New-York tribune., 1922-03-25

in that Of her sister permits Guglei-
mo to carry off Ferrando's portrait in
exchange for a love token of his own
and after Fernando has alternately
ragged against his false love. Vet de-
clined to tear her image from his
bosom, he makes essay Of Fiordiiigi $
citadel. Now he succeeds aud it re
mains only TO confound the women
by an unexpected return in their true
characters. This they accomplish at
the banquet which was to celebrate
their nuptials. but the anger of the
men and the confusion Of the women
90 down before the worldly wise ut
terances by Don Alfonso -"Cosi far
tutte"-and there are wedding bells at
the end and aequescence with the ways
OF the world.
1t is the absurdity of the story as put
together by Lorenzo Da ponte which
has always stood in the way of the
success of the opera. The action is
supposed to take place within twenty
four hours, Da Ponte having ad.
hered to the Aristotelian unitios at
least to this extent. Yet the women,
the sincerity of whose love is con
vincingly published by Mozart's music.
must transfer their affections to other
men whom they ought to have in
tuitively recognized, must yield to one
when they refused to yield TO the other
must fail to recognize their own maid
when She appears first as d physician
then as notary. and all concerned
must accept the embarrassing situation
in which Don Alfonso's cynicism has
placed them because. forsoQth, it is the
nature OF women to play fast and loose
with the affections. This has been felt
as a reflection on womankind and,
though some of the efforts to remedy
the obvious defects of the comedy have
been directed TO destroying the mo-
nontony of the action after it is once set
in motion, the most significant have
been to preserve the reputation Of
Fiordiligi and Dorabela as represent
atives Of their sex and introduce a
new element into the story. This was
done by the German BIitzner in his
- 'Madchentreue" and the EnGNshman
Arnold in his Tit for Tat by having
Despina betray the plot to her mis-
tresses and turning the tables on the
men by letting them play the comedy
out and confronting them with their un-
just suspicious.
The Innovations at the metropolitan
The people at the Metropolitan have
resorted TO no such devices. They
have left the plot as Da Ponte CON
amount OF dialogue Carried on in
secco recitativo) as much as was pos
sible, and have also curtailed the music
so as 10 bring its performance within
reasonable time. In the scenic dress
and costuming they have followed the
performances in Munich which have
brought fame in recent years TO the
Residenz Theater In this small play
house that complete intimacy between
actors and auditors which is essential
to comedy, whether spoken or sung, is
attained to an admirable degree. Os-
tensibly to secure something like it a
novel mounting has been devised at
the metropolitan Opera House. The
action plays upon small platform set
upon the large stage of the theater.
This little stage has its own sets Of
scenery. its own draw curtain, even its
own footlights, and at both sides steps
lead from it down TO the floor OF the
real stage. Above and at the sides are
draperies, and the curtain is orna-
mented with pastoral medallious OF the
period eXemYlifed also in the cos
TUNES The interior Of the ladies'
drawing room looks out through a
garden vista upon a picture of the
Bay of Naples. in which city the actor
is supposed to take place, and the
changes ot scene take place behind
the drawn curtain. The pictures are
ell delightful to the eye, as are the
costumes. In front OF the prompt box,
probably to give a festal appearance
to the production, there IS an illu-
minated portrait Of Mozart The il
brettist is ignored, rather unfairly we
think, since his counterfeit present.
ment wculd have been particularly APP
propriate in the city where ne lived
for whole generation Of time and
where he took an active part in estsb
fishing the art-form of which the
Metropolitan Opera House is q proud
monument. No doubt there were per
sons in the audience last night there
is surely one among the directors Of
Mr.. Gatti's company) whose forebears
learned to love italian literature and
Italian opera under the tuition OF Da
Ponte.
Whether Mr.. Gatti attained the pun
pose which he had in view in creating
TINS miniature theater within theater
is questionable. We are inclined to
think that the real design Of Mr. Ur-
bans device was decorative merely
The intimacy which is desirable is shat
between performers and audience, not
between the performers themselves.
Defective as the play may be. detective
as 1T is, its purpose Was to hold the
mirror uD to nature Mr.. Urban holds
the mirror up to the theater In somc
instances. when a change Of scene is
desired, the mimic curtain Is drawn
6ehind the actors and they continue
to sing before it. In other instances
actors leave the scene. come down to
the real stage and disappear between
the draperies. The wedding guests in
the last scene make the.r entrance. as
90 the other actors, from the draperiea
on the sides Of the real stage Dra-
matte illusion is thus destroyed The
people Of the play seem to walk out of
the audience to take their parts and
places The dimnutivc stage makes
the people Of the play loo; abnormally
larGe~-likc giants playing in a marion
cite theeter. To create the illusion
that the little stage is the real scene
of the mimic action. it has been fitted
out with big, old-fa shioned footlights.
There are no visible footlights on the
real stage; why emphasize artjhcia(itY
by putting them on view on the minia-
ture stage? Are the artists playing at
play-acting? WHY do we have alter
nately comedy and (Whcn the curtain
is drawn concert in costume? If the
play is improbable in itself is it bet
tered by this alternate plunge from
Illusion TO unreality?
Features of the Performance
But why cavil when thore is so much
TO gladden. The heart OF all real music
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