New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-04-06
Features of Two Perform
anCes at the hietropOli-
tan Opera House.
GATHERS CLEOPATRA
STRANGELY CHANGED
The Queen of Passion Becomes
a Flat and Angular
Vampire.

There were tao performances OF the
Russian Ballet az the Metropolitan
Opera House yesterday. az the first OF
which, in the afternoon. a work hith
erto unseen in New York was pre-
sented II was called cleopatra"
the story drawn from Theophile eau
tiers "Une Mutt de Cleopatra" the
costumes and scenery designed by
Bakst and the music a medley Of com
positions BY Arensky, Tomeief. Rims
ky-KorsakoT. Glinks and Glazounof.
Its companions were "Le Spectre de Ia
Rose" "Soleil dc Mutt and "Carns-
val" In the evening, when the audi
cnce was much larger and much more
brilliant in character +. falling within
the subscription for tho opera season.
the pieces were "L'Oisesu dc Feu,"
Les Sylphides" and "Scheherazade' -
all familiar from the season at the
Century Theatre in January.
From n choreogyaphic as well as
musical point Of view interest was cen
tired In the Russian pieces, Cleopatra.
L
and "Sheherazade," though IN the last
music-loyers were compelled TO deplore
the mesalliance between dance and
music wrought by the makers Of the
pantomime as they have been by the
choreographic settings Of Weber's In
vitation to the Dance and Schumann'
"Carnaval.' Believers IN programme
music arc hard put TO 1t 10 reconcile
the strains which Rimsky- korsakof IN
vented TO illustrate the ingenious dc
vice Of the Nizier's daughter TO keen
her bloody minded spouse interested
in her stories during a thousand and
one nights. 10 picture one OF the tales
of the Calendar Prince. the pretty 70
nance Of the Persian Prince and
Chinese Princess one Of the prettles.
of the composers conccitsl and the
story of Sindbad The Sailor and his
.hipv-reck. with the scenes of rIotous
lust and murder which the balletmas-
ter h,ted 20 il. Particularly out o.
word and key il the peaceful ending o.
Rimsky-K orsakof's music with the
act.o which strews the floor WIKI
corpses But the mind which oxer--
cises itself in curious speculatlo1s o.
this kind has no business st the
D.aghilef Ballet Russo. The proper
intellectual attitude 70 carry there is
that which children have at Christ
mas pantomime. that raised magma
ton" which Charles Lamb took win
him which transformed all the glisten-
ing substances o. the columns o.
Drury Lane into "giorlhed sugar
candy As FOR the best OF the pieces.
ike "Petrouchka" and "L'Oiseau de
Feu." their musical integument IS
chiefly admirable because Of its intl-
mate association with the action. De-
prived OF this union II would have
little charm or vitality.
There were many surprising things
in cleopatra" Those Of mature mind
among the spectators must have been
as much amused a. they we're amazed
10 see the hero OF the adventure which
Gautier has decked out with his finest
powers Of imaginative description shoot
his arrow with its amorous mes age IN
the very palace Of the Queen. and few
moments after he had been married 20
the daughter Of the high priest. Meia-
noun sent mis- shaft from the Nile, was
captured afterward in Cleopstra's bath.
INTO which he had penetrated by diving
through a subterranean canal. And II
was his daring act as well a his beauty
that kindled all the amorous fires in
the heart of Ptolemy's sister and wife,
mistress at that very moment OF An