Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-10-02
At THE PLAY HOUSES.
orchard III" st the boyd

Duke Of Gloster. afterwards Richard -
Earl Of Richmond to Harry Leighton
King Henry " ............. Harry Leighton
Duke Of Buckingham. Alfred Hollingsworth
Sir William Catesby .Devore Farmer
Lord Mayor Of London Arthur H Ebbets
Prince OF wales Lorraine Frost
Duke of York .....................Lt Leila Frost
Sir Richard Radcliffe . Franklin Bendtsen
Sir James Blount ........ Hamilton b. Mott
Lieutenant of the Tower. Walter Campbell
Lady Anne ........... Marie Booth Russell
Elizabeth, Queen to Edward 1Y":;......
Duchess Of York Belle f,l Theadora
Shakespeare hardly wrote Richard III"
to Justify history but rather to please the
last of the Tudors with a graphic and glow
ing account of how the first of tho line
to mount the throne of England did so
through closing the desperately criminal
career of the last Of the Plantagenets Il
has never been charged that Shakespeare
was not courtier. Only in this way can
we now account for the heavy load of in
EQUITY he heaps on the misshapen
shoulders Of the Duke of Gloster who is
painted by less interested and therefore
probably more accurate authors in colors
far more attractive than those used by
the great dramatist. 1t is not the purpose
here to enter into a defense of Richard
Planatagenet, Esq, third and last OF the
name. This reference is made solely to in
dictate in a measure the excuse for the
dreadful array Of crimes that stalks
! through the Cibber version of the Shakes
! peare drama 1t wasn't bloody enough for
good old Colly's fuses as 1t came down to
| him from its writer, so he syncopated It
with the preceding tragedy of King Henry
| W. and tackled the .lurder of that monarch
| onto its successor as a sort of pleasing
| preface for the horrors that followed. In
| order TO do so. he mercifully spares the
audience the drowning of Clarence In his
favorite drink. But at that, Richard III'
! affords abundance Of work for both coro-
ner and undertaken.
| Mr. Robert Mantell who since his last
previous visit to Omaha, has writ his name
| large among the list of American TRACE
dams. opened a weeks engagement at the
| Boyd theater last night, using Richard
| III" as the play. His conception of the
character Of Gloster might easily be sub
Iect to discussion, were one to step aside
| from the text of the drama and apply the
light of knowledge gained otherwhere; 1t
may be questioned If he has given the
very best Of what Shakespeare intended.
In his grim determination to wipe out the
Plantagenet family, all save himself, the
Nevilles. the Woodvlles, and the Tudors
| II he could catch them. Mr.. Mantells
Richard overlooks certain little touches OF
sardonic humor, and pursue his bloody
| and devastating course unlighted by a
pleasant thought. or even one OF those
sarcastic smiles that occasionally cleaned
across his terrifying pathway. He APP
proaches this task with earnestness that
is almost as terrifying as the cold, rent
less course of the crafty, cruel monarch,
and follows it with the same vndlctive
zeal. At no point does Mr.. Mantell step
aside from his apparent purpose, but. as
indicated by the text he piles point on
point i'm cumulative horror, until the ell
max is reached in that dreadful dream that
disturbs Richards rest the night before
Bosworth's bloody field. Here impending
doom daunts his soul, and he grovels af-
frighted at the visions and crushed by his
thoughts. His cry that Richard is him
self again does not convince. and he sets
forth at the head of his army plainly
doomed. His struggle with Richmond on
the field would lose much of its force were
1t not for the artistic stimulation of ex-
hausted vitality that leaves the tyrant al
last victim to overtaXed nature and prey
TO an avenging sword II is surely a
| tiiou6htlul. anu SATISFYING renOltlOn or the
character Mr.. Mantell gives. He reads his
lines with taste and force. avoiding, or
rather. checking a slight tendency to rant
giving a most intelligent Interpretation tc
the character as set forth in the play.
His support Is very good. Mr. Holdings
worth's Buckingham is quite we'll done
while Mr. Farmers Omaha friends are
glad to see him so well situated as he finds
himself I'm Catesby. Mr.. leighton Is 2
manly Richmond, and Giles Shine gives
dignihed life to Stanley. The women Of
the play are done with uncommon gooi
judgment The play is superbly mounted
and is presented with commedable fdeI
ity to detail. The audience last night
. which was larger than one might expec
to be drawn by a classic performance on
Sunday night, was enthusiastic over tn,
performance, and gave the star r mos
cordial expression of its full approval
Richard III" will be repeated tonight h,
Mr.. Mantell and company. On Tuesdl,
night the bill will be "Richelleu"