The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-04-09
WORCESTER THEATRE.
The Fortune TeIIer" to Be the Great
Drawing Card This Week.

OF more than ordinary interest to
lovers of light opera, will be the pres
entation of Herbert and Smiths latest
musical offering, 1.-The Fortune Teller, !"
which will be given by the Alice Mel
sen opera company.
The Fortune Teller has already re-
ceived a metropolitan verdict of APP
prevail and it comes here after very
successful engagements in the larger
cities of the country. Any composition
the work Of those successful collabor-
ators, Victor Herbert and Harry b.
Smith, is entitled to more than passing
attention, and the advent of this pre-
tentious successor to the Wizard of
the Nile" THE IDOLS Eye" and THE
Serenade' must be looked forward to
with pleasant anticipations.
The story of THE Fortune Teller"
as told in Mr.. Smiths llbretto, relates
the adventures of a pretty Romany
girl, Musette, the fortune teller, who
has two doubles, one a ballet dancer
and the other a young lieutenant in
the Hungarian Hussars. The ballet
dancer, who is named Irma and who
is an heiress, is sought in marriage by
an elongated count with a Paderewsh
wig, and penchant for composing
airs which everybody recognizes. She
is in love with a dashing young officer
in the Hungarian army Ladislas by
name and persuades the gypsy fortune
teller, Musette, to take her place in
marriage with the count:
Musette's gypsy lover, Sandor makes
trouble, and general confusion reigns,
the heress finally being obliged to don
the uniform of her twin brother, Fed
or, and pretend to be a soldier in order
to escape the opportunities of the
count and the dangerous jealousy of
the gypsy. Other characters in the
plot are an eccentric teacher of dane
ing, a funny old Dutchman, the father
of Musette; a French prima donna and
various agreeable looking gypsy girls
and shapely soldiers.
The story has been treated with the
greatest versatility, and permits of
varied situations, both stirring and
comic. 1t calls for lays of love, songs
of heroic import, military marches,
dramatic ensembles, parodies and burl-
esques. 1t is said that Mr.. Smith, who
is a master of lyric writing, has fairly
outdone himself in the metrical portion
of the book.
From all accounts, however, the sig
nal triumph of the Fortune Teller
has been made by the music of Victor
Herbert. The score is said to be re-
markable one. One of the New York
papers calls it "alive, spontaneous and
senses, to tickle the ear, and to please
the musician who looks for form,
style and finish in musical writing. Mr..
Herbert, it is claimed, has not lost
sight of the Hungarian motif. One
critic, in speaking of the czardas in the
first act, describes it as ''redhot from
Hungary, and biting like paprika." The
score is filled with numbers grave and
gay, light and serious, catchy in the
most popular manner. and musicianly
in a thoroughly praiseWorthy style.
The staging of the play is rich, elab-
crate and characteristic, while the
dressing is harmonious and beautiful.
Alice Nielsen herself is provided with
a character which exactly fits her abil-
tiles. The triple role which she is called
upon to play, makes large demands up
on her versatility and permits her to
display her attractive personality in
a variety of costumes. The composer
has given her abundant material for
her pure, fresh soprano voice, and she
is credited with a genuine success In
this, her first stellar role. She is sup
ported by an excellent organization, in
Guiding Eugene Cowles, Richard Gold
en-, Joseph Herbert, Frank Rushworth,
Joseph Cawthorn, Marguerite Sylvia,
Jennie Hawley, Paul Nicholson, Billie
Norton, May Boley and carefully Sc
lected chorus.