The Washington herald., 1914-02-08
BIZ JaAIEs 5. ,lErcALFE.

much meat packed away In the nve ne"
playlets at the Princess. At least two Of
them might be without great addition
elaborated into three-act plays with more
real dramatic material than we nno
sometimes in ambitious dramas amoi'
tlously done. 1t is no injustiee to the
Princess to tell some Of the plots TO the
out-of-town public as by the time they
reach the road in vaudeville performances
they will nave lost the element OF sur
prise.
Two of the pieces are, in way. hhers-
in, added to a bill which Is intended 70
make its strongest appeal with tne o,ner
three The first OF the former raises
the curtain, and is called The Nesiecteo
Lady" 1t is a farcical tribe Hariemised
from the French by Mr.. Roi Cooper
Megrue.
The second OF the filters is sandwiched
between two of the thriliers as sort OF
contrast and relief for the audience from
too much intensity.
The Thriilers.
The first OF the thriliers by Mt. lamp,
bell MacCuIloch Is second on tne oiii. an
is called THE Hard Man. Inc sseue
Is in the tent of the general commanding
the British forces investing Khartoum.
The neyspaper correspondents have peen
summoned to meet the general to receive
some important information When ne
arrives he tells them that he has be-
come aware some educated soldier was
aiding the enemy In their defense. fe
has solved the mystery, and at the mo-
,nent an officer and soldiers bring in a
prisoner in Arab garb and swarthy OF
face. The general exacts from the CORE
spondents. that on account of possible
international complications they will not
use as news the incidents that are about
to occur He then orders a subaltern to
pull of the prisoners clothing; as his
tunic falls to his waist, 1t Is seen that
the dark hue extends only to the should
, ers, and that below that the skin is that
OF a white man.
Then the general addresses him. and
says that he knows his identity, that
he has been a British officer, and Is us
ing the knowledge he gained in that ca
pacity for the enemy's pay and against
his own countrymen- Pointing to re-
volver on the table. he tells the prisoner
that a British officer knows the only
way to expiate his disgrace The prisoner
a shot is heard, and the sentry reports
that he has killed himself.
The general, "the hard man." sinks into
a chair, overcome by his emotions. One
of the correspondents asks II, in the
same confidence as before, he has any
objection to saying who the prisoner was.
As the curtain drops. the general
answers: He was my son."
Vitriol.
The next piece comes direct from the
Grand Guignol in Paris, which has in
way served as a model for the Princess
1t is from the pen of Maurice Level and
is called 1.-THE Kiss in the Dark" The
curtain reveals a doctor and nurse in
attendance on a patient propped up in
chair with his head bandaged and a black
band over his eyes. 1t appears that a
girl with whom he has quarreled has
thrown vitriol over his face, destroying
his sight and frightfuIly disfguring him.
1t Is also shown that she is even then on
trial for the crime, but that the victim
has refused to appear against her, even
to furnish the affidavit that would surely
convict her. The news of her acquittal
comes over the telephone, and shortly
arrives the girls lawyer to thank her
victim for the msgnanimity which has
enabled him to save his client. The in
valid sends the others from the room and
then asks as a return favor from the
lawyer that he will induce the girl to
call for a final interview with the man
she has destroyed. She consents and the
curtain drops for a moment to indicate
the elapsing time before she comes at
that re shall be left alone with her in
the house for the interview.
As the curtain rises again she enters
the darkened room and falls on her knees
to ask forgiveness. He bids her rise, and
with his voice unchanged, assures her
he knows that her deed was done in a
moment of passion and that he has sent
for her to assure her of this and to say
farewell. He knows that she can never
Cos 1t fr, Nc Ee
her to turn on the light to behold the
reason He notes the tone of repulsion
In her voice as she sees his hideous face
and begs that in spite Of it she VIII give
him one last kiss
, She struggles to overcome her feeling
and draws near to grant his request. As
she takes his hand he grips her and
irags her to him. Then he tells her that
she is to suffer the same torture she has
mhicted-that he has aided in the acquit-
al only to administer the revenge with
his own hands. She screams, but he tells
ler 1t is useless as there Is no one in the
house. Holding her firmly with one arm
and hand, with the other he produces a
rial from his dressing gown pocket and
removes the stopper with his teeth.
Then bending her head back he tells her
20 take her last look at the light as she
will never see il again. Then with her
shrieking and he cursing her, he de-
iberately pours the fluid first into one
.ye, then into the other, and then over
ser face.
This scene was admirably acted by Mr..
Henry Messenger and Miss May Buckley.
Il was prolonged to the point where it
seemed to the audience that IL 1t lasted
an instant longer they would get up and
shrek with the tortured girl. As the
curtain goes down and the house lights
20 up, the women in the audience are
imp and the men turn and laugh in
iickly way in one another's faces as a
sort OF relief from the nervous tension
hey have just experienced. 1t Is a su-
preme accomplishment in the art of
aorrifying.
BY Way of Relief.
It would never do to dismiss an au-
Hence In that frame of mind so the last
piece is in lighter vein. It was written
~ Mr.. Lawrence Rising and its title is
1T Can Be Done"
1t will be seen that here is plenty OF
variety for theate-goers, whose nerves
ire in good condition. The pieces are
we'll acted, and Mr.. Blinn demonstrates
rot only his ability as a versatile actor, |
,ut also as a very competent producer
II plays. He has also surrounded him.
,elf with an unusually good company of /,
lctors. which promises to become very !
rood, indeed, with further experience in !
lcting together.
The Princess by its present accom- |
,lishment has thoroughly justified its |
light to live, and this time without re-
81 ,ra iy,,od ty,,o - Io;no