The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-01-08

trace val A new equipment of scenery has been 1 provided for the four picturesque acts under the management of the LaShell Virginian company. Birmingham will have production that is bound to please. Kyrle Bellew-Question of PrOnuncia-
 Have you ever succeeded in deciding what the proper pronunciation of this puzzling name is only to have some high browed friend inform you that you were tqute wrong. Then you wagered you were right, searched for some one who really did know, and at last ended up by being more perplcxed than ever?
 This fall, when MT. Bellew was rehears- ing his company for Rallies in which he will appear at the Jefferson, dispute over his name arose in one of the exclu- sive clubs in New York city, where he had been invited to take supper after his performance Bets were made, and be- fore the evening was over considerably more than s40O0 had been wagered.
 Some called him 'Curlie Bel-loo," with the accent decidently on the last syllable. while others urged that there should be more finesse in the pronunciationeand de-
  accent on the first syllable Still another faction insisted that 1t was Carl Bel Ilue." There were three other variations each with its supporters. And there was one man who said it was "Kurl Bell-you.s with a slight accent on the "bell," but he was so uncertain about 1t that his fellow members refused to take his bet.
 When MT. Bellew arrived at the supper they were giving him. he was told of the Dol xxl<t, Ip,,
 That one timid man." said MT Bellew, lis only one who was correct. It's 'Kur Bel-you, with a bit of a fall in tone with the last syllable. It's marvel to me that there was as many as one that was really right I've been called so many names in the past ten years, that I sometimes have to think myself what 1t is."
 Oddly the confusion is in part due to Mr. Bellew himself As he says, 1T can blame my parents for the surname but I, myself must take the responsibility for the Christian"
 The distinguished actor was originally christened Harold Dominicl Bellew''; but when MT. Bellew received his first position on the stage in a small stock company in Australia, the name looked too long, and he accommodated the print CTS by substituting "Kyrle,' a name his
 
 in Irish history.
 Viola Allen in "The White Sister"
 "The White Sister," which comes to the Shubert theatre on Monday for one performance, Is not primarily a play of religious nature, for the element of reli- gion Is but subsidiary to the story. Miss Aliens newest drama might well be called "a play of love and duty" The lio,. ,.1xr onfI fo oir ,ot nf rn- mantle love story is undoubtedly the key note of '"The White Sisters" remarkable Success. The religion of the play is but the religion of an Italian woman who turns to her church for comfort after she has been robbed of the man to whom she is betrothed. The keenest interest of the play is centered in the love of these beings-the nun and the soldier-whose ways have led them far apart, both in actual distance and in beliefs.
 No actress Is better fitted, perhaps, to play delicate love scenes than Viola AL len and "rhe White Sister, affords ample opportunity for her to exploit her tal- ents in an emotional direction. Miss AL len Is an ideal Juliet, so to speak, woman whose every motion even in the middle of a highly exciting scene is ex- actly right and perfect without that un- forgiveable fault of making the action seem studied-the unpardonable offense of the mediocre player. Love is the mos tive of the story, and it is the motive as well of the sub-plot with which the com plications are brought into 1.-The White Sister, and only secondary to the love of the nun and the soldier is the uncom- mon tale of love between this same sol dier and the Countess Chiaramonte. James O'Neill of Monte Cristo' fame is featured with Miss Allen in the play.
 There are still few choice seats sell ing.
 Madame Nazimova
 Madame Nazimova will offer next l Wednesday and Thursday at the Shubert theatre two plays that will show the breadth and delicacy of her art as would no two others in her English repertoire. l These will be Ibsen's "A Dolls House" l and Roberto Braccos comedy "Comtesse l Coquette." Both were presented for long runs during her first two seasons on | Broadway, one a serious play of great dramatic possibilities, the other a dainty | play of wit and brightness. They offer a comparison of the most pronounced sort, and 1t is likely that Sns-y playgoers will want to see this fascinating Russian | artiste in both.
 | As Nora in "A Dolls House." Nazimo- | va is said to look the child-wife to per | lection, and to give her renditions of most trying and absorbing role all the art for which.she is noted. As the be- | witching Nina in the Bracco comedy, she Is at the other extreme, for Nazimova's comedy Is surprise to those who think ! of her only as identified with the Ibsen roles. It is daring thing for an actress 10 submit herself to a new public, as In the present instance, in two such widely different plays, and only Duse and Beya- i hardt have done 1t heretofore. Nazin1o- l vas performances have more interest ,F oft oto ho ! cause she plays in English and Is sur xpupdad with the best company the