The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-02-14
The Jefferson.
Wright Loriner In. "The Shepherd
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The appearance of Wright Lorimer in William A. Brady's production of ''The Shepherd King" at the Jefferson theatre Monday and Tuesday nights with Tues day matinee will be hailed with delight by local theatre-goersI The advance sale for all three performances has been heavy The Atlanta Journal says of the production:
 It is a rare and interesting thing to find a man who is playwright, producer, ac- tor and business man all in one. Only now and then is the man who writes a play able to act it and the men most gifted in making a stage beautiful are least gifted in making it profitable. Wright Lorimer, who opened week s engagement at the Grand Monday night in "The Shepherd King is one of these four-cornered footlight rarities for he has written, staged and acted this play and has crowned it with a wonderful material success.
 "The Shepherd King is a succession of impressive scenes linked together with the golden story of David--his dreamy boy hood days on the hills near Bethlehem, his wondrous music in the camp of King Saul, his brave battle with the enemies of his people and the glory of his king ship. It might be supposed that the dram atization of Bible story would be either dull or irreverent "The Shepherd King is neither. MT. Lorimer has struck deep down beneath the conventional garbs and manners of Old Testament characters and ha ifa The speeches he has put into the mouths of his characters are not so many har- angues in blank verse; they are natural speeches vibrant with soul and mind, oftentimes with pathos humor And so he makes an audience feel the deep interest and worth and color of life as 1t was lived 4O0O years ago far away in the purple wales of Judea.
 As the curtain rises and falls you see one after another of the great figures that held your childhood imagination. There is David himself and there is Goliath the terrible giant, whom you always connected somehow with the one living at the top of Jacks bean stalk, and there is Jona- than and King Saul and our old, en- chanted friend, the witch of Endor Sure- ly anybody would walk miles through rainy weather to see just how the witch of Endor looks.
 Each one of these scenes is invested with a positive luxuriance of color and design. Every shade of changing sun set and landscape view, the simmer of running streams and the rich foliage and low stopping olive trees, the depths of dark forests and the glory of mountain peaks-all these are produced as by a wiz ards touch in The Shepherd King" The company is large one and well selected. MT Lorimer throws feeling and intelli- gence into his lines and, though his great spectacle may not be in the real sense a drama, it is undoubtedly dramatic.
 The Grand was packed Monday evening. The audience was made doubly. interest ing by the presence in boxes of the off, cers of the Seventeenth infantry, U. S. A., at Fort McPherson. and their wives. The theatre was hung with an abundance of flags. The orchestra played as an ov- erture the national hymn, while the en- tire house stood until the last note had sounded '"The Shepherd King bids fair to have a great weeks run.
 Owing to the magnitude of the produc- tion, Manager Douglas announces that the curtain will go up at S:15 at night and 2:15 at the matinee.