The Washington times., 1908-02-23
Pot of Broth
Best Novelty
On Broadway
By A. H. BALLARD.

new 1Ofks req. -
IT HE managers gave the theatrical
pot a stir or two. or three, this
week, and a pleasant. savory
Whit went up in the air to
crafty our senses.
AT the Savoy Charles Frohman added
a sardonic and witty bit TO the pungent
moment Of the evening. Before the
fun of Twenty Days IN the Shade" be-
gins now. a one-act piece OF Irish devil
Try. a Pot OF Broth" by that strange,
brainy Irishman, W. b. Yeats, is spoken
and acted by a clever trio Of people
who exude limerick Drosue in a way
10 enrich the joy of this world. IL is
all very simple-only how a begger,
with his barney and his smooth tongue,
makes g sIiugy couple believe that he
breWs a broth from a magic stone, and
finally is persuaded to let them have
the wonderful stone in exchange for a
bit Of food he takes away-just what he
was after. This IS exemplihed the way
slick liars fool the world and Will fool
IL. so long IS life hath woes and trou-
hIes, laZIness and wit. ii is typical, 70
the point lurt. effective. excellent.
makes a hit adds to a more than agree
able night of diversion at this theater.
SINNERS Opening on Broadway.
Possibly the most important happening
of the week would have been the re
turn to our midst of Otis skinner. if
he had appeared In a vehicle that bears
down hard and takes hold OF us He
is, as you know. in that recent speci-
men from Paul NJ. Potter's field Of
dramatic operations-"The Honor OF tine
Family" The dramatst exumed the
f771F - 4 h2r
was in turn excavated from BalZac
novel In its present form we have the
Potter stamp on the affair, a nicely pre-
pared article. cut and hewn and pol
ished 10 suit the human people Of this
country from the Potter point OF view
1T does not hold me for even a short
while, but the acting Of Mr.. skinner
cannot be dull, even where his swash-
3. uckling role is done with great dis
.etiou ard his omnipresent finish. He
isSaagneJic and impressive in all ne
dc and he keeps up to the standard
he set believe that the au-
dienS fEalIows the play. such as it Is,
chief because Mr.. Skinner is in it..
They appeared to do so on the opening
night at all events, when they ap-
pIauded him 10 the echo at the slightest
proyoCatlon- II was a personal AFFAIR.
for the most part. ! do not think the
play calls for especial faulthnding. It
Is Professionalism Is 20 say, that Il
is technically we'll done, but, some
how, lacks compelling quality. IL is,
Enthusiastically, sleepy for long intervals,
when the star is not on the stage; and
il is quite manifestly of the old-time
conventional In It's dramatic texture
There is no enthraiIing interest, nor is
there any expectancy held tense. On
the contrary. the story and its outcome
are cruelty obvious. and we are con-
strained to get what solace we may from
the atmosphere We can find in the sew
eral characters.
Nethelsole's A5rienue LecOuvIeuT.
Miss Nethersole. early in the week.
beginning Monday night. participated in
q costume play which was meant to
take Broadway by storm.
It was 'Adrienne Lecouvreur" again
that haunting. sad, beautiful scintillat-
ing false. sentimental, tragic. lovely,
naughty. vicious. heshly, heavenly mass
of monstrosities. and Deatitudes, that is
redolent of Bernhardt memories-that
wonderful drama that Scribe wrote for
the divine Sarah, and which the essen
Al@llr AAAA4llldLAN 1A=tA mas HlN OlA net 2
with a great to-do of costume elabor-
Rteness. Well it was worth while If
only for that rolling molasses-Iike,
cello-timbre voice Of Nethersole's. She
certainly. can reach me with the tones
OF that strange music box she has in her
throat, and she makes the cold Chills
20 up and down NY back when she
looks at the leading man and let's ner
soul utter the words: q love yOui"
There il no woman on the stage who
can put such an amplitude Of meaning
into those magic words. But to cope
with This long, great. sad, beautiful
false role Of "Adrienne," II requires
what Modjesks once was, what Bern
Eardt was In her prime, what Mrs
Carter may be now if she will try hard.
and assuredly something beyond the
soft and plump suffciency and unpoetic
materially Of the present Olga Neither
sole She has a charm. and a method
that draws at moments. But she Will
mar her looks with an ugly wig, she
Will Toll and linger where she should
he electric In her movements and dyna-
mite in her thought She reminds me
of a docile, mooing COW. Adrienne
Iecouvreur was darling, a poet. an