The Sunday herald., 1886-12-05
AMUSE NJ ENTS.

put OF MI. A. Z. dunter, inc prolific and nearly
always interesting playwright, author OF "rrince
Karl and others 100 numerous TO mention, has
becn given at tho National tho past week, by gem
orally excellent and wcll.balauced company, TO
audiences always highly apprcciatlvc II not 80 large
rs so good an attraction deserved. While the play
deals with material. tte ieyersc OF novel; they have
been rccoreGtd with such skill and originality of
treatment that the interest ofhc spectator sscldom
allowed to nag from curtain TO curtain. Incident
and situation Of more or less intensity crowd the
two tahlosuX Of the prologue and the three acts of
the play, and only once or twice are there slarlug
solecsms OF taste or probability. I, IA phN Of The
former Kind undoubtedly, ,honsh possibly the fann
Of the actors aud not he play when the love.sccnc
between NN. No,S,oH aud firi Mntop, the heroine,
is allowed to degenerate Into an uuscc,ny scutiIc
And when the samc heroine Nctotc and after her
marriage ndulrcs In unlimited vush over the long.
lost brother whom she An w doesn't know TO be
her brother we are tempted TO cNclalm with funny
little Mr. urossmllh In the "rantomine Rehearsal
"what ro,!" but in general the drama, as we have
said, is characterized by brisk movement and pow.
eriul Interest. and abOnnds In passages Of undcni.
ably clever writing. Miss Viola Allen a. the heroine
fully sustained the favorable opinions she won at
the opening OF the season, In the short.vcd ana
somewhat kleptomaniac play ot "Talked About
She has grace. sweerchs, and pa,hos, and one can't
well ask much more Mr. Atkins Lawrence as ~,
welcome to his native heath which his acting mostly
succeeded in jusiiying. The Weston Minion of Mr.
benson was busincss.lkc AMI natutalistic effort,
rcireshngly free from stage mannerism, ana the
Shdrkep Of MIR. Richardson, llfc-kc presentation
OF n too common type OF American enterprise. Mr.
Leslie Allen In his dual role OF Ndrkrord Syiecrs
and the Phiddiphid cough. Drop Nan was excel.
lent, as usual, ami the comedy OF Mr.. Hawkins as
JiiEs, the insurance solicitor Miss Cora Macy as his
fatally n, ag uat py a.
the stray lamb from the street was frcsh and anus
ing The heroine OF the prologue was lncontcsihly
Miss Mabel, who Is nearly two feet tail, and whose
touching little request for the kiss which shc had
never known in all her sad little life well deserved
her recall before the foo,gnts. II Mr.. Guntcrs
play has not the stun OF which standard dramas are
made Its consideration at least is very far from in.
volvng an evening wasted.
| Albaughs was painted beautiful pca.green last
! week by Mr.. seaman and the Shune-nd-Ldirn. The
| orchestra played Tom Moore's melodies, the
"pothcen" was circulated as briskly as usual, and
| the illusions to the "dear, oud SOL" tho "sham-
rock" and the rest OF the outnt brought down the
gallery with all of their odtime uncrrng accuracy.
| The drama is the work Of another genius ami Col.
| j. Amory Knox, able American humorist and one Of
| the editors of 7erns Strings The American
hnmoris, should stick to his last-and worst. The
S'ane-nd Loicn is frightful example OF what hap
pens to him when he monkeys with the buZz-saw of
| Irish wit. For the most part the performance is
emlnenty sedattve In Its nature, except when some
unwon,ed stroke OF nanity goads TO madness. The
plot Is mostly incomprehensbe, the situations i'm.
possible, the dialogue Incredible, and the audience
might be excused for shortly becoming insensib!e oI
Invisible. The cast, which seems to have heen se
| lected chiefly for racial traits OF physiognomy, Il
| thoroughly in unison with the deadly livcliness OF
the piece. Mr.. Seaman, whose character therein
appears to be a very mild diution of the Shdu9h
| ran, breaks out In song with great frequency ant
no provocatiOn whatever, IN number OF positions
standing, sitting and lying down. lie sings three
songs on an average per act, each little more un
interesting than the last, and in them ali he clap!
his thigh and shakes his head with much appsren
earnestness. Mr.. Scanan is evidently so fond o
singing that it seems pity he cannot sing. lie is
cleverish variety actor doubt but there is abou
the same valid excuse for the existence of this pa,
that there is for his assumption OF the role OF star
The most agreeable features OF the performanc,
were the scenery and the arms Of Peggy O'Moore
| Miss Marion Warren,) who made plump and pleas
ing little Colleen The lover hero, Gerald Poper
| Mr.. DevoeJ added charm at once patriotic an,
realistic to his impersonaton by apparently de
claiming his lines with hot potato In his mouth
Mr.. Reynolds should be credited with some strong
and capable work in the third act AS iniimate
above, the play was very well put on, with the at
tenton to stage detail characteristic OF the manage
ment.
