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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 20, 1910)
Tim OMAHA SUNDAY P.EK: NOVEMBER r "X PL'IiAfD jupiti:b: r t-j r v. ..'" V X V 2) 3 y&iua 9 QJcsin 6 (he Princes V ANITA TAVLOWA COMING r r ins V Miss Lang as an Actress of Diverse Roles Several changes in the personnel of the Kva Lang .company at' the Boyd go .Inta effect today and the departure "of .'a' num ber of players and the advent of their sue-' l essors may serve as the occasion for a re view of the stock season so far as it. has advancsd. Miss Lang and her associates hve given twelve . plays 'since Bunday, August II, when the season of 1810-11 be gan with ''Love Watches" as the first of- " ' .. .. ' Blnce then the plays acted have -been the following: "Such a Little Queen." "Caught I In the naln." "The Lion nd the Mouse," 1 "The Christian." "The Late Mr. Jones," I "Classmates," 'Divorcoiis." ' "Old ' Heidel berg." "The Qlrl of the Oolden West," "A Wornan a Way" and- "The Milk White rimg." . ' , . . ' ' ' - ' ' ' ' Klve of these are light comedies, or they, can be desoribod as comedies of manner?, the rive being "Love Watches," "Such a Little Queen," "Caught In the Rain," "1)1 vcrcons." and "A ' Woman's Way." .Two farces have been given. "The Late Mr, Jones" and the Hoyt play, just over. One orfering. "Old . Heidelberg." Is commonly billed as a "comedy;" it is a romantic drama. "Classmates" is also catalogued on play bills as a "comedy;" it la a melo drama and so are "The Christian." "The Lion and the Mouse," and The Girl 'of I the Golden West." The Ust to date, there fore, hss Included five comedies, four melo dramas, two farces and one romantic drama. Two more romantic dramas sre Ii Immediate prospect, "Under Two Flags," this week, and "The Squawman," beginning next Sunday. The first of these, at lea.t, should strictly speaking, be classified as melodrama, it being understood . that no reflection Is meant, although In the popular mind "melodrama" erroneously connotes the tank drama, the buar-saw, the hopelessly im probable or Impossible coincidence,' the burning steamboat, or the wrecked railroad tiain. Miss Lang has moat often played charm ing yourlg girl or young matron parts this season owing to a preponderance of comedies of manners. Such characters were Jacqueline and Cypnenne In the two plays of Fiench architecture; Mrs. Stanton to the chaining Thompson-Buchanan comedy, the heiress In the William ('oilier iight comedy and o, though somewhat differ ent. Que.;. 1 Anne in the story of the ex patriated sovereign w hich Cl.atinlng Po'.lock created. In tWs connection it may be noted that all five of thesj somewhat similar young ivonien were differentiated oi.e from another as charaeterl;:d by Miss Lang. They fiere iralts in common. They mujt needs have, berause they are all of the same eoc.al Oder. Uvn the ex-mieen of lleraogovlnia is not unlike the others In respect to cer ta'n little matters of breed ng. Queens do nt tieRille a knife and fork to use a homely Illustration a whit differently from a well-bred French girl or differently from the culinary technique of a New York society belle. There la a diffeienee beten nil tl)ee iu this and other re;jects from ton oilier girls of France, America and other countries. Now a tocfc actor or acires has gi -at j gestlcul&toiy. , This Is Viur commonly ap d.ffirulty in loaW ng people see that her j pieciatod by ber spectators and thu needs similar 'character are really several dlf- 1 to Ue expounded. With reference to Irr: iu and suffering people. Th average ! tue ktiijs' of charaetei placed by the lead- MLLE EEKEX at the Orjiheum. pectafor Is' not' at V'1 P'ar fconse' toMofdr for no firm a point as this. He ot she In there often for much tho samo reason as the Tired Business Man of theater ''page fame to be amused. His or her critical and analytical faculties,' If such the , a vera ere spectator has, ar In abeyance' 'Vie left 'eni on the piano at home or rhecked them In'. thevcloalc room. , . , : 'Furthermore the average and