New-York tribune., 1901-09-22
THE DRAMA.
NEW PLAY AT THE SAVOY THEATRE
THE RED KLOOF."

THE RED KLOOF."
The Savoy Theatre. renovated and improved. was
opened last night. for the regular season, and a
new play. called The Red Kloof.'' by Mr.. Paul
NJ Potter was acted for the first time. This piece
tells story OF contemporary life in the Transvaal'
commingng typical Beers and Englishmen and in
character It is partly domestic and partly military
Mr.. Louis Mann and Miss Clara Lipman acted the
chief parts in it, the former impersonatins an ola
Boer named Piet Prinsoo. who has been in military
service. cornet. and the latter impersonatins
his daughter, Mona who becomes enamoured OF a
fascinating young Englishman. named Rodney
Blake. secretly Inflated with the Jameson invaders.
elopes with him. is pursued by the father and
brought home again. only to be subsequently ex-
pelled.-because of impossible but radical mis-
understanding the part of her irascible sire
becomes the wife of Blake and is ultimately re-
stored to the paternal favor and crowned with
domestic bliss The Jameson raid is thinIy braided
with the strands OF this story the exposure of its
secret purpose being imputed to an incidental es-
capade OF love.
The posture OF the characters. may be sur
missed is so familiar as almost be trite. The
dotng father. the inpusive and errant daugh-
ter. the dishonorable lover (whose sentimental in
fatuation does not make him any the less ras-
cal. though, after all, he turns out welD. the
fathers expulsion of his child. the subsequent re-
morse msan nthropy. and repentance of the misera-
BILE parent, and the family reunion effected through
the sweet influence OF a little child and a word
of timely explanation-these ingredients of drama
have all been industriously and continuously en-
poyed. They are, however, in this instance. pro-
vided with a somewhat fresh envronment-that.
namely OF an African farm and region peopled
with strange race The portrayal of Boer life may.
or may not be truthful: II certainly Is disagree
able The play is protracted with trivialities, the
dialogue especially during the first half OF 1t. Is
weighted with explanations OF semi-biographl-
cal character and the language is generally coarse
and frequently profane
Act first is reminiscent of The Little Minister
and act second of The Vicar of Wakeheld'-with
an investiture of rough manners and of pumpkin
mirth. During about one-third of the play old
Piet it's central and only important character, Is
represented as deaf. but his hearing is restored to
him. by an operation performed by Blake. and the
first thing that he hears OF is his daughters
flight. This climax is cleverIy contrived, and at
this point Mr. Louis Mann,-who, in general, rep
resented a violent explosive, i'll tempered litigious,
and offensive German: and not a Hollander at all
manifested deep emotion and good command or
art I'm the expression of IL. He was wildly ap-
plauded and was many times recalled for his later
burst Of volcanic clamor. when driving the girl
from her home The pretext for this is his msap-
prehension OF the meaning OF a talk that he has
overheard In which Mona has declared her total
indifference to her lovers father. Mr.. Mann $
presentment OF old Pets redemption by the child
was also the cause Of popular enthusiasm-but
this old business of touching the f1inty heart with
the baby finger has been overdone and is little
rnawksh mistaken old man utters curse and
South Africa An ostrich, something like that
disgusting bird was momentariys disclosed. and
there was a resplendent effect of sunset. W. W.