The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-01-23
POINTS OF THEATRE VIEW.
7Up BRIGHT IRISH Stars SHINING
TERY LOSE TOGETHER.

", ror, IN an Irish play. Andrew Mack and
CC,,y,,oy Oieott were the, two idols (which.
:, r,t bowed down to and worshipped. we're at
.,., the recipients Of very fervid adulation.
- ' ri,vs are ant to be similar. Those now In
rho Academy Of Music and the Four
18th street Theatre are remarkably alike in
many PARTICULARS. The period Of both '"Nhe
RACED Earl" and "A Romano of Athlone' Is
,hr end Of the eighteenth century. and the Sc
81, sotscenes shows corresponding places. The
o., a.. in each piece is tho entrance to an an
osstraI Irish castle. the second in q drawing
roon. with rich hangings. portraits and armor,
,rd the third act a ruined abbey In the moon
III, Resides the resemblauces in scenery
I'D ro-fuming. some OF the characters in the
tw, MAYS are duplicates. In both we have the
beros old Irish nurse and her lover. who have
b..n in courtship many years, and whom the
nor, finally brings together: the child whom
,hs lero sings to sleep at intervals: The half
brothers who are mortal enemies. and the
rioh heire 80 who is designed TO marry the
wrong man. but escapes that fate. Each piece
contains a duel. the ATTEMPTED abduction OF a
cbild. an exploit by the hero in disguise. and
Tho singing Ola lullaby. love ballads and drink
Inc dltties. Mr.. Lacy and Mr.. Humphreys
wrote their play for Mr.. Mack before Mr.. Pitou
wrote his for Mr.. Olcott. but there Is no suspi-
zion Of plagiarism. The authors drew upon
common material for q common purpose.
They left cut such WORKOUT things. however,
as hibulous priests, suffering peasantry. cruel
landlords and British soldiers. They put in
SSseeeTpSly into Homparisons, Neither work shows
the Inspiration of any higher artistic purpose
than that Of providing n vehicle in which u
nopulaT actor may ride prosperously. 1t may
Sc said that The RAGGED Earl is the better
acted 9nd thar SnsS a it n snrShiiec 81 A'R Relne s6 hi
and its LANDSCAPES, beautiful. Mr.. Mack and
MIR Olrott are rivals. no doubt, but the field is
an exceptionally clever and engaging actor,
snuaily facile with humor and sentiment. and
rStIs contains for him. Mr.. Olcott sings him
self into the hc'rts of his.audiences and stays
there. No other 'wo actors have more faithful
followers than ,heSe two eXponents OF Irish
Reniality and bravery.
Mrs. Carter's triumph as Zaza has given to
one theatrical belief an emphatic setback. 1t
has long been the contention of actors that
nothing great could be accomplished on the
stage by the person who did not begin at the
bottom Mary Anderson started at the top
md remained there. So did some women be-
fore her. including Anna Cora Mowatt. But
the majority served an apprenticeship. long or
short. according to the opportunities they
found for their talents, Eleonora Duse played
all kinds Of parts before fame came to her. and
so did Fanny Davenport. Clara Morris was
a patient plodder through several seasons.
and Maude Adams has acted since she was a
child. But Mrs. Carter has always been a
star" She only tvinkled in THE Ugly
Duckling" and she shone dimly in Miss Hell
yeti" but she was the leading figure in those
plays, and from her was expected all that the
dominating parsonage in q play is supposed
to supply. The woman who begins at the top
has been so rare in recent years that Mrs. Car
ter is practically the only actress on.the Amer
n q arA tod "A " VI hn n IA 10 = r nod n fhnf
way. How is it. asks tho respecter Of tradi-
tons. that a woman who has PLAYED only
s sach i a Success ,s III! In t the fourth uathei as ea she mas has
in Za9aI II that is possible what is the
use Of routine and practice? Certainly Mrs.
actress. Bernhardt, keiane, and Ellen Terry
had their periods of discipline, Mrs. Garter
principle OF the objection is sound. Its weak
ness lies in an ignorance Of the facts. Mrs.
