New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-06-24

-oPNELIA j. GOULD AS SIR TOBY BELCR
s,O nersuaded him that it could make Twelfth
Night" over So that he would not know it for
fbe same ev- work. lie yielded. and the play in
is inuocuous form was given.
u would De pleasant TO say. II X We're posi-
se that Twelfth Night" was just as good a
NAV after The students had made their own
suenaatIous e. 1t as IL was before; and. indeed.
many q play uc Shakespeare and many later
r,sys than his have been made over for the
rrofessiora. stage FAR more than this one, as
witness III. Daerbohm Trees Blue Ribbon Band
version Of Trip Van Wrinkle" now running at
Fer Msjes1y's Theatre, and the edition Of
~Pericles. Prince Of Tyre" which was given two
months ago at STANDARDIZATION.
Ths changes IN this case consisted in the cut
ting out Of large portions Of some scenes in
which Sir Toby Belch and Sir Andrew Ague-
cheek were chief figures, and in representing
both these ornaments of the order Of chivalry
Is sober men That is TO say, as men not totally
under the influence Of alcohol at the moment
ior attention was eagerly called to the fact that
there was 20 intination that they never drank
@ even that they had not been drinking a mo-
1leut before hey came on the stage. But they
&c not drink and they were not drunk on the
stage Il IS scarcely necessary TO say that a
sober Sir Toby Is no Sir Toby. and those who
have long loved Twelfth Night viii shudder
81 the thought Of Twelfth Night without Sir
Toby. on tha other hand, for a girl to play the
ST. Toby that Shakespeare drew would obviously
be repulstve exhibition, so that the choice lay
between treating him as he was treated and Sc
lacting another play. Whether OF not the decision
Sas wise one need not be discussed here. The
remark was heard IN the theatre that the stu
dents did not play Sir Toby's scenes, but they
got around them wonderfully. Il is useless TO
II 10 improve on that statement of the case
With al this understood and granted, then,
The discussion OF the rest Of the play may pro-
coed Those who have read Of the Smith Col
lege plays IN these columns from year to year
90 not need much more Information as to the
eject q the playing Of the mems parts by girls.
As has been said more than once before, the
Illusion is surprisingly successful. The modified
costumes are forgotten quickly, and the tendency
q Ire audience is to think Of the men as men
zzd 10 call them he" It is constantly noticed.
= course, that the small pipe is as the maiden s
organ. shriu and sound" but the audience is
usually as readily deceived as Orsino was
The severest task Of the play, that Of making
s0mething out OF the reformed Sir Toby" fell
upOn the president Of the class. Miss Cornelia
Brownen Gould Apparently it could not have
fallen better. She was all and more than all
that reformed Sir Toby could be expected to
BE- The deprivation Of ardent spirits did not
affect the ardor of her own spirits. She ex-
pressed the juicy humOr Of the part; she was at
once sharp and ponderous; she had a natural
ETagger q seIf-satisfied strut and a comic Ieer.
She could hold firm possession Of the interest OF
scene il which she was concerned and that.
TOO, without forcing her own part into promi-
hence Ct the expense Of others, and nothing
ever tagged while she was on the stage. The
character parts are usually the weak spots in
he Smith plays, but this performance ranked
viii the best that have been given there.
II il was z surprise to see a young woman
pay Sir Toby II this manner, il was no less one
70 See the representation OF the character the
most opposite TO him-ViOla. 1t was acted by
Mss Eliza Jane GOodseIl. If the world were
Searched Il is scarcely likely that dozen women
could be found who could play Viola so as to
make the part throughout a living truth Il
sould be silly fattery TO say that Miss GoodseI
Sas one q these. It would be fattery TO say
HAT she vas able TO invest the part with the