The Washington herald., 1907-09-08
rzpondsnco Of Tho Washington Herald


New York, Sept This has been 4
week OF events dramatic, one production
after another: productions that mounted
up into thousands OF dollars each, TO put
upon the stage. and not one signal sue
cess that makes people sit up and gasp,
although Augustus Thomas is included in
the list Of authors, and even Tolstoi con-
tributed TO the weeks theatrical happen
ings.
At Waliack's THE Ranger" by Thom-
as. with Dustin Farnum in the leading
role, was the event; at the Herald Square,
Virginia Harmed portrayed Tolstois
A,na Harenina in the dramatization Of
the great Russians novel: at the Empire
John Drew made his seasons debut in
My Wife" from the French of Gavault
ana Charnay, translated by Michael Nor
ton: at the Majestic "The Other House"
was revealed a fantastic comedy by
the Paultons. with Richard Golden in an
eccentric role; at the Hackett the season
opened with THE Movers" with Doro-
thy Donnelly prominent in the cast, and
at the Madison Square Theater Manager
Lawrence produced The Man in the
Case with jameson Lee Finney.
The Movers" is by Martha Morton,
and purports to be a study of a familiar
phase of New York life, picturing per-
sons whose desire is To live and move in
the world Of pleasure-seeking where ex-
pense is not counted and economy is
reckoned rs stint The Man in the
Case was written By Grace Livingstone
Furfniss, and is perhaps the most appeal
ing play OF the whole list in its flowing
humor and light complications.
have no doubt that sundry of these
plays VIII eventually be accepted, and
that they may even prove popular with
a considerable public following; for it
must be said IN extenuation of their fail
ure TO make explosive hits on the first
night that an unusual degree Of nervous
ness was manifested by some Of the ac-
tors, which resulted in throwing Dustin
Farnum. for once of the key. Neverthe-
less-speaking of "The Ranger'-the play
IS somewhat lacking in those qualities
which have given Mr.. Thomas a high
standing SIS a playwright dealing prefera-
bly,. and usually. with remarkable felicity,
with Western characters and events Mr.
Thomas seems to have taken a too min
ute and a too near view of his Mexican
subject and lost the sense Of dramatic
perspective. There IS much in The
Ranger" that suggests the stalwart
virility OF his pen, but there is much in
it. also, that viii lay him open to the
suspicion of having studied his atmosphere
on FOrty-secOnd street, and more specific
ally IN The Rose OF the Rancho" The
defects. however, appear to me of that
character that can be remedied by the
adroit application Of a little cold COM
mon sense and the elimination OF some
of the superabaundance Of local color and
Spanish bits that seem too forced 10 be
natural The extreme nervousness Of Mr..
Farnum prevented him from appearing
at his best, but as this is a besetting
eVu OF many earnest, ambitious actors
II Is conceivable that he will ultimately
round out the proportions of the charac-
ter and make IL his own as distinctly as
he made Lieutenant Denton, in "Ari-
zona," and the Virginan his own The
play Is handsomely staged and as a pro-
duetion can excite no cavil.
Martha Morton took up a big subject in
THE Movers but proved herself made
quate in the handling Of her theme. The
play moves along according to a well-con-
ceived plan. designed to portray the evils
of the prevailing love Of extravaganza of
New York life 1t is perhaps the most
pregnant dramatic subject that has been
exhibited on the stage here in a season.
iC To he tod hot
has not been able to reduce her concep-
ton to more tangible representation Of
the conditions she undertakes to lay bare.
It IS a moving story of wastefulness, Of
feverish living. an attempt 10 depict the
fashionable woman of the day. who would
be wife, but not a mother; who gives up
all fOr pleasure and inspires suicide and
domestic ruin, ending It all in bitter re-
pentance and humility. But all this is
suggested rather than vigorously brought
before our eyes in bold strokes, where all /
who see may read the lesson she would /
teach, and as one Of the critics aptly put
1t, Miss Morton has mistaken the shadow /
for the substance
In the cast are Vincent Serrano and W. |
J. Ferguson. Neither Miss DOnnelly nor
Mr.. Serrano had quite struck their pace
early in the week. and were suffering un- |
der the reproach Of overacting their parts. |
In my Wife" we have a typical French |
farce. In which Mr. Drew plays one of /
those benevolent but interesting bachelors /
for which he has manifested a certain /
preference in the last three or four plays |
in which he has been seen. The plot turns
upon an expedient by which Trixie Dupre. /
TO escape a distasteful marriage arranged |
for her by her parents. persuades Gerald /
Eyersleigh, her guardian. a bachelor, /
given TO entertaining actresses in his
apartments. TO enter into a platonic mat 4
rmonial relationship with her, TO which /
Gerald accommodatingly consents. Trixle |
IS in love with a young man named Rene /
FalandFes, and the arrangement with her 1
guardian is a divorce. to be decreed when |
the real lover returns from foreign parts !
and is free 10 cOnsummate his hearts 1
ambition.
The second act reveals Gerald and Trix- |
ie on their honeymoon in a Swiss hotel. |
where the young woman carries on so /
amazingly with the men. even forcing her
putative husband into a duel. that Ger |
aid in disgust abandons her 10 her par
ents, who have arrived on the scene,
and hsstens back 10 his London quarters /
and his quiet suppeTs with the actress.
But the parents likewise abandon the /
insOuciant young wife. and Trixie turns /
up in London in time 20 interrupt Ger
AIDS supper Here the Frenchmen have /
done their best work in the French man
ner. The act serves too unite thesinte
secting tangle. There is an amusing
scene between Rene, who has re-
turned with new hearts idol encounter