The San Francisco call., 1897-02-16
FROM BEFORE
THE FOOTL|GHTS
James in A Lord and
Some Ladies'" at the
Baldwin.
A Good Pay, Well Acted and
Also Very Well Re.
ceived.
New Attractions at the Orpheu m.
Cinderella" at the
California.

Louis James discarded the tega style of
acting last night, and delighted his audi
ence with an artistic comedy character
study, which was as natural and human
a piece of impersonation as the Baldwin
has seen for some time.
The character he assumed was Lord
Bolingbroke, in "My Lord and Some
Ladies'" adapted from the French OF Eu-
gene Scribe.
The time of the comedy is laid in the
latter years of Queen Anne's reign, when
the Wings were struggling to continue
the war of the Spanish succession, seem
ing only TO have an eye to the slory of
Marlborough's victories, and the Tories
who seemed only 10 have an eye to the
bills involved by the war, were using their
utmost efforts to induce the Queen to
make peace with Louis XIV of France.
Most of the interest in any Lord and
Some Ladies" centers round the atte pts
OF the tyrannical Duchess of Marlborough
to keep poor weaH Queen Anne under her
own thumb. and the counter attempts Of
Lord Boiling broke, one of the Tory leaders,
to sway the Queen himself and induce her
TO stop the war and recall Marlborough.
1t is n battle of intrigue between the
Duchess and Lord Boiingbroke. and from
the first the sympathies of the audience
are with the Tory politician, though it is
entirely personal matter; politics come
very little into the play.
There are Just three women in "MY
Lord and Some Ladies"-the Queen, the
Duchess and Marion Churchill, humble
relation of the Duke of Marlborough All
these women are in love with Sir Arthur
Ferror, Young officer who is secretly en-
gagged to Marion. Bolin broke discovers
the secret admiration OF the OF er two
ladies, and SO plays on their jealousy and
love that he tna ly succeeds in having the
Duchess banshed from court by the ieal-
Gus Queen, and the Queen driven IN 20 con-
senting to the wedding of Marion and Sir
Arthur through the nlachinations of the
jealous Duchess. The means by which
this is accomp plished involve intrigue and
counter intrigue between BolIngbroke
and the Duchess which are as interesting
Gs due.
Louis James gave an ideal rendering OF
the political adventurer's role. He was
dashlng, reckless, man who took life
with the spirit of a gam bier and played
high and daring stakes with q smile and
joke, and in every movement gesture and
IL fiction of his voice he was o gen.
tleman and the vain, polls ed man of the
world that history records Bohngbroke as
having been.
The other characters were effective so
far as the play was concerned, but they
erred and strayed sadly from the paths OF
history. The part of the elderly, homely
Queen Anne, whose Incidence and mental
weakness made her Lady Marlborough's
slave, was played by Miss Kruger, who
looked verv young and handsome and
made the Queen nervous, petulant, high
strung girl.
Regarded merely as piece Of comedy
actin Miss Florence Everett did some
clever work as the Duchess, but she was no
more the terrible Sarah Churchill than
she was Semiramis or Cleopatra. History
termined, almost coarse in her manners.
When asked on one occasion if she suf-
fere6 from her nerves Sarah is reported to
have replied, THANK God I was born
before nerves were invented" and her
daring actions confirmed the statement,
Miss Everett played the Duchess with a
lisp and made her a smooth, slippery,
polished feminine villain.
Miss Aphie Hendricks was effective as
Marion Churchill and Guy Lindsey played
the role OF Sir thur Ferror nicely, though
he was scarcely fascinating enough to ac-
count for three such fascinating women
being in love with him.
The costumes worn were those of the
later restoration period and the reign of
James IL They were only few years
wrong, chronologically speaking, however,
and in addition to being very handsome
were prettier than those worn about the
end of the first decade of the last century.
MY Lord and Some Ladies' was re-
ceived with enthusiasm by the audience,
though there was some hilarity over the
action of gentle eman in one of the boxes,
who would insist on bombarding the
actors with small punches of violets.