New-York tribune., 1918-01-13

APPEARS, according to the verdict
Of the critics, to have been an affair
not altogether happy. Louis Sher-
win, writing in "The Globe contends:
"Positvely the policy of the French the
atrc in New York grows to be more of mys-
terry each week. Why, for instance, should
NJ jacques Copeau have elected to regalc US
with the least interesting with the possible
exception of lie Coup d'Ailc'-of all NJ. Fran
cois de Curel's plays? NJ. de Curel is very
unequal writer, but he has done work Of
genuine beauty and artistic power. Obvious
ly, then, if NJ. Copeau wanted to give us q
repertory representative Of the French The
atrc at its highest, the thing to do was to
select Les Fossiles,' which is generally ad-
mitted to be NJ. de Curel's masterpiece. In
stead of that he selects La Nouvcle Idole, ,
as though his purpose were to show how
tedious the most brilliant Frenchmen can be
when they try.
"The chief pleasure to be extracted from
this performance of La Nouvelle Idole' is
to listen to the marvel-to American ears
q miracle-of actors reading speeches of quite
incredible length with such sheer lingual per-
fection that they roll out like water tumbling
down a precipice. The great scientist for
instance, has in the second act unbroken
Grafton that lasts fifteen minutes by Carl
Van Nechten's wrist watch The whole play
is, in effect, an opera without music, series
of arias, rectatves and cadenzas, which the
actors chant with brilliant, pyrotechnic virtu-
osity. The artfcality Of the proceedings
is heightened by the applause which greets
the end Of each of these breathing exercises
for all the world like the excitement Of the
IN >,rrlr .k~
has finished La donna G mobile"
AS for the acting, Mr.. Sherwin thought
it "of high order and entirely conven-
tional. For all the novelty it contained" !"
he concluded, zone might have been at the
Comedie."
Yet the play seems to have achieved a
popular success. And this is a fact which
prompted Lawrence Reamer, in "The
Sum-" to declare that "it is upon the whole
surprising that an audience that received
so calmly the wonderful Moliere produc-
tions Of this theatre should have been so
was, however, moved to praise the acting
highly. He wrote. in this connections:
"Francois Gournac gave an impassioncd
distinguished impel sonation of the doctor and
the admirable Miss Bng made the saintlike
little girls dying expressions appear credible
She has truly fine talent. Emile Chifolian
Mile. Lory and Marcel Milet bestowed their
splendid art upon minor parts The pictorial
element hitherto So strong at the Theatre dl
VieuN-Colombier not required for this
sombre play"
A view much more complimentary to
the play itself was taken by John Corbin,
who said in "The Tines:
'Francos de Curel is perhaps the most
sincerely original of the modern Partisan
paywrights, and La Nouvelle Idole' scored
enc of the great successes of the Theatre
Antoine when it was at the height of its
reputation. The play lacks most OF the
familiar ingredients of the typical Boulevard
success, and that is one of its welcome virtues
though negative one. Its positive virtue
lies in the fact that it evinces at their highest
and best the French mastery OF the subtler
technique Of the theatre and the French
ability to develop dramatically character
and an idea of the utmost vividness and sip
nticance."