Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1907-02-05
CHARMED HER AUDIENCE.

To say that Mrs Bertha Kunz Baker
won the admiration of her audience
Wednesday night, when she recited j..
Huntley McCarthy's eff Were King, !"
would be putting it lightly. She was
stronger and possessed of more talent
than imagined by those who had read
most about her, and delight to the
many who knew little of .her work.
The audience was large one and
critical one, for it represented the best
element in the city. 1t was not demon
strative; in fact there was no applause,
except at the end. The tension, as the
dramatic spirit surged through the
lines under the skill of Mrs Baker,
was too great to permit of Interrupt
ton.
The story of Mccarthy. "lf | We're
King" was faithfully outlined by Mrs.
Baker, emitting the non-esseutials. So
well did she succeed in sKetching the
theme that many Waussu people who
have witnessed the production of E. FL.
Sothern on the metropolitan stage, ,ipro-
nounced her recitation fully as efiec-
tive.
OVillon, a young, educated, open
hearted, cool headed, fearless profit
gate, is discovered drinking with
a number of his male and female COM
panions in public inn, by King Louis
XI of France, as the latter goes about
Paris in disguise. Villon, not knowing
the king is present in the room.
''roasts" the latter to a dark brown,
and tells what he would do if he were
king. The king means to hang Villon
for his insults but partly for sport and
partly in hope of recuperating his for
tunes of state and saving Paris from
the Bergundians who were then be
sieging the city, acts on wish of
Villon and has him transported to the
palace, where he is garbed in court
robes of purple and gold and given the
full powers of the high constable, a
position next to the throne. He is
given seven days to reign, at the end of
which time he must be hanged unless
he subdues the pride of Catherine, al
court lady, and wins her love-a feat
the king himself has found impossible
to perform. Villon accepts the re-
sponsibility, overthrows the Bergun-
dians, wins the love of Catherine and
insists on declaring himself not as the
high constable, but simply plain Villon,
when she turns from him as from a
snake and does not relent until the
seventh day, when ne is about to be
hanged in the public square by order
of the king The clamor of the French
populace at the expected hanging of
the savior of France causes the king to
promise to let Villon live, providing
in the moose instead. Catherine comes
forward to sacrifice herself, when there |
comes denouement, in which Villon |
is pardoned and Catherine is given her
lover.
Mrs. Baker showed Vilion to be by |
profession vagabond, but by soul a |
poet, thoroughly great and generous,
his heart lifted to the highest plane by
seven days of reign and unselfish SER
vice. King Louis XI she pictured as a
slothful, vain, vengeful, potentate, but
with some sense of wit.
To some, perhaps, Mrs. Baker was
not as pleasing as was Mrs Garghill
Beecher, who appeared here last
winter. Mrs Beecher started in by re-
citing Hales "The Man Without
Country" and in her various recitations
passed through many different phases |
of human impulse. Her program was
varied and therefore better served the
audience generally. This is not said in
disparagement to Mrs. Baker, for no
doubt the latter could select varied
program and please equally as well,
for she unqualifedly has the talent
Mrs. Baker has been associated for
several years with Prof. s. H. Clark
of the University of Chicago, who re-
Gently gave dramatic recitations in
Wausau-the two being associate prin-
cipals of the school of expression in
Chautauqua, N Y She believes that
the renaissance in literature and art is |
to come to America.
Attorney NJ. G.. Porter's home in |
Merrill, was badly damaged by fire on |