The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-06-05
SARAH BERNHARDT.
She Seems to Pass Beyond Dramatic
Perfection.
Finest Efforts Of Irving and Terry Fall
Below Her Art.

Aio hD iO'iOWo.
1t is difficult to say anything about
Sarah Bernhardt without careful refiec-
tion over the choice OF words. To the
artistic sense she seems to pass beyond
dramatic perfection and 10 create new
!. school in acting of her own. During the
past fortnight we have had reasonabl bic
cause TO applaud Henry Irving and Ellen
Terry, who arc players of great natural
gifts, technique and intelligence. But
even in their finest efforts these English
actors fall far below the splerdor OF the
French woman's achievements. Ii APP
pears inconeeivable that anybody should
go 10 the Irving performances and neglect
those OF Bernha-dt. for while the one Is
liberal education in art the other is its
completion. In the work OF the knight
OF Windsor we frequently observe that
the actor is so affected by the sentiments
and emotions OF his part that he often
loses hold OF the exact purpose which IT
Is the business Of the stage TO convey to
its audience In Ellen 1erry's perform
ance, on the ether hand, the actress II
sometimes so little governed by the
proper feelings of the character that she
fails 10 bear out the exact idea of the
author. Thus, in Macbeth" Mr.. Irving
gives us no accurate conception of the
Shakespelre's Scotchman, but makes him
in the final scenes a mere moutbing
maniac. In Journeys End in-Lovers
Meetiug'' the heroine has lover hidden
in her bedroom when her husband comes
home at midnight. An ordinary women
would display some anxiety in such a
grievous predicament. But Miss Terry
runs the matter through in vein of
lively, unconcerned good humor, which
| is occasionally perpleXing. Her comedy
| clearly indicates that the author has pro-
vided a way whereby in the end she can
deceive her husband and enable her lover
| to escape without disaster. That Is all
| very well for the actress, but how about
| the audience? We are not supposed to
know the ingenuities arranged for her
| protection and II puzzles us TO observe a
woman without anxiety in a situation
| that imperils her honesty. In this piece
| Miss Terry's comedy Is magnificent, but
! II is not the drama.
| Possibly il ~ her dramatic complete
ness that keeps Sarah Bernhardt unri-
| vailed. Other actresses generally fail some
| where. IL may be IN their mannerisms,
| in their carelessness, in their lack or
excess OF naturalness, in their leav-
| ing too much, or too little, to the
| Imagination OF the audience, in be-
| ginSing at too high key and missing
| the eventual climax, in obtruding their
| own notions against those of the author
| in hundred methods which may inter
fere with our entire enjoyment of the
| drama. We have observed Irving and
| Terry and Duse do things on the stage in
manner that confused the spectators.
| Even Homer mods. But Sarah never
| mods. She is still faithful to art.
| Whether il comes from genius, instinct
| or rehearsal, Is not so important as the
| fact that this wonderful. woman, never
| puzzles, confuses or disappoints her au-
| dience. There is nothing in Bernhardt q
| performance that could be improved.
| Sarah Is the most satisfactory OF all play
| ers. when the curtain falls on her, we
| know that genius has burned its lamp 10
the end for our study. In the most trih-
\ ing as well as the most important scenes
! OF the drama this actress uses her utmost
| intelligence and endeavor. In comedy
and tragedy she is alike supreme. In
| her performance nothing is left to per-
| adventure, nothing to the forgiveness OF
the spectators, nothing to the excuse oil
| weariness, nervousness or illness. While
| performing Bernhardt is always the
player, never the woman. She does not
! rely on her beauty, grace, magnetism,
| renown, or popularity, to gloss over
faults in performance. She enters the
stage, armed cap-a-pie possessed by her
dramatic. character, fully equipped by art
ana nature for the task set before her.
| Until that task is done Bernhardt relaxes
no effort In walk, gesture, movement,
repose, expression, intelligence, enuncia-
| tion and emphasis she remains the
dramatist's character until the curtain
falls. Then, her business in art ended,
nature lays hold of her, and, like as n OF
she faints from nervous exhaustion.
An art so complete as this allows little
variety In expression. There are only
two systems of doing thipgs-a right way
and a wrong way. When her rehearsals
are finished Bernharct's method is per-
lection. She has brought TO the charac-
ter her dramatic instinct, her broad in
telligence, her long experience, her con-
summgte technique and her perfected
knowledge of the exact point at which
nature should end and art begin. 1t is
inevitable that gifted player must be
unsstistied with past achievements and
still trying experiments to utter with
greater eloquence the ideas of the author.
We observe this restless uucontent
constantly in Calve, who never gives two
performances OF Carmen alike. This dis
quietude is the corollary of genius, for
those who have no wish TO improve
themselves are hopeless. But Calve tries
her experiments on the audience, while
Bernhsrdt settles all her doubts in rehear-
SAL Consequently the prirna. donna often
gives performances that are tentative and
confusing, bat the actress never allows
the curtain TO rise until she has coBsid-
cred and mastered all the possibilities OF
her part. What we see Sarah doing is the
her wave fan, walk across the stage,
speak an epigram, murder the viilainsor
Kill herself-all has been carefully studied
and perfected at countless rehearsals.
With this great artist there is no such
word as chance. She comes before US as
Minerva was born, full panoplied. Duse
and Calve, Who come nearest her in drs-
matte genius, often vary their plan OF
acting, but Bernhardt remains fixed and
constant as the polar star. WhyY Because
in all her roles she has reached absolute
truth OF expression, and that Iare quality
cannot be improved on.
The only changes that Sarah indulges
in affect her physical appearance At
times she varies her gowns, coifure, mill
linery or makeup. but these novelties,
which lend diversion TO the scene, do not
interfere In aLy manner with her original
conception sof the character lt is az
this point that we lind what may be con-
sidered the only error In Bern hardt q
artistic taste. For example, in her per-
formance OF "Izeyl' she Introduce 4
matter in the last act which lent no
benefit To her art. Ia this tragedy, as
YOU may remember, IzCvl n former Cour-