The Washington herald., 1914-02-08

OPERA And FARCE
DOMINATE week
Wide Range Of Amusements
: Should Satisfy Even the
Most faded Appetite.
By JULIA CHANDLER NAME.

BY JULIA CHANDLER NAME.
\ Music is the order Of the week Musics
grand opera, the latter coming at tn
tale end of the week In mighty sting.
hQuantity.
Z The fact that the Nations Capital hal
/. heretofore supported the highest art II
music for only two or three short pc
triods during each dramatic season, and
Ethat grand opera has no home OF its owl
: Elm Washington, has raised a hue and CRY
FLOR years, attracting q deal of criticism
sto our apparent lack Of artistic appre-
Eciation. and now comes further justifica'
gtion of this criticism in the announce
E.,nent-of Mr.. T Arthur Smith that the
fFriday afternoon presentation of PUG
scinfs Madame Butterfly" by the Phila-
cdelphia-Ch Chicago Grand Opera Company
Represents the one and only opportunity
bof its kind which will be extended US
Ithis entire season-an announcement
(which has already brought to my ears
many expressions Of regret
4 Every lover Of good music admits with
out hesitation that our lack of q season
Eof grand opera every year, season OF at
rleast a months salamity. but II a fn-
etile and silly thing to wall over a condi-
ftion when effective measures for its pre-
lyention are within reach. For example
Kit Is but reasonable to presume that a
Ebig demonstration of appreciation OF the
Eopportunity afforded US Friday after
fnoon to hear such artists as Mime. Louise
FEdvina, the English prima donna; Anna
| dec Bassi, the Italian tenor; Francesca
Frederici the italian barytone. and Miss
Margaret Reyes. the American contralto
| who has achieved such an artistic triumph.
would stimulate Mr.. Smith to arrange for
the performance Of another opera by an
equally capable cast before the end OF
the season
/ In any event it behooves us to grasp
the present opportunity with enthusiasm
Following the grand opera engagement
"a close second in the matter of local In
+terest this week comes 1.-THE Madcap
Duchess to the Columbia Theater, with
hAnn Swinburne in the title role
:, One is always sure when attending
musical play to which the name of Vic
stor Herbert is attached that the return |
for the money invested will be something |
livery much worth while, for the genial. |
buoyant, jovial Irish-American composer |
has the peculiar gift of infusing each |
new achievement with a freshness OF
theme and painstaking seriousness which /
rs an assurance of musicianly score.
THE Madcap Duchess is translation
to the stage of a novel by Justin Huntley
Mccarthy, with lyrics by David Stevens,
bringing to Washington this week
little stage lady who Is getting to be as
popular as the Hood River apples which
Igrow near her home in Portland. Greg,
where just four years ago Miss Swim
.burne was a church singer with neither
thought nor intention Of a stage career.
She did want to study music abroad.
however and when her father, Judge
Ditchburne, of Portland, gave his con-
sent. she set forth with her mother for
Germany. They stopped in New York.
where a friend gave musicale for Ann.
and was so charmed by the rich shades
of expression in her voice that she would
not be content until the Oregon girl
had sung for a manager.
Joe Weber, who was just then hunting
pressed that he told Miss Swinburne
that she just simply had to put on that
study in Germany, whereupon she in
sisted that she didn't know a thing about
the stage about acting. Mr.. Weber
replied that she didn't have to with her
voice so it was settled that she was to
play the leading role in ''The Climax"
and she thus became thS star of the
Boston company. singing her way into
the hearts of all who heard her in the
tenth little Locke drama.
But Miss Swinburne did not relinquish
her intention Of studying abroad. and
when her engagement in THE Climax"
was at an end she went to Germany as {
she had originally started out to do, I,
where, for the sake of experience, she
became member of a provincial opera
company. studying all the while. It was L
here that Reginald de Koven heard her 6
and induced her to sing AnabeIle in the I
New York revival of Robin Hood" from !
which engagement Klaw & Erlanger won +,
her away to sing in THE Count of Lux 7
embourg" After a season she ran away 7
again to study, this time in Paris, where '
she was last summer when Mr.. H. II. r
Frazee engaged her for the title role of
1.-THE Madcap Duchess" in which she =
won distinct personal triumph during
the engagement of the Herbert operetta {
at the Globe Theater, New York, and n
since the piece began its tour Of the I
larger cities.
Messrs- Shubert have announced "Oh,
Say to tenant the Belasco for a weeks n
engagement in this city. and each time L
the announcement has been withdrawn U
and the musical farce has been kept at the a
Casino Theater, New York. This week i
We are really to get ii, only under the Y
new title of THE Wedding Night"
In its original form ''Oh, Say" was $
French farce without music. 1t was o
adapted for the English stage. also sans 9
melody, and was designated by an Amer
lean critic who saw ii in London as "a X
hopeless. hackneyed specimen of farce a
comedy Il
The piece was given its musical ~embel- a
lshment here by Jerome d. Kern: sumpA v
tuous comic opera settings were supplied n
by the Messrs. Shubeft: startling eos
tunes designed by Melville Ellis; a score "
or so of clever funmakers. singers, and y
dancers engaged, and loi the farce SOM p
into the sauciest, brightest p
OF fun. frolic, and friyolity pl
Of the New York season, keeping the q
Casino audiences in cachinnating fits >
night after night IC
THE Wedding Night comes to the Be- d
lasco this week with cast of principals n
whose genius for fun making would be In
sufficient to carry half dozen shows, W
Taylor Holmes, who, is one ?;
comedian who knows his comedy and N
where to apply il, his work being clever "
and clean at all times: Walter Jones, b
whose comedy experience dates back to us
1872 Cthe show of that name, not the h
I'm