Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-10-03
ADJUSTMENTS
Belasco.

BRO, make happiness Tor every one VINO
sees this play at the Belasco Theater.
and the odd thing about 1t is that after
the children have wandered into all the
fantastic realms of the Land of Memory,
the Kingdom of the Past and the King
dom of the Future, they go home only
to find that their own little bird, their
homely little pet. is nothing more nor
less than the one which they had been
seeking all the time.
The Blue Bird is classic Of the mod
ern stage. Maurice Maeterlinck has
drains tized allegorical idea with a
| appreciation of both fairies and children
and yet with 1t all it is. neither a child 8
tale nor fairy story. The symbolism In
the Blue Bird is so different" that the
play would run along almost automatical-
ly. The idea carries the story. and there
is but little chance for dramatic presenta-
| ton. 1t would seem almost that Maeter-
| linck has produced an actor-prOof classic
| When one hears the story of the blue
Bird" if one loves children and all the
beauty and inexpressible sweetness which
| Is gathered around the simplest story Of
any child's life. one will Immediately
stage. This is bare and crude presen-
tation of what Maurice Maeterlinck did
when he thought Of the Blue Bird" He
| has done more than merely write play,
and has used in 1t elements of mystery
and has woven into it the fanciful colors
| that run through a child's mind, and he
| has made the whole thing move onward
toward the end Of a rainbow; and the
best part of 1t is that In this story the
| rainbow really has an end.
1T is Christmas eve, and Mytyl and
Tyltyl. the children who make search.
| are in bed. 1t is a poor little cottage,
! through the windows of which these little
children can see the lights of the Christ
mas tree of the rich house across the
road Mummy Tyl has just said. a
prayer for her babes. and then leaves
them alone so the pair can kick OF their
bed clothes and feast their eyes on the
only Christmas that they will know, that
which is seen from their own window and
| which is to them nothing more nor less
than a great heart longing for the lega-
cy of happiness which belongs to children
the world over.
And right here is the dainty touch
which starts off the search. Mytyl and
Tyltyl grow suddenly happy over the
sight of the rich children's presents. and
fairy who is wandering that way In
the search for the Blue Bird of happi-
ness has seen no such hearts free from
jealousy in all the world. Therefore,
the Fairy Berylune chooses them be-
cause of their bright hearts to ind this
wonderful bird.
The fairy gives the children a mar
velous cap. which works an enchantment
then and there. for the Souls Of the
Bread. baking in the oven walk out of
the stove and dance: and Hours. clad in
white, come from the big clock in the
corner When the milk pitcher crashes
Fire becomes alive, and the children
know it as a real person; and in this
fashion the enchanted cap shows them
the Soul of Sugar and the Soul of Water.
to human beings. The little boy never
knows until now that his dog has been
his silent worshiper, nor does the little
girl understand until she has worn the
hot t., Co.
Then, in the midst of these revelations.
the crash Of lamp leaves the cottage in
absolute darkness. Then comes Light,
and the children know her Immediately
for one of their dearest friends.
Mytyl and Tyltyl remembered that they
had been happy. so they seek for the Blue
Bird in the land of memory. The dead
reside there, although the children. found
that they We're merely asleep. Mytyl and
Tyltyl found Granny Tyl and Gaffy Tyl
and they also found their five little broth
ers and sisters who were dead. They
found them because they lived in their
memories, and all they had to do to find
them was to think of them, and when
they did think of them 1t appeared almost
that they had found the Blue Bird. for
they were SO happy when they were all
together. but the bird in Granny's cage
was found to be black one after all,
and the children had to leave the dear
people of this land Of memory.
Then the search takes. them into the
Kingdom of the Past. where they find
that the best way to think of those who
have died is that they haye never died at
all. And from the Kingdom Of the Past
they go into the Kingdom of the Future.
This is truly wonderful and beautiful
scene. 1t is the place where the souls of
children wait to be born. They show the
blessings that they are going to have on
earth, and they show the fun and some OF
them crowd forward to show the inven-
tons which their minds will produce and
which will make the world a richer place.
In and out among them runs old Father
Time. The children crowd around him.
clamoring to be born, and are jealous OF
those to whom the old man beckons first.
And there is one who shrinks from his
call.
"Ah. know who you are" says Father
Time, you are one of the worlds heroes,
one of its martyrs, and you know what
suffering is waiting for you"
AS beautiful as is the idea of this scene
the picture which has been built by the
masters of stagecraft is fully equal to
the atmosphere is the story. 1t is a tri-
umph of art and Is undoubtedly one OF the
most marvellous scenes ever shown on
any stage.
The children do not find the Blue Bird
there so they GO into the Land OF HAP
piness and into the Land of Night. and
they do not find the Blue Bird. But they
have marvellous adventures. And SO they
arrive at home and find that their own
little bird. which they are about to send
to sick child. has suddenly become blue.
perfectly blue.
The cast is made up Of the following:
Ethel Brandon. Charles Hampden. Bur-
ford Hampden. Clarbel Campbell, Alice
Butler. John Sutherland, Maurice Hisik,
w. H. Denny. CecQ Yapp. Gwendolyn
Valentine. Merle Madden. George Syl-
vester. Helen Lackaye. Dore Davidson,
Bessie Bishop, George May Fursman,
Irene Marcellus. William H Davis, Harte
Campbell, Ruth Boyce, Dorothy Davis,
Harriet Sterling. Bertha Dom, Margaret
Fairleigh and Dorothy Wolfe
I. -
Columbia.
Poor Alma! She may have been naughty
in New York. but she lost all of that be-
fore she came to Washington. The pretty
French milliner in Alma, Where Do You
Lve?" presented at the Columbia Thea
ter last night, is one of the daintiest and
incest ladies ever put into a musical farce
born of French idea. Truly Shattuck is
the principal. She is Alma, whose ad-
dress the men seem to be seeking Her