The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-05-12

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weakness of the play is It's love story
and the very conventional feminine
portraiture.
As one might expect, Mr., Belasco s
production of the season, 1.-The Rose OF
the Rancho, is one Of the most pop
ular plays of the year. 1t is charm
ing story of California and magnificent
ly staged. With it New York learned
OF new star-a mere slip of a girl
who has magnetism and intelligence,
beauty and no little ability as an act
ress- If Miss Frances Starr does moth
ing but 1.-The Rose of the Rancho -
she, will still have earned for herself a
very enviable reputation,
Paul Armstrong, who has not been
heard from since his successful "Heir
10 the Hoorah, - came forward this
season with a virilc play, in atmos-
phere and Characterization the strong
est play offered by an American author
this season. Salomy Jane The
play is based on Bret Harte's story,
"Salomy Jane S Kiss While Miss
Eleanor Robson appears in to great ad-
vantage, more robust temperament
would seem to more completely FL the
authors idea.
In Brewster Millions" the
dramatization of Mr.. McCutcheou IS
story, "Winchell Smith New York
came TO know for the first time Mr.
| Fred Thompson, Of Hippodrome fame,
as thirty-third degree manager. The
play is light entertainment, furnish
ing considerable amusement, and in The
third act remarkable picture Of
yacht at sea in a storm is probably the
most striking thing that Mr.. Thomp.
son g mechanical genius has devised
and certainly unparalleled among me-
chanical stage inventions.
! William Collier, appearing both as
author and actor in his play, "Caught
in the Rain, makes the sixth play to
the day of It's production Really an
amusing farce. ''Caught in the Rain -
is Collicresquc from the start to the fin
ish.
Not distinguished by long runs, but
rotabIe in other ways, were Mr.. Will
lam Gillett's ''Clarice.'' and Langlon
Mitchell S ''The New York Idea . Mr.
Gillette in his new play (new TO New
York; 1t has been seen throughout the
country pictured a consumptive who
chooses TO commit suicide under the
! erroneous impression that his death is
| imminent. There was much cleverness
in the construction and some of the
smaller scenes, but the actor had over
elaborated the part he played himself,
and the play failed to grip,
"The New York idea ought to
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where the impression is that most New
Workers spend their time geetng in or
out of divorce. Scintillating comedy
Nh. Mitchell has made for Mrs Fiske,
but 1T was just trifle too smart More
brilliant dialogue one rarely listens 10
| on the stage, but the author has sacri-
feed solidarity TO brillancy. and, while
the play was intensely amusing, it was
very suggestive Of the Oscar Wilde
| school of drama.
A year ago the dramatist who was
most talked of in this country was Mr..
Charles Klein, who, out Of tThe Lion
and the Mouse and "The Music Mas
like $4,000 week Naturally his new
play was looked forward TO with great
interest but "The Daughters of Men,
failed to catch the public as "The Lion
and the Mouse" did, and rather empha.
sized the contention of those who be-
)ieved that "The Lion and the MouSe,'
despite Its great popular success, was
its run of six hundred nights only
few weeks ago and is still the subject
Of discussion among people interested
IN the theater, no two persons seeming
to agree as TO why it lagted as long
q 8 il did. That il came at time when
the public WAS ripe for some theatrical
assault or exposure of tho capitalist
undoubtedly helped. The impersonation
of Mr. Edmund Breese Of the part of
John p. Rayner was another very
strong factor,
One Of the curious features of the
season was that there was no new play
from the man who has undoubtedly
written the greatest of American
dramas, Mr.. Augustus Thomas Next
season, however, we are to have two
plays, one said TO be powerfully built
drama on the subject of hypnotism, and
by the authors friends declared to be
a greater play than even his fAri
IONA Alabama or "In Mizzou-
ra, The other play, in which Mr..
Dustin Farnum will star, is in meas
ure a return to what has been called
the Estate plays, Of MIR. Thomas. be-
ing picture of Mexico, the result of
a winters sojourn and study in that
country.
Only few years ago it was custom
aUy TO associate Mr.. Clyde Fitch with
Mr.. Thomas as the two leading Ameri-
can dramatists, Mr. Fitch IS plays have
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