The Savannah morning news., 1904-10-02
In New York
TheafeKs.

New York, Oct. 1.-The new War
field comedy drama, 1.-The Music Mas
ter" justifies all that has been said
of it in praise since it was produced
the other night for trial purposes out
of town. 1t is a charm and a delight
as literature and as drama, and 1t be-
slows upon Warfield the opportunity
to greatly distinguish himself as an
actor of the most valuable quality
an opportunity which he grasps with
a firmness and certainty of touch thar
are beyond resistance. Heretofore we
have all regarded Warfield as a spe-
c1alist, the best in his field to he sure,
but still a specialist. He has played a
series of ancient Hebrews of varying
kinds from. grave to gay and from gid
dy to pathetic, showing a wide range
of skill within these limitations and
always winning us by the complete
dexterity of his art. But in 1.-THE
Music Master" Warfield gets away
from all this so far and with such
sureness of mastery that he establishes
himself beyond doubt or question as
one OF the very greatest actors of his
time, from whom we may expect fairly
startling presentations as he ripens
with advancing years. The pivotal
character of this play, written by
Charles Klein under the guidance of
David Belasco, is a tender-hearted old
German who has come to America aft
er domestic infehcities in which his wife
and daughter have been lost to him.
He is in poverty, and while serving as
pianist in a 10-cent museum he falls
into an East Side boarding house af-
fected mainly by other musicians who
are in about the same monetary cir
cumstances as himself. His own daugh-
ter, unknown to him, comes to him as
pupil, and the circumstances and
situations growing out of this condi-
ton lead to the climax of the story.
New York looks as if it had been
struck by a whole vanguard of circus
men, among whom rivalry had run
riot in their determination to plaster
the highly-hued Autographs of Lew
Docktaders Minstrels over every
thing that would stand still long
enough to be covered. Dockstader
grins at one time from the fences, OBJ
serves one benignly from the upper
stories of buildings in the course of
demolition, stares steadfastly from
barrels and big pipes, and in fact
catches the eye of every passerby from
every conceivable point. The minstrel
man is coming to the Herald Square
Theater with his big troup of merry
assistants, and it is clearly evident
that real burnt-cork jubilee impends.
The biggest hit of the season in New
York thus far is unquestionably George
AIDES THE College Widow" at the
Garden Theater. There is no doubt at
all that the piece will exceed every
record of receipts and tenacity of life
in connection with the history of this
establishment. 1.-THE College Widow"
like all its predecessors in the AIDE
calendar, is notable for it's freshness,
spontaneity and originality of charac-
terization. For instance, there is a big
fellow in the piece known as Silent
Murphy, who was rounded up from a
foundry for the college football team.
He is gigantic, awkward and gloomy,
and his patent leather shoes hurt him
so that he can't keep his hands away
from them. One of the very few
speeches allotted to Silent Murphy is
the plaintive assurance that his patent
feathers pain him Just across the in
STEP" and that the thing is so natural
and lifelike that the audience roars
with laughter for five minutes, break
ing into subsequent situations at the
recurring memory of Murphy's agony.
They tell me that Della Fox is pref