El Nuevo mexicano., 1918-02-28
Mary Garden Vamps EN-
Right IN Front Yard
Declares Prop Maginn

I am asked by Mary Garden, having been
iher Chief Property man while she was in
lthe movies, to see how she works in the
jopera on That's, she having sent ms a tic.
net, which was 20 far hack I could mol SEQ
much, but ] heard a whole lot, and as I re
suit I am willing to admit that Mary Car
den b every bit as good as her Movie Press
Agent says she is and that is pretty blame
good 3If# Y s
Mary. as We call her 1t the studio.
breaches Lyric heights hitherto unfathomed
in singing this great and Sensational Part
mr. the opera but the opera has got things
kind of twisted For instance. the Monk,
which 10 the Movies has the name Paphnu-
titus Is narned Athanael for the opera, prob
ably because hts regular name Is tpo hard
fer PEOPLE TO understand in Staging and in
stead of having the big Temptation Scene
IN Thaises boudoir they have got her vamp-
ing him In his front yard right before a
whole Party Of fellows and girls dressed up
for dancing and singing and laughing right
while the Temptation is being done.
The opera has got some Movie stunts,
but tho conductor, as the Director is call
ed, can learn many things from the Pic
lures, For instance, the opera has got a
Double Exposure showing ~Paphnutius (call-
cd Athanael) laying on his couch In the
Retreat OF the Monks and dreaming about
That's that has got bum lighting and the
dancing is punk.
While. I was there the Mectrlcian for
got to turn on the light sand his honor the
utes TIL everybody laughed 50 loud the
Electrician must Of woke up because he
trows on the lights in a hurry. And they
have got a little box on the front of the
Stage all lighted up and . fellow in it
waves a little stick at the Actors and even
in the dark Scenes a little Light shines out
from this little box. You can imagine what
a Movie Electrician would catch for a bull
like that, oh Boy. an
The fellow singing the Subtitles for Pa
phnutius (called Athanaei) conversation is
a baritone but has not got the figure Ham
liiton Revelle has. / bet If Ham, as we all
lcail him at the Studio, conld sing he could
take this fellow Dufranne's Job and make
good. l guess Mary, as we all call her,
must ave sent i'm a ticket to, because
there he was in a seat big a slife and twice
as natural wearing a Full Dress Suit that
certainly looks as IL 1t belonged to him. :
The opera has got its good points, such
las the Scene IN the Desert, where That's
and the Monk sing songs about the Sprink.
ling Pot when That's Is awful thirsty and
doesn't want to wait 10 have a Drink.
4 know what l like and that Duet is,
Esweil all right because ! almost cried and
the only singing that can make me cry to
date is John Mccormick singing Mother
McRee.
'sBut its got little huisances too. For in
stance there was a fellow sitting next to me
kept saying. over and over to himself mag
ma feek magma feek and a Lady sitting on
the other side has a pocket Flash she uses
to look at the Libretto and which like to
drove me nutty when Mary was dying I'M
der a Tree thai would make a Movie Dir
rector boiler for the Stage Carpenter to be
fred quick before he gets appoplexy and
croaks right on the Set. AND the billing
says a Lyric romance in three acts and the
blame thing has got four and it lasts till
blame near twelve o'clock n hear a
gray haired old Lady saying she pays q Dol
lar lOc to stand up in the Aisle and cant
sit down because somebody will grab her
Standing Room. How can a Movie Theatre
owner kick when he's got to raise his price
to l5c, the House pays the War Tax !?
But oh Boy, Mary is some vamp and she
wears the same Frank Costumes In the
opera she does in the Movies, which ought
to be worth q Dollar 10c for Standing Room
il they'd let you stand In the wings or the
little box where the fellow waves the stick.
HH H"t f M /