The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-29
A CHAT WITH MRS. GILBERT.
THE VETERAN ACTRESS TALKS OF
HER LONG CAREER.

| AIrs Gilbert and don't believe that have said
Thank you to half the people In the company
| who were good enough to give this loving cup
TO me. was 80 astonished when II all happened
| that lost my head completely. Isn't the tea
| Get beautiful"
Mrs Gilbert was telling the story Of her birth
| day celebration on the Lyceum stage on Oct
81. 1t was tho following Monday afternoon.
Her room was filled with flowers sent to her
by friends. On a table In a corner OF her draw
ing room stood the tea set presented in commem-
| grafton Of her seventy ninth birthday.
Il didn't think anybody in the company, abe
| continued. knew when my birthday came un-
lees II was Charley Richman. OF course, every
body at the old house used TO know II. and asked
| Charley not to mention II TO anybody Miss
| Russell asked me TO take supper with her on
| Saturday night. and declined at first Then
thought she possibly had heard Of it and wanted
| me to go to her house for supper You see she
| lives near here and my idea was that would
go to her house for supper. Just the two Of us.
| When the curtain fell saw all the company on
| the stage Then Miss Russell walked down to
| the footlights thought she was going to take
| another call alone when she suddenly turned
| and began to speak to us. realized in a moment
| that it was to me especially she was speaking.
| Then came the loving cup from the company
| with all their names IL and this beautiful
tea service l was never astonished In my
| life Haven't begun TO get over 1t yet"
| Mrs. Gilbert smiled contentedly rs she spoke.
| The shock had evidently been very agreeable
| one 1t might well have been fatcrng 10 any
| actress The silver service was presented by men
whose names rarely figure In such affairs The
list read more as if it collection of names OF
prominent citizens than list Of men who had
| Joined to show respect to old actress During
| her long career in New York Mrs Gilbert has
rarely been heard OF save in connection with her
| performance Of one OF the roles in which she be
| came popular at Days. The thousands who
| have seen her on the stage would readily recog
nize her in private life Few actresses so lit
Tie changed in the transfer from private life to the
| stage For some years she has lived in an apart
mcnt on the upper West side with faithful maid
| who accompanies her every evening to the theatre
| which is short journey from her home ltis Mrs
Gilbert's boast that she has lost only few weeks
| altogether from the stage on account Of illness
| during her thirty years membership In the DAILY
! company. AS she Is sprightly and active today
in spite Of her age there seems little probability that
her career will in the future be interrupted from
such cause. Now she is engaged in daily re-
hcarsals, and Is occupied MS well every evening,
| and she finds that amount Of work no hardship
| 1t is rather the reverse. When Mama Gilbert
feels i'll Miss Rchan used 10 say when they were
acting together AL she has TO do is TO get behind
the footlights Then she gets well" Mrs Gil
| bert still approves that remedy, and says that 1t
never failed
| New Workers are apt to regard Mrs. Gilbert as
SO exclusively their own that II is not generally
known that she began her theatrical career in
! the West. She appeared first in this country
IN Milwaukee and acted In the southern and
| came Il" the United States from England with
her husband in 1919 He was ballet master
Nan I'l1a0tF in nd plnn tlg
| wife was learning her art there. Her family
Were not professionals and had been strict Meth
| odsts. But her father was less strict in his idea
| stars were raglioni Cerrito Carota Gris WIN
Pas dc Quatrr. who is living now in Munich Il
was while dancing with Nine Grahn in The
| Beauty Of Client" that she had an opportunity
to make her debut as principal dancer She
was invited by wealthy amateur who OCCASION
and acted in il to take part in some Of his perform
anccs, Tn" brother Of Ingiioni was her teacher
s2' Sr n RS small r, ART and IN
went up to London with her husband to see some
women who were just then attracting more aticn
ton to the ballet Than il has ever received since
Mrs. Gilbert and her hus band took through III,
English provinces as much as they could Of theS'
now steps The ballet began TO languish soor
after this and in 1s49 they came to the unitcC
States, Their first experiences were not pros
porous They wandered To the West and in tn,
year Of their arrival Mr.. Gilbert made his d"hu
4 was 'n nc" for some inc afcf~srd INT Mrs G
bert took up her profession in this country.
a danced for a while N the .ntcrm.sslons be
tween the acts. for IN these days there was a trag
edy as the principal feature q the evening; sh'
told THE SIN, reporter and this was foll0wrt
two years in the company which divided It's tim,
between Chicago and Milwaukee did all sorts
Of parts and think IT was my general uscfulncs.
that made me valuable 10 my manager W.
played IN Milwaukee m the winter and IN Chicago
in summer travelling always between thos'
son 10 suggest to me to play old women parts
although was only hule over thirty a, ihe
theatre In Cleveland and by that time had de
cded 10 give up dancing altogether and pln!
the old women rtlcs Mrs Ellslcr was the leadtnt
for the actress who played the leading heay!
roles TO alternate as first old woman. lwns secon'
ptay LADY Macbth So il happened that playe'
Thai role for the first time there with Booth am
! have acted Iadv Macbeth with both the Booths
I. The actors always told me they liked TO play III
part with me and began to be the regular Lao
learn business readily and only needed to be toll
> what they wanted. 1played many Of the Shake
had to do then with the comic parts n the lghte
: | plays. ] acted in Louisville and Philadclphi
d before we came 10 New York. where my husban
died IN 1866.
My career as a dancer was not to come to a
end SO soon as thought When went to Cleyt
land had no idea that should ever dance again
1 Fortunately. had one dancing skirt left in IN
. | wardrobe and soon needed it, One Of the popl
lar features Of the performances in Cleveland wa
J. the singing Of The tarSpanged Banner b
Q the members Of the company. MIR. Eilsler locke
like George Washington when he put on un
form, and frequently after the performance or b.
J. tween the two plays given in an evening he woul
z dress up in uniform. and surrounded by all IL
> members Of the company, sing with us j he Sta
Spangled banner There a Miss Pennoye
5 a dancer in the company at that time, who d
clined TO appear with the rest Of US during tn
. tableau. Every actor in the company from Il
q visiting star down TO the humblest member WI
always required to do this. and want TO say no
% that have never known any actor man or woma
n who was harmed by taking part In any such a
fair II is more likely to do them all good Ia
, Pennoyer, however. would not join the 9th
J. actors and refused &c do il under the imprcssiC
% that Mr. Elslcr needed her for the following We,
J. and would allow her TO do as she liked Blu.
not that kind OF a man, and Miss Penney
!, left the company the next day. ! did her dancir
q in the play that followed and thus, when HI
N just begun TO act old women, was suddenly COZ
PEELED 10 go back 10 my old specially and dane
Dancing was very different in those days. Hw
Y really an art, and when sec the dancing OF u
q present day | am ashamed not on my own a
II count but because the art has declined so fro
what ii used TO be" go
d Mrs Gilbert has frequently given proof In