The San Francisco call., 1897-12-07
NEW BILLS
Of OLD PIECES
Louis James " Othello"
Production Marked by
Good Sense.
" La Boheme " Successfully
Opens the Bal1win's
Italian Season.
TivoG Opera - Alcazar Comedy =
Bush Street Coons-Variety
and Melodrama.

Instead OF furnishing fun for the flip
pant last night. Louis James went back
into himself several seasons and recov-
cred much of the Othello py WI hich his
best reputation is remem bered. Invent TO
the Colum ba expecting something de-
cidedly more than what got That is,
doubted that if in a siugle night Mr..
James could come down to small earth
and little people, and I was most willingly
surpiised by the frequent success with
which be did. After last nights expert
ence ii is not extravagant 10 say that If
Mr.. James could be weaned from the one
night stand ana the gushing country
critic, he would have his past to look for
ward to.
Last nights impersonation was very
reminiscent of the original Louis James.
For most of the time Othello was tense
and telling, of strong personality and sui
fcient sanity, and the reasons for his not be-
ing so all the time were only the remnants
of those silly ones of Mr.. James that have
been fostered during the last two years.
The most hopeful signal in Mr.. James
performance was that it improved act by
act. He started badly, with his voice in
the lowest abdominal KEY and the nflec-
tions so evenly observed that you might
have danced to them. His address to the
most potent, grave and reverend signiors
was altogether lacking in lghtness and
spontaneity.
1t was as heavy as these good gentle
men looked. 1t had neither sparkle ..or
spontan city and surely nothing of the
bridegroom's happy pomp. But as the
y,Io nd IoV faI ha
glow of the part he forgot the banaI eio-
cution and the gallery phrasi ng, and his
mannerisms and vocal pecuIiarities were
buried N the sire ss OF the scenes.
1t is true he did not sound the big note of
ympathy as it mig ght have been sounded,
but he made Othello's torture frightfully
vivid, and toward the last he played with
really magnificent brutishness.
1t l. to the credit OF Mr.. James that he
! was not the entire performance; that so
far as it could be accomplished by his not
too talented little com pany, the play was
presented with good taste and good sense.
l have no sympathy with the persons
who would rather read Shakespeare
to themselves while another Booth
is being born than get what is to
| be had from an intelligent if not an
| inspired performance at the hands CT Sec
| ond- rate actors. So far as l am concerned
it requires only sane reading and not too
much acting to make as good entertain
ment of the plays of Shakespeare as may
| be made in similar circumstances of the
| plays OF any clumsy modern play-writer
| In last nights performance every body
seemed 10 try for the whole, and the
! whole was quite deCentIy realized.
What impressed me most in the indi-
vidual work was the Isgo Of Barry john
! stone. 1t was IN no sense a mCdel 1ago,
! for the fnales Of all the big speeches were
flagrantly shouted, but in other places it
! had softness and humor aud an easy COL
| Ioquial air that was delightfully."- different.
Mr.. Johnstone appears to be young
man and last week he was q very bad
actor but if he will keep his ears shut to
a great deal of what goes on around them
there is no reason why he should not do
something original and valuable one of
these days. ASHTON STEVENS.