Variety (December 1909)

VARIETY 17 THE SILVER STAB. The story of "The Silver Star" at the New Amsterdam commence*—and ends— In the first act, the lightest of the three. In fact the first act presages a very poor show, but the succeeding two provide some good fun, the always enjoyable bal- let or toe dancing of Adeline Genee, and brings to the front Nellie McCoy. It is rather odd to see a "production" and especially a musical one produced by Klaw & Erlanger, open in "one." "The Silver Star" does. The scene is outside Mr. Wiseheimer's (Barney Bernard) resi- j dence. Through a moving picture ma- chine the snow is falling fast, but nicely dressed young fellows (from the chorus) in silk hats, along with nicely-dressed young girls (from the chorus) without hats wade through the illusionary flakes without showing any signs of wetness or distress. The whiteness of the snow- drops indicated a frost. Even Professor Alonzo Dingelblats (George Bickel) and Doctor Algernon Honiolower (Harry Wat- son) did not warm matters up with their comedy in tRis scene, though they do sufficient for the performance afterwards. About the only momentous happening was a song by Miss McCoy, assisted by Bickel and Watson. It was something, of course, when all else had been nothing, but so, it wasn't much. The scene changes to the interior of the Wiseheimer home. Here is where Genee becomes an actress as well as a premiere ballerina. Those who like Miss Genee as an actress are welcome to her. It is very doubtful if the combination 'is a happy one, and the acting injures the applause for the dancing. As the play has been built around Viola (Genee), the dancer must deliver dialog, simulate a young girl with affection for a couple of adopted fathers, and act. She also dances, and Genee can dance, though the Danish lady seems to have sacrificed much of the "classical" for the "popular." Mayhap this is a reflection upon the Americans, but mayhap if a premiere ballerina would be content with that alone, knowing she is a "premiere," the Americans would appreciate her dancing, without receiving just the inkling of an impression that "the great Genee" is attempting to push some one ingenue into oblivion. The tale is that Viola has been adopted by the 'Professor and the Doctor. Mr. Wiseheimer lost a daughter when young. The last thing he saw was a silver star around her neck. Wiseheimer has the duplicate. Viola can dance. Her foster parents are a couple of itinerant street musicians. While playing outside the Wiseheimer house, the girl is invited in. Follow the fathers. Enter Ernest Connor playing Lee Harrison. Mr. Con- nor-Harrison learns of Wiseheimer's loss and the silver star. He borrows the orig- inal and has it duplicated. Then Connor- Harrison tells the Prof, and the Doe. their daughter is Wiseheimer's girl. For $1,000 monthly Doc. and Prof, agree. Viola is presented as the lost daughter and ac- cepted. The story could have ended here for it's an open-shut that Viola is really the lost gal. Two more acts are on the program, so Mr. Connor-Harrison with the idea his confederates will not make the thou, go three.ways rings in another girl with another silver star. Jn the second and third acts the plot is mentioned now and then, feickel and Watson have a comedy scene in the second act during which F. Stanton Heck takes part. Heck is an enormous-looking fellow. The scene is based upon an old comedy "bit" from burlesque. It's old but polished up and so well played it becomes new—and funny. In the third act Bickel and Watson give their "musical sketch" to terriffic laughter and applause, holding up the show when everyone is reaching for the wraps. Watson is injected into most of the scenes. He can make comedy, and does. As intimated, one could hardly tell whether Lee Harrison is playing Ernest Connor or Connor is playing Lee Harri- son. Mr. Harrison is always very life- like on the stage. The "smooth" Connor could not well be played differently or better. The Hebrew of Barney Bernard's in this show is entitled to distinct distinc- tion. Mr. Bernard makes a clean char- acterization of Wiseheimer, a wealthy Hebrew. A more admirable Hebrew make- up than Bernard's has not been seen. "The Franco-American Ragtime," by Jerome and Schwartz is the musical hit, with Miss McCoy leading. She is a pretty girl and a corking dancer. Though the number including the chorus dance steps suggest Geo. Cohan,- Miss McCoy is breathless from the several encores. In the "Cooney, Spooney Dance" she again sends it over, having Watson for assist- ance. Emma Janvier has an eccentric role (always given her of late), and a couple of songs of her familiar style. One "They Are Not Doing That This Season" is humorous and made much of by Miss Janvier. The opening of the second act reveals one of the most effective stage settings of many a day. It is of the Grand Opera House foyer, Paris. A staircase runs up at least forty feet, the setting seemingly extending into the fly gallery. The finale of the first act is "The Living Christmas Tree," with Genee in the center as she is of the "liquor" ballet at the finale of the second act. The latter repre- sents the different drinks, mostly mixed, and is very pleasing with special and im- pressive music written by C. J. M. Glaser. Mr. Glaser conducts for Miss Genee's dances. Robert Hood Bowers is the other conductor in the orchestra pit, Which holds about twenty-eight musicians. There are a few other minor principals and a very large chorus of girls, some from the former Ziegfeld shows. "The Silver Star" has the Ziegfeld stamp of "producing" all over it. Harry B. Smith wrote the book. The musical numbers and songs are credited to their respective writers. Julian Mitchell drilled the chorus, a well-cos- tumed collection with one exception in the first act. Of course Genee "makes" 'The Silver Star" with her dances. But the company surrounding her is capable of making a musical production by themselves. Stmt. The Pollard Family closes their tour of the Kohl & Castle houses at the Star, Chicago, this week. The several mem- bers of the family will sail for their Australian home from Vancouver. (Jeorge Bromley, the manager, will remain in the States and organize other acts for