El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-05-20

Jew YORK. May 2O--Shakspere
N pays That is one OF the most
surprising discoveries Of the
present remarkable theatrical season.
Just how much precautionary enthu-
siasm has to do with il is hard to say,
but managers have had to confess
their old idea that high class produc-
ton of the bards works was a kind
OF charity is all wrong-this year at
least.
learn that the wealthy patrons Of
art and the theater-includine Will
lam X. Vanderbilt, Clarence II. Mackay
and Otto II. Kahn-wi1 get back all
the $4,000 they subscribed to guar
antee Sir Herbert Tree against loss in
his fine productions at the New Am
sterdam.
The drawing power Of the Tree per-
formances has been SO great, both for
the pit and the galleries, that It is
practically certain not cent Of the
guarantee fund will have to be used.
This showing is credit to New
Nork's good sense and good taste.
Sir Herberts production OF THE
Merchant Of Venice" Monday night was
fully up to his previous offerings. He
was himself an unsoftened, tattered
guson was a bewitchinE Portia- The
scenery was gorgeous and satisfying.
The cast, while not beyond unfavor-
able comment in parts, provided fair
support for the stars Of the piece.
"AElnT1ine and Selysette."
The Washington Square Players
brought their splendid season to a close
with a fine production Of the difficult
piece Of Maurice Maeterlinck, "Agla-
Vaine and Selysette."
This play. written 20 years ago, is a
mystic, poetical adaptation OF the tri-
angular situation. IT is a stately, eX-
quisite poem, and the Players retained
il as such to a remarkable and credit
able degree.
Margaret Mower was lovely as the
child wife, Selysette, who is married to
Meleandre. Meleandre also loves Agla-
vaine. and with a greater love than
that he has for little Selysetta.
II love you" says Aglavaine to the
wife. I love Meleandre. Meleandre
loves me. He loves you, too; you love
us both and yet we cannot live hap
PLY because the hour has not yet come
when human beings may be thus
united"
Both Seek to BE Sacrificed.
So both women seek to be the sacri-
flee and TO withdraw, leaving the field
10 the other. 1t is the child wife, how
ever, who rises highest in her love and
she throws herself from the crumbling
castle.
The piece has been cut in way to
improve the action. Still, II is a bit
difficult to acCustom ourselves to its
poetic monotone. It is like a chiseled |
bronze, perfect and growing on US as
we study 1t closely
The settings were remarkably good. !
especially the rich green scene in the |
park and the moonlit tower which the
poor little wife selects for her act OF
renunciation. The production is a fine
feather in the cap Of Philip Moeller,
Nnn sta 90 a
Next season the Washington Square
Players will try even more ambitious
plans than those they have successfully 4
carried out this winter.
4 Tale of StOvepipes and Grisettes.
When two architects produce a Latin |
quarter musical comedy-as George S. !
Chappeu and Kenneth NJ. Murchison |
have done in Come TO Bohemia'-there |
are complications.
Everything in the Partisan artists |
studio has to be just so down TO /
Erisettes and stove pipes. But, then, |
memories aren't always in agreement /
as TO what is just so.
Tho great argument was over the |
stove pipe. Mr. Murchison insisted !
there was but one length to the arm /
Of the stove in their old Quatz Arts 7
studio. Mr.. Chappeu remembered three.
The argument over this point lasted (
several weeks. Finally Mr.. Murchison !
won by letting Mr.. Chappel do another
great violence TO memory. He put
cuckoo clock in the studio. The cuckoo
clock was needed by the plot
Exact studio Reproduction.
Except for these tWo-and a canary
bird-the studio scene is an exact re-
production Of the Chappell-Murchison
studio in Paris many years ago.
Then came the question of the
chorus as a fresh complication. No or
binary. Broadway beauties would do
They must look like real grisettes and
model types. So an artist Of the two /
authors acquaintance. was called upon
to ransack the studios Of New York
city and collect the correct types. With
the chorus assembled came another en-
ormOus task-tO teach thes girls, most
of whom had never been on a stage
before, the A. B. c. Of the chorus girls
arts.
II took five weeks Of rehearsals and
six dancing masters to teach the real
models how to get on and off n stage
yithout tripping over themselves and ]