New-York tribune., 1894-04-22
STAGE SENSATIONS.
"vts 1mseJvGHAM" AND MISS ROBINS
MISS olga NETHERsOLE MISS
MAY YOHT IN LONDON-LORD
ESHER AND "CHARLEY'S
AUNT"
London. April 10.

London. April 10.
The new play at the Garrick Theatre-"Mrs
/ T."ssirgham"-by George Fleming. may or may
, not revive the fortune Of a house none too sue
cessfu Of late. Mr. Iare's last venture was
failure. The present experiment has in II some
! Of the elements OF failure. II is the work OF
hand to the stage. and certainly not familiar
with the technical side of the dramatic art. The
play linlps and hats AS 10 subject. II IL psysho-
| logical which the average British audience dis
| likes and II deals with what IS euphemisticaly
called the sex-problen. hat is a problem at
which Mrs Grundy look askance. or did till
! lately. The amazing vogue OF The Second Mrs
Tanqueray" suggests a doubt whether Mrs.
Grundy is not off duty or whether she has not
gone into retirement No play has been SO
| lauded to the skies this grisly and grewsotne
piece by Mr.. Pnero; which the impeccable British
Matron. in the substantial person Of Mrs Kendall
Introduce TO you II I mistake not In New-York
Mrs Tessingham' Is in no sense a third Mrs
Tanqreray Mr. P1nero though sadly deficient.
always think in knowledge Of the world and OF
human nature. does at least, know his trade as a
| PLAYWRIGHT He IS a first-rate stage carpenter.
II he does not know human nature. he knows the
weaknesses OF a playgoing public. George Flem-
ing, though certainly not without gifts. is an
amateur all round She has sought to expound
! theory Of duty In connection with love- and
| to say what a man ought 10 do in presence Of
! two women Mrs. Iessingham and Lady Anne
Beaton, each Of whom has n claim on him OF
such a nature that both cannot be conceded.
Her hero II hero he can be called has simply
| forgotten to be of with the old love before he
Is on with the new. The situation Is something
trite His excuse is that five years have elapsed
The two women meet. The new love sides with
! the old. and advises her berothed TO marry the
/ old He does. Then they pay visit to the ex-
betrothed. Lady Anne. to whom presently
Walter. as they both call him. renews his avowal
Of love and Of passion. which Mrs. Lessingham
overhears. and thereupon po!sOns herself. With
that the play ends. If play 1t may be called. AS
an exposition OF any theory whatever or So
| luton Of any problem. II requires comment.
Miss Elizabeth Robins. the young American
actress who devoted year more to the inter-
pretatlon OF Ibsen in London. is now Mrs. Les
! singham 1t Is a part which would require a
very high order OF dramatic genius TO make It.
! I 10 not say convincing. but conceivable. Miss
| Robins IS unfairly handicapped She has truth
of feeling and she Is called on to depict untruth.
! She has freshness and an attractive individual
! ity. What these when the task set her is 10
| make too experienced and certainly on the
! whole repulsve character Ineligible and SYM
| pathetic 10 "A puzzled audience? She IS womaniy.
! Il may be bold thing 10 say that Mrs Lessing-
| ham Is not. since a woman created her, but at
least she IL not the sort OF woman most men
would 10 accept az Il representative OF her
sex When Miss Robins offered a good posi-
ton at the Garrlck. her friends thought that her
chance had come. | hope It has. but II VIII
/ hardly be found in this play. Mr.. Hare Is an
experienced manager. and the most experienced
! managers sometimes make mistakes. whether
Mrs Lessingham."-T mean the play so-cailed,-
be one OF them. only time and the public can de-
eide: or can decide to the satisfaction OF the
manager. But the Mrs. Lessingham whom MISS
Robins has TO act is mistake.
| The way Of THE Transgressor'' has proved
hard AZ the Court Theatre and he is withdrawn;
or has retired into the provinces; which Is much
| the same thing The theatre Is closed MISS
/ Olga Nethersole, whose one fine scene IN TINS
| dreary piece gave Il chance OF success, mas
| found the burden Of three dismal acts too heavy
| for her fair young shoulders II was her first essay
! I'm management II can hardly be her last She
! has made an impression which Will not be FOR
| gotten Possibly her strength was oyertasKeu'
! for she developed nervous manner very unlike
the rcpose and sureness OF style when MADE her
Countess Zic<a in diplomacy" so remarkable.
with n good play and a good part she may do
! anything.
The American report Of marriage between
r.or5 Francis Hope and Miss May Yohe is re-
oa,vad here with some incredulity. 1t may none
| tho less be true So much English news comes
| bv way Of America. especially about the English
orstocracy, Whether Miss Yohe is or Is 10
be the future Duchess Of Newcastle does not
really concern the public, yet the public, here
| almost as much perhaps. as In Newly ork' per-
ssts in being Interested In such questions Such
reports are sometimes thought to be form or
| advertisement In Miss Yohe's case the adver-
| tsenent Is not needed She has caught on
in London. She is playing Little Christopher
| Columbus for something like the 2OOth time
tonight.
The success is personal. On its own merits
! the piece OF which Messrs. Sims and Raleigh
are authors and TO which Mr.. Ivan Caryn sup
n,,ed the music would hardly have lived out
month Mr. Sims Is a clever writer when he
| chooses but he has not thought this burlesque
a good medium for his cleverness. Mr.. Carylrs
music is pretty and pleasing without being re-
markable The dressing and mounting OF the
piece re also pretty and pleasing. without being
rena rlsable The acting is what burlesque act-
ing usually IS Mr.. Lonnen. who was once
thought likely TO succeed the late Mr.. Fred
Leslie has not fulfilled that exrravagant ex-
pectaton. One Fred Leslie in a generation 10
as much as we are entitled TO look for. Mr.
Lonnen left to himself and his own devices, has
fallen into n laborious style. The dash and go
which he showed In his "Kialoe" days are
gone Nor does Mr.. J. F. Sheridan as the
second Mrs Block. account for the full houses
nightly at the Lyric Theatre.
Miss Yohe. 1t appears was not admired In
America. II that be so she will not be the first
actress to conquer her native country by help of
foreign celebrity For assume that she will In
the end find public for herself In New-York, as
she has found or rather created, one in London
She was unknown when she first stepped on the
, London stage She Is now so well known that