Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-05

Sophie, his wife .......,-.,. Mrs. kr0hner
Rosa, their child ...........M Miss Rosa karp
DIR. Edelman ..................M Mr.. KrOhner
Zudek Bick ............. -, MI hemstoek
Chain, his brother ............ Mr.. Liansky
Max .'.'.'''.' '-rt' ,I,
Esterel NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. Miss b. Welsmah
Chaiele ................ Miss Annie Shain
Policeman ...'...'...'...'#' MT hioch9'ehi
Exaltinga melodrama to the lofty
plane of true tragedy, the Edwin A.
Relkin players last night staged the
second play of their repertoire at the
| Mason-a poignant story of a father
who returns from prison exile to find
too late the wife and child of whom
circumstances had bereft him. A sec
ond love affair with a physician who
has befriended her makes reconcilia-
tion with the husband difficult, and the
fact that his offense has been the kill
| ing of the wife's father in self-defense
| adds an insuperable bar to the situa-
| ton In the last act the baffied man
| ends his life, after revealing to his
daughter her parentage.
1t is a powerful drama, for whose
| literary lineage we must look farther
back even than the old Greek tragedies,
which it resembles in some measure.
1t is the spirit of an ancient race which
| cries for deliverance in the cumulative
rout and ruin of Herman, and the
drama is in many respects allegorical
of the struggle of that race for the hap
piness which too often in their heroic
history has seemed denied them.
Following the action by the clew of
| it's own eloquence and a limited knowl-
edge of German, the present reviewer
was struck by the close adherence of
| David Levensohn, in the leading role,
| to the tradition of the elder American
school of Booth and his contempora-
ries. Here was frank revival of that
virile and ingenious dramatic method
| which once made the American drama
| power to be reckoned with in the
| worlds art Particularly vivid was the
| portrayal of the scene in which the
returned father first suspects the iden
| tity of his daughter. In a manner rad
| ically different from the method of
| Warfield, Mr.. Levensohn Visualized
the same basic human emotion. The
words he spoke might be foreign to an
untutored ear, but the language was
| that of the heart, which is universal.
| Miss Rosa Karp assumed the role of
! the daughter with marked emotional
power.
The work of several supporting
players in comedy roles lent much
charm to an impersonation frequently
enlivened by musical and dancing
specialties. With the spontaneity
which was marked feature of both
/ players ana duulSllCt, lllc SGtIicS ill1LCo
from grave to gay, from the simply
tragic to the ludicrously simple. The
audience responded swiftly at each
transformation, apparently feeling no
difficulty in the transitions. An in
| teresting feature was the keen feeling
| of the gallery for the artistic propri-
cites. Once when irrepressible ap-
plause interrupted a scene of emo
tional power the warning hiss arose.
| 1t was the natural demand that the
play be allowed to take its course,
regardless of personal enthusiasm for
| individuals, md it was promptly
| needed.
The Hebrews of Los Angeles have
greeted the Relkin players with such
gratifying enthusiasm that a prolon-
cation of their stay through Thurs
| day and Friday is a probability To-
night the play will be "The Green
Woman"
Soon after the production of 1.-THE
Idols Eye" which will follow ''San
Toy at the Grand opera house, Ferris
Hartman and his company will revive
| woodland" This piece was one of
| the biggest productions ever made by
Henry w. Savage. For the local pro
duction the original costumes will be
shipped to Los Angeles from the Say
| age SIuulOS, WIllle llic pIOddCLlOli itGCiL
will be built direct from the Savage
models. This will be the first of a
series of late musical successes to
which Mr.. Hartman has just obtained
the rights. 1.-THE White Chrysanthe-
mum" will be among these.
| confirmed cynic would grow dim
pies if benevolently compelled to see
| the new bill at the Los Angeles this
| week. Any mere critic can find but two
| serious faults with it; there is scant
| chance for disparagement, and not the
| slightest opportunity for a nap. 1t is
! the most evenly balanced bill [ ever re-
member seeing in the local Sullivan
| & Considine house. There is no head
liner, but everybody fills in the chinks
right loyalty.
Max Duffek starts things right off.
Max is a musical contortionist who pre-
fers to exude arias and sonatas while
twisted into the shape of various fa-
miliar letters of the alphabet Finally
| he bends backward, in the form OF
| classic arch, 'his feet and head on the
| stage and a panied but resolute stage
hand standing firmly on the lower but
! ton of his vest. In the meantime Max
plays an inspiring tune.
Bradlee Martin has an inspiring
laugh which might be located some
where between a blat and cackle, and
| which adorns his impersonation of
doting but miserly father trying to
marry off his son with as little expense
as possible. The sons fiancee comes on
the scene to help raise the needed
| dowry for his father-in-law to be. She
succeeds after a series of boiSterously
| funny interviews with the old man, in
| which she makes him propose to her
and then releases him on the promise
! of a substantial sum to start the young
couple handsomely in life. The inter-
play of character is excellent and the
| acting rapid and spirited. But for the
absence of a program-the one triai1g
| defect in Manager Bovyer's capable
management-I should be glad to give
credit where credit is due.
Crimmins and Gore-a tall actress of
classic features and obvious talent and
4 a. short actor of diverting comedy
method-appear in Bowery restaurant
sketch. There is much rough and tum-
| bIe slang and several clever if hasty
transformations in character. The
woman member of the team concludes
| the act with q modern parody of An
tony's speech over the bier of Caesar.
Once more Shakespeare enters by the
back door and gets a hearty welcome
from the gallery.
| Then come the Five Lovelands in
| refined and artistic instrumental act
which reflects both good taste and
real. unpretentious musical merit. Sc
| leetions showing a wide catholicity of
| taste are played and the artists display