Free trader-journal and Ottawa fair dealer. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1920-1927, 1920-12-01


To fhe stagc-boX the same box thu
Whitaker mad on the former occasion
occupied in company with Max.
They succeeded in taking possession
without attracting attention, eithe,
from the owners of that Scanty scat
terlng of shirt boSoms In the orchestra
the critical fraternity and those IN
Inmates hidden by the manager to the
first glimpse of his new revelation IN
stAgecraft-or from those occupying
the stage.
The latter were but two. Evidently
though the curtain had been up for
some minutes. the action Of the piece
| had no. yet been permitted 10 begin
TO unfold. Whitaker Inferred that Max
had been di>sat istied with something
about the lighting of the scene. The
manager was standing in m!dstaGe,
staring up at the bordors--a stout and
pompons figure tenacious to every de-
tail Of that public self which he had
striven 50 successfully to make unfor-
gettably individual; figure quantity
! incongruous IN his impeccabe morn
brimmed silk hat. perched well back
on his head with his malaccn stick
and lemon colored gloves and small
and excessively glossy patent-leather
ShnaS Jnsa1 ms tho t,.rf lIit
of moonlit formal garden.
Aside from him, the only other occu-
pant Of the stage was Sara Law. She
sat on a stone bench with. her profile
TO the audience, her back to the right
of the proscenium arch; 50 that she
could not, without turning. have no.
ticed the entrance of Enber and ncr
husband. A shy, light, deathIessly
garments that nodded themselves flu
entity to her sweet and girlish body,
in posture of pensive meditation: :
she was nothing less than adorable.
Whitaker could not take his eyes from
her, for sheer wonder and delight.
He was only vaguely conscious that
Max. ut length satisfied, harked a word
To that effect TO an unseen electrician
with gesture indelbIy associated
with his personality, dragged light
cane seated chair tn The left Of the
proscenium and sat himself down.
I. 4. 4 Ia, -,
and irritable voice.
The woman on the marble step nod
ded iinperceptiby.
600 ahead" snapped the manager.
An actor advanced from The wings,
paused and addressed the seated
woman. His lines were brief She
lifted her head with a startled mir.
listening. He ceased to speak, and
her voice of golden velvet flied the
house with the flowing beauty of its
linforgettahly sweet mOhulations. Be
roud the fuotlghts Il handful Of So
phisticated and skeptical habitucs of
the thcatcr forgot for the moment
their inSraincd ncrcdulity and thrilled
in sympathy with the wonderful rap
ture Of that voice Of eternal Youth.
Whitaker himself for the time forgot
that he WAS the husband Of this W"m-
an and her lover; she moved before
his vision in the v,liSe Of some divine
creature, divinely unattainallc. Il
cream woman divorced utterly from
any Semblancc Of reality,
That opening scene was one perhaps
unique in the history Of the stage.
Composed by Max in some mad, poet
irai moment Of inspired pagiarlSm it
not only owned a poignant and en-
thralling beauty of imagery, but it
moved with an almost Greclan ccrti-
tude, with a significance eNtruordina-
rily direct and devoid OF cirCumlocu-
ton, seeming to lay bare the living
tissue of immortal drama.
But with the appearance of other
characters there came change: the
rare atmosphere of the opening began
to dissipate perceptibly. The action
clouded and grew vague. The auditors
began to feel the ilutterings Of uncer-
tainty In the air. Something was fail
ing TO cross the footights. The sweep
Ing and assured gesture Of the accom-
plished playwright falterea: n clumsy
bit of construction was damnlngly eX-
posed; faults of characterization null
tiplled depresSnglY. Sara Law her
self lost an indctnable proportion of
her rare and provoking charm; the
Strangeness of failing to hold her nu-
dience In an incluctHblc grasp seemed
nt once to ncttle and distress her.
Max himself seemed suddenly to wake
TO the amazing fact that there was
something enormously and irremedi-
ably wrong; he began with oXaspcrating
frequency to halt the action, to inter
rupt scenes with' advice and demands
for repetition. He found it impossible
to he still, to keep his scat or control
his raspinc. irritable voice. Subordi-
nate characters on the stage lost their
heads and either forgot to net or