vaude- ville. IRWIN'S BIO SHOW. There's little to admire in the second of Fred Irwin's shows to play New York this season. "The Big Show" is a disappoint- ment (for an "Irwin show") with the exception of "The Apache Dance" (New Acts last week). The comedy is never amusing and all formed of old material, or worked around (never very good) old ideas, like the "echo" transposed into "ven- triloquism." The first noise the audience made was when Enid Roberts (or Earl) repeated her 'Tin Soldier" song from last year, a good "bit" then and still remaining so. Miss Roberts again became liked with her "Bus- ter Brown" girls. Enid makes a neat "kid," but after her couple of efforts faded away into the chorus. About 10:25 Margaret Bennett, Harry Campbell and Geo. Baker started upon an "imaginary" Marathon. Whether they did it Tuesday evening to "stall" or whether it's there every show isn't known, but in either event there was no good excuse pos- sible, and more particularly when nothing else in the humorous line went before. The real laugh of the show—the spontaneous one—was when Campbell did a travesty on the "Apache" through leaping at Baker and catching him by the head. It only lasted a moment, but it was as funny as unsuspected—or expected. Campbell and Nan Engleton did rather well with McMahon and Chappelle's idea of delivering dialog, using a suit case as in the pair's "Twenty Minutes Before Train Time." Miss Engleton must have assiduously studied Miss Chappelle's glar- ing stare. She had it, and all the other business of the act excepting the dialog. That did not belong to McMahon and Chappelle. After the couple had won some laughs with this, Miss Engleton finished up with a long something, intended to be a dramatic recitation perhaps. Nan is strong for dramatics. The worst bump the first half received was a long-drawn-out melo- dramatic burlesque between herself and Campbell. Miss Engleton suffered from a severe cold. Maybe it would have been different otherwise, especially in her one number, "There's a Reason," where the chorus threw stingy-looking cloth balls to the orchestra—after "The Follies." There are but two comedians, Campbell and Baker. They might do better had they something to do it with, but though the program says Fred Irwin wrote the book, everyone seems to have had it left to him or herself to build up. The only thread is about a hypnotist. He was unidentified in the crowd. What little hypnotic business there is follows closely the best comedy in Pauline's act. The setting of the opening is supposed to be a Parisian cafe. It is not well set, a couple of tables only standing in the extreme rear. The second act, a garden, is much better, and the dressing in the bur- lesque is ever so much more attractive as well. Miss Bennett bursts right in the pri- mary assemblage with tights, and has two or three pairs of them at least. Mis> Bennett is no lightweight, and when at last she finally came forward to sing 'Mov- ing Eyes," fully dressed, advancing with a cheery smile to the footlights, Margaret looked very well, having herself in tights beaten a hundred ways. Hazel Sanger, another of the principal women on whom any Coney Island weight guesser would do a flop, wore lights in the burlesque, after dressing up as a "Christy" girl and singing Annabelle Whitford's for- mer song for that impersonation. Miss Sanger did a "Gibson" earlier in a black dress, nicely curved off on one side under the arm. It must have been a prize de- sign with Hazel's dressmaker, for when she wore another gown for the "Christy" the same curve had been carved into that. Miss Sanger's opening song in the bur- lesque caught an encore, and it should, for the melody listens like "The Glow Worm." Joe Hollander is announced as the writ- er of the lyrics and music. There's noth- ing really catchy excepting this Japanesy tune. Some popular songs have been med- lied in at odd intervals, and there is a chorus of about twenty-five girls, besides six chorus men, to sing them. Some new and good verses have been given "Billiken Man," sung by Harry Leeds, but the remainder of the show does not help out the songs, and it becomes harder for everyone. Nellie Thurston did an exceptionally good "mechanical doll," but received small reward. The Watson Sisters, Kittie and Fanny, look well when they are not dressed sim- ilarly. These girls dress right all the time, and spend money for clothes. All their wardrobe hit a high mark. In the olio they have framed up an octet dancing turn, using the six boys for a neat num- ber. The eight dancing together did well, closing to a big welcome, but nothing new in dance steps was shown. The best solo dancer of the crowd, James Russell, while a good dancer naturally, has no new steps. Leeds and LaMar passed through with their olio turn, having the burlesque box- ing match to close with, in which Miss LaMar's quickness becomes noticeable. It is well worked, but might be split up into rounds. Another olio act, a couple of sail- ors who were well liked, had no program mention. There may be a troupe of English acro- batic dancing girls in the chorus. A few appeared at one time as though an act by themselves. In the first part a "cissy bad man" was brought in, and "Consul" was used, but not well enough. There's so much useless travesty in the show, why could not a burlesque of the "monk's" act be tried out? Campl>ell is the Irishman, with a fond ness for "son of a gun"- used eight or ten times. Baker is a "tramp." Cocci a and Amato, who are the "Apache" dancers, have a fast dance during "Yan- kee-Yankina," Miss Amato hiding her good looks with an overdose of powder on the face that did not blend against her light- colored locks. In dressing the knickerbockers of the Watson Sisters at the conclusion of their olio act Ih» overlooked. The girls and the knicks made a great combination. Noth- ing nut tier ha** l>cen seen for boy's dress- ing. \iid speaking of clothes, someone should replenish the Tuxedos for the cho mis men. Rime. I»ttic Gilson, upon her return to vaudc- \ille at the American, New Orleans, met with so pronounced ti success that the re- mainder of the Morris Circuit will l>e given her. Miss Cilson may appear at the American, New York, next week.