Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-01-13

iiiuVSt IL sue dISNeleu. inc Io>t
of mother love appeals in the strongest
degree. We must first of all bring our
selves to understand and admit that there
is good in every one. This is true. l be-
lIeve, in ali that class of women who
held at arms length. They are buffeted
upon the waves of the world. hoping deep
down in their hearts to some day lind a
happy harbor but, poor wretches, they
seldom do. Ii is this one thing which
makes these women what they are to lit
i,erature and the drama. For such women,
as l have time and time again before said,
are human; they have hearts and souls
and flesh and blood, and can suffer as
much, if not more, than their sisters whose
lives extend but little beyond the home.
THIS is what such plays as Camille and
'Sapho' seek to teach"
Referring TO the Rev. Mr. George and
others who have taken one side of the ar
gument, Miss Nethersole declared with hon
est emphasis, Il hold that L have never
played an immoral character. In other
words, | have never played a part which
did not teach moral and therefore is not
immoral. Take. for instance. Carmen 1t
Is the greatest plea for civilization that
was even written. Many years ago." con-
tnued Miss Nethersole, DIR. Lyman Alb
bolt, certainly good authority in morals,
preached g. sermon on this question. The
whole discourse We're well worth repeat ting
but the briefest presentation of its salient
points will serve:
L. 1t is not the function of the drama
to teach moral lessons.
z, A moral lesson neither makes nor mars
either drama a novel.
%. The moral quality of a play does not
depend upon the result.
Il. The real function of the drama is
IKE that OF the novcl-not to amuse not
to excite. but to portray life, and so to
minister to it. And as virtue and vice
goodness and evil are the great fundamen-
tai facts of life they must in either serious
story or serious play, be portrayed. If
they are SO portrayed that the vice is al
turing ana Inc virtue repugnant. the play
or story Is immoral. If they are so portrayed
that the vice Is repellant and the virtue
allurng, the play or story is moral.
D. The church has no occasion to ask
the theater to preach; though, if 1t does
.iot preach we have right to demand
mat the ethical doctrines be pure and high.
we nave also q right to demand that in its
pictures OF life It SO portray virtue as 10
make II attrac tiye"
William H. Crane has made a study Of
the statistical phase of the drama. Every
no" ana then,' he says, you hear of some
actor VINO has a character to play that has
more INES than Shakespeare gave Hamlet
But 1t Is not to be taken from this that
Hamlet is the longest part known on the
stage. Cyrano de Bergerac Is vastly more
loquacious. A study of Shakespeare's plays
and the compilation of the number of lines
allotted different cha racters furnishes bs sis
Tor many interesting comparisons however
The bard apparently did not believe in al
lowing the women of his plays to do any
more talking than was absolutely neces-
sary. Hamlet is by far the most loqua-
cious--uSlng the word in its arithmetical
sense-of the men His share in the dia-
logues of the play that bears his name is
l.'69 lines. Next to the royal Dane comes
richard Ill, with 1,161 lines, and Iago fol-
lows hard, with LIZ. Henry in the
magnificent monologue of the play named
from him speaks 1,GS3 lines. Among the
women there are but five who exceed the
limit of 800 lines. Most people would think
that Portia would be first but her $50 lines
SSeI RnCaIip1'S
has go, Imogen has J96 and Juliet has 541
lines to speak. Only twenty of Shake
peares women have more than 800 lines
each, while twenty-one of their lords ex-
coed 800, and Rosaind, who leads her sex
by 70 lines, does not talk half as much as
Hamlet"
Few people know of the labor and ex-
pense in getting up and putting the
road trst-class opera company said
Weli-known tmpreSSario the other day.
First there is the selection of your peo-
pie. For principals you must select the
best obtainable, those of experience and
well-known fmpresario the other day.
the most desirable. Then your chorus,
many or whom are perhaps new and, while
faving good voices. must be carefully re-
Eearsed in their music until they have
thoroughly committed their scores, words
and music and taught TO sing in time and
tune Good ensemble work is absolutely
necessary. In order to get this far you
have had to eXpend money for operate
scores and for place for rehearsals l
have known a company to rehearse three
months before venturing before the public
Then comes the stage BUSINESS, which must
be carefully gone over so that each prin-
cipal and each member of the chorus will
know exactly what to do at every stage of
the performance. To accomplish this the
rehearsals must be had upon a regular
stage equipped with proper scenery, prop
critics and mechanical effects
If the company IS going to carry its own
oItHeStTd, Jnefe are the musicians n
gage and the orchestral parts to be bought
or rented and the players to be rehearsed.
ers- Then there is the route to be laid out,
but this IS done by booking agency and
the arrangement must harmonize with the
attractions already booked in the different
cities to be visited. With this come fine
arrangements for railroad fares sleeninr
ears for the principals and coaches for the
chorus people. the sending ahead of advance
men the procuring of printing, the max
ing of costumes, wigs, ETC. all of which
involves a considerable expenditure of mon
ely before a single performance is given.
w hen the company begins its tour its
work is still greater 1t has its nerforn,
ance at night and then a rehearsal he
next day to correct defects or to start rnnn
a new work that is to be presented Ister
Inc impresario has tough time of it even
if things run smoothly and the ventura fs
successful; but if there Is a smell of had
weather or the public does not take kindly
10 the company and its work then fhe
idilagef mas a very tough time. In this
latter case the members of the company
also suffer, for the tour may come to a
sudden close and they may lose their sala-
rles and be thrown out of engagements in
the middle of a season, when it is impossi-
Bile to get anything else to do
Altogether the difficulties and risks sur
rounding an operate venture are so many
that. but few have the hardihood to at
tempt it unless they have exceptional fnan-
c.al backing"
Interest scarcely less strong than that ex-
cited by Ching Ling Foo at the New Grand
next week will be drawn forth by Mrs.
Ching Ling Foo and her baby daughter
Chez Tai. who take part in all the acts.
These feminine celestials have been won
derfully clever at adapting themselves to
American ways. Mrs. Foo or perhaps
more properly, Mrs. Ching" has even
ceased to rejoice in her tiny feet and pro-
fesses an admiration for feminine feet of
the No. or order. Like a sensible Wo-
man, too. she sampled our style of dressing,
but only once squeezed herself into a cor
SET which she fastened to get out of, as it
partially stopped her respiration She
makes very picturesque figure in her soft
silk robes, in every conceivable color, with
trousers of satin and exquisitely decorated