Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, February 21, 1909, EDITORIAL, Page 6, Image 14
6" TOE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: FEBRUARY 21, 1900. B Gossip About Plays, Players , and Playhouses TILL the clamor dins In our ears s nnt the evil days on which the stags and tha ' train and Us exponents have fallen. In a chorua that la almot dlapaaonlo In tia volume and Intensity, tha manage ra, many of whom have been serious offenders In their own timet and their own war, are urging that the unmorality of eime plays now blng offered la auch aa threatens the very being of the people aa a whole. The demand for the pure and whole eorae le ao eloquently phrased that an outsider-end ene thla far from New Tor le surely an outalder In the accepted aenae of the term feel ae did Agrlppa when he poke ta Paul, "Almost thou pereuadeet me." But a little lingering tinge of doubt till hovers, the dubltable aapect being In a measure aecribable to the fact that "It was not like this In the olden days." It Is un fair, perhaps, to suspect the sincerity of the men who are uplifting their rolcee In behalf of the good that la, or ought te fee, In man kind. Bo, raising no question as to their motives, nor asking of them further pledges than they have given. Messieurs Burnham, Thompson, Klaw & Erlanger, and all their fellows, will be welcomed to the ranks of those who hare striven In the past to keep down the ever aurglng tide of evil. Maybo with their help something can be accom plished. , . Mr. Thompson, In nls article, which la republished here, refers to a number of very sucoessful plays that her been clean and wholesome, and cites for on example "Way Down East." But doesn't the real Interest In thla apotheosis of "mush" cen ter around the girl who was abused be cause she waa accused of doing wrong? She hadn't alnned, but she had the ap pearance of having sinned, and so she was driven out Into the night and the snow storm that la so realistically pictured on the stage. Yes, to be sure, the denoue ment Is a vindication of that famous old line of Hartley Campbell s, that "Rags aro royal raiment when worn for virtue's sake." And, by the way; how many of you can recall tha applause that bit of sentiment used to receiver Tha lesson Is that virtue ought to triumph. In "The Easiest Way," which is so generally denounced, tha les son Is the same, only tha heroine doesn't have the rugged stamina of her who waa driven into the snowstorm. Such com parisons might be made indefinitely, and to no especial purpose. The only question that seems to be under discussion at pres ent is, "Shall certain phases of social life, well known to exist, be offered publicly for Inspection by mixed audiences at the theaters V As this question haa been de bated time out of mind, and Is still unan swered, the present multiplication of words Is not likely to seriously affect It in any of Its several aspects. Most of tha present managerial uproar seems to bs over Mrs. Flske and "Salvation NelL" At leaat this Is the play and the player most frequently referred to. The fact that Mra. Klske's husband has Jong been a thorn In the side of tha "syndicate," and haa very recently been expelled from the New York managerial combination be cause of an unsettled dispute with, another manager over the right to produce in Amer lea M ulnar's superb exposition of the drama of sweetness and light, "The Devil," It may be that In considering the case of Mra. Flake we are getting somewhere near the fly that makes 4he ,f 'syndicate's ointment . smell bad. It la admitted", that ths opening scene of "Salvation Nell" brings before the audience a bit of life in a large city that Is not at all pleasant to contemplate, but one that all who know anything are fully aware of. Very little that Is inspiring may flow from a brawl in a low saloon, or the raiding of a brothel by the police. But the slum sights shown on the stage in "Salva tion Nell" are ot of the kind that would attract any one to enter on that sort of life. The picture Is only presented to show where Nell and Jim stsrted, and to give a background to the height to which they . ascended through the redeeming power of love. Henry Miller, who would not produce "Paid in Full" because he did not want to Stage the picture of a woman even pretend ing to barter her honor, did not hesitate to produce "The Great Divide," with its tense uggestlonof the Impending ravishment of a woman, because he eaw In it the lesson Of rsdemptlon through love. And Mr. Miller was right. "The Great Divide" haa dra matic force and Intensity, while "Paid in Full" Is tawdry