IT, AS can scarcely be denied, the stage Is one q
the greatest AMI not infrequently among the best
educators, never have educational advantages bee
!. so widely and almost universally enjoyed as Il
present. Any one, for Instance, who sat in the
: auditorium Of 1ierzog's Ninih-street Opera Hons
any afternoon or evening last week and watched tn
thousands OF eager faces keeny alive to each wor
and situation Of that mastery melodrama, "The 81
yer King" aplay as pure in moral tone as 1t is pow
erful in action, mus. have telt .he tremendous init
! ence for good evil OF this potent factor in on
modern civilization? Myriads of minds, closed b
default of opportunity, aptitude, perhaps incinI
ton to the school, the library, the rostrum OF tn
< pulpit, expand and blossom under the warming "a
: dance of the mimic scene. Unconsciously they al
absorbing the most valued object-lessons OF lif
1 manners, and morals-the vital facts Of histor.
! places, and peoples. Their mental horizon is IL
sensibly uplifed and broadened, and lives all to
narrowly cribbed, cabinned, and confined in Il
/ pent-up Utica Of the material are rraliated vii
glimpses of the hitherto undreamt of ideal.
this we hold the lower-prlced theatres are tloir
= possibly vas. deal of good to many thousands b'
; sides their rapidly enriched managers. Where ont
the visit to the theatre was to many the event of
season, now the good man cantake his wife al
little ones, II he wants to, every wet
in the year, and more likely than not 81
a 1rst-class play eXcellently rendered. Th
ia rather more OF sermon than TT
e HERALD dramatic preacher intended, but II
s text was one that had impressed him somewh
forcibly, viz. the play, and more specially, perhar
the audience, last week at the theatre above name
II "The Silver King" Is u drama whose dominant not
n are a woman's truth and devotion, n mans btt
repentance for his imagined crime, and the 1nal
q ward of virtue and rebuke of vice; and 1t M
1 FaFv l,na atI t,.t lsart IIau,,
:, Denuer, the hero, and Miss Eleanor Morett as 4
>. suffering heroine, his wife, carried the heartie
" sympathies OF their auditors with them from 4
" start. Miss M0reti Is well entitled to her dranal
y powers by right OF inheritance, being daughter
N the fayorlte actress, Katharine Rogers.
r Haswln's personation OF the Silper King can CHI
II lenge comparison with any previous assumption
the character In this city. It's widely difIerentiat
c. from that Of Mr.. Bangs, but In the murder see
r. could scarcely have been surpassed for forcci
at realism. The children, Tonina and Lily Adam
y were about the cuest little "tots" we have seen
OF the boards for long time, and evoked unbound
IN enthusiasm among the nnumerable mammas da
O. and nightly assembled The cast throughout "
No good and the scenery mostly appropriate, and
We several sets decidedly pretty and Ingenious.
a. Manager Albaugh has conferred very general a
W genuine qualification by his announcement OF
~, engagement OF Mr.. Lawrence Barrett, beRnni
ss with Tomorrow night. Mr.. Barrett has always be
de prime fay0rte In Washington, where the schola
r. hnsh and Intellectual attributes OF his impers0i
IN tions draw to hear him night after night audenc
he OF distinction not possible outside OF the Capi
We city. In his turn the eminent actor is not ms
80 sible to the esteem IN which he Is held, and M
M M than once has selected Washington as the scene
the first production OF new dramas appealing to
zee highest culture and incest critical judgment OF
re- auditors, among whom he always numbers
na names and faces most famous in national ala
no art, literature, politics, and science. lie is II
no whose reputation Is richly deserved, 1t being
~, h fruit OF fine natural powers properly directed,
,sy faithful study and honest work. Both by his !
,as sonal character and achievements he Is an homo
YER | his profession, and no American actor has do
to- more to elevate the stage and give the drama
10 proper place as an educating and refining nnue1
en- Mr. Barrett has never pandered to the taste for
nd vulgar or merltrcious but mas worked steadily
~ ward. In many ways he has done for the Amcrl
sss what Irving mas done for the English stage
y) most blasc play -goer must commend an artist "