she has prepared herself in many more SO
thoroughly that she could II have PLAYED them at
t az fSTFts h0s'n iifisa R1Tfd that Rs' ander tf his dl4ee in
ton she had learned as. many as thirty, char
acters these ranged from Lady Macbeth to
the standard repertoire. IN these she was
trained as thoroughly as If she were to act
usqaI. routine that she acquired this repertoire.
which will probably never be of any other
value to her. Mr.: Be!aseo was asked in the
could play them" he said. "as well as the old
time stock actresses were in the habit OF do
ing. She might not have been letter perfect.
as they never were, but in every other particu-
lar she was qualified to appear in thirty parts"
IL may be that actual appearances on the
stage would have been more valuable than the
training in private. but the result in Mrs. Car
ters case hardly seems to prove that,
Tho Barnum and Bailey show is in Lon don
The late Mr.. Bsrnum is there in name. and in
spirit. too-the latter embodied. in Tody Ham
tlton, A naturalization OF the Barnum spirit.
through the medium of Mr.. Hamilton. filed a
column apiece in such London newspapers as
the Telegraph and Ners. 1t took the form Of a
Sedate and circumstantial report OF a meeting
Of the Barnum and Bailey human curiosities
TO protest against being called freaks" This
lorna! expression OF feeling was as follows:
Hhsrtas. The press and public of both hcmi-
sphrr's, without Just cause, have for many years
past gLanrtously ana voluntarily bestowed the term
,reSE npGn al human beings differing in any
s.r..",, a,il Wllh"l't any spcclhc meaning III an
Nmos NOR" or less hair, more or less bodies. more or
less Ply siral Or mental attributes than other people.
Amd "tIclt lnight b" taken as additional charms of
person or ",Is I" movement. as the case may be; and
pa "", ~ 49,, because we, dinerlnG so from the 2rdi-
rertain marked and distinctive characteristics of
for being. allied "frns sEs: tnercf or 5" It "n''''"
ntw,''' nat We, a majority Of the living human
car,ntilles ~ IN" Harnnm and Bailey show. emphati-
cay protest against the Application Of that word to
" ana severely condemn its general assignment to
mos VIZ, lor their benefit or otherwise, were created
.'.rrti'i' tlnni tic inlnSn family aE the latter exist
Nud! ana mat, in the opinion Of many, some of MS
~ fedIy the development Of a higher type, and are
sMp'rlor p'rgnus. na,much as some Of is are gifted
Nuu tNfa"rIinary attributes not apparent in urdi.
nary beings.
While the human curiosities were unani-
nous and emphatic in denouncing the appel
tei.0n ~ freak. not one Of them had n sub
snia,e to suggest. The, 7ecgr0ph'a editorial
oi'uIon Is rather against the rcasonahleness
q ne complaint. 1t is pointed out that
.lireah Is a time honored term, and used by
tne tott7 The old English word 'freke"
%eah' a ho1lI man a warrior eager for the
tiay' IN. 'Th" FlOwman" we read the line,
an 'l"h+. TIM tre were. forth gan ! wake"
~ vas N Nr"nsrr's time that its meaning was
nhH" 10. denote a sudden and causcless
fSh4tnEG - mind a wilful whim Of vagary. ,,0h!
oUl ! lear" the tlcklc.freakes Of fortune false"
9u1rh %SuenSeri in the "Fairie Queene.' More
tfbett ne modem dictionaries distinctly say
,"a,a freak in the variety show business is
= YTr.o4 o. an animal showing some strange
S Sr from nature, The Telegraph sug-
Ssorjse dih' a i]a,'lahie recrption might be ac;
SNrt,1a.It" - ia" botanical term Of sports"
a" ""'nh '.llsi,ltes striking contrast Of n body
Nj y a. 'Iani from tn" true course Of natures
nr"''lll, nf, again, III" classic may solve the
IuI<.", Though some may cyperirnrn nm Of
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