Evening star., 1923-01-20
ADJUSTMENTS
The Denisha'vn Dancers.

The National Theatef was filled to
overfiowing with an audience which
waXed most enthusiastic yesterday
afternoon. over the program of
dances offered by Ruth st. Denis.
Ted Shawn and the Denishawn
dancers. 1t was quite the most pre-
tentious program ever attempted in
Washington by Miss st. Denis and
proved a close rival in settings and
costuming to the productions staged
here by Nine. Pavlows. the Russian
artistic. There were a few episodes
so eccentric in costuming and pos
lures that they aroused instructive
mirth. The majority of the dances,
however, we're beautiful in idea, pos
ture, and background and exciting
the sincerest OF admiration.
. The loveliest of all the: numbers
was Miss St. Denis solo interpreta-
tion, using as her music Brahms
waltz, opus SO, number Is, and Liszts
Lieberetraum. The dancer might have
just stepped out of the trieze OF
wedgewood bowl. Her costume was
soft. Grecian draperies. The lighting
gave a dim, misty effect to the simple
background that aided in carrying out
the dreamy charm of the dance. AT
no time in the entire program was
the wonderful control over hands
arms and feet, for which Miss 81.
Denis is particularly noted, SO evident
as in this solo.
The most unusual group dance was
"Xochttl," a dance drama based upon
an ancient legend of the Toltec tribe
of the Aztecs in old Mexico. The
colorings were crude ana clashed, yet
their very disagreement added to the
barbaric atmosphere of the dance.
Mr.. Shawn danced the role OF Tepan-
caltZin, the fiery-tempered emperor OF
the Toltecs; Martha Graham, AochltL
the lovely maiden, and Charles Weld
man was effective in the role Of her
father. The group OF six court
dancers was well trained and danced
with precision and q nice sense OF
proper spacing SO essential for the
proper effect. The court musician, q
small role, stood ~sut perceptibly be-
cause of the artistic makeup of the
man who had this bit and OF the
strikingIy natural effect of his pos
lures. He would invite the brush
of any painter OF the human figure.
ish suite, while effectively costumed
and faultlessly danced, lacked that
careless. wild abandon that one as
sociates with dances from the land
of the bullring.
The second group, Schumann's
Soaring" was danced by group Of
five comely and graceful sea nymphs,
and the effect was enhanced by the
subdued lighting. A huge Veil OF
lovely sea-green tint was handled
with marvellous skill by the nimble
dancers, who wore peculiar pale yell
low bushy wigs.
In the oriental group. Miss ST.
Denis dance of Kuan Yin, goddess
OF mercy, symbolic of the spirit OF
China, was a wonderful bit of. work,
and again brought her marvellous
control of her slim hands into effec--
tive display. Mr. Shawn,s dance as
a priest of knossos was grotesque
aesthetic number. The Indian dance
showed Miss ST. Denis in her fam
iliar role OF the Hautoh dancer, and
she was also the central figure in
the pastel Japanese episode. The
Siamese dance was original in con-
astonishingly awkward and at vari-.
ance with the grace OF most OF the
other dances. Miss Martha Graham
and Charles Weidman gave an in
teresting dance of the Princess and
the Demon"
enting Egypt the dance of Miss St.
Denis and Mr.. Shawn, in the Egyptian
temple. was beautifully done. Miss
st. Denis In response to the thunder
of applause at the close of the pro-
gram, made q short speech of thanks
and explained that she and MIR. Shawn
have as their aim the development
dance. The music of an instrumental
quartet added considerably to the
success OF the program, Louis Horst
played the piano, j. Froling, the
violin; Augusta ScalZi, the flute, and
Peter Kleynenberg. the cello.