regular spectator ha become pretty well ac- v iqualtrte with the faces of the actors 'n If rent of him." When he looks at the people - on the utnga he tends to see-them, not to Jjeee the characters . they are creating. If I .the actor or actress Is playing a pronounced I ! character part In which luudj makeup ami i lalae hair or the like has been used; he In ! still even striving to see , the real per-son I beneath., 3uch In the attitude or tendency, j So when an actress like Miss Lang Is 'nearly, all the 'time, engaged In playing nil ,1 1 (kl to nun i'l v ivtituiouB , makeup and artificial feature, the average spectator inclines to see just. Miss Lang. True, an actress as good as Miss Lang soon has, the spectator In tier 'grip of illusion and la quickly convincing her whole aud ience; but even so' the audience Is seeing a physical woman 'identically like the physical- woman whom they have, seeu often before and there is failure to observe how different Jacqueline is from Cypricnne and ih riMi wlf of 1 h Kuchanan nlav from a T T . 1 1 n'l -VftB. I anA - nne "' J "l " noes differentiate all these like characters 1. an unquestioned fact, and the skeptfc has only to pay part:cular attention to this point, and he. too, will be convinced that Miss Lang's Jacqueline is one girl, her Cy prlenne. another. - It Is commonly asserted that Mi3s Lang plays such a part better than any other. The assertion is at least open to question. All ' of us take aides in a theater for or against a character. Characters like these charming young girls or yonog wives wo are all "for," juxt as we are all "against" the villain person and the adventuress. Consequently when a character is pre sented of the kind . we naturally like best, when such a character Is an charmingly presented as by Miss Lang, we are apt to think, that this is her best work bevadtc w approve moat Highly or the nmsiieu product. In so tninking we are not uecm ing by absolute standard" at all, but merely voting our personal likine, It is not much more than an individual whim, 1 because It Is not a critical judgment based ou anafjuls or referred to aesthetic prin ciples. Most popular verdicts with respect to plays and acting are in the same cate gory. Judging Miss Lang's society girls and women by deeper measures, the pop ular verdict is to be re-echoed so far as It praises her playing such characters, but when the popular verdict says she Is then at ber beet, or In any way then reaching her limit, the facts of the case should be scrutinised. Pasbtpg by the two farces which af forded her no opportunity, nor the other actors much, for that matter, one may consider Miss Lang's exposition of types of more lowly life. Take, for Instance, the poarant girl in "Old Heidelberg." the Salomy Jane sort of part In the "Golden West" play, and, to go bai; a season, to her acting of the title part of "Merely Mfy Anne," which Is one of the best things Miss Lang has ever done. In these and other depletions of girls of humble class Miss Lang has hit the bull's eve as accurately as when playing daugh ters of the weIl-u-lo, for In these char acters, as in all otheia she l'!ss. she con ceives the character not only with fidelity to the ficts, but she conceives It syt!i pathetically, and by sympathetically one means not. with compassion, but lu the literal sense of the word, which means "feeling with." Miss Ijing, in other words, understands the feelings and emotions of the character and then portrays them, "Temperament," as the word is sometimes u.ed, is just a synonym for "rympathy" in thin original usage of the wojJ. A good many other aspects of Miss I Jing s acting suggest themrelvca One might comment on her technique, vocal, facial or ft - - v Ing woman of the Boyd Stock company. It Is In prder here to say that she will under take this week and next two more exotics. Beginning today Hiss Lang plays Cigarette In "Under Two Flags," a poor, wild, young thing who gives the last price 0110 can pay, her life, for the object of her love. Next week another supreme sacrifice by