The Washington herald., 1914-01-11
Review of the Past Week
In New York T1eaterS

I with admittedly fatal effects and set up
as q perfectly valid defense that her
little 6iri had cold. Among Incidents
Of this remarkable trial. Rattray. seeing
that his client 10 bound to convict herself
by sf1ippancy and lack Of appreciation OF
her serious position. suddenly announces
that Leonora u innocent and that hi
committed the crime. This self-sacrihce
| u quickly ignored by the court as absurd
because at the time qf the murder the
captain was engaged Nm discovering the
south pole and could not possibly have
been in England
In spite Of the evidence and her own
admissions. Leonora Is promptly ac-
quilted Her charm and childish coquetry
have not only won the typical British
judge to the point Of his permitting her
to do all sorts Of absurd things, but she
also captivated the jury, the court Officers
and even the attorney general who ID
conducting the prosecution in a most de-
ferential and half-hearted way. She 4
even permitted to assist the jury in their
deliberations In the jury room. The
tacked-on fourth act simply shows
Leonora in different gown and with the
nursery Of her seven children as back
ground. AL that happens Is the per-
functory coming together Of her and
Rattray in an engagement to marry,
which was doomed from the start
In the acting Maude Adams uses the
same whimsical methods and quaint man.
nerisms that Joined to her great personal
magnetism give her the powerful grip
she has on the interest and affections of
her public. 1t Is far from a conventional
performance. but the character Is more
conventional, in the stage sense, than
either Peter Pan" or Lady Babbie." "
NJ l.. ~
but manly and dignified IL bearing and
speaks his English so 1t can be under
stood in New York. Mr.. Arthur Lewis
gave capital impersonation of the judge.
and Mr.. Morton Selten was excellent as
the official prosecutor.
IT is impossible not 70 revert to the
play itself and wonder just what its
author thought he was doing when he
wroe The Legend of Leonora." The
first act is good comedy and the last
Is too trifins for notice by itself or as
a part of the whole. We have LETT the
two acts-practically one--in the court
room. All that goes on there is the
veriest farce without object as satire,
unless we accept IL as some sort of an
illustration of the old. old theme OF the
influence of an attractive woman in turn
ing severe ofiicials into silly men. There
are laughs, OF course, but court pro-
ceedings have been often better used as
stage material both seriously and in fun.
AS humor the whole thing is far beneath
the Barrie abilities. II there was any
serious purpose. II is so befogged as to
be completely lost And to try to read
any symbolism or hidden meaning into
the play itself or into the character of
Leonora is funnier than the play itself
Any combination of Barrie. Adams, and
Frohman can draw audiences for little
while, but any one who expects to find
in THE Legend of Leonora" much be-
yond ordinary and mystifying farce viii
be sadly disappointed.
China Again.
''The Daughter Of Heaven" was the
last demonstration of the fact that
" hite-skinned audiences are not partial
to plays of China The heavy financial
loss involved in that undertaking, IL
might be supposed. would keep managers
from rushing in again on such an un-
promising field The play called "a
Thousand Years" is not SO faithfully
Chinese. some of the characters of West
ern pantomime being introduced to lend
diversity and fantasy. More than this.
the piece is. derived from the ancient
'Tourandot." q French creation, which
even the genius of Schiller could not In
his time. nor Reinhardt in ours, turn
into successful material for the acting
stage Whether Mr.. Percy Mackaye has
made good where these others have
failed is not tc be determined offhand.
but 1t seems extremely doubtful that
American audiences will take kindly
tc this rather obscure although ex-
tremely picturesque combination OF
orientalism, European pantomime AMI
modern verse.
The story is OF Tourandot. a princess
OF Pekin. who slaves OF the lovers She
does not want by the aid of riddles they
are unable to guess. To her fathers
court come the Scaramouche, Punchi-
nelli, Pantaloon and Harlequin OF PAN
tpmime. headed bv Capocomico. This
last catches the fancy of the Emperor
of Pekin, to the point that the ruler
changes places with the jester for a day.
Capocomico interferes with the affairs
Of the princess and her game Of riddles.
naliciously il would seem. but eventually
with the result of bringing her to the
arms of her secret lover, Calaf, who has
been her fathers enemy.
Mr.. Mackaye's lines are pleasant to
the ear. but his meanings in develop
ing the story are made hazy by the use
of Oriental symbols. The confusion As
yet further heightened by the introduc-
tion of scenic and lighting effects after
the prescriptions of Reinhardt and Cor
don Craig. There was plenty OF Oriental
gorgeousness, bur there were other
scenes. interesting in their novelty, par
ticularly in lighting and In the use OF
silhouetted figures. that completely mys-