melodrama, almost wholly devoid of the true ring of drama, and de pending for Its climax on the Incident to Which Mr. Miller objected. If the action Of "&alvatlon Nell" depended for its Im pulse en the saloon fight or the raided brothel, then the objections urged against It by (he managers who oppose Mrs. Flske because of her husband might convince. These points are but Incidents in the drama, pf episodic importance only, and bear but slight relation to the main story. The theme Is the redemption of the woman through the love that brought her under the Influence of religion, and then the re demption of the man through the love that brought him under the influence of the woman. If this pair had started In the up per walks of lite, and the catastrophe of the opening act had occurred In a ball room, at In "The Walls of Jerloho," msybe the subsequent course of their sslvatton aa It la worked eut in' silence and suffering would be accepted aa of a part of real life. But "Salvation Nell" la a portion of that great world that throbs and pulsatea with tha heartaches and the choked aspirations and the stillborn ambitions of millions, whose existence Is a struggle to exist, so Strenuous, so hopeless, that one whose eye are seldom If ever turned to the seamy Ida must wonder why they try to exist at all. so little does life hold for them. It Is a story with more than one moral that Is told In Mrs. Flske's present play, and the chorus of denunciation that Is aline against t is not likely to have any very serious effect, because of Its apparent Insincerity. Salome. unfortunate IdmrhiM of Herodlaa, no leas unfortunate in her lov than in having for a dramatic biogra pher Oscar Wilde, haa also been cited as an example of the decadence of our publlo wanta and taates In matters dra matic, operatic, acrobatic. Maybe It Maude Allen bad exhibited her nudity's Phryne, and Isadora Duncan had danced aa Aatarte, and Eva Tanguay had pre tended she was 'Cleopatra ean you imagine It T and Gertrude Hoffman had been billed as Aphrodite, maybe the result would have been the same. Yet thla waa not to be. Frematedt hsd la a large measure dlselosed her voluminous charms during a single performance of the Straus opera based on the Wilde drama, and Salome, poor girl, la con demned forever aa a degenerate and aa unmentionable. Such Is the Irony of (ate when it cornea In the form of sub limated prudery. la the days of Herod a aude dancer waa not a novelty. Be fore that time, for some centuries. It had been so, and It was not always looked upon aa cause for condemnation. , If the same book that first gave us our knowl edge of Salome la ta be relied upon, the nude dance once had another very direct and very Important influence) on tha ca reer of Ute Jewish, race. One wbea King Ahasuerus waa feeling bla oats after a seven-day banquet with bis no- bles, be ordered that Queen Vashtl come before him and his guests and exhibit herself. Vashtl had much more dignity at the time than her lord and master ami declined to do what Maud Allen and Isadora Duncan did for shekels in Lon don and New York, and straightway the king's anger burned within him. He took counsel with his guests and his advis ers, and with one acoord they agreed that the conduct of madams waa most undutl ful and unladylike, and that If It ever became known that the queen had refused to dance before the king and hla gueste for the purpose of showing her physical charms and perfections and had gotten away with it, not a husband In Persia would be able to dominate his household. Bo there waa nothing to do but to de pone the recalcitrant Vashti, and Esther came to the throne. It Is not known that she was asked to do the "altogether" stunt for the edification of the king's guests, but she did find favor In the eyes of Ahssuerus, and through her the plot of Haaman to massacre the captive Jews waa thwarted, and Captain Haaman was hanged on what dear old Barnaby used to describe as a "highly ornate and commodious gallows," the same having been erected by himself for the purpose of elevating Mordecal, the brother of Queen Esther. This Incident Is still re called by erudite persons who refer oc casionally to someone or something as having been hanged higher than Haaman, while the brother of the queen is brought to mind each time Miner Brown goes In to pltoh for the Cube, the miner's given name being Mordecal also. - Probably no heroine was ever set .before the publlo more nn fortuitously than Salome baa been. Coupled with the unsavory memories that attach to the name of Os car Wilde, the suggestion accentuated by the lascivious music of