The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1899-04-30
CHATS WITH THE PLAYERS.

THAT'S WITH The fLAi EkS.
Occasionally after periods OF exceedingly
good business, even managers become phil
osophicai and are willing to look upon the
remainder of humanity with charitable
| eyes. Joseph Luckett, OF the Columbia
Theatre, is exceptionally prone to this sort
of thing. and SO it is that when he walked
in that indefinite direction known as
down town" with Times man few
| days ago he gave himself up to series
! of remarks eulcgistic of newspapers and
the newspaper profession. Amusement ca
terers in general can find value only in
journalists who are their unpaid press
agents, but Mr.. Lucke;t was not inclined
on Tuesday to see matters in that light
I'VE behind the box Office are some
| times trihe likely to feel that dramatic
| critics are our sworn enemies, he said,
especially when the combinations which
hold our stages are not altogether COM
mendable. But it is notably true. never
| theless that no single factor has had more
| to do with the commercial and artistic up
building of the play, player. playwright.
and playhouse than the great American
daily. In cities where the sheets give
little space to current entertainments and
show small interest in the dramatic culture
of their people, profits are not only small,
but the sort of performances That are most
successful are of the lowest order Gin
cinnati and Cleveland and even Baltimore.
are prominent examples of this statement,
and probably viii continue to be so. Bos-
ton, the best amusement center in the
country has also the most competent re-
viewers. while proprietcrs of the large pub
LEGATIONS there do not scruple TO provide
columns for the scholarly articles OF their
critics. The utmost honesty prevails and
the faith which the public has in the pa
scored by the higher class of attractions.
In similar manner the prevalent craze
for the unclean in New York may be par
tally due to the fippancy of dramatic
writer's in that burg. Careful and consci-
entious resumes of worthy or unworthy
renderings are alike beneficial to pro-
prietors and pGblic-they rid a town Of
meritless companies and directors Of costly
weeks.
Eight years ago reviewers OF experience
were rather rare and comparatively lit
tie official attention was paid TO entertain
ment enterprises. Eight years ago the
present financial magnitude of theatrical
commerce was undreamed Of. When a
troupe appeared seven times TO gross re-
ceipts of $4,000 the fact was bruited all
over the country. Now $4,000 weeks are
done regularly by over dozen organiza-
lions on the road By keeping prominent
actors constantly before the public and
making amusements a topic of conyersa-
ton among the intelligent. the newspapers
have fully doubled the profits of such ca
tering. Interest is continually kept up in
manner that Is hardy realized by man
ayers, whose sole ideas of advertising
picture big type announcements that their
offerings are the only good ones on the
face of the globe.
In an artistic way the press has done
quite as much for the stage as financially.
Skiilful criticisms have encouraged play
ers TO higher standards and made it neces-
sary for directors to maintain those STAN
dards. They have educated amusement
lovers to the fullest appreciation OF his
trionic merit and have done great deal
toward the advancement of culture in this
country. Altogether it occurs TO me that
the proprietors of theatres should be the
last persons in the world anxious to limit
the scope and liberty of newspaper men.
Fairness and squareness among dramatic
writer's are qualifications more valuable
than fulsome praise and indiscretionate
concentration" And The Times reporter
agreed with enthusiasm
In a. bewitchingly dainty bicycle cos
tune, the skirt of which was low enough
to have made 4 homely woman passabie,
and sufficiently high to show the shapii-
ness OF a handsome one, Marguerite sylvia
yesterday, and there greeted The Times in
terviewer, who was awaiting her. Those
who saw Miss Sylvia last week at the Ma
tional will not need to be told that her
eyes would prove fatal TO a poet, and that
her figure might have made a marble
Venus turn emerald with envy. SIZE is 20
attractive that every girl who was in the
room when she entered looked at her dis
approvingiy. Needless of these glances,
SulN cd in
chair and prepared to answer the reporters
questions.
My experience in the theatrical profess
sion has been a most varied ONE the
singer remarked in predatory manner.
During a very brief career l have
been almost everywhere, and have done
almost everything My family had moth
ing In common with the stage, my father
having been a physician of thirty-six
years standing. He lived in Brussels. and
l was born there. Though l became anx-
ious to take up professional life while
still 4 child, 1t was net until after his death
that my final determination was made. 1
went to London and applied to Sir Angus
tus Harris for a position. The manager
heard my voice and was pleased. He aske1
if / spoke English. l lied to him and said
that l did. though at that time l did not
know two hundred words. In twenty days
acquired the tongue, and then studied
the title role in Carmen, which | SUM
without single rehearsal. Sir Augustus
was afraid to let me begin in town, so that
my first appearance was at the Crystal
Palace. The audience treated me kindly.
and Immediately 1 was brought down 10
Drury Lane and to Covent Garden Never
since until now have l done anything so
well as that Carmen. and my ssgement
was an extended enc. Then Sir Augustus
shufied of this mortal coil and created
the part OF the adventures in 'Ths Tel
phone Girl. The character was important.
for the piece as offered in London was very
different from that seen here.
Having stepped from grand opera into
musical comedy | next took up romantic
drama and came to America with II.
Beerbohm Tree The city in this country
which We visited initially was Washing
ton, and l was seen at the Lafayette as
the mad girl in that dismal failure, The
Seats of the Mighty While in the COM
pany 1 became engaged to marry Gerald
du Maurier. the son OF the author of
TrilbY.' but my mother did not wish me
to complete the arrangement and so. while
the young fellow and 1 broke off. l did
not return home with MIR. Tree. Instead
went to Philadelphia and there assumed
Virginia Earle's role in 'The Lady slavey.'
Then came term with another failure in
the form OF "A Round OF Pleasure and a
few weeks at the Herald Square as Mile.
Bon Bon in The Girl From Paris This
experience put me into the good graces of
E. e. Rice and so was not cniy the crigi-
nal opposite to Charles Bigelow in The
French Maid but had an ingenue part
in Monte Carlo
During last summer | went into vaude-
ville-mainly for the advertising to be