The morning call., 1893-09-17
Latest Success of the
Belgian Shakespeare.
A TRIUMPH OF SYMBOLISM.
The Stage Is Wrapped in Obscurity
During the Perform
ance.

leaS et MellSanQe was presented d Paris,
l was out of town. but a few DAYS ago
there was a representation of the same
drama in Brussels, and then ! had the
pleasure of listening to the latest produc-
tion of the new Shakespeare, the name by
which the Flemish poet is known. Before
listening to the play was told by those
for whom Maeterlipckopholv is religion
that was utterly incapable of compre-
hending the genius of this great writer,
but that admiration without comprehen-
sion was possible. Seriously "Pelleas ct
Melisande" is worthy of limited admira-
ticn, but the play is more tinged with
poetry than with dramatic force.
The subject is simple and without nov
city. Goland, Prince of the house of
King Arkel, is lost in forest. He meets
Melisande. princess Of 16 years, who has
lost her crown. She weeps and he con-
scles, be carries her to the castle of the
King aud marries her. Goland'S half
brother, Peleas. falls in love with Nell
sande, sings seTeuadeS under her balcony,
and Goland, surprising the lovers in their
rendezvous. and believing in his dishOnOr,
strikes both Pelleas and Melisande with
his sword. Pelleas dies Immediately. but
Melisande lives long enough to hear her
husband beg her pardon.
Ine play Is III laCt, Eomantlc meIo-
drama, with eighteen scenes, each one
lasting not more than three minutes.
And. according to the worshipers of
Maeterlinck, the play is the triumph of
symbolism. One OF these admirers said
to me: 1.-THE symbolism OF Maeterlinck
consists In this-Ior him the passions the
characters, the action itself, in tragical
effect, have no comparison with the i'm
preston of fatality that dominates the
persOuages usually left in state of alb
straction. For example, Maeterlinck does
n OF tell us who is the mysterious unknown
thrown in our way by destiny for the pur-
pose of taking possession of our life.
This mystery gives a certain grandeur,
and because OF this mysterious grandeur
Maeterlinck is supposed TO initiate the
Greek theater." But the beauty of the
Greek plays lies in the struggle between
the will of men and heroes against destiny,
and the most beautiful scenes in 'Pelleas
ct Melisanoe" are those where there is the
most love, the most humanity.
For all of Maeterlinck's plays the stage
is in obscurity, certainly in a very din
light, and this darkness adds TO the mys-
terry. ! heard Maeierlinck's S admirer again
say: "You are prejuGiced you come to the
theater to be interested, amused, but that
is old-fashoned. We now patrOniZe a
other under the form OF symbolism. In
the new school a theater is dark wall,
behind which occurs something mysterious.
At intervals. through an opening, we see
shadow that rushes along murmuring
enigmatical words. We must guess the
meaning Melisande Is woman, or rather
love, followed by a few tieetlng pleasures
and by many lasting misfortuDes.
"She is called Melisande because she
must have a name, but that is an unfortu-
nate necessity Of the inferior art called the
thester. 1t would be much better were the
anN hAfN - in "A
phere."
Many who have carefully studied Maeter-
linck find him far from original. His repe-
titiOn of words and characteristic phrases
are like these of Schubert and Wagner.
Maeterlnck supposes that literary drama,
like musical drama, is powerful in pro-
portion to the pertinence of lis inton ations
and the continuity of its themes. But in
this musical execution of literary works
Maeterlinck follows in the footsteps of our
own Edgar Poe. THE Raven" is a success in
symphonic literature. and here Poe, with
mathematical eXactness, recalls phrases
constructed in skillful rhythm. Poe ap-
piled the same system TO some of his prose
works, and In them we find identical
words and periods invariably symmetric-
ally and despotically recalled. When
Baudelaire translated the works of Poe he
was much impressed by the resources of
this instrumental artifice, and in his turn
construction.
LA Princesse Maleine" was the first
great success of Maeterlinck, and for this
the Belgian Government gave the author
prize of five thousand francs. 'La Prn-
cesse Maleine" is q five-act drama in prose
and all its fascinations come from Its ex-
treme weirdness. The drama is filed
with superstitious, strange imagnations,
unexplained f0rebodings, and after read
ing the play one feels that he has been in
The company of gh0sts-that he has lis
tened to weeping. wailing and gnashiDg of
teeth.
LA Princesse Maleine" is a nightmare
of awfpl faneies. but it is marvellous
study of the souls inmost workings.
The success of this drama astonished no
one more than the author himself, and for
a long time he was afraid TO resume his
work. Before success came he wrote
without fear of the public, or rather.
without thought of the public, and after.
ward he feared he might write for popu-
Iarity. And the new Shakespeare" gave
us nothing again until he recovered from
his sudden elevation to fame, and was
able TO write for himself, not for th ose who
were anxiously awaiting inspiration from
his pen.
He lives quietly at his fathers home
near Ghent, and seems more than dis
pleased that he should have been compared
with Shakespeare, who, in the opinion of
Maurice Maeterlinck, represents all that
is great in literature.
Before appeared the "Princesse Ma
leine" the young author had already
written lighthouses" book Of poems in
blank verse. and Blind People," a COL
lection of dialogues; but, outside small
literary circle in Belgium. he was but
little known.
/ have a friend who recently made the
acquain tanee OF Maurice Maeterlinck and
he says the youthful Shakespeare, for he
is not more than 81 or 80, is placid,
commonplace man with no trace of in
spiration in his appearance, no sign of
genins In his face. His eyes are blue and
smiling, his forehead ordinary in breadth
and height; in all, he resembles a CON-
Portable Flemish bourgeois.
Maeterlinck will never be popular in
France, because serious French critics
strongly object to the in Introduction of Bel
gian, Norwegian and Swedish talent or
genius. when so many French writer's can
not obtain even hearing. They say
that to admire what one does not under
stand is ''snobbshness" and proof that
one wishes to be dams le train. Were the
great French dramatists to describe the
ga h.