The Savannah morning news., 1903-10-17
AT THE THEATER

Robert Mantell and his company of
players quite took the audience by
storm last night in THE Light of 9th
er Days" A warmer reception could
hardly have been accorded. The play
was an interesting drama of the ro-
mantle type, set in the French Revo-
lutionary period, and was put on with
much realism-angry mobs, sword
drawing, and the noise of great guns.
1t was all of a sort to appeal very
strongly to the emotions.
Mr.. Mantell filed the roles Of the
chivalrous and devoted lover, to whom
obstacles and dangers are but a spur,
with much spirit, and made it very
convincing. He seemed to Undue the
members of the cast with something of
his oUhl ease. and there was little of
that staginess, ranting, and false emo
ton which are the usual fault in plays
Of this character. The various parts
were acceptably filed. that of An
thony Blake by Clarence Montaine
being particularly good.
Mr.. Mantell is more than fortunate
in his leading woman, Miss Marie
Booth Russell, whose acting was
clever and natural, and who possesses
RENAL able beauty of the rare type OF
Maxines Elliott, to whom her resem-
blance was quite noticeable. Miss
Russell was charming and lovable as
the young ingenious country girl in
troduced to the fashionable life of
Dublin. She appeared first in the
prologue as the mother. a role that
suited her better and that she filled
with admirable dignity. But in ev-
cry cas- she was very lovely.
In % effort to make the story clear
there was a little too much relation
of past history in monologue and dia-
logue, but the play. on the whole, was
very good of its sort, and thrilling to
those who were ready to be thrilled by
gallant deeds and tragic happenings
The audience was carried away with
enthusiasm and applauded again and
again after the fall of the curtain on
each act, so that Mr.. Mantell and Miss
Russell were more than once obliged
to come out and bow their thanks.
At to-day's matinee and tonight AL
berta Gallatin will be seen in Ghosts"
The fame of the play is not confined
to one country. 1t was first produced
in 1881 in Norway. 1t has several times
been presented in Berlin, and
has been great favorite
with German theater goers. 1t was
given in German under the title OF
"Gespenster" at the Irving Place Thea
ter, New York, in 1901, and in 1897, IL
was given under the name of "Reve-
nants" at the Theater-L ibre, Paris.
Last week the play was presented in
Asheville, n. c., and this is what the
Citizen said of II: Drama, we'll acted
is not rare in Asheville, but such
drama as Ghosts is rare. From the
earliest scenes of the drama a realiza-
ton of the force of the story and the
strength OF the cast was present
throughout the, vivid portrayal Of an
intense story. Miss Gallatin and her
support showed the quality OF their
art. In the tragedy, one OF heredity,
there was little action, the dialogue
conveying almost entirely the story
the working out of mental process,
such an intellectual structure as only
the brilliant mind of an Ibsen could de-
volve, and as only true acting could
present. Miss Gallatin came heralded
by press plaudiss. She deserves what
the press claims for her Her art is
mature, deeply innbued with a mag
netic personality, ever responsive in
tragic situations. Through the power
full train of events to the imprisoned