Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-03-09

manicure lady, but the part requires a
woman of more buxom charms than
Miss Noyes. Dewitt G. Jennings has
an excellent character comedy part as
Anthony Martin, Greshams partner
His lines are good and the character
stands out with cameo like relief in the
excellent comedy. Howard Scott
sketches hypocritical sanctity of his
role with rare skill and intelligence
Every part is excellently done.
The staging OF, the first act, showing
the cabin and the mountains in the
background, ranks with the best stag
ing of 1.-THE Girl of the Golden West .
All the staging is admirable and new
properties are used.
Mr.. Broadhurst was called for at the
end of the first act and made clever
little speech.
In its entirety "The Dollar Mark" is
one of the greatest local successes In
recent years.
To bottle up the quintessential es-
sence of a psychological drama in
twenty-minute vaudeville sketch is
feat as difficult as that of the busy
little fisherman who got the bad
genii into the vase and then put the
stopper on. Israel Zangwill does this
very niftily in his sketch, "The Never.
Never Land" which is given this week
at the Orpheum. The audience yester-
day afternoon was a bit awed by the
piece, and 1t did not get the reception
to which its strong conception and
faultless dramatic technique entitle it.
This is the first offering of Mr. Fang
willis works in Los Angeles, and IS
artistically one of the best produc-
tions ever given on the Orpbeum cir
cult. although necessarily marred py
the perfervid melodrama, incident to
the exigencies Of the theme.
The sketch is based on the pseudo
scientific fact of a man swiftly recap
itulating his past life at the moment
of his death.
The first scene shows the outside
of the mansion of the duchess of Bel
gravia in December. 1907. The duch-
ess, an aged woman, is returning TO
her home after the death of her nus
band, and falls in a swoon at her
door after dramatically foreshadowing
the incident of the piece in her dia-
logue with the bishop, who Is with her
The second scene goes back fifty
years to Queensland, Australia. show
ing the duchess. young woman OF ~
as the wife of John, gold seeker,
who is much older than the woman.
She is in love with Harold. stock
man, who brings horse and per-
suades her to run away with him.
She has been loyal to her husband, but
Yields under the persistent urging of
her lover, and Is in the house prepar-
ing to leave when John returns. He
has found rich diggings which VIII
bring him a fortune. This is the mo-
ment of greatest dramatic intensity
in the piece, although it stamps the
play as genuine melodrama and not
tragedy, because it is not inevitable.
w. t.nn n
soft earth, hides in the bush and sees
his wife embrace Harold as she comes
out of the house. The woman sees
that 1t Is inevitable that one or both
of the men is killed, and to save her
lovers life shoots her husband.
Don't touch me; there is blood on
my hands!'' she says to her lover as he
comes toward her. Il have the brand
of Cain on my forehead" Ooralee, the
faithful Maori servant, finds his mas
ter dead while the two are talking.
AS he runs for aid Harold shoots him.
"Now there Is no gulf between us, y
he says. There is blood on my hands.
too
The closing scene shows the death of
the woman. after the scene. or nfty
years before has flashed through her
mind.
The sketch is exceedingly strong in
it's dramatic workmanship, and in its
phrasing shows Zangwill at his best.
.He has always been SO good to me"
the woman pleads when Harold urges
her to desert her husband. That's
what a. woman always says about a
man when she does not love him" he
replies. This is Zangwill.
There is ground for endless discussion
as to the psychological values of the
piece. Undoubtedly the author is at
great disadvantage In having to crowd
1t into so short a space of time, as the
psychological theme requires consider
able more elaboration in atmosphere
and dialogue than he gives 1t. AS 1t is
the melodramaic element overbalances
the psychological, and as melodrama
it is weak because 1t is inconsequential
and unherotc.
Miss Helen Grantley as the duchess
and ]. M. Colville as John achieve some
strong and convincing characterize
ton Harry Hilliard as Harold also is
good.
The Orpheum bill in its entirety is
exceedingly good. The sketch, Shorty,
written by Dick Crolius, in which Mr.
Crolius appears in the title role, Is sell
dom excelled on the vaudeville stage
Mr.. Crolius' sketch of the race track
tout is WILDLY and appealingly true OF
life. Other admirable numbers are the
Farrell Taylor company In black face
and Seldom's Venus, held over from
last week.
I The current bill at the Los Angeles
theatcr Is made up Of seven new acts
the extra: turn taking the place of the
usual motion picture which is omitted