Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-08-23
EUROPEAN CAUSERIE.
Max O'Rells Chat About the Opera
in London.
WILSON BARRETT ON AMERICA
The Railroad Employees Seem Like
ktngs-Car,nen and wagncr's Music
Lady DnniO and the Nobility-Nesded
Amendment 20 Marriage Laws.
cial Correspondence Of THE EVENING srAl

| COOKING around upon the brilliant
| ~ crowd at the opera on the last night of
the season could not help hoping that
~ the dead have the power of seeing some
| >S times what goes on in the world they have
left 1t would have been good TO know that
Bizet saw that vast assembly of people, who
had all paid extra high prices to hear his opera
of Carmen" sung in the original French by
| fsvorite artists; his Carmen" that failed when
it was first brought out and then lay for years
and years uu heard till poor Bizet, unhappy
and unkno wn to fame, despaired of eyer get
ting his che d @uvre produced again. His
good fairy ca me at last in the person of Madame
Pauline Lucca, and once restarted by her
this opera soon became prime favorite all
over Europe. Today there il no greater one
| with the general public everywhere, and was
not surprised that Augustus Harris chose il for
the final an gala night, nor to find the house
packed with people from floor to ceiling. so
much 80 that royal duke and cousin of the
queen, who had neglected to retain a box in
advance. had to be accommodated with a stall
| hear. and quite believe that there WAS e., 500
i'll the house. IL was such crowd as has rarely
II ever. been seen at Covent Garden. and it was
prepared to be pleased Notwithstanding tho
non-appearance of Nine. Melba, who had been
promised for Mtchucld, could long depress it,
for had we not the new and most coquettish of
Cdrmens, Mile. de Lussan. and the interest of
seeing NJ. Jean de ReszHes first appearance as
Don Jose. 10 say nothing Of the singing of NJ
Lassalle as the gay toreador?
| 1t seemed very difficult to understand how
this opera could ever have been a failure; but
| after all, Carmen il not the only stage pro-
duction that has turned from fiasco into a
| huge success. The youngest Of us are old
enough to remember the poor start Of the
| Private Secre tary." so scorned of critics; and
yet it had an unparalleled run. Since tn at we
have had more striking case still in the for
| tune of Dorothy"
wAaSER's MUSIC.
Apart from this last night of the opera season
the fullest houses have been drawn by Die
Meistersinger' aud "Lohengrin" The sweet
story and the comparative suavity of the music
are making this work OF Wagner's dear to peo-
pie who find some of his operas incomprehen-
sible. For my part own to a perfect inability
| to appreciate or distinguish tho beauties of
| 'Parsifal, for instance. but the ''Meistersing-
! ers charmed me at first hearing. 1t IS plain
! that Wagner is steadily advancing In public
favor; We are all, the French included. grow
ing to be of the opinion of Bill Nye, who
after giving the matter his mature considera-
| ton, has come to the conclusion that "Wag-
ner's music is not 30 bad it sounds" The
mistake that most of us make in the beginning
Is to expect of 1t the same effects get in
other operas. Now, Wagner proceeds by
methods all his own and it takes you time to
uhuci oidhu tHcih, W iuI Out tudt IL Is INC
orchestra which is going to tell you all the
feelings OF the characters and that the actors
| themselves are comparatively unnecessary to
the process. for they occupy much the Same
relation to the work as lime light illustrations
90 to a lecture The orchestra, as this master
uses it, gives Us an idealZation of speech
WITHOUT THE AID OF THE STAGE CARPENTER
This Is how l comprehend the Wagnerian
method Let US suppose that you are a
musician and you want to convey in music the
idea Of a man with toothache. You write for
an orchestra a composition illustrative OF the
growing pains. the twinGeings. the temporary
relief, the return Of the misery. the wrench OF
extraction and the heavenly feeling of relief i'll
turn experienced by the patient. To add to
the effect or to explain 1t more forcibly to tho
dullard, you send on the stage actor who
by tones and groaus and attitudes descriptive.
helps little. But he is really not necessary
when the writer Of the score has such mastery
over the resources of an orchestra as Wagner
has. Wagner makes you storm without
the help of the carpenter. No need for the
sheet of zinc, the cannon balls or the flash of
lime light He gives you the thunder and
| lightning, the lashlng rain and the whistliEg
wind without stage articles. In the ride of the
"Walkure" you sec with closed eyes the
galloping horses and hear them neigh; in fact
could not help feeling as | listened to this
music under Richter's baton that q lot of
horses pounding about on wooden boards, as we
get them in the theaters, would only have
shattered and spolt the vision.
COMPARING NOTES.
1t is always interesting to compare notes with
friend who has been over the same ground rs
ones self; 80 1 was eager to hear Mr. Wilson
Barretts impressions of his long tour in the
states. from which he and his company have
just returned. l found him highly pleased
with hIs success III America, but glad to be
under gray skies again. In Pueblo when he
was there with his company the thermometer
marked 1870. Their own thermometer when
put IN the sun gave up trying to register the
nerce heat and burst. Two points we both
agreed perfectly upon at once; the charming
and the wearing mono:ony of life OH the road;
the long Journeys over vast stretches of
country all alike until You so far west the
sight OF town after town built Oh the same pat
tern and OF the same material; the s0journ in
an endless succession of hotels varying a little
IN the matters of size and cookery. but all
ruled and kept III order guests included. by a
set of awe-inspirlng helps. l was interested,
too. to find that the train conductors, those
mute,
MAGNIFICENT MoNARCHs OF THE ROAD,
had awakened in Mr.. Barrett much the same
feeling as in myself. We Europeans are used
to form of obedience and Difference from our
paid servants. and the arrogant attitude Of the
American wage-earner first amazes and then
enrages Us. 1t Is novel to be tyranniZed over
by people whom you pay TO attend to your
comfort The American keeps his temper
under the process because he is eminently a
good fellow. Besides, a small squabble Is no
more in his line than q small anything else.
Tho westerner may out pistol and shoot any
one who annoys him, but neither he nor the
eastern man will wrangle for mastery.
/ am tolerabiy cool myself; but lost my
temper once. and that WAS in an American car
l was going from Petersburg in Virginia to
Washington and had comfortab installed
myself in the smoking compartment at the
back of the parUr Car. Presently in came the
conductor of The train. He opened the window
and calmly seated himself to read the news
paper. The conductor Of the parlor cur might
perhaps have had II right to use this smoking
room. though oven that doubt This man
was intruder and. as l afterward learned
had no right to be there. The draught from
the window annoyed me, l got up and
closed it. The fellow rose. gave me q mute
impudent scowl and opened it again. then
said TO him, Il don't know whether you are on
board this train TO look after the safety and
comfort OF the passengers. or purely to study
your own, but l will not have the window
open" and SO saying l closed 1t. Still mute,
he once more rose and moved toward the win
dow. BY this time my blood was up and. grip
ping him by the shoulder, l said: by thunder,
If you open that window again 1 am going to
pitch you out of it," There must have beer
something persuasive in my tone or glance,
for. still without word. he made an exit, com
pared to which u whipped hounds would be
majestic.
ON THE Road.
found Mr.. Barrett had sur rived his triumphs