The Washington times., 1917-03-04
BEERBOHM TREE
FIRST WAS CLERK
Noted English Actor an Employe
in Fathers Office at
Seventeen.

SlT AiCC -
known to American plsygoers mostly
by reputation. Previous to his ap-
pearance in New York city last
spring in Shapespeare's Henry
Will" which he will present at the
National Theater this week, he had
made two previous visits, but these
were over twenty years ago and
since that time a new generation OF
playgoers has come into the theater.
Accordingly some details of the ca
reer of the man who now stands at
the head of the English Theater may
be of interest.
Born on December II, 1858, Her
bert Beerbohm Tree spent the first
seventeen years of his life in Eng
land and Holland, after which he be-
came a clerk in his fathers office in
London. Even in those far-off days
of ledger and grain tables he made
amateur theatricals his hobby. He
seems never to have had any doubt
as to the nature of his talents. As
his father objected to the playhouse,
the young man took the name Tree"
for his amateur playbills, deriving it
lTOLn DCCIDOhh AhSohSf AA
Dutch, "bare tree
Revived First Play.
1t was at Folkestone Town Hall
that Tree made his first professional
appearance with a minor travelling
company, playing the blind Colonel
Challice in Alone" As character
istic of the actor, it is interesting to
note that after he had established
himself as an actor-manager in Lon
don, he revived this play out of
sentiment Next Tree played Monte
Prade in a French production of
"L'Adventure" at the Prince of Wales
Theater in London, after which he
toured for five years in the English
provinces, the great school room for
English actors. He was married in
1884 to Miss Maud Holt, who is we'll
known on the London stage now as
Lady Tree. At that time she was a
teacher at Queens College.
Beerbohm Trees London career be-
gan shortly afterward when he took
the Comedy Theater for two seasons,
later leasing the Haymarket, where
he remained until his present play
house, His Majesty's was opened in
1897 following his record and last
tour OF America previous to his pres
ent visit.
At the Comedy Theater he appeared
as Joseph Surface in 1.-The School for
Scandal" the Rev Robert Spalding in
''The Private Secretary" the German
swindler in "Jim the Penman" and
Demetrius in ''The Red Lamp At the
Haymarket during the next eight
years he made -thirty-five productions
sg
first essay into Shakespeare was as
FaIstaff in "The Merry Wives of
Windsor" in 1889, Hamlet" following
in 1892, and the first part of Henry
W." in which he acted Falstaff, in
1896. He also produced Jones The
Dancing Girl,' Ibsen's IAN Enemy of
the People" Oscar Wilde's "A Woman
of No Importance" Sardou's Fedora"
ana the Rotter-du Maurier ''Trilby."
First Visited U. S. In 1894.
Tree opened His Majestys Theater
with Gilbert Parkeer's "The Seats of
the Mighty" other productions in
clude katherine and Petruchio,r
(Garrick's version of 1.-The Tanning of
the Shrew'), Julius Caesar" THE
Musketeers," king john" "A Mid
summer Nights Dream" rip Van
Wrinkle" stephen Phillips "Herod."
ulysses" and Nero" ToIstofs "The
Resurrection" Richard H." "The
Eternal City" THE Darling of the
Gods" "The Tempest" Much Ado
About Nothing" Business Is Bust
ness" "OliYer Twist" Colonel New
come THE Winters Tale" Anthony
and Cleopatra" ''The Van Dyck," "The |
Merchant of Venice" Drake" Mac |
BETH Romeo and Juliet" (playing
MercutioD "Othello," Marie Odile"
and other plays.
In 1894 Tree made his first visit to
appearing in repertoire. He
in 1896 and toured the east
ern part OF the United States until
March, when he returned to England
to open His Majesty's Theater. In
1907 he visited Berlin, presenting
repertoire.
Tree revived Henry WIZ at His
Msjesty's Theater in London. in 1910.
The drama ran for 254 consecutive
performances. record for any
Shakespearean play on any stage
Last spring he brought his entire
to the New Amsterdam
Theater in New York and IL was due
TO the success he won in that city that
he decided to make his present tour of
the leading cities.
aaaaaArHarn-4