Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-09-20
BOUCICACLT IN WASHINGTON.
His Wonderful Performance Here In
War Times as 'sThe Phantom"

Perhaps the mos. remarkable play that
Boucicault ever wrote was produced on the
stage of a Washington theater," said that vet
eran in affairs Of the stage, Mr.. Lloyd Moxley,
10 a writer for The STAR yesterday. 1T was the
drama called The Phantom and the great
drsmatist had the title role. At that time Bou-
cicault had but recently opened what was
known as the Washington Theater,' which oc-
cupied the building where the Theater Comique
new is. That was in the year 1861. The build
ing was rented from Louis Carusi and was
fitted up in a manner calculated to astonish
the natives at that period. No theater in WASH
ington up to that time had ever known such
gorgeousness The auditorium was uphol-
stored and the walls hung with satin and pur-
pie and cardinal velvet.
MIR. Bnucicault presented the character Of
the phantom in q manner that horrifed while
IL electrified the audience. The character Of
which he took the part in the piece was that of
vampire nobleman Repeatedly killed, he al
ways succeeded in renewing his life and diaboi-
ical usefulness by arts peculiarly his own.
Whenever he was slain be would make a dying
request to the friend he took care to have with
him that his body should be placed that night
on the mountain top. where the first rays of the
coming mornings sun would strike it. Upon
the revivifying influence Of these rays the
vampire depended for resuscitation. The pre-
seatment OF this human nightmare by Mr.
Boucicault was most horribly vivid He APP
pesred on the stage a sort Of living CORPSE
b.oodless and exanimate. So great was the
strain OF this extraordinry part upon the actor
that, after il had been performed for a while
IN Washington, Mr.. Boucicauit said to his part
ner. Mr.. Stuart: We must take this play of the
bills; II is too much for my nerves."
Boucicault conducted the Washington Thea
ter for three seasons, at the end Of which he
sold out his interest in the establishments
Many excellent plays were successfully pro-
duced there under his management some of
them OF his own writing, and he himself ap-
peared as an actor in several
Boucicaults last engagement in Washington
was filed in March, 1883, at the National Thea
ter, the play being THE Jilt." The last thing
he wrote was produced last month in New
Tale Of Coat" /. was failure and was with
drawn after one weeks performance.
HIGH AND Low COMEDY.
Mr.. Harry Rapley of the National Theater
while ago addressed a request to Mr.. Bouci-
cauls that no would give definition of the
difference between high and low comedy. The
dramatist replied:
Low comedy includes all those gro.esaue
ana humorous personages who provoke laugh
ter by extravaganza and distortion of nature
These are designed to be laughed at
High comedy Is q delineation Of the weak
nesses Of human beings-to provoke am use
inent or sympathy with lght-hearsedness and
Joyous expression. 1t includes such perso
ages as by their good humor provoke spec-
tators to laugh with them or BY their weak
NOSES invite spectators to laugh with the
author. Such Is Sir Peter Teazle, also Charles
Surface and Rosalind Examples of low comedy
are found in Dogberry, the grave diggers in
Hamlet and Bob Acres"