Straus, and ths whole exploited by sensational headline, who sought only to emphasise the libidin ous, all the poetic and tragic aspect of the drama la eclipsed by the cloud of sugges tive pruriency raised about her by . these means. Then the further fact that a host of shameless women have paraded them selves In nakedness on the stage In pre tense of dancing as did Salome haa added to the prejudice against her. When the1 What Love in NB of the poignant scenes In "Salvation Nell," Mrs, Flske's vehicle, Is the meeting of the regenerated slum girl and her lover after the ' latter haa been o released from prison. The old love ex ist between them, but for Nell not In the old way. The dialogue runs: Nell Y wouldn't understand. I pose this Is the last time we'll meet on earth, Jim! If I could only make ye see Just a little b'fore ye go! Jim See wotT Nell (softly stroking back his hair) Jim, d'ye remember how wo met each other first? Jim Dunno's I do it's a long time ' aga Nell In that little place where t worked b'fore I came to Sid's. Ye used i V come In ev'ry day an' alt at tho i same table. . After a while . I sort o' I grew f expect ye. I think I'd been cartn' fer ye a long time b'fore I knew it myself I waa awful -young then. One night ye cam in drunk. ' Jim (interrupting) Wot's tha good 0' rernemberln all that? Nell An' I couldn't help, myself, Jim. I done whatever ye wanted al . ways. 1 thought that waa what love meant! Jim I didn't treat ye bad, did IT Nell When ye hadn't been drlnkln' It was all right. But then ye drank so much! Jim, there waa once, only one time when we was really happy. Jim When was that? Nell The Sunday we went out Into the country. It was In June, an' I had a day oft I'd saved up fer weeks t' get a new hat. an' I thought It waa awful stylish. We took cur dinner with us an' we went across the river an' got a trolley goln' way Into the country! D'ye know, Jim, It waa the first time I'd pver been out there. You remember that big tree where we had our dinner? An' how ye drama Is given Its rightful place in litera ture, It will be found high among the achievements of the masters. Wilde Is among tha best of modern writers. His style is almost perfect, hla Imagery a wonderful and his poetry la magnificent In "Salome" ha sets forth the tragedy of a girl's first love, and the poignancy of IU disappointment. Salome la a princess; Im perious, willful, headstrong In all things, beautiful and sought after by many lovers. But she turns in disgust from the men of the court. They are to her coarse and bestial, and she will have none of them. Wilde make this very clear In his drama. She knows of Jokanaan only as aha has heard of the prophet who has been Im prisoned by her uncle, the tetrarch. She knows ha la brave because ha has pe.su tea la denouncing her mother even In the pres ence of death. Her girlish curiosity prompts her to demand that h be brought before her. When he Is produced In re sponse to her whim, by a soldier who knows no other law than the wish of the princess, the sees a being different from any she has even known. His faoe, his form, his voice, everything Is different from those sensuous men and women she has been accustomed to meet at the pal ace. Physically, at least, shs la pure, for she Is still uncontamlnated by the sin of the court. Sne Is piqued by the prophet's appearance, and then attracted. He re pulses her, and the physical attraction, sud denly sprung Into life, sinks before the anger that Is aroused by the thought that this man would not suffer her, whom so many great and nobis yearned for, to even touch him. She Is reflecting on this In sult, turning over schemes for revenge, when Herod's fancy, stlried by trong drink, turns to her. The tetrarch asks her to dance and promises a reward. Sa lome sees her opportunity, and proceeds to bind ths king hard and fast. Human life is held very cheap to her, and If she can get the head of this man she will kiss his Hps If she likes. Her dance before Herod Is not ths dance of lascivious passion, but an expression of exuberant exultation at the thought of how she will have ber way with Jokanaan aud of the surprise waiting for Herod when ahe demands her fee. When the head Is brought to ber she is still excited from the dance, and la ber frensy she exults over the lifeless object. Sooa this mood passes, and the great wave of love that is now alive wipes out every thing else. The lament of Salome la one of ths most Impreaslvley dramatic pass age In all of Wlldea writings, and gives a new light on the Inner workings of a mind whose course haa baffled Inquire s, Salome haa done what