The Washington herald., 1909-06-13
MAUDE ADAMS IDEA
OF JOAN OF ARC"
Hor the Stadium Performance Will Differ from Any Pvious
Attempt to Dramatize The Maid of France

important, q release and practical aDp,i-
cation of the twelve years thought ara
study Of Joan OF arc by Miss Maude
Adams.
That is how the Joan OF Arc perform
ance came about Maude Adams per-
sonal idea OF the play as it viii Be acted
IN the Stadium on the night OF Tuesday
June 2. Is that the occasion shonIs sr,-
press It's spectators and auditors s-Fo- h
VIII be an event 10 be seen as wen as 70
be heard-sith much OF the reverence fhas
people OF whatever creed. OF no c-aes
feel al the Passion Play OF Obersmrergar,
thrifty simplicity and humility viii bs
the dominant characteristics STAMPED h,-
Mss adams upon all the single dual
and triple charactered scenes that Joa5
has IN the play
Mss Adams win approach the acting
OF Joan of arc with reverence that. she
hopes, VIII be the prevailing quality OF
the entire performance IN the stsSlur7
There viii be a complete elimination o.
theatrical devices and more attempts 70
appear theatrically striking Those no
mems IN The play that make Il allowable
Ike the coronation OF King Charles IN
the Cathedral az Rheims and the hugo
nattle scene between the English sn6 the
French outside the walls OF Orleans-urfl
oe rendered with all the gorgeousness and
historical accuracy OF as beautiful a ua-
geant as money. good taste, and inteus-
theatrical devices and more ATTEMPTS n
gence can obtain There will Be a.
active participants IN the performance
This includes about 500 men n armor on
horseback. monks. citizens .(rnen and
Homen). mobiles, choir boys, English and
French infantry.
Joan VIII always appear. according N
tradition, riding The only white horsa
that viii be seen upon the field. csrrviD.r
aloft her "Jhesus. Maria" banner. Ac-
cording 70 Schiller. the Maid OF France
never raised her sword As the leader OF
her country-s army. JOan-s first appear
ance cad IN armOr, on the Stadium bat
tlsheld, VIII be sigTaled BY cries OF --Ths
Maid The Maid-' uttered by TIE thou
sand troops engaged IN the heat o. nan
to-uan conflict That moment promises
70 be one Of the most magnificent in the
performance. IN the midst OF the din Of
battle and the crowded warring OF the
rneoiaeYal army. Joan VIII Unexpectedly
appear upon the ridge of a HILL on her
white horse, and as suddenly and as IN
expectedly gailop into The midst OF TIE
oontendiag forces. and by her very pres
e1ce. waving her banner aloft. break the
bacE Of the English defense and lead her
countrymen IN an assault upon the walls
OF Orleans, which they recapture BY q su-
prerne effort. and thereby achieve the
sreat work Joan set out 70 do.
The death OF The Maid in the Stadium
performance VII not. as IN historv bs
the passive sacrifice OF e martyr at the
stake. but the heroic ending of q warrior
on the battlefield According 70 Schiller.
once Orleans was retaken from the Eng
lish. Joan is wounded mortaliy. as In
history she actually was wounded Sc
verely, and, while .he soldiers az Frzn0s
are driving the English from the battle
ments OF Orleans. The Maid Is carried
bleeding and fatally wounded from the
battlefield BY her generals They bring
her 10 a spring tn the remote part OF
The nelc, and there, breathing a biesSl-r
upon France. upon her King whom her
courage has enrhrOEed. and upon the
green feds Of DOmremy. which she Is 70
see no more. she dies Her funeral cor-
tege, Ike Hamlets. is upon the shields
q her chieftains. Her body Is borne
from the scene of her triumphs amid the
strains of the magnificent funeral march
n Beethovsn's symphony. "E-cica-'
From this Il viii readily be seen that
the very nature OF the Stadium perform
ance calls for an equipment so huCe
made on such a large scale, and % De
acted BY artistic strokes OF such vfzor
and breadth. that a dramatic spectacle
or such a scale could not be done IN q
modern theateT.
To the Question-Ehy the character Of
Joan has never. up 70 the present time,
made really vivid dramatic appeal upon
the stage, Maud Adams gives the sim
plest OF answers Everybody who has
thus far attempted the task has been
content % present Joan cf Arc alone
instead o. putting before the public Joan
OF Arc set IN TIE explanatory and T.
Eliminating life of her time Joan o.
Arc" without the environment OF France
OF Joan OF Arcs time. Is Ike Hamlet
without DenmarS. To show the utter
helplessness Of France into which Joan
rode IN I429. explains Joan OF Arc. the
saviour OF her country A conprehen-
sive dramatic representation OF the weak
ling King Charles VII, psaic-strlckea,
surrounded By traitors, futile IN deed and
in thought. successfully only IN disor-
ganiziag his own forces. explains the IN
spired leadership OF Joan, and the ulirac-
ui0us power that made IL possible for her
10 turn retreating mob into q victorious
national army. The clear depletion by
dramatic scenes OF jeans wish. once her
work was over. % return 70 her shep-
herds flock az Domremy, brings out
Joan's humility as a saint and common
sensed simplicity as a woman
IN point OF thought and resources law
ished upon Il. and a complete reversal
of the usual dramatic way OF handling
the subject the Maude Adams perform
ance OF Joan OF Arc" in the Stadium
viii undoubtedly stand for many years
az the hlgh-water mark IN this country
for the spectaeulariy beautiful. the his
torically true and the dramatically vivid