another untutored soul, Nat-U-RJch, the Indian girl In "The Squawman." Both characters will affovd test of her ability, and as such are gladly welcomed by her. ' Mr. Harris last night played his last time with the Eva Lang company. He has been a decided success here, but he has pre ferred to sever his connection with the company and to go back to New 1"ork. His passing is sincerely regretted, but the out look ' la excellent that his successor. Mr. Lynch, will fill the vacancy in admirable style. Mr. Harris has done some notable acting tiince his connection with the Boyd began. His John Storm In "The Christian" was a veritable tour-de-force and his play ing of the princeling in "Old Hehlelbers" a characterisation to hold in grateful memory. Lloyd Ingrahavn haa also tains his swan song as a member of I ho company, for he is now Interested in n.lher dramatic work, a school, and will not act publicly for a long time, he hopes. Mr. Ingraham has not this fall duplicated his memorable suice.?. in "Tho Devil." but his playing in char acter parts lias cemented the admiration which many have had fur a ions; time for his acilng. Occasionally he has ben forced out of his metior into straight parts and he has got away with theso pretty well, al though such assignment is rather stiff for a character actor. Mr. Selman, Mr. Evanr, Miss Dubois and Miss Valentine remain with the company. Mr. t-'elman's best opportunity came in "The Lion and ti.e Mouse','.' but he Ii,i.s done many smaller parts than the hlj;li financier with like credit. In "A Woman's Way" he gave a notably easy and smooth light, comedy portrayal of u rich old buy and he as like the real thing, ami neither a lay figure as many an actor would have , been lu the part, nor yet did he give a coi'vcnUonal characterization. Mr. Evans' acting was recently described at some length in lhc?e columns and he may be dismissed by saying that lie Is one of the most deservedly popular actors of the com pany. Miss Dubois, who in real life U Mrs. Selman. also had her best chance in the Buchanan play and achieved recognized success In the unsympathetic role of the gay widow. Mi Valentine has had r.o c.ianee to shine this sea-son as brightly as siie did when she plated Wendy In "peter Pan," but bhe never misses tho mark whether bhe is playing big parts or jupt bits. Site s a rare theatrical bird, an Ingenue who al ways characterizes. .Mostly they play themselves and themselves only. Of thl other m-mh,.ra .,r th ,rtmnunv OUI)ff Mr Wltiier3 cymes to mind. He U comparatively a novice and is yet chiefly assigned to telepathic parts like butiers and footmen. But when lie gets a line lie sends It over and In "Such a Little Queen" had a brief minute, a liny chance, but in which lis acting was so good that it wiil temain in the memory of spectators after almost all the icst of the play has ajne into memorial Umbo. Mr. Fox distinguished himself in "A Woman' Way." playing the reporter as a stage reporter Is almoBt never played some 1 hi ug like a real nettspaptr nan. A4i mnd Kte. "I hope tills expulsion of ours is not go ing to Injure our social vositlon," said Kve, ruefully. "I guess riot," replied Adam. "They can't stop us from being wie of the very first famine, whatever they do." "I don't Had our names hfre in the So cial lie sister," raid i;ke. looking the olume over. "Look under Dilatory Domiciles, my loe." said Adam, as he went out tnd rained the Jackass after hliMself. Harper's H ctUy. 1 r "UnJeiTwxFtzJS I IAY COURTNEY EEUCr AT THE Four Fords Form Family 1 . . . Fairly Fleet-Footed The Four Fordu innocenty furnish Illus tration of the old "wolf" story which appeared in MeGuffey's Fourth Tli-eder or perchance the Fifth Header one's memory grows a little uncertain. Hut most people will remember about the boy who cried "wolf" for a joUe and how the wolves really came at last and made, a choice meal of him. Vaudeville tounis have so long been calling themselves "brothers" or "slaters," that It Is no wonder the public, has ftrown skeptical and is now slow to be- lleve that