The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1908-04-21
YALE STUDENTS IN A FARCE
urrLY PERFORMANCE or A
CAPITAL PLAY.

.r,wstlc CIub Gives GOEoIS "ReNZOr"
for the First Time IN English at the
Waldorf and More Than Does Itself
Proud Crane Sees Himself Copied.
The Yale University Dramatic AssoOia-
,ion produced Gogol's famous farce RE
yi,br' for the first time in English at the
Waldorf yesterday afternoon. and played
! again in the evening 10 a much larger
audience. Having tried 1t IN the dogs,
,nsy will show it at New Haven later in the
week, thus reversing the procedure Of the
Confessional theatre. II New Haven takes
10 il as kindly as the dogs did yesterday
il will he a success. New Haven papers
please copy.
Yesterday afternoon Daniel Frohman,
Mrs. Frohman Margaret ~Ilington), Frank
Keenan, and W. H, Crane we're interested
spectators, The play has a part for Mr..
crane. Perhaps that Is why Mr., FrohmAn
atom the other side Of the ballroom theatre,
Seriously, 'Reviz6r' has a part for Mr..
crane. and for several other actors. Writ
len in 1893, by Gogol, friend Of Pushkin
and author Of Dead Souls this farce has
hints Of the later realism which made Gogol
the literary father Of T~urgenief and Tolstol.
But the realism never spoils the fun; IL only
heightens il by making the whole more
GfeIike And such funl Why the farce has
escaped English translation so long is hard
to understand. Why it has escaped the
Gsmtn Theatre is still harier, for II Is
4 classic in Germany. The Yale Club has
done we'll to bring it forward,
The scheme Of the farce is t~ranslucently
simple 4 lot Of petty officials in a little
Russian town "a happy family Of graften-
are thrown into CONSERVATION by the news
that a pvi76r Tor inspeotor) Ia coming
Incog. from 81. Petersburg. Just then
comes word that a young man il already
Al the hotel. has in fact been there some
DAYS. All things point to his being the
Inspector In a fright the police protect
goes TO call on him.
Now. the young man is in reality Iran,
4 me- r DO well.' on his way home after
s1uaniering all his money at st. Peters
burg Ne owes the landlord 30 much he
cant even get a dinner, and has been
threatened with arrest, When the police
project arrives the two men face each
other. each in terror. each quite unaware
Of the cause Of the others alarm. But
irdn, the young man, is no fool, He is
soon on. He accepts the projects invita-
ton 10 leave the inn for his house. And
then he begins to feather his nest.
From every one of the poor, frightened.
Eufting little officials in the town-and
after seeing this rlsy tie nutRral ing
Gtcles IN our 10 cent magazines look like
Sunday school aotion!-he borrows and
Wheedles till his pockets are full. He
eats and drinks and makes love 10 the
projects daughter, Then he ducks out
post Taste just in time. Tho news Of his
deception, gained b. opening one OF his
letters in the post Office, comes to the
sstonished officials gathered in the projects
house an hour after he has left. And
hot on the heels Of that news comes a
gandarme. The functionary who came
here from ~. Petersburg by order OF the
Gar commands you to appear before him.
He stopped at the hotel" That ia the last
VorI, After the farce. the reality! And
the curtain falls on the wOebegone, thunder
struck group,
The tale is told with absolute simplicity
with infinite CustO and humor and not with
OUT an under note of bitter satire on petty
official corruption. Maxwell Parry, 'Os,
played the part Of the police project and
played it very well, with Il curious sugges-
ton Of W. II, Crane, especially in his humor-
GUS asides. II is a fiat" part and must
hugely please the character actors Of Ger
many. Thomas Achehs, '0s, president Of
the dramatic club, played Iran, the -ne'er
do WELL who did everybody very well.
Young Mr., Achelis il 40 fluent in his tech
nique that if he doesn't look out he will
acquire stage mannerisms, and from an
exceptionally brilliant amateur become a
poor professional. Yesterday his carriage,
his grsndiloQuently graceful gestures, his
bombastic talk-all 10 impress the ristlcs -
we're carried Of with charming ease and
humor, and he managed his voice too
unusually well. 1t was a performance no
amateur need have been ashamed Of,
But the entire cast, a very long one, was
picked and trained with care. There was
sometimes too much talking at the audience
and stiffness, Of course, But the play
got over, even the women's parts. in spite
Of their barytone pipings And especially
u the admirably coIloquial translation
made by Max s. Mandell, instructor Of
Russian at Yale, this play was worth seeing,
worth serious confederation Thanks are
distinctly due from the dogs to the young
gentlemen from New Haven for this tryout.
Nay they like New York 80 well as a shOy
town that they will come again.