The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-04-06
ADJUSTMENTS

sea 10 rage than one TO be associated WIN n
human observation-disclosures little woman
1t is all in her slight form More tnan u
that. there is the greater power Wnlcn u
reaches the intellect. and the soul
Those who saw the opening Of Mime.
Nazimova's engagement with Ibsen's "A
Dolls House" at tbe salt Lake theatre 4
last evening witnessed one of the greatest
theatrical performances Of Generaton-
This play Of Ibsen portrays first |
charming ldyl Then danger begins 10 I
hover over the innocents. lowering closer Z
and closer 10 the care-free WOman-chllu- .
menaCing her more and more until size ]
becomes affrighted. swOOping down at last /
only 10 demonstrate the cOwardice OF the I
supposedly stronger man. and 10 turn Jle (
cnlld-Woman into q woman. powerful anu I
dominating sudden and wonderful met /
amOrphOsiS.
The first impression Of this Russian act /
ress is Of wonder at her tremendous, vital I
activity. She bursts on the stage Ike a 1
girl of Is years. with almost the same I
interest and joys. Her husband objects to {
macaroOns because they may spoil her /
teeth. and she smuggles them in Ike a
girl at a boarding school. Every part OF
her 1.-THE body is in motion each minute
She filings her wraps about she ruSnes
hither and thither, she talks in jerks, she
tlutteTS like q numming bird except thdt
she does not stay in one place so long as
does one Of these feathered bits when IN
vestgating a flower.
She is angular. Her figure, clad with
out regard to mode or effect, Is IN
straight lines Her every movement Is
angular. almost awkward-and Yet one
does not feel that she is exactly uugrac3-
full. SO expressive is everything she does.
She embraces an old friend gushingly.
She gets down on the floor and plays
bear and hide-and-Seek with her children,
hugging and kissing them. and then lying
/ prone and kicking UP her heels with mere
| JOY. Child, Child" You say it invoi-
! unfairly
She rushes to her husband. kisses. fou-
| dies him, leaps into his lap, strokes MS
| forehead. looks into his eyes, throws her
/ self back in his arms and turns her gaze
/ up toward his Little witch she Is, full
| of witchery, of a charm that cannot fail
/ to captivate. And yet there is nothing
| Of the sensUality Of q siren. The caTesses
1 are all as innocent as those Of "a child
/ Of three years, bubbling over with affcc-
| ton.
! Danger begins to cast its shadows. She
/ fIutters like an affrighted canary. She
I turns hither and thither. The first show
I of depth I'm ncr character is when she
/ realizes that fate Is closing in on her.
/ Here comes the contrast between the
| modern and the old school acting. Nazl-
1 nova does not rave and shrek and tear
! her hair She turns with d suppressed
| sob and Clings to her dear woman friend.
| Her weeping is not wild. One feels that
| the emotion is too deep for that. The only
| sound is that Of a few sObs which can
| not be held within.
| Again her determination on suicide is
/ conveyed by mere suggestion. In an IN
deScTibable way, the SHADOW turks over
has been conveyed long before she wraps
a black shawl about her and starts 10
seek death in the dark waters It is in
the turn Of her eyebrows, her intonauon-
her gesture
This leads up to her great scene, the
climax which brought stOllC men out OF
their seats in breathless interest
| She is dragged back before she can
leave the room on her errand Of suicide.
In the costume of the masquerade bal!
from which she mas just returned
night Of merriment planned before death
she stands. innocent, OcOnfront hep
. | husband. At the outset OF the play Nazl-
nova does not appear beauutul. Her
face has a lure, intensified by heF man
| ner but there is nothing savohlng or
| mere prettiness Now she stands IN q
brilliant Spanish costume, shOrt-skirte1
and gay. In face. figure. garb and man
ner she is a beautiful young girl
/ For q time she turns in g1rllSh snuddeT-
ing from the impending shock. Then ner
husband begins TO strip his soul until IL
stands in stark hideOusness, and she be
! gins to see him as a coward and seiusn
poltroon
Not word does she utter.
! As she leans back against the piano
3 looking him silently in the eye. one can
/ see her love die and there seems 10 he
an actual physical death. Her skin turns
to an ashy pallOr. tt is done BEFORE the
/ eyes. Death seems TO be laying hold upon
her. The muscles are rigid
B Recovering. she retireS to throw OF her
, I dolls dress and return in sOberer garo
In the minute she seems to nave aged
, | years. Just how she accomplishes this
, Is one of the secrets of genius. for mo
81 mere makeup could accomplish this re-
suit.
} In the final scene. where she spurus her
husband and seeks to show him what Die
is. her voice rose but little above ordinary
d pitch. Yet, what q wealth or emotion.
7 Nazinova has reached the acme Of true
art She does not act She Is.
There is perhaps enc 1ault winch might
hav- Z ~
/ and the fact that English is q. new Ian
70 EuaSe for her Is a good excuse for that
| While she speaks with almost no accen'
| beyond an occasional burr. her enuncia
, ton when she talks rapidly is so lndis-
: tinCt that at times il is difficult to follow
- her. Otherwise il is hard to find q flaw
, The company is excellent throughout
Brandon lyman. the leading man. is
s splendid actor. and played up to the sta
| lust far enough The others were all good
Just one word is 10 Ibsens play-iu -
: Dolls House he has grudginEly granted
, some virtues to mankind and WomanElnG
perhaps mainly to make their weaznesSes
- stand out in greater relief, but he has
q struck at least one radically false note
> He has maintained sympathy Throughout
o. for a woman. has gwen ner strength az q
, crisis land women usually are strong q
. / critical timesl, and then at the last mo
uent he makes her desert along with The
s husband. her children. VINO are absolute
- " blsmeless and whom she protests she
- loves. Writing for the world Ibse1 couie
P not have cast greater reflection upoy
his own race The blacklist woman ir
S darkest Africa would take her children
with her into the jungle if she deserted
70 her lord and master. An American wo
. man would not have left her Offspring
. behind 70 a despised husband Does IbseI
b mean to imply that Norwegian women
who could rise 10 such heights Of coUr
e age I'm dealing with a husband. would b'
2 such towards when their children wer.
I, conCerned2 A female animal would not
I. The women Of Norway would not. Wha
I woman can defend Ibsen on this2
"A Dolls House IS the bin until We'd
nesday evening. 'fTedda Gabler'' will b'
/ presented Thursday evening. and Com
, tessa Coouette' the rest Of the week al
. with the same star
. The engagement of Arthur Cunningham
. in 'The Kerry Cow" Is proving a grea
10 success al the Colonial theatre this week
Another large audience was IN attendance
last evening and Mr. Cunningham's song
, ! won hearty applause. There viii be mat
/. inees on Wednesday and Saturday Tn,
. following week Mr.. Cunningham viii pre-
, I sent shaun Rhue.'
There is "a fine bill on at the Orpheun
. ! for conference people. also everybody else