these two young men and two pretty glrlH are all own brothers and fci"- t'ers, all offspring of the same father and i nother. They really ar; and If you do not iHiieve it. ami 11 you are on ausc;i-j&f turous soul, why )nn;t up .Mrs. 1'ord, the mother of ail. the next time the quartet appears at the Orpheum, tnd usk her about It. Her rejoinder may be tart, but It will be explicit, and it an i 1 1 have an air of rinsing finality. The Four Fords are interesting younr people in many ways; interesting because markedly ambitious for vaudeviliiaus und a most praiseworthy example to others 1 who do not "change their act'' year by ar oi- every two or three years, evtn; interesting again because they are admit tedly at the top of the somewhat nusoi.Ha neoua and diverse vaudeville heap, at the top as respects c'.og darning and bucking and winning; interesting because they are not content to stay there, resting on past laurels; and interesting iu an ethnological way. ' This last because they are tiie cnlldrn of one parent of Irish extraction and the j "ier ' Jewish. This cross is declared to produce the best prize fighters in the world; seemingly, also, it makes for a rather different sort of sjcuess, u.psuh orean grace. It Is curious to note that one brother and one sister most lesernl le one parent and the other girl ai.d jouni; luun j "Lake after'' the o;her Pari.-ons." (ays Percy ancestor, "i.'uni IlammonJ, "are odious, but in the Interest of Information they must be made." The two children who have the more Jewi.-h cast of coun tenance are the best two daneer, vhi.e the other two have the beft fljurca und the bit carriage. The law of compensa tion and of balance was at work here. Mis IHira t oni Is tho handsome, dark haired girl, and ASabel la the pretty blonde. The men are respectively named Max anJ Kdwln and the furiin-r is I tie husband of lovely little Josie Heather, the Lnjlicii character sorqr Mnger, who is also oil the Orpheum circuit. Go back necking fc'i In ten ie-.v Willi the witm .V--. . ' - v. v 7 j? Edward Lynch Xfew Leading Ziaxi Fords and look first for the men, - and whichever one Is found will say: "If you don't mind, would you as lief talk to my sisters? They talk better than we do." Also It may be said In passing that,; being girls, they are easier to look at, but . tho noteworthy fact here Is that the male part of the family is eager that the fem inine half Hhali be the part exploited by, publicity rather than Itself. " ; When the Misses Ford determined to at tempt a Greek dance this season, they spent many weeks during the summer., studying at the University of California at : Berkeley, and In the Greek theater, ' where Margaret AngUn recently gave; "Klektra," they studied with a grave and -reverend professor. Thus they Inspired atmosphere as, well as concrete erudjthjn, and thus they made themselves ready for an archaeologically correct interpretation of KaUHlcaa'a scene with her maidens Just before Ulysaea hid behind the mulberry bush. Dora and Mabel Ford are now working on another classical dance, which will iive hint of Ceres and Pomona and tho fecun dity of mother earth. They are at this with the same care, even the scholarship with which they approached the Nauslcaa theme, and the result will be as artistic and as vcristlc an the Od,vcy dance. One wishes them well.' They are better than graceful, better than pretty; they are In earnest. MME. HOMER MODEL MOTHER Graud Opera Mna-er Fittingly f ast In UlurW'a Aruiide" at the 31e tropolltan. It seems fitting that Mine. Louise Homer, the American contralto, who was so superb In last year's revival of Gluek'a "Orfeo and Eurydlee," should figure prominently In the revival of the same composer's "Armlde." It Is one thing to Fee Mme. Homer ou the stage In all the voluptuous beauty of Am ncrlR in "Aidn." aa the evil old witch in "Hansel and Crete!," as the godlike Orfoo and the weather-beaten Aauccna, and quite another to see her as the Mme. Homer of every-day life womanly, gracious, sympa thetic and inteiexted In many things that lie