Arizona republican., 1921-05-24
By Frederic j. Haskin

N F. IVY Il nora. Duse. the famous Italian tra- gedienne. has returned to the stage after an absence of nearly 20 years At the age of 62. she will tour Italy under managernent of the distin- guished actor-manager, Ermeto Zac- conf, playing Ibsen's Lady from the Sea-" and other roles in which she triumphed many years ago.
 If the tour is success, IL may pc extended to other parts of the coni- nent, and eventually perhaps. the younger generations of America may have an opportunity to see an actress who, all critics agree is one or the greatest dramatic artists who ever lived.
 According to people who have seen her recently, Duse is just as miracu- lously preserved for her age as her great rival. Sarah Bernhardt, who is her senior by some 15 years. She re- tains her slender figure, they say, and the same wonderfully melodious Voice which once held all Europe enthralled. Her face has remained smooth and unwrinkled. Above all. she still retains the personal magnet ism which so deeply stirred her audiences.
 Duse is said to be the only woman of whom Sarah Bernhardt was ever jealous. Until the Italian actress suddenly appeared at the Renaissance Theater in Paris during her continen- tai tour in 1897, Bernhardt had been idolized as the greatest tragedienne of all times by the French people. Then, almost overnight, the Divine Sarah found her lofty pinnacle Of fame shared by a formidable rival. "The Duse is equally as great as our beloved Sarah" wrote the French critics ''even though Italian"
 This was not all they said. The French newspapers contained col umns upon columns of fervent praise for the new genius. In reading over what European dramatic critics have written concerning Duse, in fact, one is moved to deep amazement. All though by no means beautiful wom- an, she seems to have had them all hvpnotized. Unlike Sarah Bern- hardt, she scorned the use of make up even on the stage, and her clothes were habitually somber, if not actu- ally dowdy. She wore no jewelry and perfumes of any description even the scent of flowers, she found intolerable. A plain, quiet, little woman who seldom laughed and wht spent most of her leisure hours col lecting books, photographs and scis- sors-innumerable pairs of scissors which she was always losing anc leaving about Yet her interviewer: all found her the embodiment oi charm, grace and all that was desir- able in woman. Returning to theii desks. they would write unrestrainet rhapsodies to Duse--Duse, the poetesi 1 of tragedy, the actress of the ages Even Shaw Approved
 Even Bernard Shaw could find nt 1 flaws in her art or personality. II l an essay which he wrote on the act ress nearly 20 years ago, he was, fo 1 once in his life. almost tedsousl. complimentary. He contrasted Bern
 hardt's superficial appeal with tn
 deep, powerful sense of tragedy tha Duse evoked. Bernhardt, in his opin | ion was a highly skilled technician | Duse was a born tragedienne.
 1 Bernhardt appealed to the intellect | while Duse wrung peoples hearts 1 The Divine Sarah martialed her emo | lions as her intellect and will direct ed, whereas Duse was often overcom by her own emotion In playing
 tragic part and was unable to go or | In some instances she was known t cry herself i'll.
 It has been said that to those wh think, life is a comedy, to those wh
 feel. it is a tragedy. This theory i
 nowhere more clearly illustrated thai
 in the lives of the two great tragedi 1 ennes. Duse and Bernhardt. Bern 1 hardt always coolly intellectua
 shrewd and philosophical. has greatl | enioyed life-Still enjoys 1t at tn l age of v. Duse, on the contrary
 emotional high strung. deeply sym l pathetic. has been the victim of mis 1 fortune and sorrow. When a woma l wronged Sarah Bernhardt, she wen | almost gaily to her apartment an
 horsew hipped her When a man cru
 ely wronged Duse, she fled to a lone | ly retreat in the Italian hills, humili | ated and heart-broken.
 1 And so it was throughout her earl l Iife-always sensitive, always sor | rowing Life did not spare her eve | as an infant. The daughter of poo | Italian players, she was made to d
 her share in supporting the famii
 at the age of four, when she playe
 Cosette From then on she was al
 ways working. playing first one rol
 and then another. always travelin
 from place to place in dirty, third
 class Italian railway carriages, ofte
 hungry and cold. There was nothin
 to compensate for the drudgery 1 this life She was not heralded a
 any child prodigy in fact her com
 panions looked upon her as a ratht
 stupid. plain little 2 ri. who was al
 solutely hopeless as an actress.
 Duse's greatness did not mamie;
 itself until she was d mature woma
 Rachel was famous at the age of 1
 but Mrs Siddons was 27 before Sl
 made her first great impression, ar
 Duse was "A before she showed ev fencs of genius She had achieved