The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-01-23
Cbe CbeatreS
Mir. Griffith as Richard.

If John Griffith had the financial back ing to surround himself with a strong compa- ny and present "Richard the Third with lavish scenic investment and plenty of peo- pic to do minor parts and fill up the pic- tures his production would be remarkably good.
 As it is Mir. Griffith has the temerity to produce Shakespeare's great tragedy with. q small company and depend upon the beau ty of the lines and the capable reading of them to satisfy modern audiences and he should be congratulated not only on his te- merity, but the capability of his production.
 Mir. Griffith Is young man. although he is old in the stage business. He is an ar. dent student of Shakespeare and has the mind to go deep in the lines He has the voice and the physique to play the Bard'g most heroic roles. There is no reason why snceess should not be his. save the appetite of modern times for quick action. repartee. wit color and sprightliness
 He made his first appearance in Mont gomery as star last season. when he charmed small audience with forcibIe production of "Macbeth." His good work of the year previous evidently impressed Montgomery lovers of the classic drama as a much larger audience greeted Mir. Grif- fifth fast night. applauded him and was in full sympathy with the big fellow.
 Richard Is decidedly the hardest charac- ter for an actor to undertake to portray. from the viewpoint of pleasing an audience in that Shakespeare drew the complex and bloody Duke of Gloucester totally devoid of anything good save an unquestioned courage and a physical ability to back up that cour- age Mir. Griffith's portrayal of this char acter Is good. Tn the first place. his make up Is splendid and he carefully avoids the mistake many Richards have made of exaggeFating the hunchback afflietion He wears the deformity, but he portrays it So that one does not have to call on his imaelnation to zee the hunchbaek do the deeds of arms that Gloucester did
 Mir Griffith is distinctly and actor of the old school and was long associated with Booth and Keene. and the association has left it's imprint on the actor of last night. Not that Mir. Griffith lacks originality, but the general line of his work Is along the lines of the great tragedians of bygone days. His reading is excellent 1t might be said scholarly, and his Richard is weak only at those periods when a stage picture Is needed to hold the illusion.
 There were some capable members Of MT. Grlffiths supporting company Claude soares was an excellent Henry VI. and his dialogue with MT. Griffith in the tower scene was peculiarly effective William Lloyd who played Buckingham is endowed with strong voice and capability to under stand his lines. His Richmond was also when he slew the massive Richard. George isys S ' /
 The noticeable weakness in the company Is to be charged to the women of the cast, Ma bel standish. who played Lady Anne. had a good stage presence to recommend her. but a lisp marred the beauty of her lines and some of her emotional scenes lacked finish Anna Boyle-Moore as Queen Elizabeth was fairly effective in the tower scene with the princes Helene Wesley. who played the uncrowned King Edward excellent.
 At o'clock yesterday afternoon MT. Griffith lectured before the students at starke's University School on Richard and Macbeth He is.a deep student of both the plays and related many interesting in eidents of the theatrical profession in con- nection with the two classics.
 Sam Bernard and Hattie Williams in ''rhe Rollieking Girl"