out:.dc the. rphere of a prima donna. In her own drawing room, which is ( ei;t ntially a sinner's salon, with big ! r paces through which a voice may ring ) unhampered by excessive draperies and the j listener may hear undisturbed by petty j hrlo-a-brac or frivolous decoration. Mm?. ! Uoriur is a ha fining hostess, who speuks herself with commendable modesty and ' reluctance. "Tho preparation for 'Armidc' lias buen delightful," she ."aid in response to inquiries about the new opera. "My own role is brief that of Hate but it Is by no meamj an asy role to portray. In fact, all of the principal role present difficulties, which ! may account for the infiequency with which tho opera I? presented. "For In- stance. U. e barytono role of Hidraot, the ; magician and klnt; of Damascus, la a cruel ; role to sink -Vr. Amato slnxs it beautifully. I but I cannot think that the fre.oiennv the high Ki and Fs will make it a com- fortable ptrformance to sing often. My own musio Uc-.i mostly in tne upper part of the voice. Really. It sounds more like a ! role for soprano than a contralto. "But 'Armlde.' like all of Gluck's music, is very beautiful. He is a composer to whom I, and all ope:atlc contraltos, owe a ! debt of gratituOe. for he gave us In Orfeo j a leading role and one, moreover, that Is j sympathetic throughout, tmc unfortunate j thlnt for a contralto is that fhe must so often appear as an evil character or as a ! secondary one. "Another trading lole for contralto is Delilah iu tiia ;aint-Saens opera. I hope some time to have an opportunity to appear in that character in Nee. York. Willi two such rulea for contralto 1 think modern composer my be Inspired to v. lite leading . . . ... ,. , , ' "" " i.aiiHiuc auuve the grand piano seeni-U to smile approval from his frame. "One ltarna to be humble in appioa. li- ing a master vurk like 'Armlde.'" Mine. Homer continued. "We talk much about llie inWrn in K,-l i l n ni.a l,u n,,.,u.rni ,., , ,, payi hologtcal school, sonictimes as tliouuli we were tne nrst to cumpiehend suc.i things. And theu we take lip an op 1 a .110. c tndii a century old tj find pjsslu.i ; One i f 2Hr Raymond Pa.We ' ai the KruQ like love and hat symbolised In human form, and are led ttill further back to the fabulous east or to the ancient Greek world, where such things were matters of every day understanding. As the Joet Yeats says' 'AH the august sorrowful persons of literature, Cassandra and Helen and Dltrdre and Lear and Tristan, have come out of legends and are Indeed but the Images of the primitive imagination mirrored in the litle looking glass of the modern and classic Imagination.' " And the introduction of Yeats Into Mme. Homer's talk also brings in her husband, Sidney Hcmer, tho composer, who has been setting some of tho Yeats poems. Mme. Homer fpeaks with enthusiasm of her husband's songs, and It is easy to see that ehu has Inspired many of them and has helped him in his selection of those re markable poems by modern writers in which he hax been so successful and which sin tang fur tho MacDowcll club last year. Mr. Homer lets his songs get Into print vcty slowly. I remember one In particular which I thought complete years ago, but he is nut satisfied with It evan now, and hcM'i it back for .further revision. It was v. l itli n let me sec six, 110, seven years aao. Yes. It must be seven, becauso Louise was 0 years old at that time, and she is now 1.'." It is a picturesque way for a prima donna to count time. Not by her debut or I hf '.' many operatic triumphs does Mme. Hoincr reckon, but by mure tender and wcinanly associations. F.vents In her Ilonur household date from the day when the twins were a year old. or when the sec ond baby came. The general ideu o7 prima donnas, who live ti make advantageous i marriages of commercial suit, or who lappiaiso belted carls in language more forcible than polite, must lie revii-ed in the light of Mine. Homer's arithmetic. At that moment the domestic local color is deepened bv a glimpse through the por tieres of the Hoinen man servant