Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-12-11

be-that Is the question WnicH Ut
the moment Is seriously agitating
the mind of George Alexander
The point he is cndeavorlnS to resolve
is whether lie Will put into immediate
effect his long contemplated pro1ec! 'r
standing for parliament. or leave the
matter over for a while. we are 10
have a general election next January
and Alexander has received an invita-
tion to contest constituency for whicn
his triumphant return Is practically
foregone conclusion. The chief diHl-
Guilty Is. how Is he TO reconcile his du-
ties as a legislator with his interests
as an actor manager Parliament does
mos. of It's work In the evening wn,eh'
of course. is the very time that 7opu-
lar actor cannot spare from the theater
How to sit upon both side Of the fence
Is. therefore, the problem with which
Alexander Is now confronted.
For some little time back he has seri-
ously contemplated retirement hom
management; indeed all his arrange
ments are perfected for handing over
the control of the ST. james W "
trustworthy successor. Alexander IL
lust 81 and he has got out of the thea-
ter probably as much as he can ever
hope to do Parliament would open up
to him a new career. although how far
he is likely to make success oil IL Is
quite another question. AS a MEMBER
of the London county council he mas
done much sound and solid, II scarcely
brilliant, work; that he is of those VINO
nv sheer force of eloquence or splendid
rhetoric can move listeners TO dls-
nlay of deep emotion Is still TO be
nroyed NY own opinion is that ms
ambition is to go out of MANAGEMENT
upon the top of big success ana tnis
unfortunately he has failed TO OBTAIN
with either of his two last productions
"People talk" he said to me the other
day. las If Pinero's 'Mld-ChanneI nad
been an absolute failure 1t ran for
5s nights and played to good, If not DIS
money" This Is all very well, Dut
a Pinero piece which only boasts
career OF two months cannot surelv DC
accounted a success. AS for carton
"Lorrimer Sabiston, Dramatist' Alex
ander's latest production. 1t mas proven
an absolute fasco. The public has turn
that leaves no loophole for doubt. Inc
niecc consequently. is to be Withdrawn
after n brief existence of fortnight
and will be replaced next week by a re-
yival of oscar Wilde's 15-year-oiu
comedy. 'The Importance Oh 1e'"s
Ernest"
George Edwardes Is back from wen
ma whittier he went to judge personal
OH
Count of Luxembourg" Discussing the
piece with me he gave vent to an
unusual outburst of enthusiasm re-
garding its many attractions. Accoru-
ing to him THE Merry widow is not
i'm the same class with the new work
which possesses half a dozen melodies
destined to become the talk of the
town to every single one TO pe louho
in The Merry Widow
"Thc first act" said Edwardes, "simp-
ly abounds In catchy tunes and when
Iehar has rewritten, as he has prom
ised to do, several of the weaker num-
bers In the last act, there VIII not pc
a hole to pick in the entire score,
THE Dollar Princess" Edwardes hrmly
believes. will serve his purpose at
Dalys until the end of next year. and
as he has induced Lehar to give him
an extension of the original four
months limit for the London produc-
ton of 1.-THE Count of Luxembourg.
he has now definitely settled that 1t
shall follow in immediate succession
at Dalys. Among other things Ed
wardes discovered in VIENNA was that
"Our Miss Gibbs" had hit the playgoing
public over there, and that In 1t Fred
Wright, Jr., younger brother of Hunt
lev Wright. had achieved an emphatic
success.
Another wanderer in foreign parts
tust back in town, is Robert Court
nelGgc who is fast taking his position
as one of the most successful producers
Of musical comedy in the West End.
He has been at the business for nearly
n quarter of a century although to
look at him one might imagine that,
In that case, he must have started d.
recting rehcnrsals from his cradle. He
has struck oil with 1.-THE Arcadians.' a
piece that is TO be seen for the first
time in America at Philadelphia on
Dec. q. Just to give himself a rest
he set off some months ago to make
n tour OF the world. but only managed
to get as far as Japan which in reality
was his chief goal. For, as II happens,
his next piece-of which as usual he
IS himself part authorize follow THE
Arcacians" at the Shaftcsbury In
year or two's time. is to be entirely
Japanese. Courtneidge's passion for
accuracy moved him to make tho
journey to the land of apple blossoms
and chrysnnthemums In In order to
study the ways and methods of tho
natives and to secu-o the right local
color. He had intended returning via
America, but time unfortunately failed
him for the purpose.
Trees beethoven" at His Majesty's
is the only production of the week.
on a first night Tree is never seen
to the best advantage, for the good
reason that his knowledge OF the
authors words is, as rule, rather
limited. and. consequently. one feels
that he is stlll cropping after his Of
fects on this occasion. however. he
worked off much OF his nervousness on
a dress rehearsal to which the critics
were invited. The programme at His
Majestys also includes "A Russian
Tragedy" a lurid little piece which
gives Mrs Patrick Campbell oppor-
tunIty for rather a fine bit of vivid
acting, Tho two plays can only hold
tboir pIace I'm the bill for q littIe over