The herald., 1897-09-14

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LOS ANGELES THEATER.-Thew war
of the rebellion has proved fertile field
for the American dramatist, and of all
with realistic effects, from "Shenandoah"
down, not one can be said to have made
a failure. On the contrary, they have
proved to be sources of wealth to their
originators and, 1t may be added, have
done much to foster the proper senti-
ments of patriotism, particularly among
the rising generation. Mr.. David Be-
lasco has inscribed his name upon the
roll of dramatic authors who have es-
sayed the patriotic drama, with scenes
and incidents of the civil war as ground
work for the action. The task of writ
ing such drama is relieved of some of
the chief difficulties that beset an au-
thor whose topic is to certain extent
new. Experience has demonstrated ex-
actly what an American audience likes
best, and all an author has to do it to
show the trouble that arises when a
household is split on the question of Sc
cession, also to let the lovers in the case
be on opposite sides and be very pro-
nounced in their views. Throw in a viii
lain who must be reneg gade and turn
coat, and serve up the whole dish with
a garnish of drums and trumpets the clat-
ter of cavalry steeds, the clank of sabers
and the boom of heavy guns. and the
fortune of the peace is made.
Mr.. Belasco has been accused of having
made certain appropriations from other
writer's and of having incorporated such
conveyanceS to his own use in "The Heart
very name augurs i'll for his preten?
very name augaurs i'll for his preten-
sions, claims that Mr. Belasco has sim
ply used up ''The Dandy Fifth" of which
Gassaway is the proud parent, and he
claims that the situation where Mary
land prevents the sentry from shooting
her lover is stolen bodily from "the Dan
dy Fifth" This last contention appears
to be true, but it is all of Mr.. Gassaway's =
play that was worth taking, according
to San Francisco authorities. Again, the
church bell which Is prevented from
ringing by the heroine mounting the
belfry stairs and holding on to the clap
per is admittedly a suggestion adopted
from that popular platform recitation
known as "Curfew Shall Not Ring To-
night" Other evidences of suggestion
are not absent; the grave-digger reminds
one of the Shakespearean clown who fig
ures in Hamlet" the stabbing of Col
Thorpe by Maryland has points of re-
semblance to the great scene in "La
Tosa." But what Of all these facts?
The great bard himself was a borrower
of the most pronounced kind He used
the plots, the incidents and often the
very language of others, but he did it
in way that stamped his own individu
ality on the complete work.
Mr.. Belasco deserves praise for the
very able way in which he has evolved
three acts Of a highly interesting drama,
the action of which is consistent, the Ian
guage crisp and to the point, and the
characters remarkably we'll sketched. So
much cannot be said for the fourth act
which is spun out by tedious scene be-
tween a colorless ingenue and a sick
soldier. 1t also contains the reunion of
Maryland and the lover whom she has
done so much to save, the curtain fall
ing upon the group of two, who drop into
each others arms with an appearance of
that tired feeling which is only relieved
by the glad consciousness that the play
is over at last.
1t is of course understood that the lit
kind is equaled, if not surpassed in i'm
portance by the stage mounting and ac-
cessories, and right here Mr. Belasco
and his highly efficient stage manager,
Herbert Millward, shine to perfection.
The first act with its distant perspective
Of hill and valley was picture such as
one seldom sees on the boards of the
ater. The changes in the landscape as
the sun goes down are wrought with
consummate skill. Indeed, the lighting
all through the play was managed with
fine eye for pictorial effect and nothing
so good of it's kind has been seen here
since Mr. Taber managed the lights for
Julia Marlowe when they played IN
Romeo and Juliet"
The great belfry scene was about as
realistic as anything that could be i'm
agined, and the sight of that slight fig
ure clad in pale, filmy draperies and with
streaming wealth of auburn hair show
ing as she was tossed from side to side
by the huge bell swung by the deaf SEX
ton below was sight that as the eli
max of the act was thrilling enough
even for hardened playgoer.
Every detail of the piece, the soldiers
SldlIleu tHe dppedIdHCt Ol tllS
prisoners, the military effects of cavalry
and infantry in motion, and, in fact, all
the thousand and one things that go to
make a complete presentation were
strictly attended to and in a manner
that appeared to leave nothing to desire.
Mrs. Leslie Carter is naturally the cen
trail figure, and the piece is so con-
structed that she and the villain, per-
sonated by Theodore Roberts, have the
best acting scenes.
The leading man, James F. Wilson, is
an athletic looking lover every inch a
soldier but as wooer he is not allowed
the opportunities that are afforded to
Mrs. Carter, neither, in fact, if the truth
must be told, does he appear to desire
them. He accepts the devotion of his
lady love rather as a tribute to his, own
superior qualifications and rests calmly
confident in the fact that no one in the
company has a right to dispute his
claims. The author is responsible for
this apparent attitude, as it is hard to
imagine how lover with the lines al
lowed to Mr.. Wilson could make great
impression. Frank Mordaunt was thor
oughly at home as the old general and
is all the better for not being quite SO
aggressive as of yore. Grant Stewart