New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-02-01

- Nal. Inn
+ irspc,or an Police - Douglas pasrr.an
LADY, DOROTHY Nugrnf Grace Carlyle
Trrs, ............ Ruua Hodges
GALLOWAY ............ Horton Cooper
+ d. Gofffriei schiller .. Joseph Aiciman
Mrs Schiller ............. Marie RcithArdt
. luciuch Schiller ........ .....-. Paul non'ci
4 OTTO Schiller ............-.. Garrih Hughes
Margaret Schiller .--........... Elsie ie.snso.
/ f.,ia Michel .......... Eileen Van Kienc
I fiorrarr .............. " a. Nurwat
E iss's.' a''g Il ! h' R:5l
Hall Game stayed neutral for prol-
orue and two acts at the New Amster-
dam Theatre last night, but there never
was a moment when he didn't favor dra
matte preparedness. margaret Schii-
Ter" is a clumsily contrived and pom
derous meoldrama. with so many creaky
/ hinges that the entire annual output OF
f the Standard Oil Company would be in
sufficient 20 quiet them. Furthermore,
i, probably contains more words than
/ the fve-foot shelf. In short, 1t is a bad
, play.
such popularity as it may have on
| this side Of the water Will be due
solely to Elsie Ferguson. Her new
vehicle. obviously. was selected on the
theory that IL was time for her to do
something big" Her performance last
night was al times magnificent but II
was no finer an achievement than her
work in "Outcast' The Davies play,
In fact. is the better acting medium.
/. affords opportunity for varied per
/ Torrance, one ranging from the NghI-
est of moods TO the darkest. Margaret
Schiller on the other hand, is pltcned
in a single key, and the title role re-
ouires nothing more than a good emo
tional actress. Il scarcely needed Elsie
Ferguson, who rs TOO accomplished an
artist TO be restricted to q single moou
for an entire evening.
Hall Game begins his play with
prologue that serves the single pur-
pose Of allowing his audience 10 90 us
rretling while nothing Of Importance ls
occurring on the stage. Its dramatic
mission is 20 speculate on the posi-
bility of a declaration of war and hnal-
~ 10 declare that the war has come
but the information was supernuous
m those of US who have been watching
the newspapers carefully during the
last eighteen months.
In his first act Game takes US INTO
the London home of the Schlllers' ana
when the curtain dropped IT was neces-
earv n send out for a doctor TO set the
?
her brother. Otto. hate the Prime MIN
ister of England with fierce nate. IL
is bv the Prime Minister'S o.ders that
tho activities Of Germans IN England
have been restricted. and II was by ms
orders that their father had gone TO
nrison and had died But from Swlt-
zerland comes Freda Michel, engaged as
-overness in the family of the Prime
Minister Frcda IS a friend oil 1he
Schillers, and drops into their nome on
her way to the Ministers. since lNeE
have never seen Freda, Margaret Pre-
pares TO take her place. Motive; IKE
venge. ..-o. coin
cidence. as well as other eXpeclents.
For the Commissioner Of Police hao
CHANGED 10 drop into the Schiller nome
i'm the first act. and he also chances 70
he I'm the Prime Minister'S room When
Neroaret presents herself as Freda
Michel one sees that he has recog,
rizod her and knows that he Will zen
the Minister. The place 20 tell NM
Mainly. was somewhere on stage 10 uD
the author reproduces the conversation
i'm all its tediousncss, the Whlle 'he
play stands still .ho
s1avcr Of her father, Margaret under
,oee during the second act Wnat Is
6robablv the most rapid dramatic con
,.a~sion on record. Two things lnhu-
once her-she witnesses Sir ROBERT
blindness 10 his daughter and she nearS
b,,, nav tribute 10 the heroic Germans
Conseolentlv she decides at once that
ho is fine man after all, and becomes
oouallv radical on the other side or the
Tberr have appeared in this country
.;..,,ros of Won Tirpitz embracing ms
granddaughter, but they have not con
,a,tod America TO the wisdom OF Ger
roanv,s submarine policy. Inc halseI'
aieo has declared that his near
Iloods for Belgium, but the preponi,,
derance of American sentiment IS sun
~, Roloiuno's side. Yet Margaret con
,orsion is so complete that she saSI'
Gees her life a month later 70 save '"''
of IN Minister. ~ 49,,
6evelopment Of a German plot 10 as
sassinate Sir Robert, that the aulhoi
deserts his neutrality. Dr. Gol1lr nee.
Schiller. presented as man OF lh1eIiI-
cence. announces that tne aSS@
ton is planned IN order TO shooh Ing
land into relinquishlng her ueteI"'i''@
t;on 10 starve Germany. We were
asked. IN all SCI l'c'itN-'f
hat q man who had been for thirty
Years. professor in a great UNIVERSITY
actually believed that assassina'ioA
yeas the means to the desired end
These incidents furnish suhciehS
nroofs of Mr.. Games awkwardness ana
he ponderousness of his mechanism
The result. Of course, is that the play
GOOD situations, which are few, are IN
Convincing because of the methods
used 10 reach them. Beneath his melo-
drama Mr.. Game conceal Is good ioea
and big theme the fact that Ger
mans and English are pretty much
alike war or no war-but IT is so com
pleteiy swathed as to be almost IN
recognizable.
The cast does everything in its power,
Norman Trevor giving a particularly
oven performance in the role OF SIR
Robert. Gareth Hughes is satisfactory
ms Margaret's brother, but scarcely
lives up 10 the promise contained IN
his work in "Moloch.' Good per
formances are given by Paul Doucet,
Joseph Adelman and Marie Reichardt.
After all. however, II is Elsie tergu-
son who must save Margaret Schiller
assuming that it is worth saving. In
the debate on this question there is
certain TO be at least one vote cast for