No. 4 finds Jack Joyce (New Acts) a monopodia performer winning the house on merits. That, naturally, makes ‘em sit up and take notice and start the femmes to wondering how do strikingly handsome a chap met the misfortune of losing his leg, but Joyce single pedal stepping with the aid of a straight crutch is sufficient to keep him busy in anybody’s theatre as long as he wishes.
Come Archer and Belford, a mixed team with a hybrid offering that walks away with the hit of the evening thanks to the man’s comedy antics. Archer (presumably) had the art of panto and mugging down to a nicety, which, coupled with his divers other tricks, ranging from tooting a sobby clarinet to performing corking head bridges, established his solid with customers.
Jimmy Fallon and Marjorie Shirley kicked the show into high again in the fourth notch. The act has improved muchly since its metropolitan premiere and is now strong enough for any of the bills. Fallon is a good comic of the “nut” type, and his Bert Gibbons imitation remains a faithful reproduction. Miss Shirley makes an excellent foil and also handles a comedy solo song and a bit of stepping that help. She looks fetching in a black lacy dress. They established themselves early.
Laura and Billy Dreyer opened mildly with their double dancing turn and were followed by El Cota, who started things off, deucing it with pip of a routine of popular and near classical xylophone selections. With horn-rimmed cheaters and a sanctimonious expression this musician hits the proper note with his delivery. He refuses to take his work seriously and gets greater results thereby. Comedy touches were added by a sign easel with blank cards and one or two comedy ones. He made a decided impression.
The laughing hit of the bill was Bert Clark with his former routine and a new partner in Flavio Acaro of musical comedy. She is a large generously proportioned woman and is gorgeously attired in gold decolette [sic] gown. Her feeding of Clark was almost a classic and he utilized her physical possibilities for roars of laughter. Clark’s travestied “swell” is always funny, and they ate up the pair at the Colonial in the next to closing spot.
Dugan and Raymond with their near flying machine, gift tree and apples planted the laugh punch for the second part of the show, appearing seventh. There are several new laughs in “An Ace in the Hole.” One came when Dugan decline the dinner invitation, saying he had a “date to go to the automat to get a ham sandwich out of jail.”The dropping of the solid “apple” brought the heartiest laugh.
Little Sybil Vane aired her big voice opening intermission and she trotted off a hit. The English lass looked fresh in a bell-shaped old-fashioned frock for her opening numbers. During a change Leon Domque had his inning at the piano and delivered, Miss Vane varied her routine with a ballad mixed in between semi-classical and operatic selections.
Interest this week was in the initial vaudeville appearance of Vera Gordon, formerly of the Yiddish stage, who offered a sketch, “Lullaby” (New Acts), being assigned to closing intermission. Miss Gordon has been a long time coming and being an artist capable of supplying a tear or a laugh, she should become a fixture.
After intermission is Fay Marbe, recruited from the musical comedy stage. Here we have an attractive young woman with the bloom of youth, a beautiful figure, alluring costuming and a “rhapsodical” personality. She opens with an introductory recitative number, then a kissing song and dance, well worked up by the pianist; then a French dialect number, after which “I Want a Beau.” While making a costume change the accompanist entertains and she returns in a dress of black sequins with crimson headdress, a la Mexico, for an alluring Spanish song and a dance then another dance. The audience recalled her several times. A word of praise for her accompanist, Tom Tucker, who never takes his eyes off her for an instant, accentuating to a nicety the phrasing of her songs and properly emphasizing her terpsichorean efforts.
Closing the first part is Nonette, violinist and singer, with Jerry Jernagin at the piano. She is popular with the native uptown, for they gave her a reception on her entrance and were apparently satisfied with her offering. Her silk cyclorama and back drop are gorgeous to a degree and she possesses the proper vaudeville trick of “getting” her listeners.
