Payette enterprise. (Payette, Canyon Co., Idaho) 1909-1935, 1913-05-29
CSenior Class
Will Glue Play

atre. 1t ds The Rivals by RlcI
ard Brinsley Sheridan and is wei
worth the attention of all Payett
theatre goers. The following crit
cism has been taken from the Sheri
dan volume in English men of Let
ters."
The Rivals of the title by means o
the most simple yet amusing of mys
tificadons, are one person. Th'
gallant ung lover, who is littl'
more { the conventional type O
that well worn character, but a man
ly and lively one, has introduced him
self to the romantic heroine in the
character of Ensign Beverly, poor
young subaltern, instead of his own
much more eligible personality as
the heir of Sir Anthony Absolute, a
baronet with four thousand a year
and has gained the heart of the
sentimental Lydia, who prefers love
in a cottage to the finest settle
ments, and looks forward to an elope-
ment and the ,osG of great part of
her fortune with delight, when his
plans are suddenly confounded by
the arrival of his father on the
scene, bent on marrying him forth
with in his own character to the
same Lady. Thus he is at the same
time the romantic and adored Bev-
erly and the detested Captain Alb
solute in her eyes, and how to re-
concile her to marrying peaceably
and with the approval Of all her be-
longing, instead of clandestinely and
with all the eclat of secret rum
\ ming away, is the problem. This, how
Fever, is solved precipitately by the
expedient of a duel with the third
rival, Bob Acres, which shows the
fair Lydia that the safety of her
Beverly, even if accompanied by
the congratulations of friends and
humdrum marriage, is the one thing
to be desired. Thus the whole ac-
ton of piece turns upon mystifi-
,ation, which affords some delight
fully comic scenes, but few of those
occasions of suspense and uncertain
ty will give interest to the drama.
This we find in the brisk and de-
lightful movement of the piece, in
the broad but most amusing sketch
es of character, and the uniailing
wit and sparkle of the dialogue. In
fact, we believe that many an audi
ence has enjoyed the play, and, what
is more wonderful, many reader
laughed over it in private, without
any clear realization of the story
at all, so completely do Sir Anthony's
fit of temper, and Mrs. Malaprop's
fine language and stately presence,
and the swagger of Bob Acres, oc-
cupy and amuse us.
Even Falkland, the jealous and
doubling, who invents a new misery
for himself at every word, and finds
an occasion for wretchedness even
in the smile of his mistress, which
was always either too cool or too
warm for him, is so laughable in
his starts aside at every new sug-
gestion of ejalous fancy that we
forgive him not only a great deal of
fine language, but the still greater
drawback of having nothing to do
with the action of the piece at all.
Mrs. Malaprop's ingenious "derange-
ment of epitaphs" is her chief distinc-
ton to the popular critic; and ey-
en- through such a great competitor
as Dogberry has occupied. the ground
befof her those delightful absurdit-
les hI yer been surpassed. But |
justice has hardly been done to the
individual character of this admira-
BILE if broad sketch of parsonage
quite familiar in such scenes as
that which Bath presented century
ago, the plausible, well-bred woman,
Eyith a great deal of vanity and no
Email share of good nature, whose
Inversion of phrases is quite repre-
sentative of the blurred realization
she has of surrounding circumstances,
and who is quite SO well qualified to |
enact the character of Della as her
niece would be. Mrs. Malaprop has
none of the harshness of Mrs Hard |
castle in "She Stoops to Conquer"
and we take 1t. unkind of Captain |
Absolute to call her "a weather beat
en-" The complacent nod Of her head,
the smirk on her face, her delightful
and confidence in
her parts of speech" have nothing
repulsive In them. No doubt she
imposed upon Bob Acres, and could |
Catherin Morland and Mrs. allen
have seen her face and heard her
talk. these ladies would we feel sure,
have been awed by her presence. And
she is not unkind to Lydia, though
the mink deserves 1t and has no de-
sire to appropriate her fortune. She