Salt Lake Herald-Republican | 1913-09-21 | Page 38 | The New Plays

c f. f If 1 5 I Th The e N New ew Pi Plays ays I II I I By Chrales Darnton I r I t i JOHN DREWS DREW'S LEGS NOT NOTi i MADE FOR SHAKESPEARE MUCH ADO DISAPPOINTS rr r lJ some soma om thin things s come too late In S T THAT life WI was regrettably apparent nt atthe at the Umpire Empire theatre when JohnDrew John JohnDrew JohnDrew his long for Drew was S opportunity lo to act ad In Much uch Ado About Nothing Sorry ns RS I am to fa lay zay It it the time iia has ha c evidently prone gone when heti Mr Dr Drew w In spite of or hi Ins his fine tine record us I comedian should play oneS oncI one I S of r Shakespeare's Sh s 's merr merry gentlemen lust Just why Mr 11 Drew sh should uld have ha s set et ethI t this lIi hI his heart upon this particular excursion ex cx- cc- cc cur lon into the realms of classic comedy comI com corn I I td edy only onh he perhaps can sa say for It itS S must be bt cun confessed d that Much Ado S with its ils artificial plot an and unconvincing lug ing story ston ha has dreary wastes lighted l' l only by flashes In the duel of wits bei be- be i t n Beatrice and Benedick Properly acted it has of course the redeeming S quality of robust vitality that atones for Its shortcomings In th the eyes of or a ai i mo modern audience Unfortunately h that vitality together with breezy es self teem a a. sort ort of gentlemanly swagger swaggerS S and antI ft n quick sense e o of fun futi was vas wasI I missing 11 In III Mr Ir Drews Drew's performance In Inthe Inthe inthe the first act there wa was little IUle and no distinction In hJ ba badinage with HIt the tho masquerade scene Then too all nil legs s cs-s are arc not made mado for Shakespeare 1 In Inthe Inthe Inthe the garden scone scene where Benedick be beS becomes becomes be- be S comes the victim of or the Joko played upon him Mr Drew Diew was more success success- ful uI But nut he was as best of all nil when re reS recounting recounting re- re counting cO the charms of Beatrice Beatrice- Here S ho did n a capital capita bit of ot acting catching the the spirit of or his role perfectly Later however Cl he ho was wa placed place at a disadvantage disadvantage tage b by what seemed to be Inventions S of the tIle devil Certain Certainly they were not But If tho Benedick was a disappointment disappoint disappoint- ment tho the Beatrice o of Miss of-Miss Miss Laura Hope Hop Crows CroW's was wn a more marc than agreeable sur sur- prise Miss oller Crews t entered Into th the thc of the pIa play at once and acted with It variety and technical skill From Irom the scene In which she ho flouted Benedick to tho the one in the thel l church hurl h where Beatrice bids hm hin kill Claudia Claudie she mado made ever every lh line tell teli If IfS S her Ilor Interpretation lack something in exuberant quality nature anti and not Miss U Crews Crew was at fault raulL In two tso scenes only it seemed seamed to me she erred In her heT COJi- COJi con Coil At the end of or the second act In bidding Benedick come conic to dinner cr she was mincing not to sa say snippy and altogether too modern In manner while willIe Iii in the third act when Beatrice hears that Benedick loves her she played the tho scene acetic too lightly lIghth And too faintly In the church hurh scene scene all the theS S splendid pl fi acting Ung possibilities of the role i 1 hh n u. u L LJ n 0 suit stilt that the th character became a n living liv liv- S ing eager cager hearted big woman It was wasS washer S her night ht In iii every er sense and the au audI l- l erme J 1st t her know It time and again Frank Kemble Cooper as Don Pedro and H Henry nl Stephenson on as read their Hues lines well though Mr grew rc A bit hit stodgy at nt times and Mr Jr became a trifle tame in the last act The of Herbert Druce was on only amusing I Fred re Eric save gave e a Claudio CIl more than youth Miss Mias Mary lar Boland Bohand looked lovely lovely love love- ly h as Hero but her voice oleo was ugly us The Tue production was In good taste so IIO far as costuming went though Mr S Drew Drew's wi wig b by no means added to the bc beauty ut of or the scenes