The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-05-28


Rostand's "Cyrano de Bergerac." Cyrano
is a valiant Gascon, heaven-born poet,
brave. loving and QuiXotic, but ugly.
His nose is a monstrosity, and he keenly
realizes its hiGeousness. He falls in love
with Roxane a precieuse of the period,
only to find that her heart is given TO
Christian, a cadet and an Appolo, with
no wit Cyrano's magnanimity leads MIN
TO help his rivals suit He writes his
love letters, conducts his courtshlp, ana
even takes his place in an interview In
which he pours out his heart in exquisite
verse. the object of his affections all the
while believing the noble soul to whom
she is listening was Christian. The con-
c;usion is tragic. Cyranos secret which,
after Christians death, he kept to him
self for years, is finally revealed to Rox-
are who learns that it was the poor
knight of the big nose whose soul she had
adored for so many years. She discovers
this fact only as Cyrano is breathing ms
last; she awakens to the full realization
of tie nobility Of the man, his courage
and great sacrifice, and sees clearly the
beauty Of his soul.
The first act opens in theater, on the
STAGE where brilliant audience is Wit
Messing a performance and the climax
of the act is the duel in which Cyrano
composcs as he fights, the famous poem
which has Teen so widely quoted. The
second scene is in the shop of pastry
cook Roxane enter and presuades CYra-
no TO take Christian under his protection
The third and most talked of act opens
with the balcony scene, where foolish
Christian in the moonlight below pays MS
court TO RoXane with the words put into
his mouth by Cyrano, who is concealed In
the shadow Then follows the marriage
and pretended insanity of Cyrano. The
fourth act shows the camp of the cadets
with the great battle, whittier Roxane
comes in search of her lover, and the
final act is devoted to the last interview
at the convent between RoXane and the
diving Cyrano The play is magnifcently
staged. and the scenes, especially in the
first act, are full of life and movement
Because of the length Of the play the
performance will begin at 7:4O o'clock,
the final curtain falling at HOS p. m.
There are 1N persons in the company,
which with the scenery, furniture, bag
gage and horses, travels by special train.
Mr.. Mansfield deserves credit for his
preserve in translation and presentation
the poetic flavor and the poetry of the
original. "Cyrano" is not mere poem,
nor a dramatization. The Frenchman
wrote his play in poetry, in rhymed alex
Gndrines, the common form of expression
IN French dramatic poetry or poetic
drama Every line had its cadence. every
couplet its rhyme. The cadence and the
rhyme seemed an integral, not merely a
contributive, part Of the beauty OF the
play. So, when the play was in it's be-
inning in Paris, and Richard Mansfield
read 1t here, he declared that It would be
q pronounced success in English. Wise
cares croaked i'll about the shattering pro-
cess of translation, they said the English |
speaking stage would accept no rhyme; |
that Shakespeare in blank verse filed all |
the want in that class, and many other
things calculated to discourage Drawer
spirit than our great actor A number or I
TRANSACTIONS were handed Mr.. Mansfield, |
but all fell short Of his idea and ideal OF |
what the translation should be. Among |
these was Gertrude Halls. since publish |
ed, the refusal Of which seems to be as |
strong a confirmation Of Mr. Mansfield
judgment as his acceptance OF Howard |
Thayer Kinsbury's, The poetess proceed
ed on the liberal plan, the very trap di- |
yined by the deprecatory wisecares. |
Kingsbury proceeded palpably on the
plan of giving In English, not the French
form and idiom, but an English form anu
3diom which would correspond to and sug-
Rest the French.
The Mansfield acting version is in blank
verse, with the ballade Of the duel, the
recipe for almond cream tarts, the intro
duction Of the cadets, and the epitaph
only being in rhymed verse. But every
Go16 oV1A Go
company recognize that there are palpaole
rhmyes in other passages. Doubtless Mr..
Mansfield did this himself; indeed 1t Is so
asserted with considerable authority.
A hearing of the play with considera-
ton of this point Of rhymed and blank
verse, leads 20 some interesting discoveries
and deductions. The play is not read with
cadence. Thus, the splendor of the Ian
guage is preserved without the monotony
of tone. The effect lis realistic, and at the
same time inspiring. One is carried along
on the wings of fancy, but there is sem
sibility momentous of the reality and hui
manity of the motifs. 1t is only Cyrano
and Rogueneau who rhyme. But Cyrano
rhymes with dignity, point, delicacy-in
fact, with poetry. Rogueneau scores only
Goggerel. This is subtitle, and discloses
the genius of Mansfield. On the tongues of
the men are thus their very own defini-
ton Cyrano is a poet; Rogueneau is
only hanger-on, poetaster plebeian i'm
ttator of his aristocratic idol. Among
those who have significant lines or lines
In quantity there are no others besides
these who are poets, and hence, no others
speak In verse. Cyrano is a poet by pro-
fession, according to the traditions of the
seventeenth century cavaliers, Of whom
ne was one. Poetry, ballade making was
much more second nature than a habit
cultivated. He came in the wake of the
troubadours, the heir of their spontaneous
gifts.
How MIR. Mansfield's. theory and his
composition have embellished the text
ana heightened even the dramatic points
may be gathered from consideration of
few points. In the second act, where
In the presence Of Paris, seemingly, Cyra-
no learns of the cowardly trick of De
Guiche In setting 100 men against him, he
insults the count. The nobleman cannot
condescend to strike him, so he attempts
TO sting him with words He quotes
Don Quixote" to Cyrano. Every eye is
on them. 1t is Cyrano's wit against the
counts. The Gascon summons every re-
source, not only of sword skill, but shin
Ing wit and rhyme. De Guiche refers to
the incident of Don Quixote attacking the
wincmills, and tries to ridicule Cyrano
AS read on the stage this dialogue en-
sues:
DE Guiche-When one attacks them Won
will often find
Cyrano-Then ! attack folk turned by
every wind?
DE Gu1che-That with the sails that In
wide circles fly, they'll land
you in the mud
Cyrano-Or In the sky!
Compare any published translation. and
1t will at once become apparent how
much more complete is the triumnh Of
CyranO in this verbal duel hx, rbI,,,ino