Evening star., 1920-08-10

drama. there Is the love of q father
for son, love so great that the
father Is ready to purchase the life
and health of the son at any price.
hate and the repression which the
Spanish character sometimes wears
and endures. alternate as the play
unrolls. Nor Is the ludicrous and
the human side omitted. There are
characters and lines that recall the
deft manner in which Shakespeare
himself played upon the ground
linEs. NCynfcfsm. wit and the COM
monpiace, typically interesting. are
found In the conversation of Pepuso.
the old-timer and woman hater; of
Conception. the shrewish wife and
ambitious mother. and Of 'Migalo,
wastrel father.
The span of the thr eeacts covers one
day. There is bitter enmity between
the people who live on opposite sides
of an irrigation ditch. Water is the
great necessity in Murcia. In n night
brawl Pencho. a leader of one group.
has stabbed Xavier. son of a. wealthy
planter belonging to the other group.
love, Maria del Carmen. has nursed
Xavier back to life in the months
that followed. She has done this so
that her lover may not be accused of
murder. and to win the forgiveness
of the family Pencho has injured.
del Carmen. and is kept alive by two
things alone-his love for Maria and
his hatred of Pencho. After the Gus
tom of Murcfa. Xavier has refused to
denounce 'Pencho as his assailant. In
Murcia a man settles his personal diff
ferences with the knife and not
through the law.
Domingo, father of Navier. forces
Maria del Carmen to agree to marry
his son in order to save her lovers
life. He has proof that it was Pencho
who stabbed Xavier At this point
Pencho. Informed that his love is
about to marry his enemy. returns.
He learns what Maria is really about
to do and refuses to permit the sac
rffice.
For the presentation of the play the
orchestra has been removed and plays
from a balcony in the rear of the
theater. The stage begins at the very
foot of the front row seats and on The
same level The entrances and e:'its
of the actors are made through .he
isles of the theater. 1t is strange ar
rangement. The presence of the au-
dience is ignored effectually by the
actors, lending in a sense to the
reality of the nlay. On the other hand.
the audience. unused to such close
proximity to the actors. is inclined to
lose some of the very illusion
which is sought to be obtained.
In the production of Spanish Love"
the Waeenhals & Kemper Company
has been lavish in its stage settings
and in the details with which scenery
and costumes have been worked out
The cast is admirable and we'll bal
anced. Maria Ascarra plays Maria del
Carmen with skill and naturalness
that win applause and sympathy
James Rennie as Pencho. the bold
lover. and William H. Powell as
Xavier. dying by inches. but kept
alive by love and hate. give remark
able performances. and Henry Ste
iphenson as Domingo, the adoring
father. wins the sympathy of the
audience. though it cannot agree with
him. No less notable is the success
of Ben Hendricks as Pepuso; Russ
Wythal as Don Filgencio. the doctor:
Gus Wineburg as Migalo. Kenyon Bis
hop as Conception. and lone Bright
as Fuensentica.
Through the play runs music writ
ten especially by H. Maurice Jacquet.
from the popular airs of the province
of Murcia In the second act Spanish,
dancers give an exhibition that is
one of the best bits of the production.