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Show A Startling Production. Not so very long ago, before eminent theologians found their time engaged by the task of tearing to tatters various traditions tradi-tions of Christianity, the drama could not have marched f ' r into theological territory without meeting stern challenge. The defenders de-fenders of the faith must be very busy now, however, ior the glare of the footlights is being turned on most sacred things and not a word has been heard from the pulpit. "The Christian," with its frank discussion discus-sion of the ways of the English clergy, has paved the way for "The Eternal City," in which the Pope will be represented in the flesh, while "Ben Hur," 'in which the presence pres-ence of the Savior of mankind was 'indicated 'indi-cated by a white calcium light, has made possible "Mary of Magdala," in which the personality of Christ will be a prominent factor in a dramatic love story. Miss Viola Allen's venture in "The Eternal City'" will be watched during the next theatrical season sea-son with an interest that will be exceeded only by that in Mrs. Fiske's appearance as the woman who wept at the tomb of Jesus. It is all the more surprising that nothing noth-ing has been said in protest against these coming productions in view of the trouble caused by the project to present the "Passion "Pas-sion Play" in New York. When Salmi Morse undertook the task twenty years ago the clergy united against him and the power of the city administration was used without stint to defeat him. So bitter was the campaign cam-paign that he finally drowned himself in the Hudson River. When it was proposed to bring the "Passion Play" from Montreal during the season just ending there was every evidence that the experiment, would have similar results. The Lamb's club was almost disrupted because it gave in private a few tableaux from Clay M. Green's "Nazareth," into which the person of Jesus was not introduced. Mrs Fiske wisely takes the position that her new play is in no sense related to the famous Oberammergau drama. She holds that it is not religious, but strictly historical. his-torical. It is an American version of a drama by Paul Heyse, the dean of the German Ger-man playwrights. Mr. Heyse left this work until he was in his final years of activity. He has been a disciple of the German leaders lead-ers of liberal thought on religious matters and has echoed their views of the events surrounding the death of Christ. He has made use of only two Biblical characters in his drama. They are Mary of Magdala, the Mary Magdalene of the New Testament, and Judas lscariot. Both will cause no end of discussion, both because of their intrepretation from a dramatic standpoint stand-point and the bearing of that interpretation upon the life and character of Christ. Mary is first presented as a profligate, a woman of wealth seeking to pass her life in the enjoyment of the pleasurs of the world. Sold into slavery in her youth, her parents lost, she has nothing to bind her to the conventions of society. Her master in Magdala was wealthy and to her was left his wealth. Her ways become the scandal of Jerusalem and the populace determines to drive her forth from its gates. She is pursued by a mob which would stone her except for the intervention of one who goes to her aid and faces her tormentors, repeating repeat-ing the words of "the Master," "Let him that is without sin cast the first stone." To this deliverer Mary turns, lavishing upon him her love. Though "the Master" does not appear it is shown in the next scene that the profligate woman has come under his influence. His presence and nature na-ture awakens her spiritual nature, so long unrecognized in her life, and after long Continued on page io. A Startling Production. Continued from Page 6, struggle she turns from the old ways and devotes herself to the service of the one who thus regenerates her. She turns also from the one who saved her from the mob and therein lies a dramatic story of passion. It is all very human. It is scarcely different in its vital elements from "A Modern Magdalen" Mag-dalen" in which Miss Amelia Bingham is now appearing, and I think there will be just a little thrill over the man Christ, when he is shown as one upon whom a woman's spiritual love is bestowed. Judas Iscariot appears as the deliverer of Mary and afterwards in very human guise as one who hates "the Master" who deprived hiin of the love of a woman. Judas is drawn in broad lines that pay no heed to the Biblical tradition of a bribe with thirty pieces of silver. He is a Hebrew patriot, one who is fired with the traditions of his race, who believes in the ancient prophecies of the coming of a Messiah to make the Israelites supreme throughout the earth, and who longs to give his life to the cause. He is not a man of peace and humility. His ambition is not for an Israelite kingdom in which long suffering and love for enemies shall be ruling characteristics. His dream is of a martial Israel which shall inarch over its enemies and grind them as they have ground his people. This proud man has been drawn to the standard of "the Master" in the belief that in time this visitor is to throw off his cloak of humility, overthrow the Romans and lead Israel to battle. He fumes under the re- I straints put upon him and finally turns in bitterness against the one to whom he had given allegiance. His anger finds vent when this "Master" takes from him the woman whose love he craves and he turns and denounces de-nounces the Christ as a false prophet and helps to feed the malignity of the crowd. It is all very daring thus to build a drama about the life of Christ, 'it is in consonance, con-sonance, however, with the march of the liberal theologians. One by one they are tearing up the traditions that have been the bulwark of the Christian church. They have been making plainly human all the persons whom we had invested with spiritual spiritu-al natures so potent that they were awful to contemplate. To present Christ as one who might be the object of a very human jealousy, jeal-ousy, will certainly be a stride past their furthest advances, but it will be no more than mathematical progression applied to their own ideas. In "The Eternal City" the Pope will be presented in fashion that will cause discussion. discus-sion. A Pope with a son, even though that son were born before he entered the priesthood, priest-hood, is a conception worthy of Mr. Hall Caine's daring. Just before his novel was published Mr. Caine said to a friend, "My book will be out soon. I am going to Norway Nor-way for a few months. You know there are no newspapers there." He knew he was bound to provoke a lot of criticism and Liebler & Co., his managers, and Miss Allen are fully aware of the chances of adverse judgment in their stage venture. The strongest scenes of the book will be in the play and in one of them the Pope will be the dominant figure. Liebler & Co., depend upon the great heart interest and the dignity digni-ty of the character to mak it acceptable to Catholics. If nothing else should develope during the next theatrical season, and there is small chance of anything startling, these two plays will make history on the American Ameri-can stage. Their success will be bound, to - have a marked effect upon the relations of the drama to matters of religion. |