The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-11-12
in studying art. He was an artist be
fore he became an actor.

in studying art. He was an artist be.
fore he became an actor.
1t is announced that Mr.. Barrett will
rewrite and reconstruct his and Louis
Parl1er's unlucky opium hereditary
drama, Man and his Makers On this
subject the Saturday Review makes
the following characteristic and astute
comments: Natural writing in any
melodrama Immediately shows up the
impossibility of the situations. If the
mines have no speeches which they
can roar, the whole game of melodrama
is up. And SO Mr.. Parker did his best
to be brazen. It cannot be said that he
succeeded. Now and again there are
passages pitched in the proper key, but
most of the writing is quite gentle and
quiet. The characters talk as though
they were modern human beings, living
under possible circumstances. In any
melodrama that would be disastrous.
But in a melodrama whose plot was ev-
identity conceived by Wilson Barrett,
and whose hero is impersonated by him,
the effect is more than disastrous-it is
monstrous. For Mr.. Barrett is the
8
ing a keener scent for situations and a
greater disregard of human nature than
any of his rivals. Also, he is the great
est of our melodramatic actors. endow-
ed with tremendous voice, a tremen
dous manner and a very fine head.
Neither his voice nor his manner nor
his head can be brought into any POS
sible relation to modern life"
y
Nearly all the London critics agree
that Captain Marshalls new play, "a
Royal Family" recently presented in
the Court Theater, is clever and enter
tanning, but without much purpose Or
substance, case of much ado about
nothing" AS one writer says, "Mr.
Marshall has brought together capital
ingredients for a fantastic comedy-a
vain and domineering Queen-mother, a
weak and disillusioned King, willful
cardinal, an imbecile chief of police,
and patriotic Vehmgericht-but one
feels that somehow there has been a
mistake in the mixing, and the re-
quired effervescence has not set in
The same authority goes on to declare
that it's attraction lies in it's dialogue,
and in decorative details, such as the
situation of the lovers in the tree, which
brings the second act to a close. Mr..
Marshall has undoubtedly a pleasant
vein of fancy, and he has peopled the
court of Arcacia with amusing person
ages. Yet his dialogue is often fiaccid
and verbose. Many of his good things
are what the French call mots d'auteur
sayings which do not really belong
to the character uttering them, but are
arbitrarily placed in it's mouth. Some
OF them. moreover, require little essays
to lead up to them, so that we are con-
scious of quite perceptible suspension
in the movement of the play while one
or the other of the characters is recit-
ing the labored preliminaries to a wit
ticism.' The story briefly is that of
a Princess who objects strongly to the
husband selected for her on account of
state reasons, but falls in love with
him promptly when he woos her under
an alias.
Alice Nielsen spends a great deal of
her spare time in Japan and has so
straight a line of privileges from the
Paclf1c Coast to the heart of Tokyo that
her wardrobe is decoratively japanese.
She wraps herself in costly kimonas
and her feet are incased in odd little
plated bamboo or scented palm-leaf
slippers, with soft thongs and funny
bows and straps. At night she is
swathed in grass linen. exquisitely plain
ana entirely hemstitched by hand. She
Is such tiny fairy these musmee robes
and tr1f1es become her vastly and she
has the purring, cute ways of the lit
tie almond-eyed ladies Of Japan, and
her jewels, her hose and gloves are of
that luxurious home Of ivory and lead
en- stones of priceless weight and color.
Dramatic Mirror: A trolley line is
being constructed to connect the scene
of the decennial production -of thu
Passion Play" at Oberammergau with
railway some fourteen miles distant.
thus making unnecessary the former
mountain ride to this picturesque local
1ty- 1t is also said that the modern
device of facilitation known as an in
formation bureau will be established
for the purpose of assigning tourists to
suitable lodgings and otherwise sim
formances of the play Still another
innovation is large iron theater which
is nearing completion. 1t will accom-
modate 1000 spectators, and the audi
torium will be inclosed, although the
stage, as formerly, will be in the open
air. The simple Bavarian peasants are
said to look askance at these innoya-
tons, fearing that they will detraet
from the devotional attitude which all
visitors who visit Oberammergau TO
witness the presentation of the sacred
drama are supposed to assume. And
as the isolation and almost primitive
of this locality and it's actors
were supposed to greatly contribute to
the general effect of the Pas ion Pfay.n
there is little doubt that the introduce
ton of such tokens of modernitx as
those mentioned-which tokens must in
evitably be followed by others-will in
the end rob this wonderful dramatic
spectacle Of much Of it's original force
and character.
A great deal has been said and writ
ten about Mrs. Langtry-the water
lily" as she is now called, since her
name has become De Bathe-about her
toilets in ''The Degenerates" and her
special train in which she travels to
Newmarket after playing in the piece,
which is said to bring in about $3.50
night. AS the special train costs about
500 the popular actress is making
The ballet in Paderewski's opera will
last more than half an hour. The story
is of the conflict of two races-the .Sla-