Wilde himself did she has destroyed that which ah most desired. Her anguish, most poignant and consuming, must be the expression of the remorse be felt at having wrecked his career In midfllght by tho maddest of folly. Just as h waa condemned for a revolting deed, so ahe waa crushed betweea the shields of the soldiers, and gasped out her life at a moment when Ufa meant least to her. Tha head aceao la ajruesonia and repulsive In a large degree; so waa tot catastrophe that overtook Oscar Wilde, but 8alome'a love for John the Baptist was the first of a girl's warm heart, and her lament over hie death waa a note, the tragedy of which could only be under stood by the man whose own life had been destroyed by an act as Inexcusably foolish. Borne day the world will learn to dis sociate Oscar Wilde's writings from Oscar Wilde's misdeeds, and "Salome," freed from the Incubus of Straus' music, will be given Its proper place among the great poetlo tragedies. . THEATER MUST BE KEPT CLEAN Frederick Thompson Adda Ills Voire to the Protest. Frederic Thompson, who has risen high In the amusement world since he disguised the structures on the Mldwsy at the Trans- Mlsslsslppt and International exposition at Omaha, adds his voice to the managerial clamor against the Immoral and Impure In the drama. In the March number of Success, under the heading of "After the Balome Dance What?" Mr. Thompson airs his views In the following fashion: The regeneration of Coney Island haa been kindly ascribed to me by friends and the public. When my partner, Dundy, and I started to build Luna Park, Coney Island was referred to aa a cesspool of depravity and Immorality. That was six years ago, and for the last four years this greatest of all amusement rendevous haa been aa dean aa the proverbial whistle. For the last six years the "hootchle cootohla" haa been trying to find a resting place on Coney Island. It waa there once, but other managers and I drove It from the land of sideshows to the Metropolitan Opera house. With the help of Oscor Wilde and Richard Strauss the bare-legged dan cer made her Initial bow to Broadway In the foremost American palace of amuse ments, where, before an audience made up of the social hour hundred and the moneyed five thousand, she appeared for one con secutive night as Salome. Since that widely advertised performance this most Indecent of all Terpsiohorean exhibitions haa gone through the country like wildfire. Vaude ville haa been literally demoralised by It, and a doaen young women o Indifferent ability several of them had never been the Slums Means talked f that old man? An' me gettln' bunches o' flowers t' take home? I made ye war one in yer button hole, but ye didn't want to a bit! Why, that Sunday I never kin forget it, Jim. Jim Sure, I remember! Nell That was our only glimpse of the green fields! An' oh, how short It was! , Jim Well, we couldn't a-kept on llvln' out there! Nell No, we had t come back to work an' drink an' the city streets. Jim Ye talk's If I could help It! Nell Dear, I'm not blamln' you J'm not even blamln' myself. We was ust like heaps o' othsrs. 'Twasn't a bit our fault! Jim Well, what about it, then? Nell Do ye know, Jim, after every thin' had happened, what kep' comin" to my mind? Our day out there across the rlverl I felt, "That'a the real Jim. The other's some one else" (Pause.) An' then, Jim. I began t' love yel Jim Ye began! Nell I thought God would let me be the one to save ye. But I know now that I can't. 'Cause It's our love that stands between us! , ,-.Jlm JLovm' . ain't the , same as pray In' I Wot d' I care 'bout beln' . saved? Nll-We've lo,t ch oth" m this life, but, dear, this life ain't all! Some ay we 11 meet soul to soul. Oh, I believe It's comin' coroin' with a hallelujah that'll break . the skies! an', Jim, we'll be together always! i Jim But I want ye now I Nell (unsteadily, as she holds out ber band) Goodby, Jim, until then! Jim D'ye know wtt yer throwin' ma Into? D ye know wot I'm goln' f do? Nell I'll pray for ye And through the Influence of the Salvation Army good oomes out of bad, in tha and. heard of before have Jumped into such fame that they have for a number of months commanded salaries equal to those received by our finest dramatic and musical artists. I am not a moralist and do not wish o be considered one. I believe that cleanli ness of mind breeds the best mentality; that cleanliness of body is necessary to bring about a person's or nation's maximum efficiency In work; that cleanliness In literature and art are to a great degree responsible for all mental and physical j upurt, ana mat cleanliness In all