The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-10-16
GERMAN OPERA
CO. SCORES IN
L0HE|NG|R|.'I|.V
Capacity Audience Is Thrilled
BY SkilfuI and Dramatic
Handing Of Roles.
d WTrlHiTIANf NfOORE.

~ WILLIAM MOU16kSs
An army Of German invaders cap
tured the Capital last night. The
foreign host, with q fanfare Of trum-
pets. marched right into the hearts
OF the capacity audience that gath
cred at Polls Theater to attend the
opening Of the short session Of Ger
man opera given by the famous
,Wagnerian Opera Company.
The opera company, comprising
an excellent cast Of soloists and
chorus that is extraordinary In It's
capabilities, offered as the premiere
In Washington Wagner's Lohen-
grin. !"
Even the most critical opera dew
. otae could not be anything but lavish
In his praise Of the finished polish
which these Germans gave the diff
cult work.
Curtain Late.
Contrary to advance notices, the
curtain did not rise until twenty
five minutes after the time sched-
uIed for the opera to begtn--1:45.
Consequently It was fifteen minutes
past midnight before the final act
came to an end.
But the audience was not ex-,
hausted. Not bit of 1t. Four
hours Of delightful revealing I'm the
beautiful melodies and harmonic de-
lights OF the German master, vet
many in the audience could have
continued listening with rapt at
tentiOn indefinitely.
Rudolf Ritter, AZ Lohengrin, won
the enthusiastic appreciation Of the
audience. He is q veritable blond
giant" in stature admirably cast
in the role Of the mystic Silver
KNIGHT = He has n tenor voice
Of Vide range and clarity Of tone.
His recitation 'Of his stewardship
Of the Holy Grail was sung with
rare spirituality, and there was q
Tenderness to his love scenes that
was very appealing.
VOice Of Wide Range.
Al voice 81 wide range. accuracy,
and clearness OF tone Is that Of
Nine. Elsa Fischer. who
portrayed Elsa. Her pianissimo and
Ileaato passages were by far the out
standing features of her work.
although all she did was above
criticism.
The scene In the bridal chamber.
| In the second act, was one that VIII
long remain In the memories Of the
Wagner lovers who attended last
nights production. The Elsa
LohengriJa duet was sung with ORA
matte. fery0g that stirred the pulses
OF the auditors and eyoked pro-
longed applause. oe
Elsie AIsen portrayed Ortrude.
the wicked scrceFess, with skin and
| understanding Of the score. She
| scared to the heights Of her ORA
matte and vocal ability in the sec.
ond act.
Shows Dramatic Ability.
i Telranud. the anarchistic claimant
i to the duIxedom Of Brabant, WIS
sung by Hermann Well While he
/ exhibited dramatic ability second 10
none in the cast, his voice was
hardly forceful enough. Hermann
Eek, as King Henry OF Germany
was well cast physically, but vocaIly
his bass voice was not heavy enough
to adequately. portray the Wagnerian
monarch.
The tonal quality Of Otto Semper,
the Herald, was beyond reproach.
and the ali too brief appearances OF
the quartet OF pages demonstrated
the ability Of these young women.
The New York State Symphony
Orchestra, under the capable leader
ship OF Edouard Moerike. came IN
| for fits share of the AUDIENCES ap-
| plause. From the delicate Grail
movement, in which the strings have
q part almost ethereal In its delicacy.
to the majestic wedding march,
Moerike had his musicians CON-
| pletely under his control.
Tonight the company win sing
1.-THE Mastersingers," with Josef
Stranslky conducting The perform
ance Is scheduled to begin at 7:15.