[New act] Aerial and wire novelty; 9 mins; full. Here is an opening act that contains enough effort of a diversified nature to make it worthy of the bigger bills. It is presented by a man and woman in a novelty of black and white design. The man opens the turn with some juggling on the slack wire and then offers some balancing. Finishing on the wire the man and woman do some floor tumbling and end with a tractor roll. This in turn is followed with a bit of chair on the trapeze balancing and finally the man hanging from the bar handles the girl in mouth hold for a whirling finish.
[New act] Eccentric Sister Act; 14 mins; one. This act opens almost as a single with the straight of the two girls delivering a popular number in strident tones. Finally there is the interruption by the comedienne, with a make-up more or less Sis Hopkins in style. There is some talk that really amounts to nothing and then another song by the straight. In this she manages to get down to the foot lights and clinch with the drummer for a kiss. Then the comic has her inning without stirring anything. A double number for the close let the girls out without any applause to speak of. The act is just a rough turn that hasn’t sufficient class for the small time around New York.
Closing, the Black and White Revue did little until the toe dancer offered her solo stepping, which was the first offering of the night to rouse the audience contortionistic dance at the final curtain of the act by this same girl brought it all the applause that it got, and the act proved the hit of the show. Without this one girl, it wouldn’t have received anything from the audience.
Gracie Emmett was next to closing with “Mrs. Murphy’s Second Husband.” The farce made ‘em yell at Keeney’s though most seemed familiar with it. Miss Emmett executed a few steps of an Irish reel at their conclusion, dancing as nimbly as a Ziegfeld pony. She has character ability far in advance of this sketch, however, which could be utilized to better advantage in a more legitimate and modern vehicle.
Hector’s Dogs, No. 2, displayed evidence of careful training in the usual assortment of tricks with a cure little poodle standing and through some intelligent clowning. Hector, unlike most dog trainers, patters volubly while putting his dogs through their paces. He’s a good showman, making several simple tricks look like feature stunts as the result of this attribute.
Powers and Saunders, two girls with sweet voices, opened with a simple but altogether pleasing singing turn. The contralto has a particularly effective method of delivering pop number enunciating clearly and giving to each song the requisite expression. An air of refinement with which the girls characterize their singing, adds much to the general impression created by their voices. They did better than good, opening the show.
Four Lamy Brothers opened with a fast casting turn. There are thrills galore provided by the routine, the final flying stunt pulling a chorus of startled “ohs” from the feminine contingent. One of the four works in comedy garb and was mildly amusing in a conventional acrobatic fashion.
George Yoeman and Murray and Volk provided the comedy punch of the middle portion of the show. Yoeman had a tough time getting started. He tried the house with everything, laughing himself when a number of his pet gags failed to connect. But the exploration was successful. The automat matter did get over, and so Yoeman specialized on it, the laughs coming easily then. Yoeman is keeping his talk freshened by little additions, and there are always a few more laughs. His mention of the Lenox avenue subway train as the “Black diamond Express” is really funny for anyone who has gone uptown on those trains. The “hoke” of the Murray and Volk act also found a true target and the men delivered a hit on fourth, following the Yoeman single.
In the next to closing spot Billy Hibbitt and Eddie Malle offered their chatter in Southern dialect. The turn suggests the old Aveling and Lloyd turn in patterned close to that routine, though the actual material appears to have been written to carefully evade using the Aveling and Lloyd matter. Hibbitt and Malle got over nicely.
Four of the eight acts were laugh-getting turns, the show ending with “Pedestrianism,” the George N. Brown act with Marian Ardell. Brown provided an extra laugh in asking for his “committee,” starting to say “three or four local people,” only he said it “yokels” the first time, and perhaps that wasn’t so much out of the way at that.