sorts of theatrical representations, not only haa a ' preponderant Influence on the morals of a : nation, but also Is the necessary element which makes for financial success. Writing from a . managerial standpoint. I may as well boll thla all down and start by saying that I am for cleanliness In amusements because L am convinced that it pays best In the long run. , Only a decade ago tha American stage waa as clean from indecency as Coney Island is today, but during the lest several seasons ths pernicious weed of Immorality haa been planted In It and haa grown to auoh proportions that It is high time Amer ican playwrights, American managers and American playgoers were asked to atop a minute and become acquainted with what la going on. Coney Island waa not reformed from without, but from within. It washed itself as soon as It noticed the financially good j effects of a vigorous dose of soap and water. The present rapidly . growing evil practises In theatricals must be killed In the same way. If they are to be killed at all. To point what will be my argument and to demonstrate how close Is the rela tionship between tha sideshow and the theater, I beg leave to present a timely and interesting brace of facts. One is this: the Balome dsnce has done much to lower tha tone of the American stage is nothing more than the notorious "hootehle-kootchle" dance of sideshow fame, and the second Is that Salome would never have been heard of In the theaterland If the regeneration of Coney Island had not made It necessary for it to find a home outside tha realm of midsummer amusements. The conditions obtaining in certain the atrical affairs conditions which mage It possible for a half dosen almost-naked young women to transplant this suggestive dance to the most historic plsy house in America must be wrong, else they 'would not exist But they do exist. At present there are cropping up in all kinds of theatricals things similarly sordid and simi larly dangerous. The morale of tha Amer ican theater Is on ths decline. The most successful playa and tho most successful musical entertainments, not only of recent years, but of all time, have been clean. Thla la statement which goes with absolutely no uallfloaUoa or reservation. It applies also to players, playwrights and managers Just why I don't know, unless, as I said before, aleanllnesa of all kinds Is a tremendous faotor ta final auoeesa. And by. auoeesa I, as a manager, am aUU talk- Ing of dollars and cents. Klaw and Er langer" s "Ben Hur" and "Little Nemo," and William A. Brady's "Way Down East" have made more money and will live longer on the forty-weeks-a-year boards than any two cleverly written but suggestively Im moral French or English or German or American plays which you or any one else can name. "Brewster's Millions" and "Polly of the Circus," both of which I am proud to have produced, have been, are now and will continue to be, productive of bigger returns than any two American plays of the present day which deal with Indecency. Miss Maude Adams Is the great est drawing card In the whole theatrical firmament. She is more respected and is wealthier than Madame Bernhardt which does not mean that Bernhardt is not the greatest actress of the last or present gen eration. "Florodora," "Little Johnny Jones," "The Bed Mill" and "Mademoiselle Modiste" have made more money than a hundred "Queens- of the Moulin Rouge" have or will. Tho hope of the American drama rests with tho play goers, outside New Tork. Our biggest city Is partly filled with freak peo ple, who have freak religions, who practice freak occupations, and who enjoy freak meaincais. A freak play which pleases their freak fancies can be tremendously successful aa long as it remains in Gotham, Just aa the other and better kind of at traction can for there are all kinds of folk residing at the mouth of the Hudson. But the moment one of these freak pro ductions rifts Its anchor and starts out on that mysterious thoroughfare known In theaterland as "The Road," It meets a dif ferent reception. Especially is this true If it smacks of the tenderloin, the Latin quarter, or women of the half-world. Aa long nm thla condition obtains the Ameri can arama is safe. The moment the south and the middle west acquire an appetita for the bixarre, look out. To make the stage clean tomorrow we must keen It clean today. It will h fatal error to our national progress to let it reflect the rottenness even the gilded rottenness of life. Sunshine Is the lla-ht that counts. Two hours of It mean more to the world than twelve hours of electricity. Nine-tenths of the American theatar-vnn