The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-05-21
CHINESE THEATRE PRESENT
NEW YORK FAD.
By Franklin Fyles.

1 that the unexpectedness of discover
| ing ability in an out of the way place
gave to competency the color of genius
to enthusiasts. This week Adler makes
bold test of his talent by bringing il
| from the BOweTy to Broadway. and
playing ShyIock to the Portia of Percy
HsSWell- More than one manager who
ventured into the Ghetto TO see for
himself this proclaimed genius, came
| back conquered. and willing to present
Adler before a wider public If he would
learn English. But though he cOnverses
! in our language with little accent. he
says to use it in playing a part would
! require an attention to more accuracy
in pronunciation that would detract
| from his acting. So it is in YiddiSh
that he voices Shakespeares thoughts
while his associates use the poets own
words Yet it does not seem far amiss
to hear the Jew speak in a language
of the Jews, even though he talks with
characters who speak English. And
an interest arises from a Hebrews en-
| bodlment OF this famous Hebrew role.
First, though, it must be noted that.
unlike many geniuses'' of odd local.
/ ties. Adler loses nothing in coming into
| the searchingly critical light of Broad
way Great IS an elastic and often
, misplaced term, but he certainly is
among the best actors of the poetic
D =
has the depth of tragedy. the majesty
of great emotion and the Iargeness Of
method of those 'palmy days" which
some Of US deTide These he uses in
| THE Merchant of Venice to depict
proud. auSteTe Jew. affectiOnate with
his daughter. dOmineering amongst his
people, bold and open. not CTOuchng
nor meanly vindictive with his enemies.
| His performance reaches its height of
excellence in the scene of his midnight
! return home. to discover himself robbed
of his daughter and his ducats. He
| comes TO the house a proud. erect. al
most defiant man. when he comes from
1t, moment later. he is bent and
crushed But in the cry at his discov
cry he strikes the great note of tragic
anguish Of pain, surprise and rage in
great nature
His trial scene suffers from over
! elaboration. a suggestion Of what play
eT folk call acting for points. That
is. he sacrifices the embodiment as a
whole to accentuate certain incidental
traits and arouse indisCTeet admiration
for the reading Of some special line
But in the climax. that exit from the
court room and from the play with
which Edwin Booth ended the comedy,
Adler draws the diverse strands tOgeth-
eT in a tremendous and lastiugly i'm
DTeSSive picture of the downfall of a
big being. He is vanuuished but not
humbled- At first when the blow of
failure strikes this ShyIOCk he seems
about to sink under il. But that is mo-
mentary- He draws himself together.
filings the knife and the scales which he
had so confidently brought for the
pound of Christian flesh at the feet of
the most upright judge: and still
naughty and defiant he straightens
himself TO his fun height and walks
FrEaf H.
finance we would call this ShyIock to
day. and. as throughout so in the last
picture, Adler presents such a man as
we see about US in this land of money
makers: gentle. loving and generous to
his daughter. hard. relentless and UNI
compromising in his business.
The Lambs gamble I'm kind Of pri-
Vate publicity once a year. That * 10
say they perform in a big theatre
every spring some OF the sketches that /
nave been given during the winter i'm I
their club house The tickets are sold !
by auction to members only and the
buyers may sell or give them to &C
qUatntances- but the show Is not ad-
VeTtlsed by even so much as a placard !
at the doorway while Il is going on !
The house is filled almost wholly bv /
women and girls. who are rapturousIv /
delighted with the entertainment Vet /
itSSIlliuilN SUSPICIOUS 1l31 IT has been ]
censored for them. The writing of the
material is done by Lambs exclusively. /
ana the acting too heretofore. but this
weeks matinee had little girl and A
big dog I'm the cast of As a Man
Sows. That wasn't q play for fun /
but a tragedy to be fearful. Vet a ma
Jority laughed at points of especial !
pathos. because the heroine was per
SOnated by young man. and they
wouldn't be hushed by the Kisses Of a !
respectful minority Robert billiard
and Earle Ryder engTossed the entire
audience in an encounter Of the hus-
band Of a reformed woman and the
rake who had been her paramour: and
the death Of the one from fright. when !
the other was ready to kill him with
bullet. made a thrilling climax. but
Morgan Conan excited hiIaritv as thu
distracted wife. notWithstan that Z
ne looked like 4 graceful lady and he
haFed like "A clever emotional actress {
Shakespeare may have got along very
Well with boys 70 act his heroiues. but |
even II the bard himself were reinCar-
mated 10 direct the performance. We I
would make merry with a Lady Mac /
beth who walked in her sIcep. or a /
Desdemona who was ChOked in bed /
wearing DIghtics that We knew might I
more appropriately be pajamas Just 4
so the Mysteries of MOTgy COmdn's az
oI11Zed bride in skirts struck some Of /
Us as funny because We knew he had /
taken off his trousers for the role.