The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-03-13

But there was disappointment quite as
positive in John Gilbert's Polonius. This
mainstay OF the Wailack company. with his
Sir Peter Teazle and his Sir Anthony Abso-
lutte, had long been the standard OF best
quality in stage old men. aud by that we
gagged our expectation OF what his Polo
MUS would be. II was an amazing display
or bad elocusiOn, of lacking humor, and
even OF intelligence. There were such full
ccfnpensatiOns as the grave diggers by JO-
Seph jefferson and WILLIAM J. Florence. a
King ant Queen by Frank Mayo and
Madame POnisi. a ghost BY Lawrence Bar
rett. and a cast which did not contain
name not We'll known. An, but Shakespeare
would have liked TO be IN the Metropolitan
was.
The sum of money obtained by wallack
might have been multiplied, no doubt. by
selling admissions 10 the rehearsals. Out
siders were excluded very carefully from
these preparatory gatherings of famous
artists. Ben Teal was the stage manager.
lie eustomarily uses strong language in the
course of his duties. and sometimes it is
profane. His instructions to minor per-
formers are tersely explicit. But 1 have
been told that. while OF course. he didn't
give. In even a mild whisper, any sugges-
lions TO the more eminent members Of this
volunteer company, he was most polite IN
SAYING as much as boo To RoSencranz ana
Guilderstern, OF the player king and queen,
as they were acted by favorite leaders OF
stock organizations
The arrangement Of the tragedy which
had been made for Edwin Booth by VIII
ham Winter was used and Booth was
asked by Modieska to control the scenes
IA which they we're together. He did II
with so much Difference that she begged
him TO assert himself. But in the passages
OF Ophelia's madness she carried out her
own ideas like boss Of the situation JEFF
NuNur rk.rA rraI rnA In
the little rehearsing that they were seen
10 do as the grave diggerS, but they were
thought 70 have settled all the points else
where socially by themselves. Barretts
was the deciding voice in most of the ques-
lions that had TO be settled by some one.
He was great director as Booth was not.
and IL was through their incidental asso-
citation In this Hamlet" 10 raise money
for Wallack that they went together into
a business and professional partnership
which enriched them with big fortunes.
New material was interspersed with selec-
tons from current shows in the matinee
entertainment for the Actors Home. Clay
NJ. Greene contributed For Sweet Loves
Sake" the singularity of which lay in the
fact that the inter-sex emotion indicated
by the title didn't introduce the girl in the
case, while the affection shown in the ac-
ton was between a companionable father
~@N SCA- NfAaCC 1iNlilSSNOu n
Dakota Widow had for visible characters
divorced couple and their housemaid, and
the oddly was the use of a telephone to
communicate with several other persons in
visible yet intimately connected with the
separation and reunion of the husband and
wife. Cosmo Gordon Lennox, husband OF
Marie Tempest, provided The March of
Time from a French comedy located
newly IN England. It's characters were a
gay actress who had many admirers TO
make rich gifts, poor fellow who could
oner nothing but honest love and player
or the time and type OF Cleopatra, who, be-
ing reincarnated by an experiment in spirit
ualism, told about her experience with a lot
OF affiuent Egyptian sensualists and the
tragic fate OF the chap who wooed with
full heart and an empty purse This was "A
deft though fanciful composition, with a
jolly ballad for the English actress. a dra-
mate recitation Tor the Egyptian and a
good lesson, which was to keep away from
the sirens of the stage.
? I
You will believe that such entertainments
as are given annually for the Actors Home
by volunteers couldn't be made by any ex-
penditure of money when tell you that in
the short casts of those three brief plays
were William III. Thompson, Hattie Will
liams. Dorothy Dorr. Elsie de Wolf and
Robert Edeson. who are or have been
stars. besides Joseph Wheelock, Marie
Doro. Richard Bennett and May Robson.
all or whom had studied and rehearsed la
oorlously for the single occasion. There
was also burlesque called ''Shylock Be
fore the Court of Appeals" which was
natly stupid, though another set of stars
In IL were Lawrence DOrsay, Alice Fisch-
er, Eugene O'Rourke and Edwin Arden
and The Holidays" hardly more anus
Twelfth Night Club. But the bill includ-
ed also monOlOgues by five heads of COM
panies now in town-Kyrle BelIew Richard
earle, sam Bernard, Raymond Hitchcock
and William Nortis-and show-girI scenes
of song and movement from five extrava-
ganZas. How Is that for an occasional aft
ernoon? And is IL any wonder that big
theater was crowded at prices which yield
ed 5000?
Beatrice Harriden wrote. as you know, a
novel entitled ships that Pass in the
Night" 1t was all tears and no smiles
Therefore l was surprised when I went to
see Justin Huntley McCarthys play bear
ing the same name and found that il was
not a dramatization of the book but a
London version Of a Paris farce. Its theme
is the everlasting French one of a faithless
husband foOling a fondly jealous wife But
II IS hypnotic variant. Whenever Mr.
Little wickedly wishes TO get away from his
own wife and visit Mr.. Potlois he holds
her hands, looks straight into her eyes
turns on his mesmeric power and she goes
10 sleep. to stay SO until he comes back
bering, however, the kisses OF a former
sutton arouse her and she is kept wide
awake by the arrival of Mr.. Yolstoi, who
is maddened by the infidelity of his wife
There you have the situation and il isn't
worth while to describe the confusion of
difficulties that beset the hypnOtist ere he
is cured of his scientific fad and his mari
tai folly by his wife's false pretense that
while she has been asleep, another man has
made her believe he was her husband She
casually mentions her supposed visitor as
a ship that has passed In the night" That
is the excuse for changing the title from
the original French of His Little Dodge"
That farce is performed by one of our
seven resident dramatic companies As
there are only half-dozen characters the
acting is much better than usual with these
hurried and skurried stock organizations
They are commonly composed, here as else
where. of two distinct kinds of members
veterans who have got along far in
their profession as they expect TO and
aspirants who still hope for fame. The
veterans do their work solely for the wages
and can be depended on for a fixed and up-
falling degree OF ability. The director
doesn't worry about them. The aspirants
are impeled by their ambition TO make
earnest efforts. which are uncertain in re-
suits according as they are wise or foolish
Let me Illustrate In one week | went TO
see a familiar drama at two OF these cut
rate houses I'm further ends OF the town
In one case the heroine was PLAYED with
perfunctory stress. but without subtletv
feeling, by an actress whose name is