are good, and have a wholesome admiration for decent things and decent people depicted In an Interesting way. COMITfQ TO THE OMAHA THEATERS Promises of (he Presa Agent as to Approaching Attractions. Klaw A Erlana-er will offer an intercut ins- production at the Boyd theater on Sunday evening, when they will present for the first time in Omaha Edmund Day's drama, The Roundup." This play deals with lira in Arisona and New Mexico, where love, hate and revenge are fuller and freer, like the great plains which cover the land there, and where law Is lax in enforcement. Mr. Day has thrown his play into four acts of one scene each, the first setting showing the hacienda of the Allen homested In the Sweetwater valley In Arizona. Here a wed ding takes place, the occasion bringing the guests, the happy girls of the land and the heterogeneous men of tha place vau queros, in picturesque outfit, cowpunchers, broncho "busters," scouts and the officials of the country. The second aot takes the action to tha home of the bride and her new-made husband at Sweetwater ranch, the living room of the house being shown. For the third act Mr. Day has chosen the lava bedt of New Mexico, a land so bar ren and hopeless that It la known as ths "land of dead things." This bit of the "bad lands" la quite near the Apache res ervation In New Mexico and the presence of a band of marauding Indians makes a dramatic climax to the act The last scene of all presents something of the great sweep of the plaint during a "roundup" of the cattle belonging to the Sweetwater ranch. The cast Includes Maclyn Arbuckle, Florence Rockwell, Orme Caladara, Harold Hartsell, Mlnnette Barrett, Elmer Grandln, Walter Pennington, Marie Taylor. W. B. Knlbloe, Joseph M. Lothian, Fulton Rus sell, S. L. Richardson, John J. Plerson, James Asburn, Jacques Martin, "Texas" Cooper, cowboys, cavalrymen and Indians. Matinees on Wednesday and Saturday. Mr. Bothern appears at Boyd's theater Monday evening. March 1, In "Hamlet," in which play he was last seen here In con Junction with Julia Marlowe. On Tuesday evening he will play "Richelieu," and on Wednesday will bo seen as Lord Dun dreary. Thla character haa proven the most popular of any which tha great actor haa yet given to tha public and waa the rage of New York last season. To see Bothern Interpret the eccentric humor of Dundreary, as well as to witness the great est comedy character of the American stage reappear upon It, haa everywhere attracted to Sothern'a performance the liveliest sort of the theater-goers. Sothern presents this play with the original manuscript used by his father, and besides the original "busi ness" which the older Sothern had care fully elaborated, Sothern breathes into the character of Dundreary his own Individu ality. The play is given with a reproduc tion or tna coctumes used at the Theater Royal, Haymarket London, presentation, and Sothern brings here the same organisa tion associated with him during tho run of the play in New York last season. "The House of Bondage" is the new star ring vehicle of Mlaa Florence '.Roberts, who opens a three days' engagement at the Boyd theater on Thursday evening, March 4. Bhe has an excellent supporting com pany and a magnificent scenic production, "Sapho," which character Maude Leone is to portray the second week of her en gsgeraent at the Burwood, starting this afternoon, is a dramatisation of Daudet'l great novel as played only by Olga Nether sole. Sapho combined all of the attributes that go to make up what la known as a "man's woman." and yet Fanny LeOrand (Sapho was but a soubriquet) had many warm friendships among her woman asso ciates. Bo wondrous were her charms that I LY R IC TH EATReI THREE NIGHTS Sunday. Monday and Tuesday MATINEES SUNDAY""' MONDAY AFTERNOON 2:30 Two Performances Each Evening at 7:00 and 0:30 S. N. LEEK'S Noted Wild Gamo Viows taken In tha famous Jackson Hols country, Wyoming, the only genuine views of the kind In existence; a one and one-haif hours' trip through this famed oountry, (accompanied by appropriate lecture) that for natural wondera, high. rougii ranges ana wna animal lire, is love nature la us wita state, snouta Admission 25o one of the characters in tha play ssys ot her: "Artists have painted her; sculptors have modeled her." Miss Leono has found Sapho one of her most congenial roles, and It certainly Is a broad test to an actress' versatility to go from the buoyant, good- natured AU-of-a-Budden-Peggy to Sapho, the deml-mondalne. The first act trans pires at a French ball masque, snd It Is In this act that Miss Leone will wear her gorgeous crystal gown, which