The Washington herald., 1920-04-06

Chinese bride return to China All
very basic, from the standpoint of
emotion and being basic, very ef-
fective. To say that the Garrick
show Is one that fails to pleasantly
beguile an evening would be a mani
fest injustice.
The cast that has been selected
for interpreting the Halsey-Beran-
ger theme Is q competent one in the
main, though the authors have han
dicapped a number of the parts with
the most inexplicable contradic-
tions of character - contrsdic-
tions so valueless and glaring that
they can only be ascribed to a de-
gree of cocksureness in authorship.
Aside from these handicaps and the
evils OF some rather obviously unin-
telligent direction. the cast strug-
giles most successfully with its eve
ning's work.
Madeline Delmar. in the role of
the transplanted Chinese bride, is a
beautiful young thing. and her Chi
nese Characterization. while not of
the Uric standard in THE Son
Daughter" is a thoroughly compe-
presented bit of acting. Forrest
Winant, in the role of the American
bridegroom, is a bit too abrupt at
spots and suffers more than the rest
Of the cast from poor direction: yet
he brings a certain quality of force
ful authority to a role. that might
be allowed, otherwise. to badly de-
generate. Ivy Troutman. Leah
Winslow. Frances Nelson, Mabel
Burt and Marguerite Leslie also
gave thoroughly creditable perform
ances in minor roles.
NationaI-William Gillette I'm "Dear
Brutus.-
In the realm of make believe,
James II. Barrie's gifted pen is at
Its best and an Easter Monday au-
dience of generous proportions well
coined his delightful little comedy,
Dear Brutus." with William Gill
lette and a company of talented
players on its return visit last
night.
Since 1t was first seen in Wash
ington, Dear Brutus" h ansejoyed
a prosperous tour and in the in
terim the finer details of the quaint
fairy theme have been rounded out,
its subtle comedy points fully de-
veloped and the net result Is an ex-
ceptionally smooth running per-
formance with uniformly capable
interpretations.
Dear Brutus" is a play of what
might have been. Somewhere in
the North England country there
Is legend that once in every year,
on Midsummer night. a strange
forest appears. sometimes in one
place, sometimes in another, and
that those who go into IL will have
for few hours the life they might
have lived IL. at some crucial
time in their past, they had chosen
the other turning" instead of the
one they did. And thus they have,
for this one night, a Second Chance.
A queer old Puck of q man who
lives in this region conceives the
idea of inviting some guests to his
house at just this time of year, and
seeing just what happens to them
when the Second Chance Is given to
them In the enchanted wood. And
not only does the old man, Lob. graf
ify his whimsical curiosity, but
seemingly mismated couples in their
brief eerie journey find what Might
Have Been" sometimes better, some
times worse than their mortal ex-
istence.
For William Gillette, the big mo-
ments como in the mythical wood
where he has craved for opportunity
to lavish to the full a noble affection
upon his own offspring, Margaret.
The realization of his yearning and
the depths Of a sublime love were
portrayed with the finesse and mas
terly skill of the accomplished ac-
tor. Gillette was seen at his best
In q purely sentimental role.
The star shares his triumphs with
Madge Bellamy, a wistful and elfin
sprite whose mischievous moods and
childlike innocence make "Marga-
ret" creep into the heart and find
a welcoming niche. In the original
company Helen Hayes, whose name
now flickers in the electric bulbs,
made this part pre-eminent. Gill;
lette has been fortunate in his alli-
ance with Miss Bellamy. for a
sweeter and more convincing por-
trayal would be dificult. Her mo-
ment Of parting in the wood was a
finished piece of acting. and its
appreciation was evidenced by a
round Of curtain calls. On her per-
formance last night, one can pre-
dict much for her histrionic future.
OF the other players. Thomas A.
Braidon makes an amusing and
fickle Mr. Purdie. Anne Morrison,
Hilda Moore, Grant Stewart. Marie
Wainwright. william Podmore, Fred
Russell, Frances Anderson and