The Washington herald., 1911-10-22

Washington has another premier to-
morrow night-one of which high things
are promised. The Trail Of the Lone
some Pine was so delightful as a book
that one cannot refrain from the hope
that its exquisite and elusive charm will
be preserved in the play to the full.
There is no cleverer dramatist in the
country than Eugene Walter, the author
OF Paid in Full and The Easiest
Way" and to him was assigned the task
OF dramatzing the John Fox novel.
task which must have acquired addi-
tional interest to him, by the way, from
the fact that his wife, Charlotte Walker
plays the title part
At the Belasco that solid and enduring
favortte among comic operas, The
Chocolate Soldier" will be seen again,
with the expectation of S r. o. audi
ences.
The Balkan Princess came and con-
quered; it proved a charming operetta
that captivated the town. The melodies,
the principals, the grace of the piece. all
leave lingering memories. The Balkan
Princess has no punch" nor any de-
cisive stimulus of enthusiasm. Its very
shyness and reticence constitute one OF
its chief charms
Pale" and 'lackluster'' are among
the adjectives applied 10 Nine. Simones
acting in The Thief by New York crit
les. The distinguished French actres:.
has failed to impress Gotham so far,
although Judgment is suspended until she
has been seen in other parts. She has
been found lacking in 'emotionalism,"
and she defends her technique in this
manner:
When I arrived here, they said of me
that l was a second Bernhard. l was
deeply touched by such praise, but really
l never deserved it. Indeed, l never
dreamed that any such comparison could
have been made. Sarah is an artistic
unique, and no one can ever hope to ap-
proach her, much less deserve compar-
ison with her.
4 should like to point out that the
modern school of dramatic art in France
tends above all TO present plays in con-
formity with the realities of life, and il
is the aim of the artistic to direct her eff
forts in a corresponding naturalistic way
The player therefore does not, should not
acCentuate or eXaggerate for mere eff
feet. Our art compels US to present
things to the best of our ability as they
are.
The action on the stage is conducted
as though by some chance unknown to
the persons of the drama the front wall
OF the room were removed and incidents
of their private life were suddenly dis
closed to strange witnesses with whose
presence they remain quite unconcerned
Thus, in the first act of The Thief.
when the detective makes his report the |
little woman who has committed the
theft hides her emotion and manifests
uncOncern, her one object being to hide
her guilt from those about her How. |
then, could she possibly in a natural /
manner disclose her agitation to the
public? 1t would degenerate into some |
thing like a game of hide and seek
In a word, the story OF the modern |
French acting is the raising of the cur !
tam on life. real life. as we live it to-
day. This school is more or less new to !
The United States.
The version of The Whirlwfnd,' in |
which 1 expect soon to appear, is entirely |
French in spirit. 1t is not an American |
version, for the words are translated di-
rect from the French. It is a play of .
more passion and action than The Thief,
and its French title, La Rafale,' better
indicates the idea of storm or squan than
does the name, The Whirlwind, under
which it has been produced.
Il am very grateful to NJ. Weber for
trying to explain my views. I am also
grateful to many of the American critics,
who. after the first American perform
anCe, wrote so appreciatively of what
they had seen" A.MJ