Omaha daily bee., 1906-10-28
About Plays, Players and PIayhOuses

GHAT may lead 10 some desirable
w results has been undertaken IN
- the name of Mr.. Charles Froh-
lEf@e man. II IL experimental In a de-
gree but IL most csmmendabie.
md deserves considerable attention. Il is
IN effort 70 raise the standard Of enter
tainment at the pspular-priced theatcrs. and
o supersede the detestabls drama Of blood
md crime. Of disorder and noise. BY bet
ter grade Of plays The FIRST Etep has been
taken by putting Sunday" on the road
with a strong organization, 20 play at the
nbpulnr-priced theaters So far the expert
n ent has not been as successful as might
~ wished. but the promoters are far from
8eing discouraged, and expect 70 follow
Sunday with other plays OF n similar ma
ture. feeling assured that IN time the
. patrons Of the cheaper eheaters can be
: educated to the point where they will take
the modern drama Of thought In preference
20 the modern drama Of noise. 1t has not
been 50 many years since the companies
travelling through the west afforded the
very best Of plays at prices that were
within the reach Of all Suddenly came the
vogue Of the play that exploited crime In
It's every phase, and seen the houses de-
voted to the popular priced attractions
could not be sure Of an audience unless
some thriller was presented. This led to a
most deplorable rivalry between producers.
as each strove to Guido the other in his
efforts to secure patronage. The ordi-
narily meretricious was long ago passed,
and plays OF positive iiidecsncy have been
paraded as moral lessons. because for
sooth, In the very last scene Of the last
act virtue ''triumphs" and the villain meets
a violent death. To have 30 important a
figure In the world OF the theatsT as Charles
Frohnan lead movement locking to the
correction of this abuse is a hopeful sign.
1t deserves the support Of all who wish the
theater well
The greatest dramatic event OF the pres
ent decade on either the European or
American stage Is scheduled for next Mon
day. October %. at the Grand Opera house,
Chicago, when Richard Mansfield pro-
duces for the first time on any stage
Ibsen's spectacular comedy, Peer Gynt"
Two hundred people will appear in the
cast Of lftY-one, the dances, the chorus,
mute parts and orchestra being the most
lexpensive production the master actor and
producer has ever made. The first days
sale OF seats on Tuesday amounted to over
$4,000 The charm and beauty of peer
Gynt" surpasses any other modern poetic
comedy. It will reveal the versatile genius
Of Richard Mansfield in its happiest as
pect. In some respects Peer Gynt' re-
sembles rip Van Wrinkle" in some re-
spects Goethe's masterpiece, Faust" For
three acts Mansfield plays the FOSTERING
fbraggart Of the Norwegian mountains. In
the fourth act he has grown into the
cynical. opulent man OF the world, and in
the last act the Mansfield art will reveal
the aged world-wanderer returned to his
mountain home to discover that there is
no happiness like the sunshine Of q pure
woman's love
All the celebrated Peer Gynt'' music,
by Grieg. Is to be played by a grand or
chestra. Several beautiful songs are Incl
dents Of the comedy. There are three
dances-the Norwegian wedding dance, the
dance OF the Troll imps in the hall Of the
mountain king and the dance Of Anitra
land her maidens. The scenery will be
quite remarkable In its massive beauty
and variety, representing sunrise on the
Norwegian mountains, the wedding at
Hagstad farm, an evening scene in the
Dovre hills, the palace cavern OF the king
OF the Troll COLLINS (another part of the
Dovre hills). before solveig's hut in the
mountains, the interior Of Peer Gynts
home, palm grove on the coast of Mo-
rocco and the explosion Of Peer Gynts
ydInAt III odnlh IA TIC 0C16HAs NAo NAoAOn VI
Solveig waiting, aboard a ship in the
North sea and the sinking of the ship
and Peer Gynts return to his mountain
home. The curtain will rise each even
ing at 7:45 on Peer Gynt."
Playgoers of the present are under I'm
measurable obligations to Mr.. Mansfield
for his strenuous and untiring efforts In
behalf Of the theater. Careful and disin-
terested examinations may reveal some
prompting Of personal ambition In the
undertaking of such works in the Ameri-
can thCater as Peer Gynt," Ivan the Ter
rlble." "Cyrano de Bergerac," and other
plays representing the best productions OF
the genius of the famous poets and
dramatlsts of other countries, as we'll as
those OF our own, but that ambition Is
evidently heavily charged with the desire
to deserve the approval Of the most in
telligent and serious devotees Of the drama
and further urged by the most commend
able purpose of advancing the interests Of
the stage by every expression OF the dig
nifty and seriousness OF the drama, through
! the medium of the master works of its
Z greatest minds. without thought as to any
more substantial reward than the appre-
citation OF those who give sincere en-
couragement TO the theatsr in their cor
dial endorsement Of its best products
.
The uprising of the negroes OF Philadel-
phia In protest against THE Clansman" is
a deplorable incident. Such demonstra-
tons ere to be regretted at any time, but
Just a. this juncturs the event is espe-
cialy to be regretted. No dispute ex-
list as TO the purpose or effect Of the Dixon
play II is palpably intended to excite
race prejudice and is a specious defense
for some OF the outrages that have been
committed in the name OF white SUI
premacy. That the negroes should re-
sent "a manifest injustice is but natural
they would be more than human II they
did not. But it had been hoped by the
friends Of their race-those people who
have labored most earnestly for their ad-
vancement-that they had reached a state
where they could abide with better pa
thence the attacks from Rev. Thomas JEFF
ferson Dixon and his kind. 1t Is not nee
essarily turning the other cheek 20 avoid
man who Is bent on quarreling with you.
an this instance the intent is 50 plain
that tho negroes OF America would rise
IN public estimation n they ignored Il.
Dixon. under pretense OF appealing to
the higher and nobler sentiments, has in
ann.r ~.