Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-27
New National Theater.

The remorse less tragedy OF business, the
revolving methods practiced by one VINO
is consumed with an INSCRIPTIONS anu
IT, satiable greed for amassing wealth, were
presented with strikingly realistic force az
tie New National last evening. under inc
trite title. Business is Business. Inis
familiar expression, used so commonly III
side and outside the commercial world,
takes on an added significance, an unpIeas-
ant association after one has witnessed lne
performance Of Mr.. William H. Crane as
Isidore Lechat in his new play. Inc piecS
is the work of Octave Mirbeau. translated
for the English stage by Robert Hlchens,
and the translator has preserved all the
powerful dramatic interest OF the Original
in his adaptation. In portraylnS the chdl
acter Of the INSCRIPTIONS inexorable, con-
tdent and self-centered man OF business,
Mr.. Crane has achieved decided artistic
success. for it is role that demands OF
the actor the complete abandonment OF that
delightful personality which ne mas prous gu.
to the many sympathetic comedy parts
he has delineated in the past. and requires
the assumption of the repellant quanues
Of the cruelty selfish and brutally harsh
creature absorbed in money-getting. IN
meeting the demands of the role Mr.. Crane
is impressively and powerfully effective:
Throughout the piece he gives evidence Oh
careful and apprecative study OF the part
and his Interpretation denotes great teen
meal skill particularly in the intense cIi-
max of the piece in the third act, where
his methods of repression in storm OF
consuming rage bring out his acting skill
with striking force and effect.
Through his unholy devotion to the gold
en- calf Lechat has crushed out the af-
lection of his daughter toward him and
changed her feelings to those of scorn
The daughter however, is an 1deallSuc
dreamer, with ideas and aspirations above
the heads of her parents and with scarcely
enough practical dscernment to attempt
to avert the inevitable. The demands of
her nature for parental love have not been
fulfilled, partially, perhaps. from fault OF
her own, and the denouement is not uneX-
pected when she refuses to marry son OF
nobility. which marriage Lechat has en-
deavored to arrange, and makes the bold
declaration that she is the mistress of Lu-
Glen Garraud the chemist employed by her
father on his estates. This scene is one of
great intensity Another strong dramatic
situation of the piece is that Immediately
following, wherein Lechat is Informed OF
the death, by accident, of his son, dis
sipated, profiigate. but clever young man,
the sole human object of his fathers re-
gard The force of the iron man of tusi-
ness, however, is here set forth wildly,
when in the midst of his grief and UNI
nerved by his loss, Lechat completes an m
tricate business deal with master hand.
The role of Lechat is not attractive, but 1t
fascinateS.
The part of Germaine Lechat. the daugh-
ter is played with splendid capability by
Katherine Grey. who deserved the hearty
applause accorded her for her work. H.
Hassard Short gave an interesting inter-
probation of the millionaireS son, and Har-
riet Otis Delenbaugh gave an acceptable
performance of Nine. Lechat.
The work of Miss Grey and Walter Hale,
as Lucien Garraud, in the second act. was
considerably handicapped by reason of an
noyirg levity emanating from a box party
com posed Of young people.