Variety (June 1912)

VARIETY is London, May 22. Dan Quintan and Vic Richards have gone to South Africa where they will appear in the Grand theatres circuit booked by Will Collins. Sydney Hyman, whose firm owns the Empire, Johannesburg, and other proportion in South Africa, is leaving for that Colony in June in order to complete negotiations concerning the extension of their business. This has been found necessary in view of the ever increasing opposition. "Improper Peter'* the title of Monckton HofTe'e play now being done at the Oarrick theatre by Arthur Bouchier and Co. is to be altered to "Proper Peter." You see, a play here has to be either very naughty or very, very good. No half measures. One of the biggest successes in Lon- don at the moment is Marie Tempest in "At the Barn," at the Prince of Wales' theatre. The piece itself is nothing more than a vehicle for the exercise of her exceptional powers. Miss Tempest is still a great force in London. "The Mind the Paint Girl" has reached its hundredth performance at the* Duke of York's theatre. Billie Burke is expected here to see Pinero's play before she appears in the part of Lily Parradell in America. I shall be much surprised, though gratified, if Sir Charles Wyndham's re- vival of "Mrs. Dane's Defence" runs for any considerable length at the New Theatre. ' Henry Arthur Jones' play provides another example of what to expect from revivals. Very few dramas can stand the test, and I am not sure that "Mrs. Dane's De- fence" is one of the few. The thing 1b magnificently acted with Lena Ash- well in her original part, and Sir Charles Wyndham, still youthful and energetic in the role of Sir Daniel Carteret. Others in the cast were Mary Moore, Eric Lewis, Marie llling- ton, Athene Seyler and Sam Sothern. The second postponement of the Royal Command music-hall perform- ance has caused great disappointment. The affair seems to be almost "hoodooed." The first command fixed for Edinburgh last year was put an end to by the Lafayette fire. Now the death of the King of Den- mark, King George's uncle, has caused further postponement. It is said, however, that the affair will most likely eventuate before the end of June, though at the time of writing no new date had been fixed. When H. B. Irving returns from his very successful Australian tour he will be entertained at the Hotel Metropole, with Sir Herbert Tree in the chair. Laurence Irving and Mabel Hack- ney are setting out on a provincial tour in the fall. During the four months of their tour they will pro- duce four new plays: "The Typhoon" by Lengyel, and Beaumarchais' three pieces "The Barber of Seville," "The Marriage of Figaro" and "The Guilty Mother." LONDON VARIETY'S LONDON OFFICE ft OBKKN ST., LKICZSTKB SQUARE. (CABLK "JIMBUCK, IX>JH>OW. M ) W. BUCHANAN TAYLOR, »««■«*•**. (BAYARD) Mail for Americans and Europeans in Europe, if addressed care VARIETY, as above, will be promptly forwarded. When it was announced by'the pro- moters of the new Cabaret Club in Heddon street, London, that one of its attractions would be "an exotic performance in the Cafe of the Qolden Calf" the licensing authorities checked the granting of the license in order to find out what "exotic perfor- mance" meant. They have found out now and if we are to judge by the fact that they have granted the license, the "exotic performance" must be something comparatively mild. F. Owen Baxter, the English actor, who made something of a success as Dogberry in America, has just re- turned to England for the purpose of acquiring suitable sketches for Amer- ican vaudeville. Willard Hutchinson who opened at the Holborn Empire on Monday had rather a curious experience. In com- pany with Rosamond Harrison he put on "A Leap Year Leap," and at the first house he was highly elated at the success the sketch had made. Before he went on in the second house an inspector from the Lord Cham- berlain's office asked him to produce his license for the play. He was not able to do so, and he was warned that he must not play it again until he hau secured the license. As it takes a week at least to secure the permit through the Lord Chamberlain's office, Hutchinson had to withdraw his play for the rest of the week. I see on a program of a Brixton music-hall this notice: "In the event of any expression of vulgarity in words or actions by any artists, the management will be pleased to be at once advised of same." I have not registered any com- plaint to the management though I might easily have done so with am- ple cause. Of the nine turns I saw there a few nights ago, three deliv- ered material which would not have been permitted in most other music- halls. In one case a juvenile per- former, Little Jack Marks, delivered himself of some of the smuttiest talk I have heard in many a month. He used the offensive patter in a "widow" song, which has no merit outside its dirtiness. "Looking for Trouble" at the Ald- wych theatre is the veriest Kind of ultra-complicated farce in which many ancient devises are employed, and in which there is little save