Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-11-28

A portion of the stormy life of
Rachel, the great French tragedienne
of the early part of the nineteenth
century. was lived over again on the
stage of the Shubert Theatre Wednes-
day night by Nine. Bertha kalich,
the Jewish actress.
| The words lived over" instead of
portrayed" are used, for in effect the
magnificent work of Nine Kalich and
the splendid supporting company
with which Fred c. Whitney has in
vested the four-act romantic drama,
Rachel" made the production seem
so real that 1t was hard to believe
you were merely watching a company
of actors. You lived again in the
merry and troublesome days of Paris
| in the late 1830s and early 1S40s, the
| time of the bloodless revolution when
France again became a republic.
| The play "Rachel" is taken from
actual events In the life of the French
actress and shows periods of her life
| from the time she was the merry
madcap of gr street singer in
Lyons in 1897 to the period in Paris
where she had both royalty and the
populace of the gay French capital
at her feet and paying her homage.
Historically and scenically the pro-
duction is perfect, and the period
gives opportunity for splendid effects
in the way of costumes, which is
fully taken advantage of. Conten-
poraries of Rachel at the time were
Alfred DeMusset, the poet: Frederic
Chopin, the musician, and George
Sands, the famous french women
writer. All are reincarnated in the
play and look wonderfully like the
pictures of those old-time celebrities.
While primarily Rachel is intend
ed as a starring vehicle for Nine. Ka-
Itch and gives great promise of being
the best one she has ever had, the
play also gives opportunity to num-
Der of others, and as Mr.. Whitney
has provided a splendid cast there Is
every indication for a long and sue
cessful career for Rachel"
As the care-free and wild child of
the streets of Lyons in the first act
she was bew.tchingly charming, while
as the play progressed and she be-
came more and more powerful she be-
came the dominating parsonage on
the stage that Rachel was in the real
life when her star was in the ascend
ency in Paris.
Nine. Kalich's piece of recitative
work near the close of the first act
when she tells of her dream of be-
coming a great actress was a really
wonderful piece of work, as was her
dramatic action at the climax Of the
third act, when, to save the man she
loves, she harangues the Paris mob
from the porch of her home and by
singing the "Marseillaise" to them
changes their hatred to love.
So strongly did this appeal to the
audience that Nine. Kalich, in adj
dition to responding to numerous cur
a. .Iy
speech to the audience, but she was
SO overcome with the hearty recep-
ton that she could only murmur 81
cannot tell you how much l thank
YOU"
Grand as was the work of Nine.
Kalich, the work of the supporting
company was equally good, and 1t Is
hard to pick the one that added the
most lustre to a remarkable produc-
ton. George Hassell, as Saint Au-
laire, the strolling actor, who becomes
the tutor, friend and manager of
Rachel was splendid, and gained in
slant favor with the audience.
Sydney Booth, as Maurice Pelletier.
in reality son of Napoleon Bona
parte, and the lover of Rachel, was
highly pleasing, both in his scenes
where he made love to the passionate
but cratic and jealous Rachel and in
the stronger scenes with her where
she first scorns him for his refusal to
tell her the truth about a letter she
has discovered in his possess on, and
then repents and saves him from the
mob that would destroy him as
royalist at the time of the bloodless
revolution.
Another strong role was that of
Felix, father of Rachel, played by
Walter Armin, Bennett Southland as
Fritz, the country pumpkin lover of
Rachel in her days as a street sing
er, was splendid, and so was Edward
Fosberg as Cassagnac, a Journalist
and rival of Pelletier for the affec-
lions of Rachel George Graham as
De Musset, the poet, was living pic
true of that great genius. Albert
Latscha as Frederic Chopin was
capable, especially in the second
act, where he demonstrated that
music was the one art that appealed
most strongly to the female sex by
causing all the women characters to
forsake other things and gather
round the piano as he played Chopin
sonata in a manner that might have
been worthy of the composer himself
The work of the female characters,
outside of Nine. Kalich, is compare
lively light. Miss Feri<e Boros was
tender and loving as the mother of
Rachel. while Miss Ina Brooks was
M I than capable as the sharp
4 | led, Jealous and aspiring sister