The sun., 1908-11-24
YHE SICTLIANS WELCOMED
THEIR STAR, SIGNORA AGUGLIA,
DISPLAYS GREAT TALENT.

|
Turns Wholly on the TormentS or
Love Distracted Girl and Ia Reaiisti
In the Extreme 4 Real ONatiOr
The performance given at the Broad
way Theatre last night by Signora Agug
liza and her company OF Sicilian actor
fully justified MIR. Frohman's enterpris
In fetching the troupe across the Atlanti
and explained the enthusiasm with whic
London and Paris received 1t. The oom
pany acts with a spirit and spontaneit
that are striking. and Signora Aguglii
showed that she was an actress OF YER
great talent
The audience was enthusiastic and dis
eliminating. II applauded and callec
out the actors repeatedly at the end oil
each act. but checked all attempts at ap
plause while the play was going on. A
the end II rose and insisted on tho cur
tain's rising dozen times or more. Their,
were plenty OF Italians In the lower part
OF the house. but Americans predominated
and the dresses were nearly as elaborate
as for the opera The gallery naturally
was converted into a little Sicily. The
Italian Consul General. Count Raybaud-
Massiglia. was conspicuous in a box
draped with American and italian colors.
The play was MALTA" the spell" or
the "Enohantment.' village tragedy OF
jealousy by the Italian poet Luigi Capu-
ana. Like a good many other pieces in
the company's repertory it deals with
Sicilian village life in the realistic m amer
that has become familiar through "Caval-
lera Rustioana." Artistically it might
have been better to oonflne the story to
a single act rather than spread it through
three. but the dramatic interest keeps
up to the end.
1t turns wholly on the torments Of a
love distracted girl. Jana (Signora
Aguglia) is in love with the man who is
about to marry her sister. She tries to
keep it to herself out Of shame and relig-
ion. In the first act a group of village
people is sitting about the farm yard
waiting for the return of the bridal party.
They chat for while in confusing mi kture
of Italian and Sicilan dialect. Long
after the wedding guests have come in
the audience awakens TO the fact that
signora Aguglia has been on the stage all
the while She refuses to share in the
pered girl.
In the second act some months have
passed and she has given way to her
Her people cannot account
for her condition and ascribe it to some
witoh's spell. Her brother-in-law under !
takes. to reason with her and find out
what is troubling her His wife has turned
ont to be a shrew and he regrets that he
did not marryJdnr instead. When he dis f.
covers that she loves him he loses his
temper and she struggles against him till |
she falls into a fit.
Throughout this act SiRnora Aguglia's
acting is marvellous. She sacrifices every .
attraction she may have to real
ism; she is pale, sick woman dressed
shambling along and uttering
only diseordant monosyllables she lets
her eyes speak. When Cola. the man she
loves. begins to argue the struggle be-
tween passion and repugnauce is told
wholly by her face. and a wonderful
study that ia.
II is after she has betrayed her love
md in her horror is fighting against Cola
hat the browning scene of the play oc-
,urs 1t is a sort of low life Tristan
Ind Isolde duet; so brutal aud painful
n its naturalness that no suggestion OF
ensuality is conveyed. The agony of
he wretched womans tortured senses
md her equal horror and fear of the man
With her, the epileptic oonvulsions into
rhich she Is throw are depictei with
truth to nature that Is amazing and
hat goes beyond anything seen hitherto
n the New York stage. We must 60 back
o Richard Mansfield in "A Partisan no
nance for anything like it.
Tho trouble is settled in a character
;tically Sicilian manner in the last act ,
ana decides to marry young man who
engaged to her in order TO get away {
rom Cola; he is jealous and objects. {
hen the young man discovers that 1t is
ola who has cast the spell and to put a =,
top to it snatohes a razor from by e
tander and cuts Coids throat. While L
ne men are struggling Jana again gives [
marvellous display OF contending emo h
ons. ending again in convulsiouns. v
That Signora Aguglia is an actress OF |;
talent is clear; the second
CT will attract audiences, for no word
Italian is needed to understand it COM A
letely. Whether she is more than that v
,e other plays must show. The company 8
cted into each others parts admirably; i
he enunciation Of some OF the. minor 4
naracters might be clearer and slower,
Mt their acting was faultless, The
,enes encated, apart from the tragedy, 81
ere delightful bits OF true italian life. u
OF the Other, actors Signora Balestrieri q =
! the old mother. Ziu Pima. was perfect; q
iSnor Pezsinss as the father aud Signor Q
apisarda as a fiddler gave finished n
srformances. The enunciation OF all c.
lree was very good. As the two lovers
gnor Lo Turco and Signor Majorana did
,ry well. but. they were handicapped
' a makeup chat converted them into G.
city commonplace New York Italians.
arious members of the Aguglia family
led other parts acceptably, but were
fiioted with shrill voices and lightning d:
terance. in
It is easy 70 see why some French ~
itics have called these performances -
,ciferous. 1t is not the players who re
g at fault but the fact that they are til
ying to represent real Italians, and it is nj
It the habit OF llatins to take excite NJ
emit in silence. For a pleasant enter M
inment MALTA" will hardly do, but it -,
pplies those who want dramatic ex- r
cement with all they can wish for, !,