tne part of Macpherson to recommend it. It is the work of Laurence Cowen and Helen Gingold, who are man and wife. Cowen was at one time known as "The Lesser Columbus," and has written one or two moderately suc- cessful pieces. He recently had the honor and distinction of having a play censored, and he took an action against the Lord Chamberlain for the detention of his manuscript. Neil Kenyon's success in the piece Is purely a personal one. When he is on the stage laughter reigns; when he is off, it is deadly dull. Kenyon only con- tracted for six weeks in this piece just to set it on its feet, after which he will return to vaudeville. Although it has been officially an- nounced that the Tivoli will be closed this summer to be rebuilt and en- larged, there is now some doubt as to whether this project will go through. Dngan and Raymond have had enough. They are returning to the States immediately. Lonzo Cox opened at the Metropol- itan last week and closed Wednesday. He was doing silhouette work, and projected it after the style of Bert Levy. I hear that when Constance Collier returns to England with her husband, Julian L'Estrange, she will go into vaudeville again, and that a playlet is being specially written for her. Fred Kitchen is preparing against the time when he will be his own master. He has secured a sketch written by two Glasgow men in which there is a combination of Scottish and Cockney humor. It will proc- ably be his first sketch when he breaks out independently in Febru- ary next year. If some American manager could persuade Edmund Gwenn to take a trip to the States, he would probably make a small fortune. He is the greatest character actor in England to- day and quite a young man. No kind of part comes amiss to him. He is a veritable sensitized plate for the re- ception of characters from life. At the present moment he is playing in "The Bear Leaders" at the Comedy theatre, rescuing a by-no-means not- able play and making it Into a suc- cess. WESTERN FEMALE MONOLOGIST. A female monologist who tells Irish stories is playing around the smaller vaudeville time in New York, while her managers, Pat Casey and Ed F. Kealy, are looking over the offers from the large houses that have been submitted for her services. The girl is Mary Gray, from the west. At present the girl has the field to herself. Tom Smith, the comedian with Tor- cat's Roosters, met with a painful accident while playing the Liherty, Philadelphia, last week. Maggie Teyte. Prima Donna. 15 Mins. Alhambra, London. Miss Teyte makes her first venture in vaudeville, but it cannot be said that she is suited to this particular branch of the theatre. Her place is in light opera, and out of it she does not matter a great deal. There is no gainsaying the beauty of her voice nor her ability to sing. She rendered two songs in French and finished with "The MinBtrel Boy." I have heard the latter melody delivered with greater feeling and force. Naturally her ova- tion was great, but apart from the three best-class halls in London there is not much chance of her hittfng a high mark in the music halls. There is such a thing as being too classic in vaudeville. Bayard. Mile. Odys. "Classical Dance.** 15 Mins. Alhambra, London. The cry is "still they come." Odys would not have any difficulty in get- ting past the American customs offi- cers with her stage clothes—for the simple reason that she hasn't any. At least, they are not so many that one would notice. I'll wager she is grace- ful, and that she knows all about the poetry of motion, and that what she does is artistic. These are the only ex- cuses for nakedness on the stage. I am also willing to bet that what she does is not material to the future of vaudeville. Nude talent is at a dis- count. Back to the woods and leafy bowers, Odys! Bayard. Lennle and Hast. Comedy. 15 Mins, Chelsea Palace, London. Walter Hast and Peggy Lennle have broken out in a new line. In an Egyp- tian setting Percy Summertop, an English tourist, comes across a young person who is posing as the re-incar- nated Cleopatra. From an Egyptian guide the tourist learns that the sup- posed Cleopatra is none other than his lover and that she is indulging in a practical Joke. Then Summertop dresses himself as Mary Anthony and they both play the rime game. Of course, they find each other out, and that's when the curtain falls to the accompaniment of a love duet. Miss Lennle does a couple of songs and Mr. Hast obliges with one. Inciden- tally there is some dancing There are some laughable lines and the act passes muster for general purposes. It is a pleasant trifle. Bayard. COOPER HAS PRINCIPALS. James E. Cooper has lined up the principals for his new show, "Beauty, Youth and Folly" on the Eastern Wheel nex* season. In addition to himself and wife (Lucia Cooper) there will be Tom McRae, Walsh, Lynch and Co. in "Huckins' Run," V. E. Bestor and Nina Scamans, Robert Algier, Lottie Hlackford and a chorus of twenty-four girla. Mrs. William V. Jennings, wife of the show's manager, sailed May 16 for a pleasure trip.