New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-11-08
THE DRAMA-MUSIC
NINE. DUsE AT THE VICTORIA.
LA CITTA MORTA."

LA CIIIA MORTA.
Another OF Mr.. D'Annunzios tedious and tainted
pIays.-this time a particularly foul and offensive
one.-was presented the Victoria Theatre last
night. under the of La Citta Morta' and
the performance of IL observed with attention
and favored with applause by numerous and es
sentially fashionable audience. The play consists
Of long series Of long cooQuies relative to par
tcularly nasty and horrible domestic mess. i'm
picating two men, who eroticaly diseased, and
TWO women. who are mserably affficted,-one of
them. finally, being murdered. and the other,
blind woman. being driven to melancholy mad
ness. One Of the men, Leonardo by name. is rep
resented carnally in love with his sister,
called Blanca Maria. and this unfortunate
Blanca Maria is represented object of ncen-
tious pursuit TO the other man. Alessan-
dro. the husband OF the blind In
address Of pitiess prolixity, the filthy degen-
crate Leonardo IS made TO recount. 10 the Odious
sentimental lecher Alessandro. the operation of the
loathsome passion by which he is controlled. and
the consequent agony with which he is tormented.
In other monologues Of afiiction and etymology
the blind woman. Anna. assumed by Nine. Duse,
is made TO declare her knowledge of her husbands
infatuation, and presently. her accommodating
resolve 10 efface herself by suicide. The prelim-
mary expenditure OF verbiage is prodigal and this
is associated with a continuous rumble of
tonal collie: but at length Leonardo leads his Sis
ter TO a pond and browns her in It by way OF saw
ing her from pollution "a service that he might
have better done by cutting his own worthless
corpse with the two men sitting beside II. and
collapses with shrek OF frenEy-this being the
note OF splendid power in Nine. Buses performance.
This putrid connection Is called "a modern trag
edy." but why modern more than ancient the
playful nsglects to state. Some OF the old Greek
plays loaded down with incest, adultery. and
murder-but the Greek poets did not sentimentaliZe
about them. confound good with evil. gloss
depravity as the venial alteration OF genius, The
only decent thing in the play is the poor srl
whom the two DlAckguards invest. for even the
blind wife can fatuously find in the girls beauty
justification for her husbands Illicit love.
The obvious object OF this piece. while suggesting
the possible bestaity and depravity OF human nat
ure is TO provide its central character, the blind
wife with an opportunity TO suffer. This oppor-
tunity Mime. Duse improves, maintaining the aspect
and demeanor OF blindness, posing in attitudes OF
grief wandering round the scene in fog Of desc
lation and bleating with anguish. This Is supposed
be natural acting, and as 1t Is exceedingly
tedious, the supposition seems well founded Mean
while the truth remains undsturbed that the really
authoritative convincing and controlling effect Of
nature was never yet produced on the stage. and
never can be produced there. except by means OF
delicate artistic exaggeration- But this ancient
theme has been often discussed. and no present
need exists OF reviving threadbare controversy
Personal charm Nine Duse eXerts, even in the
rank and verbose dramas Of Mr.. D'Annunzo: her
method is dulness Observation-Disclosures fine In
teligence occasional outbursts of pteous feeling,
and a generally exquisite by-play fortunately
that method is foreign. and. as everybody knows.
things that are foreign necessarily fine. Even
the odoriferous muse Of Mr.. DAnnunzio has elected
local admiration, on the ground OF it's impairment
every day" learning that the monstrosites of dis
ease are the essential minstrants Of civilization and
that the common sewage OF disordered brain Is
the proper material OF the drama. w w