New-York tribune., 1920-04-05
On the Screen
''The Woman and the Puppet"
Capitalizes Memory of Gerald
inc Farrar in ''Carmen"

1.-THE Woman and the Puppet," the.
picture which brings Geraldine Farrar
to the Strand this week, tends to capt.
talize the memory of this operate star
in Carmen" With Lou Tellegen, IN
the cast Of the picture as Don Mateo, to
play the ardent lover to Concha Perez,
the cigarette girl, there could be but
one solution of the story. In reaching
the inevitable there was certain de-
gree Of skill shown by both actors and
directors in the portrayal of the subtler
shades of great love affair II 1T is
more or less irritating to be delayed IN
going to a predestined goal, then a /
the diversions along the route are all
the more gratefully received.
That is the case with the story of
"The Woman and the Puppet" and the
acting of Geraldine Farrar and Lou
Tellegen. If Don Mateo is possessed
of the idea that his money and social
position will buy even love, then a more
tempera mental and charming instruc-
tor in the true pursuit of love than
Concha cou d not have been found:
Miss Farrar's acting is vivacious and
whimsical enough to meet the popular
conception Of Spanish volatility, and
Lou Tellegen's Interpretation of Don
Mateo is satisfactorily domineering and
passionate.
All in all, it is a picture which is
much like warmed over Carmen"
The musical program is Of a holiday
quality. The deservedly popular Rus
ian Cathedral Quartet sing blessed
Mary" and "The Rosary; Eldora Stan
ford, soprano. and Walter Pontius,
tenor. give the duet from the irst act
Victor Herbert's "Swee.hearts" and the
overture is "Sakuntala," by Goldmark.
In addition to these musical features
of unusual merit there is scenic and
a topical review.
Constance Binney plays one Of the
many approximations of Pollyanna, at
present SO popular in "The Stolen
Kiss" at the Rivoli. The story is one
of the protracted course of love, when
the only thing to prevent the young
things happiness is their mutual fail
ure to act with average common sense
and the producers desire to make q
picture of normal lcenth
AS Felicia Day Miss Binney presents
herself as a girl hidden away from a
knowledge of worldly ways by a stern
old granddad. Her one escapade. her
great romance, comes when Dudley
Hamiit gets the "stolen kiss" over the
garden gate. Straightway grandda0
packs the girl off to Canada, and after
granddad dies, some few years late~
it seems almost too late for that single
kiss to amount to anything. But in
fiction girls treasure the memory
of single pilfcred kiss, and boys
do likewise, and both are strong
against the temptation of love affairs
as incidental amusement. Finally,
after getting irritatingly close to the
end on divers occasions, Dudley .and
Felicia meet in the garden again, and
all is we'll. All the delay gave Miss
Binney an opportunity to display some
Of the most charming screen manner
isms in the business, and afforded sew
eral of the other characters similar
opportunities for acting Of average
merit
There is little in this picture to hold
the attention against the irritating de-
lays except the screen personality of
Miss Binney.
"Speed to Spare" "Snub" Pollard
comedy, is an unusually amusing slap
stick that takes advantage of the laughs
incidental to hotel life, and uses the
elevators to good purpose in drawing
laughs.
The musical program at the Rivol is
of an exceptionally high character. The
feature of the musical program is
iHeStel lawn, 1dNIdSy LOT CnOruS,
ballet and orchestra, the choregraphy
for which was arranged by Miss Dixie
Wilson. Other musical features were
Handel's "Alleluia" from "Thc Messiah,
the "1nAammatus" from Rossini's
Stabat Mater" sung as soprano solo
by Alma Doria. and as the overture a
selection from Beethoven's "Egmont."
CDR. Jekyll and Mr.. Hyde" the star
ring vehicle of John Barrymore, which
drew record breaking crowds at the
Rivoli last week, is playing at the Ri
alto this week, and will warrant the
repetition of our last weeks criticism,
in which it was rated as giving proba-
bly, the best bit of screen acting vet
done. That the changed story, with the
love element introduced in such doubt
full taste, will ALLEVIATE any Of the read
crs of the story who see the picture is
doubtful, for the simple reason that the
work of John Barrymore is so over
whelming that one forgets in few
minutes the presence of other charac-
tcrs in the screen play 1t is at all
events one of the dozen plays most
worth seeing in the history of the film
play.
Uneasy Feet" which also was at the
Rivoli last week, is a comedy of our
lower extremities. The musical pro-
gram at the Ralto includes Chopin's
"Polonase Militaire" as an organ solo.
THE Palms" as duet and the overture
from "La Forza del Destino"