The evening world., 1894-09-25
THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR

The successful actor always seems to
have some dark and secret am
hition proving upon his peace OF mind,
and leading him to unexpected eccen-
triclties. lie grows tired Of the roles In
which the public has accepted him. lie
pines for fresh fields and there IL no
reasoning with him until he has tried
them. william II. Crane has made his
reputation In spick-and- span up-to-date
impersonations lie breathes the spirit
of lSg4-whatevcr that IL. He IL dis
tinctly On rapport with the times He
suggests New York and you can't even
think Of him in Standardization. lie
hasn't a speck Of Elzabethanlsm about
his constitution.
Yet Mr. Crane appeared as Falstafi
in THE Merry Wives OF Windsor" at the
Star Theatre last night. and the laughing
nineteenth century lads who found his
Hannibal Rivers so excrutiatingly funny
went to gee what this Shakespcarlan
outburst meant. They saw the comedian
padded out to an almost apopleCtiC
obesity: his face made up TO look ex-
cessivey scrofulous and ugly, and his
costume that Of the fifteenth century.
/ They didn't care a snap for the long
TRADE on the programme that explained
why Crane dressed his characters In
the clothes OF the fifteenth rather than
In those of the traditional seventeenth
century. Perhaps they wished that he
could have discovered some equally
plausible reasons for nineteenth century
! garbs. In spite OF his disguise, Crane
as quite unconcerted His peculartics
cropped up every moment He intro
duced his Senator chuckle and his
ION Probation laugh. His was not the
round and paunch-born jollity that we
associate with Shakespeare's fat come
/ dams
"The Merry wives Of Windsor" Is not
an edifying play. 1T is coarseness, with
out the necessary sugar coating In
which playwrights of to-day envelop
their little naughty quips. Falstaff' 2
amours with Mistress Page and Mistress
Ford are. Of course. no more glaring
than those which we enjoy in the thea
| tres OF now. but they are set forth so
very frankly. and their brutality Is abb
solutely unalloyed. THE Merry Wives
OF Windsor" Is a very probable play
to read-lke a good many other Shakes
pearian efforts-but there Is nothing to
excuse its presentation on the stage
The production to-day Is merely due to
rampant spirit of humbug and ny.
pochrisy. Good people, who would never
! forgive a modern author for the clothes.
basket episode. are afraid to expires,
their opinions when Shakespeare is an
nounced as the authority for the Incl
dent. The bump of excessive veneratior
sometimes leads its possessor in un
oanny avenues.
Mr.. Crane treats 1.-THE Merry Wive
OF Windsor" very reverently. 1t Il
beautifully mounted, and the scene
representing Ye Garter Inn, Frogmore
and Ford's house are extremely hand
some. His company. however. was no
at ease In the comedy. Miss Ffolliot
Paget was perhaps the most pictur
esque and eloquent member OF the cast
Her diction was excellent and she di
not seem to be out OF place. Miss Lizzi
Hudson Collier suggested modern dres
and modern manners, and you coul
scarcely realize that she was Mistres
Page. Joseph Wheelock, jr., was yer
funny ms Abraham Slender, but
spoke with a New England instead I
An Old England accent. Orrin Johi
son, as Master Ford, was as vigoro,
as the hero of n modern five-act mel
drama. You half expected to see
, limited mail come dashing on in ord
. that he might rescue somebody fro
. impending death. Percy Brooke W.
irritatinRly elaborate as DIR. Caius. Mi
Anne O'Neill was pretty and effecti'
= as sweet Anne Page, and Kate Den
n Wilson was impressive AS Dan
. Quickly.
, This presentation OF THE Mer
4 Wives" however, rather disturbs one
IL. illusion. ALAN DALE