The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-10-17
NASCACNTS "IRIS" PRODUCED
japanese STORY SET TO ITAL-
IAN MUSIC.
INC Taie Of the Innocent Maiden. the
Oriental Rouc and the -Spcctac,i.
lar Music aud Orchestral stage Effects.


rio,ro Mascagni's thrce-act opera, Iris
a.. p,adlc"d AZ the Metropolitan Opera
u,-o last night after many fluctuations.
f. uas first announced for Oct. 0, but at
fla. ,imc tho company did not know the
,,ice PARTS and the orchestra could not
,,av M. score. SO there were more re-
iearsals. aud the opera house was closed
nm saturday night for still another. On
Monday the company went to Philadelphia.
,ud there IN Tuesday evening, Oct. "a.
10 the ama1ement of the Quakers. Iris"
Wa performed for the first time in America.
That production insured last nights per-
,,r,nauce There was an audience OF
Good size, and the composer was hailed
with such accianations n only his de-
voted couutryinen know how to send forth.
H. wa- rot called ont forty or fifty times
a. lc woud have been in Italy, but he did
pretty wei for a stranger in strange
land
'lris- will increase the respect Of Amcri-
can. for the Young Italian composer. II il
A tale Of choral sun. childlike maiden
and Japanese rou". It's music is spectacu-
lar IN it, hcaping mp Of mass effects and its
rropo.iiion of conVolu'ed h armonic puz-
z,e. H., stage pictures are conceived
with the brain Of n must clan and are or
ehos,rated in wondrous tonal tints. There
Is deal Of leather and prunella' about
the whole thing, and IL smells heavily Of
the theatre. But II is real opera, and
one that most people will be willing to
hear more than once.
Iris" was made known to the world
a. the Cu-'auN Theatre, Rome, Nov. %,
1895 Il did not meet with a large measure
of favor, and tic composer at once set about
revising r. The amended version was
produced at La Scala, Milan. in the fol-
lowing January. but was hardly more
successful than the original. The lbretto
j. by Luigi I.'ica, and the story is enacted
hv Jauan"so characters under the shadow
uf Fuiyaml, the Wi~teria Mountain, to
Nhom all Japane-c bow, though they can
not toll why D. l. named WiSt"ria. In tive
shadow Of This honorable elevation dwells
i1s, an iufaltio and innocent Japanese
malI"y, whose aspirations have not We;
exceeded ia" limits of h"" dolls. She
l. seen and. desired by one Osaka. a Janan-
ESQ man about town who TIRES one Ky0to
- aid nina in obtaining possession oil me
enid.
Il is not easy to lead Iris away from her
old blind father, So her attention j. dis
a.
show, in which the maiden Dhdi l. seen
b"lng wooed 10y dor, the son Of the Sun
JOr, Tor TINS occasion only. il enacted by
Osaka. The little play makes sufficient
impression on IRIS 10 draw her from be-
hind tree, whence she is viewing the
show Three Gei-ha dancers. represent, ing
Beauty, Death and "A Vampire, surround
h"r and suddenly hand is clapped over
her mouth and she is carried Of Osaka
ieayeS come money 10 pay the old man for
her When the parent finally discovers
that his daughter j. gone and finds the
money, he ml-Conceive- tho situation and
flies into great rage mingled with despair
IN me -"coilG act W. iii.u tine bewilucitd
ms IN the palace To which Osaka has had
her conveyed She Is attired in diaphanous
garment OF which she is herself ashamed.
She awakes from sleep and she thinks that
she is stu dreaming, but thoughts Of horne
bring tears. Then she naiyely declares that
she Is not dreaming that she is in Paradise
because IN that blessed place people do not
weep Even more childishly pretty il her
hpphcatlon OF the test of knowledge. In
PARADISE they know everything: therefore,
she can play an accompaniment to her own
song. She tries il and fails. She tries 10
paint and again she fails. Pshaw! 1t il
not Paradise and she does not dream
Osaka comes and wooe. her. She hears the
language Of compliment for the first time,
and knows not what it means
axe me back to my little cottage
she cries, TO my blind father" Osaka
suddenly discovers that this wearies him
there l. such thing as too much childish
innocence The father arrives in search
oI m" cmid hgJto, who has put IRIS on
exhibition on the balcony with the intent
1i ehSnarlng some passing youth by her
beauty. IS euraged, Osaka, seeing her,
again become lEfamed and once more
b'gS her 10 respond To his ardor. She
rrles TO her father, but. blind and dodcier-
M a
ln'Id AZ h"r. 1hcrrupon she hurls herself
the house
I'M. pr is a par, of sewer. and in he
,nIi PCT Fis i fished ont Of it by some
i"sIl'EerS She Is not dead yet, but a. it
- me last 1c', she 'a'urally docs not live
I9hH A. she i, diving, the voices Of OSAKA.
hsIt2 and her father whisper the phil
'eolnF OF HE and death to her, and We get
4 ,l'le Of ihdt my,ticism which enter, d
aIiah OPERA when Boi'o wrote ~Mefi.to-
leu" The first RAYS Of the sun descend
VI rar'SS her. and IN" great orb himself
'iIr"S>1- tier IN choral song Then Flowers
one and wind themselves around her
uoi!, Hi'lng h'r up toward the infinite
W' w" sun, the source of life. Maybe
;"N Is japanese conception; maybe it
IT, pure lilica. l. is poetic. ANYHOW, and 1t
"i,r oppnU uni'ie- ln the musician.
tnf mus" OF Iris Is TO some extent
"h"-H'ou ~ IL" Weakness of the current
td'Idh style. The prOudcst moments in
ne score are those In which mass effects are
"Ntlpyed, namely, at the beginning and
~ we end The Introduction is maguii-
'l,N conceived, but it is spectacular and
"ch'stIal, rather than lyric. The theatre
III dhrkn-s-, When the whispering Of
t"''le bases announces the opening Of
~ score. There j. now a gradual working
~ .I a long aud powerful Cresccndo, lead
",s I! pra.ing chorus, supposed to repre-
'"It ue voice of the sun This long in
'ruIhehial development il built up Of
.h''n's intended 70 describe the first clim-
I,r.Ihg' oi light, the flowers, the break of
tas ana the iir>t rays Of TIE sun. The
-"orHs begins al the last named point
similar effect i made nj the end Of tho
nora, when the Fipwers come to bear Iris
way and the sun again speaks To give
UNHu'tlpn lis proper effect the light
sLouId Increase inperceptibly from the
nv ehmmorings ill the full power of a
''/Iune sun l. simulated. Those who are
acquainted with the crude manag cement of
"sit' nj NJ" Metropolitan in the regular
dtnh may easily fancy what this was last
.tsAl. II VAS pity that this was SO, for
Nc poetic conception j. fine one and
;h69cdghl has arisen to il. His music here
~ lar ~" most impress i've that we have
t h'a,d, though II NAV he REGARDED a.