New-York tribune., 1901-01-15
THE DRAMA.
JULIA MARLOWE AS MARY TUDOR
"KNIGHrHooD IN FLOWER"


"KNIGHTHooD IN FLOWER"
Miss Julia Marowe. making her re-entrance ba-.
after year of absence. appeared last night az ~.
Criterion Theatre, impersonating Mary Tudor IN
play entitled when Knighthood Was In Floxern
and she warmly welcomed by a frien,lIv ava
appreciative audience This actress long since ha
came favorite. by of her romantic ne-So,,,
beauty and her sympathetic temperament and I,
whatever womanly part she might choose to annaa
her presence would be of public pleasure
Her new play Is a synopsis or epitome OF a sor,a
what crude and cumbersome novel besrino e.
same title. which has been in general circuIstt,.
for about two years-a book not easily read ba
cause of its disjointed mechanism and its forcaa
artificial bald and infexibe style but one that b.
the merit of relevance to an unhackneyed histort,
episode. and one that contains several well con-
trived and striking romantic Incidents The nerio7
is about that of Scotts poem Of 'Marnion Tb
heroine Is the Princess Mary, sister of King 4apr,
VIII OF England The hero is of that monarch,
favortes. Charles Brandon viseount of Iisle obo
after the battle OF Flodden Q51f was made Ts,k
of Suffolk and who privately espoused the Princess
In Paris. after the death OF her husband Louix XII
of France. There is a slight basis of fact for the
play. but. practically (and this of course is merit
rather than defect. its story a fabric of abso
lutte fiction
The chronicles mention that Suffolk and Mary
Tudor had been lovers; that both of them were re-
markable for personal beauty: that King Henry
VIII had at one time. favored a project Of their
marriage; that the marriage of Princess to the
French King was one of mercenary policy pronp+-
ed by the subt!, counsel OF the Duke of Iougue
Vile; that the French King was prematureIv old
and inirm. so that he died within less than tbres
months after his wedding; that Suffolk was a most
accomplished courtier and soldier; and that King
Henry. as to his sisters marriage was easily
mollihed,-in part by the persuasiOns of the great
Wosey.-and made to receive Suffolk and his bride
and to establish them happily in an English home
The private marriage of Charles Brandon and Mary
Tudor occurred In 1915 Mary died in 1884 al the
age of thirty-seven: Brandon IN 1915 Not much Is
known about these persons: but around their shad-
owy figures the novelist has woven his little web
of fiction, and from that has been deduced- in an
exceedingly coarse and clumsy manner.-a series Of
theatrical scenes The nOvel-as In all such cases.
is preferable the play and an obvious reason:
the reader sees with the eyes OF the mind the
spectator with those OF the body. In the one case
il the emotions be excited fancy repairs every
discrepancy and removes every blemish; in the
other, unless perfect dramatic art be made 10
hallow every act and word with an Irresistible
glamour, every improbability is conspicuous every
extravaganza IS emphatic and every weakness is
visible. The play. while absolutely void OF art
nevertheless affords few theatrical opportunities
and these Miss MarlOwe has adroitly used. Her
embodiment of Mary Tudor crystallizes into one
engaging personality the attributes of authority
impetuosity. intrepidity. force of will. gleefuI
caprice alternating with tenderness and ardent
sweetness
She presents a woman who loves. and who. amid
enemies and peris. has the courage of her love
1t seems probable that this impersOnation shows
her personal ideal of wOmanhood and is but little
il at all removed from a revelation of her actual
self: 1t certainly is an interesting and winning
image of feminine variety. integrity. fidelity.
mantle ardor. and feminine charm: and this IS
all the more remarkable. since it is revealed in
association with prepOsterous incidents impossibIe
persons a caricature of manners. and a linguaI fux
Of folly and profanity The triumph of a fine actress,
trammelled by a bad play. was never more eonspic-
uously Illustrated.
In the first act-which displays posture of per-
and their relations to each other. and
hibits the dilemma in which the lovers to be
surprisingly. they are to be HbeIated.-Niss Mar
lowe has a scene of cOquetry wherein the Princess
entices her lover by repeIing him. and in this her
acting delicious. The house rung with applause
at It's close. and the actress many times
called. In the second act she again swept the
semblage into enthusiasm, by a tempestuOus eXh-
bition OF the Tudor temper, In the third act the
Princess gets in male attire. and runs away with
Brandon. and they are captured at Bristol by the
King of England N person. The manners of mon
archs and courts have scarcely before.
in long period of observation. been delineated
In a manner astonishing that of Mr.. Kester.
In the fourth act the Princess is assaulted by the
pired. and is rescued by Brandon who drops in
through the wall There many characters
In the play-including King Henry. Queen Cath
arne. Anne BOleyn, Jane Seymour. and WOsey.
so that the aristocracy is Well represented.-and
there is scarcely that is not a paIpabIe carl
cature- The acting. in general. Jealous and
careful Miss Marowe. however. inspirited all her
associates. and saved the play. Her rich beauty
and the exquisite sweetness OF her voice
never more effective than in this embodiment.