The San Francisco call., 1909-04-12
By Walter Anthony

Luckily one doesn't have to possess
the skill to describe Peter Pan" in
order to enjoy it, and fortunately for
the present writer it isn't necessary to
describe the fantasy because that ..has
been done many times before, besides
I couldn't do it anyway. It is as in
tangible as Il dream, as sweet as child
hoods innocence, as pure as mothers
love and as charming as your first
sweetheart. 1t is moonbeams and
children, fairies and music, terrible
pirates and Indians, and it is quite by
itself in its blitheness and joy. If you
were ever a real child and wore paper
cap and carried a great wooden sword
to storm q formidable fort bristling
with the enemy across the street you
will understand Peter Pam The
Valencia theater has achieved a splen-
did feat in carrying this play to it's
stage and in bringing together the
fancies that Barrie's brain brought over
the threshold of his boyhood's memo
ries to make them live again for chill
dren of all ages.
1t seems stupid task to say that
the piece was staged superbly. So
commonplace a phrase is out of joint
with the quite uncommon excellence
of the production. The pirate ship in
the third act is a realistic picture of the
pirate ships we used TO see years ago
we called them low, rakish crafts,
you remember; Peter Pans little bouse
in. the tops of the trees where he
plays his pipes to Tinker Bell and the
sister fairies born with every baby's
first smile; the never never land"
H.
Indians keeping watch at the foot of
the trees-in fact, every scene was
greeted with approval and was as real
istic as could be, as fantastic as a
child's thought.
George Foster Plat, who staged the
play, has done magnificent work and
deserves more credit than he is likely
TO get at the hands of the public, which
is not concerned with the labor of the
art of stage producing. but only OBJ
serves the result. In this case the
result is splendid and even on the
first performance of the difficult piece
there were no lapses in the action and
the .inanimate accessories of the play
were perfectly handled.
Miss Harriet Worthington's work as
Peter Pan was satisfactory in the face
of the handicap of a comparison which
no actress in America would hasten tc
endure. enc was eIIecIlNe NOcaIly anC
naive and picturesque as the boy who
wouldn't grow up. Tonight she viii
have a better mastery of her lines
which halted now and then last night
Edith Lyle was demure and fine a.
Wendy Wendy, you know. comes will
the spring and goes to be mother tt
all the little boys in the never never
land after Peter teaches her how tt
fly Such grownup airs she assumed
as little girl does playing house. Rob
ert Homans got into the spirit OF hi.
pirate role of Captain Hook splendicIy
I'll wager he hasn't forgotten when hi
played pirates. 1t takes imagination te
do what Homans did last night and ge
it over the footlights. He fulfilled Bar.
rie's requirements. which demand tha
all the players in Peter PAN mus
feel thar the play was written by &
child and that all the actors are chill.
dren in deadly seriousness. You mus
take the kiddies to see Ollie Walter a.
Michael. That dimpled little youngstel
would make matinee idolator out Of
me.
And so, straight through, Peter Pan
deserves your attention. 1t will brine
across the years breath of the spring
time of youth. and If that isn't worth 81
cents then Tn no Judge.