The Washington herald., 1917-10-23
First Night at Theaters

capers have gotten more attention
than any half dozen actors of the day.
but there Is something new in the
touch of half-seriousness she intro
duces in the song. Remember Me
When I'm Gone"
The World Dancers appear In a very
notable act, showing the evolution OF
the dance from the caveman's bar
barous steps through the sensuous
threnodies Of Egypt and the wonderful
dances of classic Greece down to the
present syncopated steps. Pearl Regay
was the bright particular star Of the
production.
Fabian, one of the foremost Ameri-
can pianists, distinguished himself in
classical selections from Chopin, Liszt
and Rubinstein. "Heartsease," q
charming little comedy, In which Miss
Percy Haswell Is featured, is full of
whimsical lines and Celtic blarney.
Moore and White. in an act marked
by irresponsible burlesque and laugh
provoking eccentric dance steps.
proved themselves the best comedians
seen here for several moons. AS a
pair of quite hopeless nirts. Lowell
Drew and Vesta Wallace decidedly
made good. The Street Urchin does
some really wonderful violin playing.
and ''In the Land of Fawns," pre-
sented by w. H. Adonis, is quite a
novelty. The Hearst-Pathe News Pic
torial concludes the program.
Polps-aA Royal Divorce"
"a Royal Divorce" presenting
Eugenie Blair. was the offering at
Polls Theater last night, and a fair
sized audience was present when the
curtain arose on the representation
OF THE Eagle of Austerlitz," at the
moment Of his triumph. Apprecia-
tion was not lacking, for the audi
ence showed their approval through
out the play as the principle brought
out the dramatic moments in the life
of the man who was soon to fan
from the height of power onto the
desolate rock of st. Helena.
| Albert Phillips, as Napoleon. rem
dered as fair portrayal of the
character Of THE Man of Destiny"
as could be expected, and when the
difficulty Of giving those intimate
touches to a man who was a COM
posite of all that is invincible, is
understood. 1t is doubtful whether
Characterization could have been i'm
proved.
Eugenie Blair won to the hearts of
| her audience by the whole hearted
manner with which she threw her
self into the part. and the dramatic
features were given just the desired
emphasis by this popular leading
woman, to bring out the true char
acter Of she who is loved by France,
and all the world for her devotion
to the man who threw her aside as
his fingers clutched at the mastery
of ,the world. Florence Hope, as
Stephanie de Beauharnais, and ]. A.
Osborne. as General Augereau, furn-
ished the few bright spots woven
through the play.
1 George H. Timmons, as Grimaud
gave a faithful rendition Of the antics
of wine-bibber, much to the delight
of the audience.
The first act was laid In a salon
in the palace at Fontainebleau where
Napoleon reaches the decision to
divorce Josephine. and the latter part
of this act shows the Empress re-
ceiving the ultimatum from the EN-
peror. Miss Blair shows true dra-
matte ability in the farewell scene,
and her swoon was very close to per-
| fection.
| Inc sSCOIlu ACT SHOWS meeting
between Marie Louise, Napoleon s
second wife. whom he took to secure
the dynasty he had founded, and the
former Empress of the French. The
third depicts a garden of the Palace
and the CONSERVATION with which
Marie Louise receives the news of
the fall OF Moscow. In this act
Master Richard Timmons, as THE
Little King OF Rome" wins to the
hearts of the feminine portion of the
audience.
THE Road to Waterloo" is the title
| of the fourth act, and opens in an
| Inn, where the Empress Josephine
meets Napoleon on the last lap of
his journey, when deserted by all, he
again desires the love of the woman
who was his Star of Fortune" This
act takes precedence over all others
in its dramatic possibilities, and in
this act Mr.. Phillips did his most ef-
| fective work. The fifth and last act
shows the Corsican alone on the rock
of st. Helena dreaming of the world
he had almost conquered, and Of her
whom he had disowned