"John Harvard" at Union Hall.

The Sophomore Theatricals were acted to a full house last night. The performance began at 8.30, with a chorus of gorgeous, though needy, noblemen, who explained to music from. "Fra Diavolo" that, having been crossed in love, ruined, and otherwise maltreated, had taken to piracy to retrieve their broken fortunes; that their captain, Stubbs, having insisted on taking a ship with ladies on board, they had put him in irons, and now fresh from a ship-wreck were in doubt what to do. A solo, rendered by Weaver as Stubbs, and a chorus tune, "The Bowery Grenadiers" deserve notice. The stage business was excellent. Exeunt omnes. A solo by Dorothy Dosear's "Chanson du Colonel" came next. Then John Harvard enters. Duet, "Blacks Mantles" in which he is rejected follows. Exit Dorothy. Enter Rev. Milkweed and Cholmondely. Trio from "Erminie." Exeunt. Enter with a most graceful step. Chorus of Puritan maidens, led by Dorothy and Priscilla. Gray, Mars, Odell and Wetmore were especially charming. They must have gone to the original for lessons. Chorus, "Sam Johnson's Cake Walk," very pretty. Enter pirates, who make successful love to said maidens to a chorus from the "Little Duke." Exeunt, leaving Harvard and Stubbs to sing a duet. Erminie again. These gone, another duet by Dorothy and her mother. Cholomondeley follows, then a gag song by Harvard, to whom enters Dame Daffodil with a song from "Iolanthe," and the two accept each other as son-in-law and mother-in-law, respectively. Re-enter pirates and damsels, who sing a chours from "Ruddygore." Next in a solo, Dame Daffodil expresses her glee at the prospect of becoming "a very irascible mother-in-law," and then a final chorus from "Lorraine." This ends the first act, leaving the Misses Daffodil in love with Rev. Milkweed and Cholmondeley, and one of them engaged to the anything but consumptive John Harvard. The voices were all good, especially Harvard's; the acting of Stubbs excellent; the two heroines were sweet enough to eat. Then came a serious break in the play - the entree act.

The position of affairs at the end of the first act is this: John Harvard has denounced the pirates whom before he had intended to join, has obtained Dame Dafpodil's permission to marry Dorothy, and the pirates are just being led off to jail, where we find them when the curtain rises on the second act. The pirates behind the bars answer their lamenting betrothed in a song from Falka. The girls departing leave them to their fate. Follows a conversation between the pirates in the jail on the right of the stage, and Stubbs in stocks on the left. The captives following the directions of an oftconsulted manual, mesmerise the prison-bars and escape, singing a chorus from "Hermanie;" they leave the stage to Stubbs, who sings a gag song written for the occasion by Mr. Pepper, and after some very comic stage business exits. A second scene shows us the interior of a puritan drawing-room, inhabited by cats. Enter Dorothy and Pricilla who sing a nursery hymn very effectively, accompanying it with a very gracefully danced step. Suddenly two reservation Indians in all the paraphernalia of their lucrative profession burst in upon them and carry them off. Next Harvard and Dame Daffodill appear and discover that fact, and the scene changes to where the maidens are waiting instant death tied to a rickety stake. The braves vanish for a moment, and their victims take the opportunity to call for aid by blowing a vivacious duet on trumpets. Enter Stubs, who after comic business with the Indians rescues the forlorn females. The wretched John Harvard mean while has been searching for said forlorn females, and while he is lamenting, the successful lovers followed by both choruses appear. Suddenly Stubbs enters and resigns the claims he has on the fair heroines in favor of Rev. Milkweed and Cholmondeley, Harvard being thus left out in the cold is baited and generally derided and reviled by the chorus to a tune from Ruddygore, and at last decides to perpetuate his name by founding a university labelled with his name, everything being thus brought to a satisfactory conclusion,

The comedy ends with a chorus written by Mr. Pepper. The play is picturesque thoughout, and the music taking - so are the girls. Weaver's dancing and acting were especially good and Painter's voice was sympathetic. The heroines filled their somewhat difficult parts successfully, and the chorus in voice and stage business were excellently drilled, a rare thing in amateur theatricals. Morgan, Clark and Prescott deserve notice. Theatrical committee - G. B Painter, J. G. King, T, Woodbury; prompter, W. S. Ellis; property manager, J. P. Morgan, Jr.

CAST.

John Harvard G. B. Painter

Arthur Dontchernow (Earl Cholomondeley) D. H. Clark

Rev. Reginal Rubric Milkweed L. H. Morgan

Bill Stubbs B. Weaver

Indians H. R. A. Carey

Indians A. Henshaw

Dorothy Daffodil P. S. Sears

Priscilla Daffodil H. M. Sears

Dame Daffodil O. Prescott