trundling a double baby carriage through the I. all, that the Homer twins, the youngest of the ringer's four children, may have their daily Ollllllg. Mr.ie. Homer is led to ta:k of American singi'i.', and again shown her sympathetic nai a: e : ".Mr. llumer a;.l I, oil our way to catch Uiu si arner fur home last t-unriier, sl ipped ovei,ii;ht r.t Cologne, where we suw "Tris tan und Isolde" billed. So we spent the cvrn.ni lirleiiin:j to one of our iavorlta upeian, on ti e principle of t lie engineer who, v. hen lie l.aj a day to himself, went around to see other engineers I per.orma.iee was not very inu r- , estir.g until iing aiaru made bis anneal - I ance. Then we sal up He was a t ill dignified singe, with a superb voice! Never had we heard the role sung better. ' I lookeil at the rrcgram.' It read 'Koenlg i Mark- Hubert pai Iter.' i'u.. i . V 1 111 vuuuiu m.u 1 -...ft i,n i Mirny an Aiuriicau, i,iiiiiui u h,h 11 i--,- otnnnr. taid. "Let us co back on the iu UnM ( """ reason the.,- M) n,.. 1 t II liiui liow much wo cnjujid Ids ' f ui maiii e." per- i HIJtIlT GlLlitJKT WKl.Sll ' ' i' v': vc v' i Cv ,S.V-cN i in," -K' .. 0 rom zianos at- She Pavlova's Trip to Coast ! is Stellar Affair When Pavlova and Murdkine come to the Brandeis December 8 they will be sup ported by a company of eighty people. Tho Queen of the Dance and her masculine compatriot and co-star could easily pads the house by themselves, but the other eighty people are thrown In for extra good measure. The tour of these world-renowned Kua fian dancers, premiere und premier, re spectively, of the Impeiiul St. Petersburg and Moscow ballets, Is a theutiicul jaunt which would be In a cIumn by Itself this year were it not for the trip of the Illus trious French actress w ho In no playing: in America. But even if the divine Saralt Is traversing the country, tho trip of the two ItuKMlans la in no wise eclipsed. Pavlova has incited dramatic reviewers to throw even more rhapsodical and ecntat- j leal throes than they threw over Genee, while Isadora Duncan and Maude Allen , are relegated to the background. Omaha, gets Pavlova only 0110 night, and thoueh j many will be unable to secure seatn who would like to attend, ct Omaha may count Itself lucky that we have ev 11 a fugitive ono-niKht peep at theso marvels of tho dancing art. Tile supporting company and the orches- ' j tra are reputed, probably with truth, to lie worthy of accompanying Puvlova. This I little Itussian dancer took vn, i hv storm w iien she uppeared at the Mctrouoll- tan grand opera In New York last spring and reduced a JIOO.IMJ prospective deficit on the opera reason Into u golden sum on the credit sid;; of the opt ra ledger. New York wnt mud uhout her, as St. Peters burg did before New lurk, Omaha Is more than likely to join in the furore. Pavlova, dances here this one night en route to tho Pacific coast. Not many cltie between Chicago and San Francisco aie Included, but Omaha Is one of these. Hush. boen maligned for many and pi-mien bnw been jestti ami gihei until the t lie thought uf them. Hash l.cs years. Hash worked li.tu world laughs. Prunes) eie takiiiK their 1 llaful place lu our social economy, I, ciuu.se tile prune Kronen have uirtiifuil d f'i mlcl them Hut, as to l.agu. heretofore there hs been none so poor hs to do It reverence iiasu is one of the reel delicacies at j life when properly mad" Only i.ouuU I who lmvo been liiir'ied l,y icudiiiif mail .clous Jikes about I II 1 Mll, n. I I, i I . which i'li hi; c ',si., of all the odds and rnda about the lioiisc. In muuu faun , ,es. when i.iij ihlr,K U bt , from a pull I "I hi issor.s to an unhc. ti,,.v i,.,! i., I'1 '" ""' bush. j ne1uri,ib"'co!m.o;i..d ' of 'wtUJ ' meat, diced potatoes, piled onlorm un ' M,:'5 " "I'fltiklnig uf carrot. ae.tuitiH i J'? l'V nV.''," 1 " ' " '!'"' ,u '" ''"" I e. .. , . u,," iKi (' UUil.lpI,, llll I l.,e. now IV, lh tne ouuu Wolile have been ,-d to liellce t . i ct t liMHil li ' IU' i luiiioliie ie.ul. j uan. uiii' I su.pii.tt., jail'i toUMcrs. t-i,luu i'uaU .Mole llll.ntl. luoit' 1 bieu.r