The San Francisco call., 1907-06-04
BY James Crawford

There are three Shakespearean dam
sels-Juliet, Rosalind and Viola
whom every young actress and any
number OF matured ones believe they
could successfully play.
Just as 80 per cent of the male his
trions who undertake the role of HAM
let fail to express its psychological
meaning, so it is with the ladies who
yearn to act one or all of the maidens
mentioned. The delightful sentiment
of the characters so commends them
TO the feminine agination that they
are especially hungered for. Yet there
is nothing more difficult in the entire
range of dramatic art than to portray
any one of the trio.
Let us take Viola for example.
Neither Juliet nor Rosalind is so subtly
delineated. Shrewd treatment is re-
quired to bring out her varying per-
plexities and tender disposition as
Shakespeare intended she should be re-
vealed. The woman who is experienced
enough to express and differentiate her
emotions must be too old to completely
satisfy the eye and yet represent the
spirit of peach blossom youth. But
glittering exception to this rule was
last evening shown to the folk who at
tended the Van Ness theater, where
Viola Allen inlpersonated the lass who
served as loves ambassador for the
man she loved.
Miss Allen not only looks the part,
but gives to 1t the finish that comes OF
time and technique. Her fascination
extends beyond the ootlights-beyond
the naughty Olivia and the pining Or
sino-and reaches those witnesses who
are aware of her disguise. She makes
Viola a charmingly real girl. 1 have
heard other actresses read tender
speeches of the role with happy effect.
but they generally kept the tenderness
uppermost. This actress can simulate
sauciness without letting you forget
that a worm + tn bud is feeding on
her damask cheek. She is the adoring
ingenue incarnate. Her art reflects
more than Shakespeare's mere text.
Her secret yearning is most cleverly
introduced, while it's object, loving an
other with tears, with groans that
thunder love and sighs of fire." is soul
fully indulging his yearning. The
coquetry and ROBUSTNESS with which
she tells him of her fathers daughters
love are delicious IN their womanly
humor and appeal, and her embar-
rassed rejection of Olivia's all too plain
wooing is acting superb. And her con-
fict between physical fear and dread Of
having her sex disclosed when she Is
buliied by the trucuient Antonio is fine
histrionic art She has all the varying
feminine moods at ready command.
AS a production have never seen
Twelfth Night" better treated. A well
balanced supporting company makes
the acting well worth witnessing when
the star is not in evidence. and the
staging and incidental music contribute
to the perfect whole
Herbert casts no new light on the
promptings of Malvolio'S fantastic-p pre-
sumption, but Sir Toby of Mellish and
the Sir Andrew of Hadfield are joys
\ forever. That registering scene in the
second act is low comedy such as
Weber and Field or any of their imi-
tators never eclipsed. To merely look
at Sir Andrew is to laugh, for such
spareness OF body and limb is seldom,
seen outside circus side show.
Harcourt makes OF Orsino as mucn
as any manly actor could be expected
to make Of an. almost impossibly love-
sick adult. Miss Skipworth's Olivia IS
adequate. Hogarth's singing redeems
his clowning. If there were no acting
merry at all, the music would be
worth the prices Of admittance. Most
of it was adapted from old English
songs for the Beerbohm Tree produc-
tioH in London, and the two numbers
written for Miss Allen by Augustus
Barratt are equal In melody to the
best in the imported score