The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-03-11
EXAMPLES IN STAGECRAFT.
PLAYS PRODUCED By DANIEL FROH-
MtY an D4yID BELaSCO.
walIsckisn Manner Revived aud ontdons
In n Romantic Melodrama Oddly In
a Pathetic Tragedy The Trnnsit OF
N,m,cs from Vaudeville To Dignity.

few tTAIlenleTS 81 nv h'h'l wv WV "
ANY particular Kind If play long before N" many
have had all they want Of IT. III" former are
rnn,,preJ that no more Hope meIodramas ought
g. be- brought out But here We have The Pride
- lspplro." A close imitation Of the Hope pieces
IN manner. and It's first audience received II gladly.
Ar,, d,Jur,,ng the enthusiasm Of James Il.
lIscke,ts PERSONAL friends, and Of Bertha Gal
,.,ds the remainder Of the applause VAS more
than sufficient To prove the general liking OF the
,,,v II nd not matter that smiles Of cynlcism
and ttief- Of rdicule accompanied the hero's
vondrous rrowess with his sword. The effect
on an assembly AZ blase MS any thnt ever crowded
4 theatre on an opening night was electrical
After all, II is not two miles from the Star 10 the
tnteron The separation IN human nature
is much less, though the wider difference in tn"
quality 81 demand and supply IL fairly represented
by 30 cents and SEQ The mel"drana
acceptable in lower Broadway need have no hne
mess in its forca. whlla upper Broadway 70
oulrps both those qualities, but The Pride OF
J.nnico' would h. as popular At Thirteenth
street as II Is fashionable at Forty fifth street
This is not T." say that the people who go TO the
Criterion DO not get their moneys worth u
We rate the value II such a play plainly performed
nj the Star ~ half n dollar, we must IN fairness
admit that he ~luXurlrs 81 the Criterion rcprcsen-
tatiou AT" worth the extra dollar and a half
There s Mt lIarkett, the son Of a famous
actor Of the palmy days, and a s,alsatt reyl'er
# paImS day vim and JUNCTION In mimic heroisnl
Of lester " attacks typ. There ~ Miss Galland
with the combined sweetness oi Mary dannon
md the archness Of Fife Germon. The acting
Of this play Ia like and ~ clever a., that 81 Rose
daIa' ~ ours" at the Star IN thu times when
That theatre was the only nlodiSh one in town
There is ia II n going back from the Liberalism
ofnew methods 10 tie oNaggeTation which was
regarded forty wears ago as th" best that could
b- done. But IS not thIs ntrngrade movement
desirable sotar as romantic melodrama isconcerned'
Look at Mr. flackrtt separately IN his fighting
moods OF Miss Gallaud IN her amorous moments,
sua You will see something like caricature, But
a, figures IN ultra romantlcism they probably
do not strike you as too demonstra,ive Without
stress md friction no play Of that class can be
successfully projected across the footllghts. But
this furious piece at the Criterion Is produced by
Daniel FrOhman. and nothing that he has accom-
pli.had at the l.yceum W Days has been more
Artful IN the nlceties II outfit or detail. In com
pletanesS Of accessories, in recourse TO devices
Of illumination and in intrinsic richness OF in
vesture the Frohmnn present is incomparabiy
better than the Wallack past All the enchant
men, vhirh distance lends should not blind even
the p'sSlmiSts to the progress in stagecrail
The dramatic skill of David Belasco does not
e. hack n or stand still, but keeps up with
the advance and sometimes gees ahead Of II Tie
/. keen and les,iul in striving for artistic novelty
Convict him Of the exposure Of a woman's legs
in Naughty Anthony" II you please, and Of
denudins a womhn's degradation in "Zaza," but
At the same time you must acquit him Of anything
deleterious in putting the unfortunate heroines
Of the Chinese First Born" and the Japanese
Madame Butterfly" on the stage. In giving
MI. Powers's brief tragedy to New York audiences
he illustrated life and death in the Chinese quarter
oi San Francisco with graphic fidelity. The
exhibition was grewsome, and did not afford an
entertainment which many people cared for
But the new piece at the Herald Square is an
hour of satisfaction alike 10 those who know all
about s,aGecrait and those who are unwittingly
impressed by il Mr. Longs story Of Madame
Butterfly was japanese only by assertion. Ma
tive characteristics did not distinguish It. The
plight u the deserted girl might have happened
in any port where a sailor had left a temporary
wife Mr. Belasco knew that he must locali1s
the play by visual means. Nor did he deem it
sufficient to provide a Japanese house for the
p-rsonages 10 inhabit or visit He probably
felt that something peculiar would have TO Us
done To make his audiences put Blanche Bates
out Of mind a. the boldly aggressive sinner in
a farce, and accept her fifteen minutes later as
the innocent creature sinned against in a tragedy.
His device for this purpose was TO show pictures
II japanese scenery. They had no direct con.
nection with the ensuing play. but they did carry
the spectators away from Chautauaua into Japan.
The curtains we're drawn aside by two Asiauc
rouths. The views. painted in an imitation OF
water colors on separate big canyases, were a rice
field, A lake with boats, and q garden with a palace.
These were adruitly illumined, and suita bic
music by Furst accompanied them, besides
delighting the eye and directing the mind TO what
was to come. A to the play itself 1t was, in its
theme of iransitory wedlock between white
naval officer and a yellow maiden, very similar
10 Pierre Lofts Madame Chrysanthemum" lis
pathos lay in the trustiul waiting Of the Japanese
girl for the iaiihless father Of her babe. The
rise from quaint comedy to intense tragedy was
better in Longs tale, however, and this was en-.
phasized in the play and its performance,
Mr. Belasco had the advantage Of being alto.
Celher his own boss in producing Madame But
taray II he had submitted his drama TO another
man2= with its passage Of a whole night
time from twilight to dnybreak, all In ten minutes,
without the fall Of a curtain to indicate a lapse
81 as many hours, he would have encountered
An objection which he might not have been able
=, overcome. Seeing is believing, but the read
ing n a play Is not, II IT contains a questionable
innovation. Few would have been convinced
by a perusal that the idea was feasible. II was
made so by care and ingenuity in the action
The Young mother saw the fathers ships in the
hay, and hastily made the room pretty with flow
ers TO welcome him. But be did not come. She
watched Tor him through the window. The
dimnesS Of nightfaIi settled on her A servant
placed lamps about the room and lighted them
They gave a changed aspect Of shOviness u
the place. The girl was Joined at the window
by the servant. and the infant was set there, too
The llttle child fell asleep, and so did the IA
old woman. but the young mother kept her place
motionless The lamps burned out with her
expiring hope. The gray daylight fell coldly
upon her. ~ she at length retreated from tbs
window Not a word had been spoken during
this whole night Of ten minutes duration. j
lad been a dumb show wholly, but so ~eloquen
In meaning that the effect Of A long nights pitifu
vigil had been impressed on the audience. Thus
II Is demonstrated that all the things possihl,
In dramatic expression have not yet been done
II Mr. Belasco were enough Of a wizard 10 re
ducs Blanche Bates in size one half, and maxi
her = doll Of a japanese, she would be al! righ
in quantity, as she Is now In quality. She /,