The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-12-04


She. paused and sat silent until the cues
ton came: Did you play ShakespeaT.
can part at the beneht?"
On, ELECTROMAGNETIC your staea hos
fechrlstened Leah the Forsaken' sba
said. I met Miss Cushman after 81
piay-we had the same hotel. She wa
more than agreeable. Though she was a
Dig woman, square and angular, she payo
the impression Of grace. Hers was a die
'llsuished plainness, utterly removed from
commonplace ugliness. In fact had sba
been a man. she might have been callaI
handsome You know she made up as an
ideal Romeo" al
How of Cyrano-could she have plav-
ca That part? And shall we ever have a
hldeous heroine?" the inquirer proronnI
ed Madame laughed and lifted her
shoulders. I don't know-Cushman might
nave played Cyrano," she said. 1T ia
quite possible, too, that we shall have be-
Iofe long the hideous heroine. who de-
ponds wholly on psychic fascinations Fas-
cihation she must have, or be no heroine
certainly she will be, when she arrives
a more crediable figure than the heroine
VINO depends on her dressing, or even her
whose reliance is her undressing"
neither Beauty Nor Brains NeceaSorv
For stage success said Mrs. Jessie
Bartiett-Davis, beauty and brains are
Doth excellent things. But not the onIt,
things-take my word for that. even
incline to say not the main things. There
IS something yet more essential-wbet T
do not know, neither does anvbodv aisa
II anybody could find out a big fortune
lies ready to his hand. "
w here?' asked the inquirer.
All over the theatrical world sot5
Mrs. Bartlett-Davis. For example our
company the Bostonians. has 10 my
AiloWIeuge several operas, staged and
mounted at enormous cost, resting serene
~ III the depths of storage warehouses.
all because nobody but the public car teIi
beforehand what the public means 70
nave. once TIE public has come in. the
teilng IS painfully easy. More than once
When every soul of US had been certain
we would score a big hit, the curtain fan
mas round US staring at each other too
dazed to more than draw breath"
what did those performances fail tn
sa'lsIy The public pride, or prejudice
OF pocKet!' the inquiring person asked
alphabetically.
Mrs. Bartlett-Davis laughed and an
sWered; "Candidly, I suspect all three.
A cynical friend of mine SAYS the tbe-
atrlcal conscience is located in the box Of
nee. say, if that be true the conscience
keeper is the man behind the dollars which
come into the box Office. That man knows
what he wants, what he likes, and Is go
ing to have it, or know the reason why
Sometimes 1 wish he didn't know II ouita
so emphatically. First and last. I have
sung % Promise Me- just 1000 times
enough one would think to wear anv
songs vogue to tatters.
"Cushman or Anderson?" Mrs. Bart
lett-Davis repeated slowly. at would ratb-
er have been Cushman, because genius
as she had lasts and lives But don't
deserved all she got-more than she got
indeed. She is a sweet creature, kind and
warm hearted, just the opposite of what
she is thought to be. She had to hold
herself hard or her heart would have run
away with her And how she did crave
love! remember once in Cincinnati sh@
said to me, with tears running down her
face, that her. success did not bring her
happiness, she was so cruelty nisunder-
stood. People applaud me and flock to
see me- she said, but it Is as to a Spec
tacle, not because they love me or my
work. That is why 1 mean TO leave it
alto go away and marry the man love-
He loves me for myself; with him l shall
be, what I have never been here, truly
and honestly happy! You cannot know
how sorry l felt for her, the woman half
the world envied hope she is as happy
as she thought, as happy as she deserves
to be. Beauty was the main factor in her
success, because the public chose to re-
gard it more than her art. She was a
clever actress and a. hard student. l think
it ought not to be remembered against
her that her face was her fortune"
A Feminine CyranO. Never!
Among the stage veterans, none is better
known, and few so well beloved as Mrs.
John Gilbert-"Mrs. G. H Gilbert she
prefers to style herself. Especially is she
a faVorite with the Lonsdon audiences who
flock to the Daily productions quite as
though they We're Americans. Often upon
irst nights Mrs. Gilbert sits in front, but
1 first night she never misses. When
he curtain call comes she goes on with
he company, in bonnet and street frock,
and is cheered to the echo All London
Knows her, and loves her well. She was
9th to talk. Il think somehow it is
lndignified and just bit presumptuous,
'he said, ito rush into print with opinions
hat may not be worth a rap. Still, I
wen question if a repulsively ugly wo-
nan could succeed on the stage. 1t is hui
nan to feel that a heroine to be normal
must be beautiful, and audiences are very
human. This is, of course, aside from
character parts. For them really eccen-
ric features may be turned 10 good ac-
cunt. AS to Mary Anderson and Char
otte Cushman, choice between them would
70 inVidious. Each was great in her own
way, after her own fashion Mary An
lerson's face and voice undoubtedly Sc
ured hearing for her very considerable
alents Miss Cushmans piainness was,
n my judgment, no handicap
Gould She could any one make a hide
us heroine acceptabe?" was asked Like
flash came the answer; mol No hight
or depth of genius could make a truly
lldeous heroine go down with the public
Sor hideous hero, either, of a certain
ort. Fancy Romeo with a Cyrano nose!
lie would turn the play into a scream
ng farce, even though it mad an all-star
asst Briefly, my judgment is this: ADso-
ute deformty aside, a woman's face need
lot bar her from stage success, yet the
uceess will be earlier and more easily
yon if her face happens to be a caress to
he gazing eye"
Work, Soap and Sleep.
1t is liberal education in the fine art
f laughter to see Miss May Irwin on the
tage off it she is even more delight
III. Between the acts of "Kate Kin.