The San Francisco call., 1904-03-22

Clothed in potent verse, acted with
moving sincerity and power. the story
of the Magdalen was last night retold
by Mrs. Fiske and her company of
players, in Paul Heyses noble drama,
Mary of Magdala," the place being
the Grand Opera-house. The audience
was worthy of the play. Despite Lent
perhaps though, the theme consid-
cred. because of 1.-THE house was
large, and the usual Fiske house There
were there those to whom the drama is
more than the toy of the hour, those
for whom it is of the nobler arts, those
for whom it is the very pulse and tenn
per Of their day. For these. Mary of
Magdala" has a high significance, and
TO these-nay, for all there last night
there was in the chief interpreter ar
exalted thrill of passion. a magnif-
cence of emotional artistry, that places
Mrs. Fiske rungs higher than even she
has before reached, that sets her
Mary Of MagdaIa with those other
passional epics, the Phedre of Bern
hardt, the Santuzza of Calve with a
larger wonder Of passion purely spir-
itualized.
Not until the fourth act does one
get hold of this deeper woman, but
the preceding acts are then seen to
have been most vitally significant of
her growth. Nor until the fourth act
last night did Mrs. Fiske seem fully to
be herself. Then il was that the tense
voice, in the preceding acts hardly of
the measure of the house, came clear
cut and thrilling Then, Towel, ones
neighbor's wife was not the only one
who swallowed things. Men choked
down something very like A sob as the
little woman in front wept the Mag
dalen's bitter shame. And the curtain
went down on a house that kept rever-
ent hands as still almost as in church
Briefly, badly, the German drama
fists work is stupendous in scope, COM
pelling in effect and nObly impressive
in spectacle. Mr.. Heyse tells his story
CT stories rather, there are two--in five
acts The form is blank verse, that has
been translated with keen poetic SYM
pathy by that most graceful writer and
able critic, William Winter. Naturally
it is first to wonder how much and
what of his sacred material the drama
tist has used. AS the title implies. the
play is about the Magdalen. whose re-
generation is its obvious theme. But
more powerful even in its enthralIing
suggestion is that unseen drama, mex
tricabiy interviewer with the first, of the
betrayal and crucifixion of the Christ
Through the veins of the first this runs
like stuDendous leit-motif. With the
same haunting impressiveness as in the
little Passion Play at Santa Clara,
one feels the overshadowing presence
Of the Christ, with the same uplift and
ennoblement of illusion.
OF the visible characters the chief
three are drawn directly from the
Scriptures-Mary, Judas and Caiphas.
The rest, of whom Aulus Flavius, a
noble Roman in love with Mary, is
chief are all imaginary. The incident,
too, of the drama is largely invention,
and felicitous. indeed, is Mr.. Heyse's
mingling Of fact and fancy Dramat-
ically his story possesses all the re-
ouirements Of interest. The conflict of
emotion is of the strongest possible
kind, the plot is of the clearest, the
characters are drawn with utmost skill
and massed brilliantly. and the diction
is dignified and poetic.
Most interesting of Mr. Heyse's
changes in the biblical story is his
ascription of political motives to Ju-
das for his betrayal of the Master.
Or rather it is to Mr.. Winter that the
insistenee on this motive must be as
cribed. The German is yet more rad
icaI. Jealousy of the Christ for the
worship of Mary Magdalen, whom
Judas loves and who has loved him,
I
play for Judas sin. Mary herself is
made the wife of a. vile and
cruel Hebrew, from whom she
has at length fed in despair
to her life of shame. The first
act shows her in her palace in Jeru-
salem and magnificent specimen of