Los Angeles herald., 1908-03-03

| Pinnin n......,..... Clarence William
Ephraim ...............J James A. Dickson
! Contain ..........Ge George Christ,
| Sailor on La Cigale. Augustine Levi
BY sIDLE LAWRENCE
<<0LoRIOUs BETSY" is not SO
tT poor a play as Miss Mannering
VI would have us believe. In a
recent interview this very undiplomatic
star was quoted as saying: "This play
of Glorious Betsy is thin little play,
but we bluff 1t through" Certainly
such amazing frankness is noteworthy
and "a thin little play" this work of
Rida Johnson Young's undoubtedly is;
but it tells a charming love story-the
love story of Jerome Bonaparte and
Elizabeth Patterson--and it is not so
bad after all.
The story is told largely in duologue.
Throughout, the playwright has con-
fessed her inability to handle success
fully more than two, or at the utmost
three, characters in any one scene.
When more are on the stage they give
little point to the action ana serve
merely to complete the stage pictures
II is Jerome and Betsy herself who
sistance of Betsy's father and, in one
act. the interference of Napoleon, en-
peror of the French.
Betsy the coquette
The first act discloses Jerome Bona
parte, incognito, as tutor to Mistress
Elizabeth at Old Sweet Springs, Vlr-
ginia. Here Betsy is shown as CO.
ouette. She makes her first appear
nance, a string of gallants in her train.
She permits each of them to make love
to her and finally disinisses them, each
with a token and with the command
to attend upon her in Baltimore. Inc
pseudo tutor, himself in love with the
tantalizing young woman, is bloden 10
accompany her, but a message from MS
brother makes this impossible and ne
rides alone. This is the first time Betsy
has been refused a request made OF a
man. and she likes the experience SO
little that she straightway falls in love
with the one man who has fiouted her.
The second act brings them to lawn
fete at the Patterson home in Baltl-
more, where Jerome, stifl maintaining
his incognito, appears in advance of the
other guests and wins from Betsy q
confession of her love. In this scene
Miss Mannering was at her pest. In
the earlier act there had been lacking
something of the spice of coquetry; out
here the actress showed her auolence
a woman deeply in love and glorying
in that love.
Together Mistress Patterson, her IA
ther and Jerome, his identity now
known, sail for France to win Napo-
Icons consent to the marriage-Whlch'
however, is not forthcoming. The en-
peror commands Jerome to attend him
on shore and sends an order forblddlng g
the landing of other members OF the
party. Here Jerome rebels and Ma
poleon himself comes to the snip,
where, in an interview with GLORIOUS
Betsy he persuades her to renounce
her lover, ''for the honor of France"
Poor Acting Mars Scene
This scene, which should be the big
scene of the play, is marred in the act
ing. Napoleon here should be COM
manding figure of a man; man OF
authority in department and demeanor.
otherwise the scene becomes trivial.
Mr.. Webster fails completely in the
task allotted him. Either he is grossly
incompetent or he is victim of the
star system and plays under instruc-
tions not to dominate the scene. Either
way the result is deplorable from the
standpoint of the audience. GLORIOUS
Betsy wars against petty tyranny, not
against power personified; and Miss
Mannering's acting thus loses much or
it's effect.
The fourth and concluding act brings
us back to Baltimore again, where Bet
sy returns to her home, weary, heart
wrung woman. At the last Jerome re-
turns and the final curtain falls with
the lovers in each others arms.
Frank Gilmore plays Jerome Bona
parte, and his handling of the role pro-
claims him an actor of good attain
ments Mr.. Gilmore brings to his work
voice under admirable control and
finely modulated. 1t is a joy to listen
to his elocutic and he makes love in
way that should at least approx
mate the ideal of the most romantic OF
debutantes.
Herbert Carr is effective as the dot
ing father, irascible to others, but un-
able to deny his daughter anything.
"Glorious Betsy continues through
the week. The play was witnessed last
night by an audience that filled the
theater and which was in large meas
ure representative of the social life of
the city.
Herr Fischer has a "real' comedy for
his offering this week, "a Day in
Paris" and, moreover, there are a
couple of real songs on the program.
1t has been long since a catcher song
than Billy Onslow's "Harrigan" tickled
the musical ear of patrons at this
house, and the introduction of a light
ed transparency during the chorus,
which flashed forth the name of the
song, made a hit. Miss Bessie Tame
hill sings "By the Old Oak Tree" pleas
ingly and Miss Nellie Montgomery, in
a hideous old maid makeup, was cor
daily encored for her rendition of "Oh.
Mr.. Brown" Richard Kipling as an
English dude and George Morrell as a
young German masquerading as a
French nobleman were acceptable. The
play is produced under the direction of
farmer, provided much of the fun. A
musical monologue vaudeville turn and
motion pictures preceded the comedy
The Unique has an attractive bill
for the current week, the musical COM
edy company leading with musical ex-
trayaganza entitled "The Sleeping
Queen" Maude Beatty as Princess
Agnes is heard in EVERY One Sleeps
in Sunderland" Lew Dunbar as the
royal executioner, George REIN as the
bogus lord and Hugh Metcalf as the
prince get rid of a lot of funny stuff
while Kate Carlson, the queen, is ap-
precated in oriental songs and dances
The Unique comedy company IN
"Dodging Bokser or Too Much Smith,
by Richard Cummings, screaming
one-act farce, is worth While, Dick
Cummings as Ben Smith and Willis G.
West as Hen Schmidt doing the COM
manner. During the intermission be-
tNUoat, fba aote TilIiaO Gardner SINGS