The St. Louis Republic., 1903-09-20

Captain Dieppe" is defined on the bills
as an original comedy in three acts by
Anthony Hope and Harrison Rhoades. but
II Is not a comedy in the strict sense OF
the word. Rather the piece is high farce,
If the term b. admissible Ii abounds in
whims, mild cXagScrationS and situations
so stretched To fhc elastic iif,fts or the
plausible as to deny the polite quaiHfea-
tiou OF ''ccnedy-'
him. Is a remarkable but entirely human
fellow. political agent Interested in
seating certain royal person on the
throne OF France, he liles. after defeat. 10
Italy. where he seeks. unLiGden aSvlt1u1
with uobleman of poetic tastes and rev
olutionary tendencies. He is warmly well
coined and invited by the c3nadin: noble
man 10 bring about reconciliation be-
tween the latter and his wife. whu though
living in the same castle. ave no1 on
speaking terms. The wife ia in great per-
turbation. She has indulgcd IN q TnIl.s
Irritation with a handsome yong scOsIn-
drel, whom she believed TO be Il acnts-maa
and to whom she owes money after {.
reckless plunge at Monte Carlo.
She writes TO the rogue conce ruing her
indebtedness. and her letters he threatens
20 forward To the poetic and revolutionary
husband unless the fair countess J2yS up
Immediately some D000 francs OF purse,
she hasn't the ready money-few Count
e>Ses on The stage struggling il the toils
Of the villain haVe-so agony OF mind AMI
several interesting complications grow OUT
OF her lack of cash 4
DISAPPEARS FROM CAsTLE.H
IN desperation she resolves to see the
rogue and make arrangements for set
HemeHt. This involves her disappearance
from the castle for some days but as
The Count is not on speaking terms with
her, she imagines her absence will not be
Eouced. particularly as she mas a charm
Ing young cousin-another Counters by
the way. to impersonate her.
Dieppe arrives AT this crucial moment.
He mistakes the cousin for the poetic AMI
n Nfs-F~n fnNr
love with her i'm spite OF himself. fols the
secret service man who has trailed HIM TO
Italy. ditto the villain. and secures the
damaging letters in clever manner
which. without the subtle developments OF
MosSrS- Hope and Rhoades. would result
in downright InelOdrama. In the end,
after quietinS the jealous fears Of the
poetic and revolutionary nobleman, Dieppe
discovers that the woman he has fallen
SO desperately in love with is not the
formers wife. and all things amatory
work out to sd Lisfactory conclusion.
The pretty and charming heroinelof
Captain Dieppe" was Margaret Dale. Ehe
fell in love with the gallant Captain -vYsh
such winning grdce-alDeit the suddsn-
ness of her passions esta blishment ather
startled-that the audience rose a her and
acknowledged her for the moment the
Queen of Love. Miss Dale has grown In
art. She has acquired some repose and
lacks many of the. little gaucheries due
to nervousness which marred her per-
formances last season.
HAwTREY'S NEW PLAY.
On Wednesday evening Mr. Charles
Hawtrey produced ''The Man from Blank
.ley's" at the Criterion.
Though comedy. as IL is officially de-
scribed. it is really little more than
farce. but it is doubtful whether the pen
Of the versatile MIR. Anastey ever has PRO-
duced a mere acceptable and truly witty
funmaker than that which was applau.tad
by the heat-stricken audience that crowd
ed the Criterion 10 the doors last nighf
Despite the hit made by the play. how
ever. it cannot be said that it shows NJ.
HawtTey at his best. Els part is an al
together modest one. and it might he said
that too little is seen and heard of TIE
popular English comedian. The role kat
falls TO his lot would scarcely be ac&st-
able TO less modest Thespian star sHnn
Mr. Hawtrey. and he was quite right
when responding to calls for a speech at
the end OF the last act. he said that the
evening triumph was due in very great
that supported him. - @sse
The lions share of whatever individual
there were In the course of the
evening fell TO the author. Seldom has &
in recent years, been 81 for
tunate in Characterization. Each OF tie
persons in the cast was invested with q
quaint personality that was oftentimsS
suggestive of the comedies that were most
popular in the middle of the last century
The play is well-drawn satire on tho
class English society. To the eye the
characters appear as If they had been
liIteu from the DRAWINGS OF CruikSnank or
John Leech. All plainly are caricatures,
but the author possesses the knack of
absurdity and truth TO link
arms good-humoredly that they seem
10 possess, at times. distinctively human
interest.
Among the revivaIs of the week are Mrs.
tfske, who reOpened the Manhattan Mon
lay night in Paul Heysc's imposing and
spectacular drama. MARY of MagdaiA-
and Miss Blanche Bates; who again sypt
,eared in David Belasco's THE Darling
IF the Gods" at the Belascc Theater
notwithstanding the new attractions
10Th these houses were crowded. The sue.
'csS of Mrs. Fiske last wear reappeared
IN the resumption of the drama, while her
audience was of the same high class that
>acked the house during the entire run
aSt season. :.
Miss Bates received an ovation In .Ths
Darling or the Gods and one of the most
emarkable demonstrate tions seen in a New
FORK theater was the bombardrnent or
liss Bates with flowers by a vast NUM-
'er of her enthusiastic admirers.