The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-01-06
MAUDE ADAMS PLAYS
INBARRIE BURLESQUE
"Thc Legend Of Leonora'' at the
Empire Pleases Large
Audience.
4 DELIGHTFUL TRAVESTY
Actress Enhancing in What
the Author Calls a 'Very
Woman"
THE Legend I l<onor~"--At the
Empire Theatre,

Maudc Adams returned TO her loyal pub.
i!c a, the Empire Theatre last night and
Incidentally brought with her the fourth
new work by J. NJ. Barrie. II one includes
the unfortunate exit about the censor,
that has been acted here this winter.
Miss Adams always pays her admirers
the compliment of acting in plays worthy
Of her place in the American theatre.
They may not always he suited to her tall
euts or the taste of her public, but they
are out OF the ordinary rut of the thea
tres commonplace. II is sufficient evil
dence of her ambitions to keep above the
usual grade OF drama that she has de-
voted so much of her time to the play
wright who provided her with the work in
which she was seen last night. Miss
Adams acted here for the first time The
Legend of Leonora." The genius of It's
author has assurediy gone through strange
evolutions since this same actress played
IN The Little Minister
Even the transition through Peter
Pan" to The Legend Of Leonora" was
scarcely sufficient to prepare the audi
ence fop the lengths to which the play
wright carries his fancy in this latest
work. W. =. Gilbert never allowed him
self more complete emancipation from all
human possibility than Sir James NJ.
Barrie has In the play called In London
last September "The Adored One"
The heroine of this four act extrava-
ganza is an epitome of the eternal femi.
nine whom the author has named very
woman. She epitonizes the sex To her
creator as much as the Gioconda OF
o. Vincl represented to Waiter pater all
the traits OF womanknd. In the delight
full first act, which was Barrie OF the
purest quality, she was supposed to be
seven women invited 10 meet a man at
dinner. She was the only woman guest,
and. taking her for the FIRST nc set out
10 discover II she were the suffrasette.
the very woman" the woman with too
great a sense Of humor, or she with none
the mere mother, n clinging woman. or
a celebrated murderess. All the types
OF the world were repres ,nted in this
one and not in separate members Of the
sex as he had supposed 1t was "a IA
nous sailor Just back fypm Patagonia
who was thus making her acquaintance,
falling rapidly in love with her and des-
tined to be at the end Of the play the
second husband OF this compendium OF
Ill the true feminine traits in the sex.
The Eternal Feminine.
For II is as a type of the infallible and
triumphant wonanhood ruling tn. world
hat the dramatist has posed his heroine
She ~ about 10 so 20 the Old Bailey prison
o be tried for murder, since she pushed a
elbow passenger out the door of the com
partment because he would insist on keep
ing window open. Because Millo was
rather delicate child--this heroine was
the widowed mother of seven--ahd be-
cause she had "a sniffy little cold" and he
would not allow the window to be- closed
he Just had to be pushed out to his death
The adored Leonord tells this in the court
scene that occupies the second and third
lcts in spite of the efforts OF the judges,
he lawyers and the whole court to pre-
vent her. But Leonord, knitting by the
'ide or the jury box. speaks with the
-Nmbolc certainty of her sex when she
sees nothing wrong in having murdered a
man because he might have caused som.
evil to one of her seven.
II WAS not until after she had talked
babies and gardening with the jury made
complete victims OF the old Judge and
the solicitor and set them all TO scheming
20 Set her free. that the defendant went
on the witness stand and told confide ntly
and almost proudly just how she had done
y. After the jury had sent Gus for her
70 assist at its deliberations u verdict OF
not guilty was brought IL, and tn. adorcd
very woman" goes free. In a brief last
set she ia seen in the nursery OF her
brood, trying "A rocking horse to see that
i VIII support their weights. Her sailor
lover, who has been lawyer In the court
for her, adds his weight AS test, and
after he has succeeded in persuadng her
that sufficient respect has been shown
10 her first husband. the affection of the
lew lover is rewarded.