Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-05-15
ANU SlIHENTS.

stand. Many people assembled at the New
National Theater last night to applaud f.
II. Sothern and Virginia Harmed in their
latest production. The Sunken Bell Just
how much OF the applause was based on
clear conception of plot or purpose. it
would be difficult to estimate. 1t is really
a hard matter to dislike anything that Mr..
Sothern does His candid. conscientious
methods ard his graceful personality firmly
hold the admiration he inspires at first
hearing and causes an auditor to follow
him with patient expectancy even when the
matter he lecites does not seem promising.
Miss Harmed. too is an actress of appealing
personality, and The Sunken Bell pro-
vdes them both VITA suitable characters
in so far as acting is concerned. Rowland
Blackstone gave Il capital impersonation of
water spirit covered with centuries of
marine growth The play was translated
into English verse by Charles Henry
NttZger The simple fairy tale of bell
founder. who reseriei home and friends for
love of an elfin creature, may have been so
adorned in the telling to give it deserved
rank classic among the mystery-lov-
ing Germans. The difficulties of translation
VIII no GGuht accOun. for the fact that the
English h anx verse is rather monotonous
and the rhymes rsrfunctory. NerSltication
in an English stage composition Is always
difficult "XperiEen nj, and there We're times
last night when the words far prep0n
Geratcd over ideas. that the dialogue sug-
sesLed the Sil.g-Song rectat.ons in a country
come 50 carried away with the metrical
mood to beat time unconsciously by
waving the hands or swaying the body.
Yet the beauty Of the stage settings. the
charm of the music composed for the piece
by Anne LachaUme. and the tragic in
tensity which good acting lent to some of
the scenes combined to claim respect and
silence frivolous comments. One of the
greatest of numerous difficulties under
which il lhbnrs is the fact that any crit-
cism is only The expression of individual
opinion. sometimes interesting only because
of the tenperameital bias which lies be-
hind it, Comments ike these might have
been heard as the audience left the theater
Young Woman: Isn't Sothern splendid,
He is heroic as he can be, and he is such
gentleman, too
Another Young Woman: Yes; and Virgin
III Harmed acts beautifully. too. l don't
blame the pell-n1aker for falling in love
with her. although it was wrong of him to
desert his wife and two children.
y Serious Man With Longish Hair: The
difficulty in securing popular appreciation
of these plays is that people will not look
this hell-founder represents human nature,
while the spirit with whom he falls in love
represents art and the unattainable. He
neSlects his rea. duties for impossible ideals
and meets with disaster.
A Determined-iooking Lady: 1t served
him right.
\ Mn With Very Convex Plai, Vest
It's fine lot of scenery, but that ringa-
What they ought 70 do is to get Eddie Foy
or somebody like him to come out and do
a few funny falls.
A student: That chap who came up out
OF the well and did a college yell every now
and then was all right. His makeup was
great imitation of a catfish.
And 50 It went. There We're many men of
many minds. Much of Hauptmann's i'm
portance may lee due to the fact that he
has aroused such diverse comment on his
work. \ man who can set the world guess
ing as to what he means is aSsuredly
man of consequence. Mr.. Sothern is to be
sincerely admired for his artistic enterprise
in producing in this country a work of so
much European celebrity. 1t would indeed
be pity if an i'll choice of material for
such an enterprise should discourage sim
l!aT enieaNOr in the future. As a work of
literary moment this presentation invites
scholarly interest. while the exquisite
stage pictures aud the music constitute a
strong appeal to a sense of the beautiful
''ERMINIE. '-Jakabowski and Paulton.s
orera of 'Erminie" has been the most sue
cessiul work of its character that has ever
heen produced in this country. Its original
yum in the New York Casino exceeded $50
performances. ana only so recently as last
summer Francis Wilson recorded his Goth
performance Of the opera in New York Its
popularity has constantly been on the in
crease. 1t has had several revvals in many
cities. and each one has proved more sue
cgSSfu! than the last. That a brilliant au-
present revival of "Erminie" at the Column
hiii next week is already an assured fact
ACADEMY OF MESIC-The Black Patti
Troubadou.s gave a singery, ras-time per
Torrance at the Academy last night Ind
virtually and collectively they are willing
WORKERS, and before the opening skit was
nan over the audience had forgotten the
outdoor humidity and We're as active in be-
slowing its applause the actors were
agile in earning it, What the entertain
mtnt may have lacked in originality or
dramatic worth it made up in action and
the enthusiasm Of the company. Mere dia-
ipgue and The ordinary stage business in
cid"nial to the performance Were passed
over lightly. Time which was not devoted
to chickens. fried. boiled and fricaseed;
to coon songs about 'mah baby and to
the &!iurements Of the cake walk was time
wasted. Altogether everybody was salts
lied. The bill presented was divided into
three parts. The first, muscular and ac-
rohatic trife. entitled "A Rag-Time Frolic
at Ras-hury Park. moved along with 50
much energy that the plot must have been
left at the post. The setting had the gem
eral aspect Of a DahOmey midway, and the
adventures of sporting parson, two sure
thing men. a Soodly company of old uncles,
auntIos and flip cake walkers were many
and exciting. y novelty in this act was
the Afro-lrish policeman of Leslie Trplett.
The oliG was exceptional in Il number of
instances. Judson Hicks, in songs and
monulOgueS. is less successful a humor-
list than as vocalist. The Troubadour
Quintet gave a number Of selections inchar-
acteristic and finished manner. The work
of Sissicretta Jones. the black Patti, was
generously applauded, and for an encore
she sang NJ Old Kentucky Home with
a distant chorus by the company. The
grand cake walk a notable feature and
held the audience from start to finish. lrv-
ing Jones, the ''living-easy' comedian,
sang number of brand-new coon songs,
that is. they We're new in all save their
references to chicken larceny, raZors and
those vital principles which mark and
permeate their kind. James Wilson. the
equiibrist, gave an extremely clever act,
in which We're introduced feats of balanc-
ing and Juggling. 1t is Il new line of work
for the colored man and is unusually good.
Part three. An operate Kaleidoscope"
employ the full strength of the company
in the rendering of excerpts from the
Chimes of Normandy" and The Fortune
Teller" Hail to the Queen from "L'Afr-
caine" drinking song from "Cavalleria
Rusticana' and a grand finale, the march
from 'Tannhauser.
THE NEW GRAND-Those who go to
the New Grand this week and after impa-
titntly sitting through the first part OF the
program get up and go away will make
mistake. The first half is dull. but the
other half is for the most part bright and
pleasing. Clarice Nance's singing Is alone
worth "a trip to the theater, even on a warm