The San Francisco call., 1904-12-11

Mary Shaw IN vaudeville? MARY
SHAW in vaudeville." I had said to
myself on seeing the Orpheum bill
Doaros- 1T is impossible, my friend"
Had any one asked me who was the
last American actress I should expect
TO md invaudeville, from the repute Of
her, I should have said Mary Shaw"
For, though we have not seen Miss
Shaw IN the Ibsen portraits for which
she is famous. the power and spell Of
them have thrilled even TO here in the
reading Of them. But there It was
Mary Shaw" And then I saw her
last Sunday in the little sketch, THE
Silent System" high comedy for the
lady and a silence that might be but
is not in this instance wholly eloquent
FOR the gentleman, carrying the Or
pheum, gallery and all, triumphant
~ with her. And this is Mary
Shaw" / thought, watching the charm
ing bit Of unreasonable femininity she
paints. who would dream Of a Mrs.
Alving here?" It was something Of the
kind Of difference between Mrs. Fiske's
-Hedda Gabler7 and her Cyprienne in
'Divorcons."
The next day I saw her at home. We
had said just "how-d'ye-do." drawn up
our rocking chairs and then sat for
moment looking at each other. Then
Mary ShaW's eyes-the artist eyes, ex-
traOrdinarily wide apart-narrowed
cuizzically, and she said: 1T is alb
surd. isn't it2"
had been thinking so-her being in
vaudeville-but TO hear her drag my
thought into the light was a little
startling. Miss Shaw is that kind OF
person. She is the kind whom 10 meet
Is an epoch Most nearly like Mrs.
Fislze she is than any one you can think
Of. They were in the same company
Miss Shaw in Mrs. Fiske's company.
We used TO settle the universe. Min
ME and l." she lightly put 1t. But one
can imagine the dazzle and CLINT Of
that greenrOom gossip. For to extra
ordinary Intellectual gifts Miss Shaw
adds Wit, large knowledge, much char
ity. the brOadest artistic and human
s5mpathies and the keenest intuition.
She went on with the vaudeville ques-
tion, rocking gently, her eyes humor-
ously glinting: Il don't know why
they want my kind Of person In vaude-
vile. Il is odd. And then not to do
at all, I am known for doingl I was
playing IN Ghosts and 'Hedda Gabler'
when they came TO me. I asked If
might not play a little thing Of Gio-
cosa's, The Rights Of the Soul They
assured me it was too serious for
vaudeville. But" Miss Shaw's level
eyebrows lifted in doubt TO the red
bronze hair misted above them.
You think not7'
Indirectly she answered me: you
know there Is not such a terrific diff
ference between audiences7 The per-
centage OF the thinking among them
varies not so greatly. Some nights
yes," she smiled, the variety audience
IS sort OF elemental. but I wouldn't be a
bit afraid now TO give them The Rights
OF the Soul"
How old a vaudevillain are your"
Seven weeks, just" Miss Shaw re-
piled. DO you know" she looked at
me here with the eyes Of a quizzical
sphinx. do you know that you learn
lots OF things from things that you
don't think you couldi Ethically and
spiritually this experience has been a
singular discipline TO me. I've been so
much on the ultra side OF things, you
know. Here you get near people in
such different fashion. 1 was nervous
at first Vaudeville audiences won't be
bored they told me, and I was afraid
You have such a short time to make
good. no piling scene on scene to make
your effect On, rush in, Off, and it's
over"
This. Of course. is Just an adven-
ture?"
Just an adventure" she replied,
like Jessie AIillward's, Charles Haw-
trey's-"
Rose Coghlan's." I added, and with
the name came the consciousness that
II Is Miss Coghlan Of whom Miss Shaw
rather strongly reminds. You get It in
the warm fiber Of the voice, In the mer-
~, Irish suggestion Of the face in some
Of its moods, IN the big personal mag
netism-