The Washington herald., 1914-01-18
|L0U-TELEEGEN:
AN APPRECIATION
Washington Saw Genius of Trans
cendent Quality at Belasco The
alter Last Week in Gui-
mera Tragedy.

mera Tragedy.
BY JULIA CHANDLER MANI,
Before the coming of Angel Guimera's
romantic tragedy of the Catalonia Noun
tains to the Belasco Theater last week,
local devotees of the theater knew the
work of Miss Dorothy Donnelly SO thor
oughly that an exhibition of tense emo
tional quality and technical skill was con-
fidently expected of her in the title role
of Maria Rosa" A fewer number un-
derstood that. aside from Miss Donnelly's
art, they were to patronize genius of
transcendent quality in theA person of
Mr.. Lou-Tellegan.
At this metropolitan premiere of the
tense story Of Spanish peasant life last
Monday night, there was ample demon
stration on the part Of the audience that
the former leading man Of Nine. Sarah
Bernhard had not been forgotten during
the three years since he gas seen here
with her in repertoire o. plays given
In the French
That is one of the splendid things
about the American people" Mr.. Lou
Tellegan told me when / mentioned the
reception accorded him here at his first
entrance last Monday evening. they are
very quick to recognize effort, and they
do not forget"
His choice of the word effort where
genius would have been proper was but
typical Of the modesty concerning himself
which he exhibited in exquisite degree
throughout the most interesting after
noon 1 have spent in the companionship
Of a great artist.
I'm Paris. in Berlin. in all the European
centers OF art il is different. An artist is
absent a few years and he Is forgotten"
He expressed further surprise in the
remembrance of him that IL was quite
natural to expect that only the Divine
Sarah be thought Of in connection with
the productions Of which she was the
star.
Camille / greatly feared restlessness
on the part OF the audience when should
hold the stage alone, as / - through
fully one-half OF an act, you will remem-
ber." Mr. Lou-Tellegen confided. for you
see. i spoke a language which but a small
percentage Of the average audience I'M
derstood. OF course. when Bernhardt
was on the stage the attention given
was comprehensive For myself l did
not expect 1t. but I did get it,
And Mr.. Lou-Tellegen did not realize
at all that he was paying his own art a
tribute than which there could be none
higher
While INDUCING in comparisons We
touched a vital question: that OF the
actor versus his Euro
pean brother.
Every American artist follows his
own ideal without adherence to any
school, He gets his training usually
through a stock company. and enters his
profession with small technical knowl-
edge. Perhaps he is more spontaneous
but he Is seldom so finished an artist as
the European artist
Judging by the remarkable skill in the
art Of shading. the fine discernment. and
the exquisite taste displayed last week
by Mr.. Lou-Tellegen in his creation of
Ramon in the Guimera piece, one
could do no less than agree with him, and
naturally / wanted to know at once just
what constituted the training of a dra-
matte artist in France-the country 10
which he went from the native Holland
when he decided upon a stage career.
THE French managers will not accept
an actor or an actress without training"
he informed me. First. the young man
who feels impelled to follow a stage
career must have a year under some
great artist-a year OF private study.
Then his naree may be presented for en-
trance to the Conservatory. and he is Civ
en- a chance to prove what he can do be-
fore a board of censors. II he gives evil
dence of the divine fire OF genius he is
accepted. otherwise he is refused. and
very few are accepted.
The year that my application was pre-
scented there were more than $50 men.
and many more women. OF the men there
were but seven admitted. 1 was the sec
ond to win acceptance. A man must he
between the ages of eighteen and TWEEN
ty-four to be considered. a woman may
not enter the Conservatory if she is more
than twenty-three.
And even then" said Mr.. Lou-Tel-
legen, the work has just begun. for
the Conservatory course is three years.
During this time performances are given
every six months. when a first and second
prize Of merit * awarded. The winner
OF the first prize may leave the training
and Immediately play leads in one OF
the two producing theaters Of Paris"
And the training" questioned, who
conducts that?
The greatest artists in Paris-Mmc.
Bernhardt and the others Each gives
An hour a day TO the Conservatory.
which, by the way. is a state institution"
.Rut even so. the real thing must be
here" he said. touching his heart lightly.
"A thing must first be in one before it
can be brought out. nest pas? There
must be heart and intellect, imagina-
ton. instructive poetry: greatness OF ma
ture-else one cannot give out anything
of consequence to the public
sat in silence for the space of little
while wondering how excellent a thing
must be such a state institution for the
training of dramatic genius as Mr.. Lou
TeIIegen had described to me. and won
dering why this newer country of ours
cannot he brought to a realization of the
Importance OF a training school CORE
spending to the Conservatory of Paris.
when it suddenly occurred to me to be
astonished that so great an artist as the
one who sat talking to me Of his life
work with the modesty OF a little child
should have escaped having his name in
electric lights over some enterprising
New York producers theater.
What does it mean-your being with
Miss DonneIly in Maria Rosa" 1 asked
him suddenly.
"I ill tell you" he answered me with
promptness. giving me that
frank smile which had so frequently
chased the dreams from his eyes during
our conversation.
1T Is very simple. Mime. Bernhardt Is
producing two plays this season In which
the leading male roles are middle-ased
men. They were too old for me. so I
thought I would come to America and
rent a theater and head my own company
H.