VOL. IV No. 24

THE THEATRE:

AN ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE OF DRAMA, MUSIC, ART AND LITERATURE-Published every week from October to May, and as a monthly during the summer, at No. 42 West Twenty-third Street, New York. DESHLER WELCH.. EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.

The price of yearly subscription to THE THEATRE is four dollars in advance. The editor solicits contributions from the readers of THE THEATRE, and suggests that old play-bills, and scraps relating to the stage, notes, news and items appertaining to the different arts, would be acceptable. It is the desire of the editor to establish a widely-circulated magazine, and to further that end every good idea will be acted upon so far as possible. Care is always taken not to needlessly destroy valuable manuscript. All articles that appear in THE THEATRE are written especially for it unless credited otherwise.

Generally speaking THE THEATRE is an original magazine, but the appearance of any article bearing credit to some other publication is because such an article is thought to be interesting and especially valuable for preservation. There are two volumes of THE THEATRE every year, and these are not only handsomely bound, but are excellent reference books for the library shelf.

ENTRE NOUS.

HERE has been in no form of entertainment so much change in the last ten years, as in negro minstrelsy. The desire to outdo each other has resulted in elaborate displays of buffoonery and tomfoolery that have in them not a single touch of nature, and generally either offend or weary those who sought to be amused. The present forms of burlesque and variety entertainment are introduced upon the minstrel stage only to be absurdly acted out by players with blackened faces whose principal dialect is more easily distinguished as the Irish, when there is an attempt at dialect, or else the

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speech is in the common English. The interlocutor in the "first part" is usually entirely free from any darkey characteristics, and talks like a nimble mouthed senator. Many of the "specialties" introduced are direct imitations of Irish or German characters,in which the black face is decorated by red whiskers or a blonde wig, and not unfrequently a "ventriloquist" or an "impersonator" appears in white face. The old style "first part" which used to consist of a semi-circle of good looking "darkies" each neatly dressed in black cloth suits with a characteristic display of wonderfully starched shirt fronts and collars with heads surmounted by funny wigs of wool is almost completely done away with, and costumes fit for a fancy dress ball are shown by men who sit like so many puppets. In the old days the end men amused you throughout the performance by extraordinary grimaces and laughable side. play. Now they apparently go to sleep between the one or two commonplace songs which they give in a vulgarly boisterous manner. Most of the songs sung are by the "soloists," who endeavor as far as possible, it would seem, to make the hour as sad as possible, and the "end men " tell a few long winded stories without any attempt at dialect, and mostly on the subject of popular topics among a certain local circle of people, which are very little understood by outsiders. There is none of the oldtime repartee between "bones," tamborine" and "interlocutor." In fact, there is very seldom any bone or tamborine playing. The plantation stories have all departed; there are no negro jokes, and the whole first part consists mainly of an

attempt to tinge the atmosphere by pathetic songs and seriously stupid puns by a collection of very uninteresting looking men. This part usually ends by a pandemonium. in which most of the performers are kicked or knocked down. Then follows a few farces which are modernized burlesques in short scenes totally void of sense or portrayal of "darkey" life. This is made worse by "female impersonators who are dressed to represent more nearly the class of women who frequent concert halls in the Bowery. All the old idea of negro minstrelsy has gone. There is no more "brudder Sam" or "Liza Jane;” no more "cake walks," and good banjo and break downs, and no more comical negro airs that breathe of the hoe-cake or the cotton-field. Nature has departed and in its place has come a band of men who might just as well sing and perform in white face.

**

[RE we never to have again that quality

ARE

of amusement that produced the original Christey Minstrels-that was so successfully followed up in this country by the Campbells, Rumsey and Newcombs, Morris Brothers, Duprez and Benedict, the Buckleys, Welch and Barlow, Eph Horn, and Dan Bryant? We still have with us some of the funniest "minstrel men" the world ever saw. Sweatnam, Slavin, Thatcher, Rice, Barlow, Cool Burges, McAndrews, and a few other. not at this moment call to mind, all belong to the "old school." The first named was at Dockstader's last week, but in spite of the fact that during three minutes he completely convulsed the audience that was all there was seen of him. Dockstader himself is a prince among his craft.

I do

ND there is no man in his line of management to day who is so well fitted

to turn back to the old form of entertainment and bring it out in all its funny glory as Mr. Dockstader. Why doesn't he try it? All the old ditties are still in print and some of the best negro farces were published I believe by French & Son. There is certainly money to be made by a shrewd, careful, and intelligent manager in the establishment of a genuine troupe of minstrels. Come Mr. Dockstader! You have brains!

I

REGRET to record the death of "Carl Rankin, an extremely popular minstrel performer, He died in Philadelphia, on Nov. 25, of consumption. He was a man of good education and has made a great many thousands laugh. His right name. was Carter Rankin, and he was the youngest of the four sons of Judge W. R. Rankin, of Columbus, O., where he was born in October, 1858. He was first employed in the general ticket department of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad at Columbus. He first entered the minstrel business as bass singer for Barlow, Wilson, Primrose & West, in 1887, finishing out a portion of that season. His three brothers, Fitch, Will and Rit, formed with him the Rankin Quartet. After finishing the Summer season of 1878 with E. M. Hall's Minstrels, of which they were also interested in the proprietorship, they joined the Wagner & Cotton Co. for the season of 1878-9. At the expiration of that season Fitch retired and the three brothers begun their career as the Three Rankins, doing the musical act so well known at that time. Will., Rit and Carl were all with the Simmons & Rankin Co. in 1879, Fitch joining them as agent, At the close of that season the four brothers organized a party as the Rankin Bros.' Minstrels, which they closed after a brief season, the three Rankins going East. Rit was taken ill with consumption when