Los Angeles herald., 1907-12-01
THEATRICAL NOTES

Where are the swords of yesteryear? A
search of the theaters will bring few OF
them to light. Neither will such a
search reveal any surplus of cloaks that
hang from the shoulder, of big hats with
plumes that warriors doff as they go
into dueing grounds or moonlit gardens
| in which the hero comes TO WOO the, ne
roine. To tell the trutn. the costume play
has become chestnut.
1t has been in the process of becoming
a chestnut for several season, but it was
not until Kyrle Belew broke away that
it was seen the ship was sinking. Bellew
had played Claude Melnotte and the Cen
| tleman of France with a record of de-
| feating nine other gentlemen of France
| in broadsword duel on staircase) for
such q long time that 1t was thought
that he could not be converted. But even
as Otis Skinner, another prop and stay
of the costume piece of other days, shed
the cloak and sword for the abbe's cas-
sock in 1.-The Duel so did Bellew pass
from the plumes and furbelows to the
dinner coat Of "Raffles.' and now TO
the neglige of the hero in THE Thief"
There is absolutely no market now for
plays like Under the Red Robe" and
the like, which were so popular only
few years ago. E. e. Rose. who made
tidy bit of money putting those plays in
shape for presentation, is doing other
work. The persons who write plays Vs.
out being asked Qn distinction to the per-
sons who write plays because the plays
have been ordered) do not seem to have
learned that the costume play has seen
it's best days. Hardly day passes that
does not bring a costume play to man
ager's office.
In most businesses the men who try to
supply demand study that demand, but
in the bushes of writing plays too many
who would be producers go on sending
in, plays which have lost their vogue
And of all the vogues that have waxed
and waned, one of those that have
waned most is that of the costume play.
The "odsblood' and the "demme" are no
longer heard in the land.
Novelli, the heralded Italian, pronounced
ty Bernhardt the greatest actor in the
world, Is little known to Americans. AS
Potent as his art in this country Is the
fact that at So he is the richest actor IN
the world, As boy he was SO poor that
he helped his father to make wigs. Now
he is worth $2,00O,OOO.
He has made 1t all on the stage, main
~ through the large sums that have
teen paid to him to go to the countries or
Europe and all over the word-part;c-
uiary where there are Latin races AL
t'iOu6u hc mas pScll III llS OIlleu otd'E5
only once, he has played in every other
country, including Egypt, the Souul
American republics, and in Mexico In
Mexico $4,000 was offered to him as SIM
pc security for a short engagement, the
only condition being that he should not
charge more than 81 seat
He spends money prodigally, doing ev-
crything for arts sake He carries i'm
mense loads of scenery with him. He
hNs hundreds of thousands of dollars tied |
Up in art collections, and many hundred |
thousand more in wonderful villas, two
II which are the most beautiful In Italy |
The Villa Olga is at Ravenna and is |
Known for Its magnificent architecture |
Here, in the place of honor in the ..iost |
beautiful niche of the most wonderful
loom, is great portrait of Edwin Bo 9TH |
as Hamlet. In this palace also is the
most complete collection of pictures uC
Booth in repertoire that exists. This
fctor never saw Booth, but reveres his
memory as the perfect Hamlet he
ever missed chance to talk of Booth
70 his friend Tomaso Salvini and he
knew Booths Hamlet psychologically. in
t'mately, by the power of sympathy and
understanding as it was known by few
who had seen it,
There is not a single theatrical family
in the United States the founder If
which was born in this country. The
Barrymores and their relatives, the
Drews, all sprang from English acting
stock, and the first of the Jeffersons
came from England, as did the first of
the Wallacks.
E. Fl. Sothern, who since the death of
Mr.. Mansfield has been acclaimed by
many as the representative American
actor, was born in New Orleans, it is
true, but his father, e. A. Sothern, was
an Englishman. The Booths and the
Wilkeses, two theatrical families MEM