The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-09-03
Sophocles Play Fails to Make Hit
It Was Popular About 450 B. c.
'Oedipus Too Revolving for Modern Audience-.A Gen
tleman of Lesure" Proves to Be an Interest
ing Raffles Play

of the queen. Those two weeks at
Edwin Booth IS illfated theater
(January 30, 1882, 10 February ] ].
to be eXact) are further notable
for having given Georgia Cayvan
the first opportunity to impress
her rich talent upon public that
honored her for many years there
after Indeed, Jocasta was her
third role as professional actress,
and in it she made as immediate
and positive sensation as Mrs.
Patrick Campbell the night she
burst forth in The Second Mrs.
Tanqueray and Richard Mans
Before il Miss Cayvan had acted
in lust one play. "Hazel Kirk. -
by the late father of Percy Mack
ave, the poet of today-first in the
ingenue part of it and subsequent
ly the title role.
Inadequate to Role.
But we are considering "Oedi
pus the King in August, 1911.
The performance by Mr.. kellard
and his company is highly cred
liable, If ii were given between
two spruce trees in the back yard
Of university the "intellectuals y
would assure US it was great art.
In an ordinary theater, acting de-
pends simply on its merits. With
out going into detail, Mr.. Ecl-
perienced aud intelligent reading
of the chief role-a performance
that would be admirable if the part
were King Claudius or Macbeth.
He reads we'll, but he has not the
voice for so heroic and tremen
dous an undertaking.
Oedipus demands an actor Of the
physique and lung power of Mou
net-Sully, or NovelG, or Salviui,
Robert Mantell is the only Amer
lean tragedian endowed with these
requirements-and we sincerely
hope he will never make good his
threat and appear as Oedipus, Lii
han kingsbury, who used to pitch
her voice against his, is the 10.
casta Of the Kellard company, and
she booms along right Justify. If
what she presents as performance
were merely reading of the trag-
edy there would be much to saw
in praise of it; but the aspect Of
her Jocasta is a Now England
"schoolmar m in fury. OF the
rest Of the cast little need be said.
Like the picked up' production,
scenery and costumes. they are as
good as could be expected; and
Eric Blind, recently with the Soth-
ern-Marlowe company, is excellent
as Green
The passages for the chorus have
been given to group of senators
in yeager suits and smudgy wool
en- tunics and would be just as
tiresome if delivered by ripper elo,
cutionists. Aubrey Boucicault, re-
appearing after nearly two years in
retirement, delivers the speech de-
scriptlve of the suicide of Jocasta
and the agony of Oedipus, with in
vigorating fire; and Agnes Miller
is TO be mentioned as a silent but
graceful, picturesque and interest
ing debutante of the occasion, be-
ing the third child and only daugh-
ter of Henry Miller and his wife,
who. as Bijou Heron, was q child
actress in Augustin Days COM
pany and. at the time, much talked
about because Of her own histrion-
ic promise and the fact of being
daughter of Mathilda Heron,
the first American Camille.
Greeks Liked It.
1t is understood that when the
"Oedipus' of Sophocles was first
revealed in Athens one sunny af-
ternoon about $50 p. c., the Alan
Dales and William Winters of the
day wrote scathingly of it; but,
in defiance of the critics, the pub
lie flocked to it, In A. D. 1911
the situation seems reversed
While H. B. Warmers press
agent is keeping interest in "Alias
Jimmy Valentine alive by sup
plying the public with all it does
or doesn t want to know about his
stars part in liberating innocent
prisoners. the Influence of this and
other plays glorifying thieves
spreads and spreads. Lately it has
reached the shores of vaudeville
and is flooding them. Two new
sketches rise on the surface of
that tide-and in single week.
Harry Leighton made his reputa-
tion as Shakespearean actor, but
he has cast aside his lagos, Mer-
cutios, Macduffs and the rest to
measure himself with Mr.. Warner.
He wrote Getaway Quick Du-
gam for himself; II seems super
fluous to name the suggcster of the
title. The thief in this case is not
related closely. after all, to Jimmy
Valentine, but rather to Arsene
Lupin. He has the Frenchman S
habit of disgIises. The comedy
begins with conversation between
detective and a policeman about
several consequential jewel rob-
berries. all of which wero "pulled