Broadway Theatre

     This is the 205^th performance of Owens in “Solon Shingle.”

     “The addition of the ‘Live Indian’ to the regular bill at this house—which appears to consist pretty permanently of ‘Uncle Solon Shingle’—enables the admirers of Mr. John E. Owens to see that excellent comedian in a character of merriment.  One of the most unpleasant facts about theatrical success is that it generally lasts too long.  The moment an actor is popular he ceases to be versatile.  He moves perhaps in the groove that brings him closest to the audience, but it is nevertheless a bore to find him constantly remaining in that groove.  Mr. Owens’ repertoire is not very extensive.  It exceeds, however, the demands of the public.  The ‘Live Indian,’ although nothing but a screaming farce, is therefore quite an important addition to the slim bill of the establishment.  It will, probably, run for a year or two, and the jocular portion of the community will certainly do well to see it before they are too far advanced in life.  Mr. Owens is as admirable in it as in ‘Solon Shingle.’  The latter, by the way, has been, in a fashion, rewritten, and it is a point in criticism whether the large and generous dullness of the original has been fully preserved, although we are disposed to think it has.  The leading character is certainly retained with skill, and Mr. Owens’ performance of it is, now as heretofore, thoroughly admirable.”

     The Saturday matinee “closes at 3:15 p. m., in ample time for the 4 o’ clock suburban trains.”