The evening times., 1896-03-31
REHAN AT TUB LAFAYETTE
Strong Presentation of the "Count-
ess Gucki" Last Night.
Oner OF Zenda'-"Ilis Absent Boy"
and "a Woman OF War"

Ada Rchan, rcsplendent and charming as
ever, with her accepted mannerisIS but cx-
| quisite art, came back to Washington last
| night with her companion players or the
| Augustin Daiy Company aud presented at
| the Lafayette Square Opera House n little
! comedy from the German OF Won Shorthau.
| translated and ada pied into English by Mr..
DAILY and called THE Countess Gucki."
The return OF This party or players, not
one OF whom scarcely u.ore than another
engrOsses our affections, is q token that
for seven days at least one stage is TO be
devoted 10 the best that current dramatic
authorship can produce. 1t may not DE
great the piece last night was in itself only
mediocre rc-buJ there Is INSURANCE OF H.uch
that is good, OF the stamp OF genuineness
and OF everything pure and healthy.
If you were 10 read The Countess
Gucki' you would condemn IL as a hope
lessly dull and pointless piece OF verbal aud
Incidental elaboration. The tendency OF
modem thought Ii 81 III tG De ell ancipa.ion
IRON ail accepted rOrILs. The dramatists
have been very busy freeing US from the
Old standards 50 busy and persistent ard
successful, in fact, that IiDeracion from the
new sta ndards comes with reier. The little
German play is lignt and AIRY aud unsuD-
stantIai us soap buDDie, but II has the
CONSISTENCY 10 ma aIutain It's Iorin and beauty
till IL has iioatcd away from our sight.
Though The Countess Gucki" as
story lisa giittering uonentity, tnc originator
and adapier have SO drrssed her up in
pretty speeches and geniai hufnor that
ste is auoSetnrr an agreeable lady Win
whom to spend an evening. Doubly SO
when AT her soIrte one meets the Ddly
set.
Ada Rehan seemed not to have changed
an ioia. She played young widow VINO
married at sixteen aud remained Il widow
for ten years up To the time Won Neuhoff,
with iApudent but partlonabe assurance,
won her from his own lnGe, rheumatic
Gen. SuvatscheH. Miss Rchan's widow
at twcnt y-six WAS n merry, Gever woman.
Once or twice she trernbied on the verge OF
j hoyden; Ada Is given mat way, but re-
covered hcrSc.f ana proved how fascinating
a woman may be having four years the
best of thirty, especially when that woman
Is Rehan- The story is IbOit an I'M
pccunious Official and lis friends al Caris-
bad in 1919. This put Miss Rehan into
some beautiful garments aud hlffous head
gear What did that lirst hat mean: I'm
ioi a bewitchiuS beauty and this hat can't
make any difference" or Though no
beauty I'm bewitching: III charm them
In spite or my bonnet" Was IL concession
or defiance?
The cast was very short, only ten in all.
but it was long enough to include several
of the staple favortcs OF the company ana
Introduce couple or Interesting new pco-
pie. James Lewis came forward WIN a
very round ard red face. and little hair to
shade the hister or the big eyes or Court
Counsellor Won Mittersteis, the official
" ho Iondics a s.necure AID u.Isn't ir,eiI aD!c
to conceal 1t from himself. Mr. Lewis was
q disappointment. inasinuch as he mas TOO
little to do. Mitter,teig is flnnsy part
even in this Comedians haLd>. Mrs. Gil
bert was his wife, ClemcntIna. IL was she
who kept Mi;terstcig in the background.
Tue moment she entered II WAS apparent IL
her decisive step, her short slips and the
severe lines of j face framed III cCTkscTeW
ctirls and bonnet rurflcs, that. though Nit
tersteig acknowledged allegiance 10 us
emperor, ne was in fact ruicd by ldrtdf-
Stevens
comic opera days. and when n" Is no longer
III his debutant season as Il Daiy PLAYER he
will have acquired facility and linesse
which viii maze him more at home IN his
surroundings There is degree OF hard
Ness in his style, an evidence OF tutoring.
consciousness or uncertainty. Charles
Richman manages himself much better,
but he is accustomed to legitimate drama.
Judging by his work last evening. he Is The
best leading man DAILY has had since
John Drew left. Richman has 4 magnifl-
cent presence AMI a fine mead and face. He
Is graceful and natural, and brinIfui OF
vivaCious animosity. He ought to he capt-
tai as Charles surface, If, indeed, he is
cast for this part. Sidney Herbert acted
and looked Il boy of nineteen. A wig, the
hare's foot and rouge, a slender figure,
and an elastic. weil-nlanagcd step do much
TO outwit years. An Ingenious pretty.
little German girl was Miss Helena Nelson.
This evening = The Countess Gucki' is TO
be repeated and tomorrow night. The Last
Word This is a modern play OF diplo-
matte life, and Washington in the scene of
action.
Mr. Anthony Hope and Mr.. L IL. Sothern
furnished, respectively, the material and
the execution OF a pay which pleased n
large audience 1T the National Theater last
night. One of the best things about the Per
fornance was the acknowledgment paid To
Nr. Hope by Mr. sothern after ne latter had
been tnmuituOusly summoned before the
curtain for the seventh time. That number
ufcaIisisunusuali in any washington heater
but IL was still more unusual that the actor
should So delicateiy and gracefully ignore
an acknowledgment OF his OVID efforts and
put the laurels On the brow where, as a
matter of fact. only half Of the wreath be-
lunged.
The 2 risoner of Zenda gives Mr.. Sothern
the greatest opportunity of his footlight life.
The herois just far way enough in history.
and impossible enough in fact. To become
the ideal character part Of an artist whose
greatest strength is in his ability to be
manly and To be n lover. Heretofore Mr..
Sutheru ha drafted his Men fromninetoenth
century life They have been Ia awyers. sol
diers lords and even walking gentlemen,
but they have always been uf such character
as To warrant a play on Pope : famous lines
to The effect that The greatest dramatic
study of mankind is maniiness.' Rudolph
is one of those warm. strong, brave, virie
characters whom Hope has painted with
culors hxcd with mediacva alismandmndcm
ism. and 1T is Mr.. Sothern = triumph that he
has reproduced on the stage living, breath
ing parsonage
Miss KimbalI is no less lOvablc woman
tfiau Is the s'aE tu
as was suggested i'll the account of he per-
furmance appearing in The Morning Times. |
his support has caught the infection OF Mr.. |
Sotrern s methods and gives perfect resist |
ance to his work. Miss KimbalI's e voice and
presence combine to make her just the |
woman to whom Mr.. Sothcrn should make |
love, even il it is her duty TO picture a |
wcman's acquiescnce as a foil 10 the star |
pa rt of Il man s insiStenCe.
Rowland Buekstone. Arthur Lawrence. |
Howard Gould. Morton SeltOn, Daniel Jar
raft Sn Sstl
Shotweii and Kate PattisOn-Selton were |
none the less capable artists because their |
duty was the Interpretation of supporting
parts.
In the Rentz-Santley BurlcsQue Com |
pany Manager Kernan has this week raised