44 
Crecetia Lorrus at KritH’s 
Cecelia Loftus, the greatest of all 
mimics, who has not appeared in this 
country for several years, comes to 
B. F. Keith’s Theatre next week at 
the head of one of the strongest and 
best balanced vaudeville bills ever ar- 
ranged for this popular playhouse. 
Miss Loftus is one of the biggest 
stars ever brought to this country by 
Mr. Keith for his circuit. For this 
tour she has elected to give imitations 
of some of the best known and most 
popular stars on the American stage, 
including Nora Bayes, Billie Burke, 
Rae Sa:ruels, Jane Cowl, Mrs. Fiske: 
and several others. One of the most 
notable features of her act is an im- 
personation of Maude Allan, in cos- 
tume. Miss Loftus’ engagement is 
positively limited to one week only. 
Another big feature of the week will 
be May Wirth, the Australian eques- 
trienne, and the greatest bare back 
rider in the world. Little Miss Worth 
is only eighteen years of age, yet she 
is the only woman who has ever been 
able to perform the feat of throwing 
a backward somersault from one gol- 
loping horse to another. She will be 
assisted by the Great Wirth family, 
including several beautiful horses. 
Boston Opera House 
Mme. Frieda Hempel, from the 
Royal Opera, Berlin, will make her 
debut at the Boston Opera House on 
Monday evening, Jan. 20, singing in 
“The Barber of Seville.” The com- 
ing to America of this famous singer 
was several tives deferred on account 
of illness. She made her initial ap- 
pearance in New York on the night 
after Christmas as the Queen in “The 
Huguenots,” and enthusiasm such as 
is witnessed but seldom at the Metro- 
politan was the tribute paid her sing- 
ing, there being curtain calls after the 
third act. 
In Boston her first appearance will 
be made an auspicious occasion, for 
associated with her will be John Mc- 
Cormack, the great tenor, and Vanni 
Marcoux, the most eminent of French 
baritones. 
When sung for the first time in 
Poston last week, Wolf Ferrari’s 
“The Jewels of the Madonna” scored 
the most remarkable success in the 
history of the Opera House and so 
great is the interest taken in this work 
that it will be sung twice next week, 
on Wednesday night and Saturday 
matinee with the original cast headed 
by M-re. Edvina. 
On Friday evening “Carmen” will 
be given its second subscription per- 
Eanes, with Mme. Gay in the title 
role. 
NORTH SHORE BREEZE 
Photo by American Press Association. 
Prince of Wales, Heir to the 
English Throne, Quite a Golfer 
HE Prince of Wales, heir te the throne of England, has gone in for 
golfing. 
He has become fairly proficient in it. This picture of him 
was taken recently as he was making a drive. 
After he has con- 
cluded his studies at Oxford the heir apparent will spend seme time 
{in sport of this kind and in travel. It is likely that he will come to America 
{n 1913 for a tour of the country. 
First Night Critics. 
In an article in the American Maga- 
zine, Walter Prichard Eaton writes: 
“The theater door man is an impor-} 
tant person on first nights, because as 
he passes out return checks between 
acts he hears the comments of the au- 
dience. His ears are wide open on) 
such occasions, and, mingling with the 
crowd in the lobby, are other attaches 
of the theater, all seeking to overhear 
the cominents, and all rushing to report 
to the manager. Not long ago the last 
act of a play in New York was en- 
tirely eabonced after the ananine nioht 
solely because the women in the audi- 
ence as they left the house, were near- 
ly all complaining of the tragic finish. 
When a piece hangs in the balance be- 
tween success and failure, when ‘tink- 
ering’ can perbaps turn the scale, these 
frank comments overheard in the lobby 
are of great importance to author and 
manager. In other cases they are a 
barometer of success or failure, though 
the ultimate test, of course, is the 
subtle attitude of the audience in the 
auditorium, its spontaneous enthusiasm 
or its coldness and signs of boredom.” | 
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