voice outside pipe up. "Say, mister, do you pass de perfesh ?' Not being able to see his interlocutor, the ticket seller put his head out of the window, and looking down saw a small important looking little chap, and asked him. 'Who are you?' 'I'm de clapper -of de Midnight Bell for Charley Hoyt,' he responded with an indescribable air of importance. We were consumed with laughter which we felt it proper to smother, but 1 managed to say to the ticket man. 'Bass that professional to a box if he wants one." " — New York Review. A Gillette Stage Effect A good test of the amount of imagination put into any stage production is the tendency to continue, off stage, action in the play that is begun in full view of the audience. In Clarice. W illiam Gillette had for his principal act an interior set representing a country house, removed several miles from the depot. Remoteness of locality, loneliness of scene and .dumb country quietude of environment were essential to the atmosphere of the play. Clario? is concerned with the career of a physician who has tied from the city pursued by the idea that he is a consumptive and with no way out tor him but suicide. Mr. Gillettes' problem was how to isolate his scene. He did it by two effects. The exit of every character fromthe sight of the audience was extended beyond the reach of the outer eye to within that country best seen by the inner eye — which is the auditor's willing imagination. Thus a character would cross the threshold of the drawing-room. The heavy outer door would slam with muffled dullness. Then would be heard the sound of horses hitched to a carriage outside, pawing the ground ready to start away. Time was allowed for the carriage to receive its occupant, and after that came to the audience, not conspicuously, but perfectly audibly, the unmistakable crunching of the carriage wheels along a gravel driveway. Fast and faster but fainter and fainter the revolutions of the crunching wheels were heard — one almost counted them — until they were heard no more. After a while the audience was again conscious of the faint distant panting and bellringing of a train entering and leaving a railway station, as if far off si >mewhere on the horizon. Use was made of the significance of each of these sounds in the dialogue of the play, which meantime continued without let. But by this expert simulation of the carriage leaving for the depot and the train for the city the actual stage scene was given a solitude and a perfect isolation that no amount of dialogue could have conveyed. And in addition the auditor's fancy was stimulated to an imaginative exercise — and in his mind s eye he went a pleasant journey— that took in not only the C'olo Spotlights Excitement was created one evening last week on one of the Northwestern Pacific's ferry boats coming from SausalitO when Eddie Floyd and Thomas Phillips engaged in combat. The trouble is said to have been due to the fact that Phillips caused the arrest of Floyd some time ago for disturbing the peace. As soon as Floyd, who was accompanied by a number of friends, noticed his old enemy, lie commenced to taunt the theatrical man. For more than fifteen minutes Phillips ignored the challenges made by Floyd to "come and fight it out." Finally he warned Floyd that unless he desisted from insulting him he would have him arrested upon reaching San Francisco. This was the signal for action, and Floyd, without further delay, backed up by several friends, struck a vicious blow, cutting Phillips' lip and chin with his fist. Upon arrival on this side, Phillips went to police headquarters, where he swore to a complaint, charging Floyd with battery. John Cort announces that he will present Max Figman again the coming season in Mary. Jane's Pa, with Helen Lackaye and practically the same supporting company. Figman Frederick Cathcart, who has resided in San Jose for some two years, has moved to Oakland and says he is glad to be back again. His address is 1738 Twelfth Avenue, where he and Mrs. Cathcart will be glad to see their friends. Dates Ahead ALCAZAR STOCK — San Francisco. BELASCO STOCK CO. — Los Angeles. BISHOP'S pSTyERS— In stock, Ye Liberty Playhouse, Oakland. CURTIS ALTTEN.— Salt Lake, indefinite. HALLETT & MACKEE STOCK. — San lose, indefinite. MOROSC'O'S BURBANK STOCK— Los Angeles. REDMOND STOCK.— San Jose, indefinite. SCOTT LYNN STOCK CO.— Santa Rosa, Wednesday and Thursday; San Rafael, Friday, Saturday and Sunday ; Petaluma, Monday and Tuesday each week. WILLIAM COLLIER.— (Charles Frohman. mgr.) — En route, July 9; Portland. 10-13: Olympia, 14; Tacoma, 15-16: Seattle, 17-23 ; Spokane, 25-26; Wallace, 27; Missoula. 28; Butte, 29-30. ■