Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-02-15
ADJUSTMENTS.



4 very large house-the largest per-
haps of the season-greeted Fanny Daven-
port at the Theatre last night in her great
character of princess Fedora" Somuch
had been heard of the play and of Miss
Davenports acting and superb dressing
in this character that very enjoyable
evenings entertainment was expected.
The audience was not disappointed. The
interest did not flag from the beginning TO
the end of the performance. The applause
was frequent and hearty. At times the eX-
citemant was SO great that it could hardly
be suppressed. Miss Davenport has held
a prominent place in the theatrical world
for a long time. but in no character has
she met with such pronounced success
as i'm ssFedOra." A couple of years
AGO she was inclined to be stout,
and, while she was regarded as
a handsome woman, the suppleness
and graceful outlines Of figure which
belong to youth were not apparent. Now,
her figure is superb. 1t is one OF her
charms. 1t is as round, and slender, and
willowy as that of girl. In preparing
for her new role she must have submitted
to a thorough course of training. Miss
DaVenpOrt's support is good. her mana
ger is wise enough to know that good
plav and a good star can be handicapped by
a bad company. The play OF Fedora IS
good. 1t is one OF Sardou's BEST IL Is
Frenchy and intense. The interest IN 1t
grows from the first to the last act. The
first scene is in st. Petersburg. The
Princess Fedora is betrOthed to ''Nladi-
mir the son Of the Chief of Police. She
has been at the opera, and, having a pre-
sentiment that something has happened
to him. she seeks him in his apartments.
lie is soon brought in dangerously wound
ed. it is supposed by Nihilits. He IS not
| seen by the audience but his coucn IS III
plain view He dies and "FedOra" sets
| herself to discover his assassin. ohe
finds a clue and follows 1t.
"In the second act the scene changes
to Paris. where Fedora has followed and
tracked Louis Ipanhoff,' the murderer,
and where. to her horror, she actually
falls madly in love with him, and
he with her, she in the mean
time wondering why her flesh does
not creep and her body recOIp when
she touches his hand. But she neither
creeps nor recOils; on the contrary, she
Uses every subtle art of fascination to in
duce him to tell the story OF the assasslna-
ton. At the same hour she has stationed
the police in her garden to capture MN
and bear him a prisoner to RUSSIAN
shin. LOris'' confession reveals to her
in selfdefense, and by reason OF an m
trigue with his wife-nOw dead-whlch
turns .Fed0ra's' love for Vladimir to
loathing, and her infatuation becomes
stronger than ever tor Lofts
During the moment she remembers
that the Russian police, stationed by her
own order in the garden, are willing to
capture him as eleayes her. Meantime,
for motives of revenge, she has betrayed
to the police in st. Petersburg his brother,
who is arrested and drowned in his cell,
eliminating in another horror, the death
of .LOris' mother, who is killed by the
news. All these calamities brought
about by some mysterious woman,
who 'Loris' little dreams IS
Fedora the woman he mddly
loves. To break the news to him, and to
save herself and retain his love, Fe-
dora attempts to plead for the unknown
woman. to make it clear to the mind OF
.Loris' that her revengeful plots were eX-
ecuted before she understood the situa-
ton. She pleads, breathlessly, despair
ingIy, brOkenly in the most heart-rend-
ing manner, until his suspicious are
aroused; with an agOnizing cry he eX-
claims: You are the woman! and then
there is a terrible scene. Sure that he in
tends to kill her, she takes poison and
dies -