New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-03-13
THE DRAMA.
MR. MANsFIELD's SEASON.

The most important dramatic proceedings now
oefore the public. in this city, are those OF Mr..
Manshed. who Is acting at the New Amsterdam
Theatre. in Mr. Ibsen's strange. delusive, and
evanescent play Of Peer Gynt." Mr. Mansfield
has borne. with extraordinary fOrttude. the heavy
burden Of that piece-which. considered as drama,
Is about as bad as anything possibly be-and
he is becoming weary Of the thankless and nerve
SCATTERING exertion that Il compels. That eXerton'
obviously. Is great because the actor is obliged to
animate a considerable mass Of fantasies and va
pors Much nonsense has been published, about
omissions that have been made from Mr.. Ibsen's
sacred poem" The fact is that Mr.. Mansfield
has retained IN his theatrical version every shred
OF the original composition that possibly could be
made effective on the stage. Much bather. OF
course has happily been omitted-scenes In a mad
house. etc; and. possibly. that cOnjectural scene.
in which Peer goes over Niagara Falls in canoe
and when half way down the cataract, rows back
ward to the river above. An actor who can carry
such stuff as there is in peer Gynt." ard make
it dramatically eTective-as Mr.. Mansfield does. in
so far as human ability do it-shONs an ad-
mirable proficiency IN his art and the actor might
well be spared the earnings OF those httertng
zanies who exist only for the purpose OF finding
fault with persons who are. at least. trying TO do
something. The piece will be acted every night this
week. and an afternoon performance Of It will be
given on Saturday March D. in response 70 eager
demand from singularly interested public: wonder
ful 1t IS to consider how easily the public be
stimulated to interest in anything that seems to
SAVIOR of novelty. There Is not in all the works Of
Mr. Ibsen. thought that has not been expressed
by other writer's before his time. and much better
expressed than 1t has been by him: but the Nor
wegian has been made a Fad. first in London
among 1.-THE SouIs-and then here-among the
imitators of The Souls and numberless moon
eyed persons think that they think that they have
found what they suppose to be new thought In
htm-Chiehy the thought that 1t Is good to do
as you please. without regard to what you ought
TO do. That however. is aside from the matter OF
Mr. Mansfeld's success. No one else on our stage
at this time. could have made such subject as
Peer Gynt" even partially tOerable. Mr.. Mans
field has done everything that could be done with
an explicitly Undramatic and obfuscatory theme;
and he ought 60 have the thanks instead OF the inn
pertinence of those Juvenile squeaks. who imagine
that they represent Brutus alongside OF his tripod
therefore have been reviling him for desecrat-
ing" Ibsen AS II there could be any Dissertation In
abridging nonsense. Mr.. Mansfield Will change
the bill at the New Amsterdam Theatre next Mon
day night and he will devote his last week to
plays selected from hts repertory. II is under
stood that the demand for seats for his last ap-
pearance as Gynt is very INDEPENDENTLY from
young women. Mr.. Mansfield IS remarkable
actor and everything he does IS Interesting and
worthy OF being and studied. Wv.