The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-07-23
BY FRANKLIN FYLEs.

I Now, one Year Of the kind of fraud
practiced by theatrical mana gers with
impunity would drive US into bankrupt
cy- see in front of this house a por-
trait of, and he named a somewhat
famous actress 1T represents her as
young and beautiful For a fact she is
enthusiastically neither. You max
say ought to know she hasn't looked
that way within a quarter of a century
but do let nv drummerS sell dulled
old wares as bright and new? Stop
know what you would urge-that under
the dimmed surfaces the silver would
De just as pure-that the art inside this
actress is even finer than il was when
she had a fiawless outside. But YOU
can't convince me that the photograph
that enticed me into this theatre is not
delusion and a fraud.
My friend" / expostulated you
have no appreciation of the legitimate
drama We have 20 take new dramatic
wine from old vessels or not get il at
all You ought 10 cultivate an awe of
art-or else go only to the extravagan-
zaS where the goods are delivered ac-
cording to Photographic samples And
haven't you any sympathetic consider
alton for this good old actress2 Think
how sorry she is that she can't keep
the promise of that fiattering picture
OF her consciousness that she is bound
10 be appointment at sight-that
she must by sheer ability win over
again the admiration of every audience
she faces" - :
On the second thought. 1 will tell you
that the actress was Rose Coghlan. be-
cause L am going to praise her highly
in this account of a. midsummer repro
duCtion of London Assurance in
which she is the principal All has
been calm on the surface, but there is
an undercurrent Of rivalry in this af-
fair. Last spring that keenly intelli-
gent and gracefully effectuaI English
actress. Ellis Jeffreys. gathered about
her company uncommonly rich in
talent and brought out Dion Bouci-
cault's comedy of sixty years ago. Few
casts Of the season included as many
accomplished players; yet, taken as a
whole, the performance was disap-
pointing The reason was not hard to
find. The play was not the brilliant
composition our fond memories had
made it seem, but more than that the
playing was almost altogether insult
ably modern. Quietly. in hot July Rose
Coghlan slips into town as a stock
star and, associated with some actors
of the old school, gives the obsolete
piece a run on highly proper stills for
a week Miss COghlan is a tactful vet
eran. She courts no comparison with
Miss Jeffreys. though she doesn't dodge
IT. Only few years ago, Charles Froh-
man put the best of his available ac-
tors into a cast of Diplomacy Now.
~ thSEt 10 one TOl6 more brilliantly as
ISOLATED with COghlan than Lady Cav
Spanker in London Assurance il is
Countess Zicka in Diplomacy" So
something readable was expected from
the announcement that Miss Coghlan
would write a criticism for a newSpa-
per. But all she said Of Jessie Mfllward
in print as Zicka. was: IF 7 praise her
you will say it is tactful insincerity:
IL condemn her cry of Jealousy will
go up So will not write my thoughts
= 1Twr-ra
Do you remember Lady Gays hunting
speech in London. Assurance If you
recall anything in the play it must be
that And in the delivery Of it Rose
CoghIan and Ellis JefreyS bring Que
forcibly the wide difference between the
dramatic methods, in writing and act
ing both, of yesterday and today Miss
Jeffreys sat on the arm OF q soft. NOV
ing no more than to flick her skirt care
lessly with her riding whip, and de-
scribed quite cOlloQuially to a roomfuI
of polite listeners the fox chase in
which she had won the brush They
did what real ladies and gentlemen
would actually do at such a time. But
auditors who didn't know this was a
classic speech may have wondered
why Lady Gay took up so much time
talking about something that had no
bearing whatsoever on the story of the
play.
nut muse OOSHldU ana the OlQ way.
Her approach was announced by the
orchestra with a spirited "gallop and
by hunting horns footing off stage" All
was hustle and noise. Lady Gay dashed
into the center of an animated group,
all standing in poses of excitement and
crying incidental 'tgiddy-aps' and "on-
wards and urging imaginary horses
straight at the audience. Rose whipped
and slashed her unseen steed forward,
gesticulating furiously, yet speaking
with the faultless elocution of an artist.
It became almost a duel between Lady
Gay with her crop and the band leader
with his baton. Every one was fairly
on the neck of his horse, and so in
tensely was the commOtion sustained
and increased to the climax that the
Dazzle spun round and round, saving
at the bit. lashing the brute and emit
ting wild ''WhOo-as."
When Miss JeffreyS revived London
Assurance" she costumed the company
according to the period of its writing
That was novelty, yet a peculiarly
fitting one Miss CoghIan, however.
gowns herself according 70 1905 and
right up to the July mode Of that year.
and beautiful sight to see she is. An
odd point, though, is the costuming of