will radiate wun double sun-top brilliancy the effulgent rays of a specially prepared 2,000 candle- power aro light, whose entire power will be directed upon her. Beyond all doubt this marvelous dress Is the most superbly resplendent creation ever worn on any Omaha stage. The cast will be greatly aug mented and It la promised that "Sapho' will go one record aa Mlxa Leone's second successive triumph. Matinees will be given today, Tuesday, Thursday and Baturday Extra holiday matinee tomorrow, Washing. ton'a birthday. Reserved seats for the Blnpham concert go on sale Monday morning at Beaton's drug store. Indications point to a crowded house. Mr. Blspham will be assisted by Miss Allee Bsrbee, soprano, and will be heard In a program of his best known num bers. . a - - It Is announced that "Janice Meredith." formerly played by Mary Mannerlng, will be the offering at the Burwood to follow this week's big production of "Sapho." Ths former named play Is a colonial atory of love and romance and permits of some very oeautirui and picturesque costuming and will serve to display Miss Leone's talents in a line of work distinctly different than oapno. "Mrs. Temple's Telaara m." a ArnmnHi1 laugh In three acts. Introducing Miss Rose t-vant, Charles N. Lum and other well known artists, will be the attraction at tne Krug theater for four days, starting with a matinee today. The maximum of song and action crowded Into two hours and forty minutes of enter tainment space, and with Just sufficient funny dialogue to season the musical com edy broth, "The Smart Set" brings Its bat teries, charged with novel features and de lightful surprises, to the Krug theater for three days, starting next Thursday night, when It hopes to score another one of those full-fledged triumphs that have been ac corded In every city where the love for charming music and spontaneous mirth is strong enough to recognise a very superior offering. 8. H Dudley, known as the "Southern Sunny Boy," and a goodly num ber of other dark-complexioned Individuals whose propensities for laugh making are freely acknowledged, are likewise con cerned In the merry unfolding of a really funny plot, liberally permeated with oc casions for extra fine musical work. The bill Which comes to the Ornhatim this week contains several numbers of un usual interest for the lover of music. The well known baritone. Homer lAnA. with a select company In "The Opera Dinger, a little play with musio said to afford him a rare opportunity for the dis play of his voice and histrionic abilities. Kogers and Deely offer a melodious trifle, "Ths Singer and the Valet," In which Rogers provides the music and Deely the black-face comedy element. "Married Now" Is tha title of the conceit to be given by Linton and Laurence that has Just enough plot to hold together Its singing and dancing numbers. Les Amatls are four German girls who are making another suc cessful tour of America. They are mu sicians and present a program composed of piano and vocal selections for the classics. Delmore and Lee, two American gymnasts, put on their act In black and white, calling It "A Study In Black and White. " The Juggler Chinke has recently been appearing In Great Britain and returns with many clever tricks to srouse the wonder of Or pheum patrons. The "dainty arid graceful cyclist, Minnie Kaufman, will likewise be on the program. Those who mlss"tneVrand concert at the Auditorium tonight by the Philippine Con stabulary band will miss a treat. This band consists of elghty-slx trained musicians-all Filipinos and within the band there is a symphony orchestra nt wv..n pieces. This is the band that has become wona lamoue on account of the concerts given every afternoon fin t Vie. T nna Manila. Travelers from every quarter of mo iooe nave been oharmed by Its music. This band plays the mnt riirrtxuif with a finish and spirit both astonishing and fascinating. It Is to Manila what the United States Marine band is to Washing ton. The band Is under command of Cap tain Mark Hersey, a captain In tha regular army. President-elect Taft liked this band so well while he lived In Ikf Antljl mm trrtv. ernor of the island, that he has requested . w an me way to Washington 1J.O0O miles-to play at the Inaugural ceremonies on March t. The box offloe at the Auditor. turn will be open all dav 8unii n tv,. concert will begin at :15 Sunday night. S. N. Leek, the ncted wild game photo grapher of Jackson's Hole, Wyo., is In town, stopping at the Merchants hotel, "iim reports an unusually hard winter In the Jackson HoU country and that 20,000 elk are down In the valley in a starving con- aition