The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1897-12-03
THE PLAY AND THE PLAYER
~ SOCIAL HIGHWANMAN" BRINGS
OUT FINE ACTING.
Worthing and Perry Give a Wonderful
Representation of Difficult Charact-
erizaton-A Fine Social Study.

| suppose everybody has read
Claude Duval. Bulwer was very
much criticized in his day for the pro-
duction, and in my young days the
goody goodies used to hold up their
hands in pious horror and holy grief
over the depravity of a book which
depicted the life of a gentlemanIv
highwayman, who through the love he
bore for a beautiful and innocent
young girl. was brought to see the
evil of his ways. After all ~ Social
Highwayman" is only Claude Duval
up to date. At this end of the nine
teenth century the 'stand and deliv-
er" business is not in the line of the
well dressed and polished rogue. To
carry on his nefarious trade he must
mix in society and lift" ladies' diI-
monds and other Jewels. Some will
| question still the morality of display
| ing such a character but it is good
dramatic art. which has to deal with
| the strong passions of mankind. and
! to show how the worst of criminals
may have strain OF good, which be-
ing touched, will make him hate and
despise himself. In the case of Cour-
! tice .Jatfrey. as in the case of Claude
! Duval. this motive power is love and
the power of innocence, that panoply
of maidenhood, which Milton por-
trays SO beautifully in the Lady amid
Comus' sinister rout.
\ Social Highwayman is IA study
and analysis of character, subtle and
delicate in the extreme. To present
it satisfactorily to the audience needs
a thorough trained and more than
ordinary set of players, and the play
ing has to be low keyed, dainty, gem
tlemanlS. never rising into the
strength of drama, or the eXaggerd-
tion of melodrama. but polished and
quiet as the usages of our self con-
tanned social conditions require. In
this it takes its stand with plays like
Lady Windermere's Fan. \ Woman of
No Importance, and certain portions
of the Bauble Shop.
In that the Frawleys made n sue
: cess of the different pieces of work, I
: must give the highest praise to the
! whole company. With poor company
and a couple of star players such a
piece would fall fiat, but it was the
admirable setting which enabled the
principals to produce work which
flashed like beautiful gem lying on
its bed of rich velvet. Players. who
like Harry Corson Clarke and Wilson
Enos, are accustomed to win ap-
plause, the one by the work of the CO.
median, whose every action, whose
mere movement OF an eye brow. will
| set the house in a roar, the other
by forceful acting in strong situations
= and vigorous speeches, prove them
selves true actors when they portray
/. the easy style of men of the world,
and never permit their natural gifts
l to appear, but play steadily on dead
5 level of society manner. And though I
t have singled out these gentlemen par
I ticulatly on account of their special
gifts, the same is equally true of
Blanche Bates, of Madge Carr Cook,
of Daniel Frawley, and the rest OF the
I company, but | have not space 10
I point out each individual excellence
In this excellent setting the work
: of Frank Worthing, Frederick Perry
e and Selene' johnson shone with re-
= doubled excellence. Worthing's Cour-
e tice Jaffrey was a fine piece of acting
The awakening of the guilty con
science through the love of ElinoT
Burnham blanche Bates) was won.
= derfully portrayed. The way he ex-
= permented upon his society friends
: to see how they would regard such
: u character as he is, was good. His
:. scenes with his servant. his scenes
Q with Elinor, especially when he asks
i her if she should find out that the
man she loved was a thief, and drew
a picture of himself, setting his in
ner life, as ii were, before her very
eyes, were touching in the extreme
Poor fellow there was no hope for
him. So admirably did he play, that
a lady remarked to me, "Do you, know
l. Continued OH Page Four.)