The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-05-19
AT THE TIIEATERs
Auditorium-Mrs. Fiske in "Leah
Kleschna,',

Auditorium-Mrs. Fiske in "Leah
Kleschna',
The psychology of crime looms large
in the vision Of the modern playwright,
no less than in that of the modern |
author. The drama and literature, pro-
lines, have Of late been much CON
cerned over the criminal and his point
of view. He has been studied and an
alyZed as never before. Always an
important factor in. the production of |
the sister arts, the criminal has never
before been treated with such subjec-
tive sympathy as now. We are let
thru his eyes aR We @ are even e sec eemne
by r. W.. Hornung to share in the nerve
tingling excitement of the "great
game" of burglary and to admire and
even wish for the success of his anna
teur craftsman. ~ .
In "Leah Kleschna,'' G.. M. S. Nc
Lellan has made a study of young
girl who is thief by inheritance and
ture has not been irretrievably warped
by her environment. It is a theme
very much like that of Gin the Bish-
ops Carriage,' but treated without the
Astounding humor of Miss Nicholson s
story and with an intensity Of action
that makes of it most absorbing play.
The reclamation of the girl is accom-
Rhshed chiefly thru the regene:rative in
f1uence OF admiration merging into
love for a generous, manly fellow, who
catches her rifing his safe, but who,
nevertheless, believes in her: The man
reclaimed by the woman is a theme
trite enough, but Mr.. Mcclellan has
chosen its converse and has elaborated
it with masterful hand. The two
central figures are surrounded by a
number of striking studies in charac-
ter, which serve to reveal various as
poets OF human nature, not altogether
pleasant, but yet Of vital interest for
! their realism. They are degenerates
| all, and they afford contrast that
throws the sane, wholesome Sylvaine
relief.
The one blemish in the action of the
play seems to be the failure to lay a
foundation for the ruse by which Leah
IN the fourth act saves the gang be-
fore DESERVING it. Yet in spite Of the
overmuch explaining done in this con-
! nection, the act is most absorbingly
intense. 1t furnishes tremendous eli
max, which is the real end Of the play.
The pastoral peace Of the last act,
tuce fields, has completed by contact
with the soil her regeneration, and is
sought and claimed by Sylvaine, is
idyllic rather than dramatic. It IS a
poetic benediction.
It is difficult to speak with. entire
Justice Of the production of "Leah
by Mrs: Fiske and her wonderful com
pany, for the reason that the players
did not entirely master the acoustic
problem. Accustomed to their owr
small Manhattan theater, where the
conversational tone suffces, it was diff
icult for them to adjust their dictio1
to the. great spaces they had to fill
but the first two acts were greatl,
marred by this failure to be intelli
gible, and Mrs. Fiske herself, schoolet
to great restraint and abhorring tn,
merely Theatre, was the greatest of
fender in this respect. Indeed, eve1
on her home stage Mrs. Fiske is no
always clearly and readily understood.
The. gradual awakening and unfold
ing Of Leah s character is an achieve
ment that stamps Mrs. Fiske as a
artist of supreme intelligence and syn
pathy. The youth and ignorance o
the girl-thief and her subservience t
the iron will Of her father are denote
at the outset with fidelity, Her at
miration for the hero Of the trai
wreck, the light that dawns upon he
when he confronts her at work upo
Ehis safe, her decision to save his repr
| tatlon7 at the, expense Of her liberty
fand her final population Of the old lif
for one Of honest toll, are all .wrough
out With the utmost naturalness. /
Mrs. Fiske errs at all it is in the dire
ton Of over-restraint. But when tt,
( flashes of real feeling come, they are b
l'so much the more effective. they RI
veal unsupported depths Of the girl
J.. nature, ordinarily concealed by the ST.
ical demeanor Of the habitual crimina
John Mason plays Sylvaine with
, poise that saves the character from tn
: easily fall. He is strong when it
e necessary to be strong, and at othe
d times an unspoiled man of the worl
n who fills the measure of Leah s ideal {
:, hero. Charles Cartwright does bri
|! liant work as Kleschna, the thief VIII
y is proud of his profession and proud {
{. his daughters proficiency in it. It !:
o a marvellous portrait in it's every deta
/. Of a masterful, resourceful, courag eor
Il crook. One sees how it is possible fl
e such a man to educate his own daug]
d ter in the school of crime and still lov
# her deeply. Then there is that .othe
:. crook-the low-browed Schram, playe
e with equal truth by William B. Mac]
n This is the crook of low intelligenc
It the degenerate Of the rogues' CALLER
It type. And yet there shines thru h
% degradation the pure, white light of 3
W unseltish love for Leah, a love like tn;
1T of a dog for it's mistress. A picture ,
quite another type of degeneracy is flu
If nished by George Arliss in his impe
ID sonation Of the absinthe-wrecke your
m aristocrat, Raoul Berton. The twitc
d. ing nerves, the simian smile, the utt
lack Of moral sense, the low cunning
the man, are items in a notably repu
)" nant but faithful portrait.
is Quite as notable piece of wor
a tho one less important to the actio
lie is that Of Emily Stevens as Raoul
ct sister, who is engaged to Sylvaine. H
is byplay in the scene where Sylvan
At Leah and her father are principals
m controversy is simply superb. 81
le has but few words to say, and yet co
trives by mere facial expression to b
as tray the shallowness and weakness
j. the girls character. The smaller role
a. including Edward Donnelly as Gene1
ut Berton, Claus Bogel as Valentin al
D. Fernando Eliscu as Sophie, are all W,
IN bestowed. 80.
90 Scenically, the production is bean
ey fully presented, the lettuce fields of t
n final scene being unusually effectiy
The enjoyment Of the large and. br
n liant audience was greatly enhanced
tn well-selected and finely PLAYED n,
e. gram of orchestral. music ). :.
IS w. B. Chamberlain.
wv Metropolitan-"Tfr Burqomaster,
re- Put musical comedies on baseball pe
centage basis and 1t may easily be prov