ana that the settlers hava to guard their hay stscks from their nightly depre dations, and at present are feeding the elk by aubscriptlon, while the Wyoming legis lature is wrestling with a bill appropriat ing 110,000 to buy feed with which to re lieve the situation. Mr. Leek has 3,000 feet of motion plcttiro film and many stereoptlcon slides, that show all conditions In that country. In- eluding bands of 1,000 elk running over tne hills, deer, bear, mountain lions and other game, huntit-g and fishing views, packing horses and pack trains traveling through the mountains and fording the strcsms: geysers and falls In the Yellow. strne National park, end many other views, an in motion pictures, original with him, that will be shown at the Lyric theater with an appropriate lecture, commencing tms afternoon at 1:30. If you love nature, don't miss seeing tt.ese views. not surpassea in tas world; tnoae Who not miss seeing tnia exhibition. Children 10o AMl'DEMEm. sb m . m w loJV n Bs W Beginning Ulllgllt Vit. Mall Or .rm. with cash or money order and addressed stamped en velope will re ceive prompt attention. KLAW A CRLANCER'S Mnnwil Piwdoetloa. Giving you all the dangers, thrills and fas cinations of life In the onen. Masrlrallv transferring to your very doors that wild, exciting life of tha far West which so many have read about, but so fsw hava experlenoed. 134 People, Cowboys. Indians. 26 Horsos Prices: 2Sc. 0c. 75c. SI. SI. 50 Poiular Wei Mat. 25c ta SI 1 MONDAY ' MONDAY. TUESDAY and WEDNESDAY NIGHTS- MR. T IN RIPERTOIRR Monday Night Mr. Solbern as HAMLET Tuesday Night Mr.Sothern SLJSLrtSlrtr1 RICHELIEU Wednesday Night Mr. Sothern ftfrsSLViS LORD DUNDREARY ALB OP SCATS AND BOXES CO 4MENCES THURSDAY, FEB. ! Msil oritrs If accompanied ayehee seeapted In order reeeiv d. PHONES Bell, MAUDE LEONE wtxx, vn THESE EYES at iteit rsmroBicjLvca. aTMBSag HOLIDAY MAT. TOMORROW, 2:15.l.25c NEXT SUMOSV-MUt Leeat snd Wees Ce. In tht Celenlal Story el Int aaa lomaeei-"JAN1CI MtBEDITR AUDITORIUM GRAND CONCERT by the: PHILIPPINE CONSTABULARY BAND Sunday Night, Feb. 21 8G MUSICIANS 8G Reserved Seat SOc, 78c General Admission KRUG THEATER lSo-aSo-BOo-75o Matinee Today loo-Bso-eoo 4 EFJ&WF Matinee Today SPECIAL MATINEE MONDAY Ths Phenomenal Comedy Enooess Mrs. Temple's Telegram Interpreted by a rea east of fun maksrs headed by ROSE EVANS 3 SSK-wSMl? Thuri., Feb. 25 America's Olerersst Colored Comedians The Smart Set Xa tha Fact, Various and rrolloaosne Mnsloal Melange The Black Politician Headed by Tha Southland's i'gunny Bey" S. 11, DUDLEY 49 OTHERS 49 Coming Shore Acres THIS WEEK'S Boyd's Thsats , Xrug Theater , Burwood Orpheusa Theater The II. J. Penlold Co. wa X.BAO. otxbbs rouow, 80tTirxo orncuii Sea Our slew Torts lsases. H0t Farnaro BL Omaha. Neb. Come In and see how Welsbach Chic Burners. Omaha Chicago Film Exchange Amerloa's Foremost fflhi Beaters HT to aeo model BlAg- Omaha, See our pictures at tne Cauiersuhooe Theater. Pouglas and Itth Bis., Nebra. ka's boat picture ahow. Talking Aalm&Ud Pictures AMlKMKT. - L. sapa o a MaMnee LUMtaawiiY'ii mm i i . mm jw March 1-2-3 E. H. mm DOU3. 1506 ;ind. A-1506 (HI 1M rocoirx) TanrMPHAjrT wxek or thb BvawooD'S iraw liadiso womiv TODAY AND ALL WEEK MATrsEtl TODtT, TUBS., THTJTaa., SAT. During the First aot Miss eone will wear her famous Crystal Ctown, a glittering, scintil lating, aassling creation weighing 80 pounds. and 01. OO Box Offloe Open 2So OmZIOKTOK ftlXiarykVCAVt ADVANCED VAUDEVILLE KATTJTZa SAZX.T, tilS. STXmY WIGHT, Slid. Week Starting Matinee Today Homer Llnd and hla company In a musical playlet, "Tha Opera Singer" by Ouatave Weinberg. John P. Be,n N. Rogers and Deely The Singer and tha Talet. Harry Linton and Anita Laurence Presenting "Married Vow." Four Sisters Amatls Kaethe. Olsela, Bertha, Valerie. Baropean Piano Tlrtuosos ft Tooallsts Kalinouskl Oros. Znropsaa BOTSlty Acrobats Chlnko" The Toothful Juggling Osnlua Direct from Jbondou Muslo Kails. Minnie Kaufman Oraoa and Skill A-WheeUng. KINODROME Always the Newest In Motion Plat urea T KICKS lOo, 8 Bo and BOO. wBWSJB2Bj!SasjBJBJJSS r"SPS,Tng VHfSfW ri sr.' - r.ffftisbini ATTRACTIONS ........ 'Tho Souad Up" Mrs. Temple'a Telegram" . "The Black Bouuolaa" "Sapho" TaudsrUla Stephens l Smith TWO STORES Oa Sixteenth Street. SYZBTTHIWQ TO HI IH TVBj. VISJUsTOS ABD MATS. sot s. lata st. bos v. leth st. cheaply you can buy the Gas Co. aaajaassayeiaabaWissajsvavt, ,ajaajajaas David Ulsphnm Assisted bv MImm All... Tu.l... prano. ' "-... lyrie Theatre, Tkaraday Evs., fee. Silk .""ad seats on sale at Batou'a drug store, lltoee, l.a aad t0. fi toal MmVVMMfeBVBBaBMbSBaTaM