The times., 1900-12-26
WOMEN WHO PLAY MEN.
A Comparative Analysis Based On
Recent Productions.
tFrom the New York SUM-

tfrom the New York SUM-
Two actresses in this city. one French
woman. Sarah Bernhardt, the other an
American. Maude Adams. are playing the
hero in a play written in French espe-
cially for the foreigner, and especially
translated for the American. The part is
one recurring dramatic. IL not tragic
force: but 1t was written for a woman
! and for years il will be acted only by wo-
ma-. When. in time. 1t becomes obtain
| able by any theatrical company on pay
ment of royalties. it will be assumed by
| ambitious actresses. just as in old time
| they tried their prentice hands on Juliet.
Brooches parts are common enough in
stage history. Shakespeare's plays con-
tain four famous roles of this kind:
Rosalind, Imogen. Viola, and Julia In all
of these the woman assumes masculine
attire After Shakespeare other writer's
produced plays with similar roles. Peg
Wofllugton perhaps was the first actress
to play mans part, not mere "breech-
es part" In Farquhar's Constant Cou-
ple'' she acted the part of Sir Harry
Wildair. originally performed by Robert
Wilks; and in so manly fashion that at
least one young woman fell in love with
the player-or is said so to have fallen.
Theatrical history does not say who ioi-
lowed Mrs. Wellington in playing mems
parts. For years Sir Harry was the only
part SD written and so acted. 1t was not
until ,'ery recent times that a serious
male part was essayed by a woman In
1896 Ellen Tree acted role created only
two months earlier BY Macready, lon. in
Talfourd's tragedy OF that name OF her
acting, the actor wrote: Miss Trees
performance is a very. pretty effort, and
very creditable woman's effort but it is
no more like young man than coat and
waistcoat are" Later, Miss Tree played
Romeo. and was followed by Charlotte
Cushman and occasionally since then un-
terrified actresses have tried the part
that is said to call for the passion of
twenty-one and the wisdom of seventy.
II was Miss Cushnan. too, who played
Hamlet" first of women; to be followed
by dozen other players, the most famous
of whom-for her Prince of Denmark
was Miss Marriott. The great American
actress plsye. Cardinal Wolsey. once on
time. but memory of that feat is nearly
forgotten. Prince Hal, in Shakespeare's
king Henry w. has been tried by wo-
men; it was once said that Miss Rehan
would act the part in a revival by Mr..
Daily; but she never did.
All OF these performances have been CT
parts written for men and created by
men. After these came women's parts.
written for men to act beginning proba-
bly, with Samuel Foote's Lady Pentweazls
in his IaSte- Inc notorious Satlri5l
wrote several womans parts for himself
and other men 90 act; and since his time
We have had actors making fame and for
tune by playing women on the stage
Only once, however, has an actor tried
to play serious woman's part; and .hen
the play failed. Perhaps, il woman had
tried the part, instead of an actor known
for his comicality. the play might have
succeeded.
The wheel has come full circle; mems
parts, serious and comic, are written for
women to play. 1t was Dejazet. the French
actress who set the example. She ere
ated the Duke OF Reichstadt in The Son
of the Man." some seventy years ago.
and later she got young writer named
Sardou to prepare little comedies with
male parts for her. Now comes Edmond
Rostand. with melodrama involving trag-
has made a success of it, and her younger
American colleague has succeeded. too.
though the full expression of the eharac-
ter is beyond her powers.
VIII an actor ever play the Duke OF
Reichstadt? To play it he would have to
be as old as Mime. Bernhard and lcok as
young as Miss Adams: the requisite COM
bination will be diffi~ult TO find. But can
woman play Wide = Bedoit. or Foote'S
women. if ever Foote'S comedies should
be revived Hardly: she has not the
comic power to make them real So with
"L'AigIcn:" not really epicene, though
written for woman. il can hardly De
acted by q man. however desirable a man
may be for mans role on the stage.