The Washington times., 1905-06-18
Warfield's Triumph
Against Strong Competitors
He Scored Greatest Sue
cess of the Season Some
Hitherto Unrelated Facts
in His Career,

SimlSm that has been spread around, We
did not go to Europe last season for
either the best stroke of acting or the
best play. We are progressing. Eng
lish dramatists did not carry broom
through broadway last winter, and
English performers did not put our ma
tive players IN eclipse.
Reviewing the entire season. il an
pears plain, says William, Bullock. in
the New York Press, that David War
field must be given credit as regards the
acting. and c. NJ S. McLel-an in con-
neetion with the play. Mr. warfield in
The Music Master" and Mr.. Mcclellan
In Leah Kleschna'' furnish the two
happiest features of the full theatrie
term. They triumphed against great
competition Never before did we have
SO many foreign actors and foreign
plays. There was more activity on the
part of Americans, both as stars and
'playsmiths. than in any former year
The more the doings OF the winter are
studied the more is contributed to the
glory Of the two men who, curiously
enough. attained lifelong ambition to-
gether.
Reducing the problem to simply the
actcr and the playwright. Mr.. Warfield
finds first favor. While we may enter
tain shadow Of a doubt about Mr.
Mcclellan. there can be no misgiving
about Mr.. Wardeld. As far as COM
parison may be carried, he takes pre-
cedsnee over the writer. hence it may
be well to dismiss Mr.. Mcclellan from
immediate discussion and hold hiIn in
reserve for a subsequent article
There is an interesting story back of
Warfield's rise and il is a strange fact
that it has never been told in detail
Warheld is not an accident. and yet the
element OF chance entered into his sue
cess TO no small degree When first he
conceived the notion of becoming an
actor. while an usher in q San Fran
cisco theater fifteen years ago, he
secretly aimed at serious work He did
not dare to whisper emotional roles in
those probationary days, not to speak
indeed. of his simple resolve to parade
before the footlights. 1t is known how
Warfield came here friendiess and pen
niiess and how he entered the Weber
& Fields company by virtue of his bur-
leque performance in an Eighth avenue
music hall. What is not known how
ever, is that it is to James Whitcomb
Riley we owe the Music Master as We
applaud him today. 1t was the casual
drawing of tears from mernbers of the
Weber & Fields chorus by recitations
of Riley's homely ballads that convinced
Warfield his destiny was in serious en-
deavor
When / look back at these old days
OF obscure struggling says Warfeld.
lit almost makes me blubber myself
/ wonder If ever there was an actor
who found himself in such a Strange
i rQmamhQr fau &c
/ recited to the company I was skep-
teal when the girls whimpered and
tried bravciy to laugh through their
primming eyes. l said to myself That's
the way with all women; they'd cry
over any kind of nonsense just as long
as 1t were spoken with a tremor' But
l was set to thinking. The girls wanted
me to recite at every opportunity, and
soon | was only too willing, as was
studying them closely.
\ ou know when We players go travel
ing we are thrown much together 1t
was on my first road tour with Weber
q Fields that l gave my first Riley
recitation. We were waiting for train
in sonle wayside Indiana station. /
remember l was sitting on property
trunk, and one of the girls expressed
impatience with the delay. A thought
struck me. Here ] said, this is James
Whitcomb Riley's native State-let's S
have one or two of his poems 1 laughed
when several of the girls asked who
Riley was. and there was general mer-
riment when one of them suggested
that he must be Irish. All l know
about him is that he's the '-Hoosier
Poet" said l. and at that l began to
recite one of his beautiful rural poems
! noticed that the girls listened with
rapt attention, and at the end they In
sisted on more.
From that time until the end of the
tour at every opportunity / was cor
nered and made TO recite. Long before
we had returned to New York I had
come to the belief that 1 could sway
both tears and laughter 1 found tha.
it was not merely woman's responsive
emotion that made the girls weep every
time / took them with Riley along that
pathway through the rye And grad
ually began TO experiment with them
used to give variation to my voice, and
soon it developed that I could rule them
by simply changing NV tone to fit the
mood Of the poet
That trip committed me to the ouess
of i play such as The Music Master
sisNo tiS 'Ic6 NOW was 1C
be attained. II seemed to be an i'm
possible task. l tell you, it is no small
undertaking to start out to escape from
musical comedy. and here / want to say
1t is doubtful if / should have done II
yet had not Mr.. BeIasco come TO have
faith in ne
Il love The Music Master That
may be set down by some as sickly SEN
tfment: yet It's true. 1 love the role Of
the old fiddler, because it means all to
me IN the way of appealing to the varied
emotions of an audience. This thing of
simply making audiences laugh Is all
very well. but. believe me, the play that
endures is the one that nlingIes laughter
with tears. You wiz never hear Of a
play that makes women use their hand
kerchiefs failing. But you will hear OF
the failure OF Inirth-provokfng play. I
know the fearful plav is the exception
but 1t takes small reasoning to explain
this. Without any subtle design of fat
tering myself. it may be said that the
heart-stirrfng productions are scarce.
because there are few playwrights To
write them and fewer players to act
them.
THE old music master is a live. feel
Ing man to me He has almost laoo,,,,