Liebelei
5. I box 11/2
Sser As-##1
THE NEW YORK DRAMATIC MIRROR
Berkeley Lyceum—The Reckoning.
Play, in three acts, by Arthur Schnitzler; Eng¬
lish translation by Grace Isabel Colbron. Pro¬
15
duced Feb. 12. (Robert Hunter, manager.)
Fritz Sommer John Dean
8
Theodore Kaiser Robert Conness
Mitzi Schlaeger Phyllis Rankin
Christine Wehring . Katherine Grey
A Gentleman Albert Bruning
4
Mrs. Catherine Binder Sarah MeVickar
Hans Wehring George Henry Trader
Superb acting saves this play from being tire-P
some, and makes a visit to the little theatre
fullv worth while. The drama belongs to thef?
modern Continental school, in which the play¬
wright assumes the province of teacher rather
than that of storyteller, and emotions super¬
sede actions. It is not a problem play or a lec¬
ture on ethics, but it has a lesson for its purpose
and a novel excuse of a moral fault for its eccen¬
tricity—both purpose and eccentricity being
tenets of the aforesaid Continental school of
playwriting. Arthur Schnitzler, the author, is
one of the younger German dramatists, already
with a reputation in his own country and in
Austria. This particular plav is said to be pop¬
ular in Berlin and Vienna. It was done in Eng¬
lish by the Progressive Stage Society on Feb. 19,
1905, under the title of Flirtation, a more lit¬
eral though less expressive rendering of the Ger¬
man title, Liebelei. The same version was used
then as now. It is a complete translation, with
the vernacular of the original changed into Eng¬
lish, or rather, American, idiom. The plot in de¬
tail was published in Tnn Miknon at the time
of the first production.
Briefiy rehearsed, the story is this: Fritz
Sommer, a voung dragoon, carries on a flirtation
with Christine Wehring, the daughter of an old
violinist. Christine has fallen completely in love
with Fritz and innocently believes the young
man’s love for her is as complete. Fritz, how¬
Tever, has a more serlous liasen with a married
woman about whom Christine knows nothing.
The husband of this woman discovers his wife's
infidelity and challenges Fritz. A duel is ar¬
ranged and the young man is killed. Theodore,
his friend, tells Christine, but net until he has
told all of Fritz’s relatives; not until the young
man is buried, in fact. Christine then reallzes
how small a blace she held in her lover’s regard.
She demands to be taken to bis greve, and when
she is reminded that she may find another
woman praying there, she goes #lone to kill her¬
self. Her old father, who nas understood her
and forgiven her, is left alone, ré#lizing that he,
too, has made a mistake. The philosophy of the
father is the“ eccentricity“ pertalning to mod¬
ern Continental dramas. All his life he has
guarded from danger his dowerless sister, who
(Continued from page 3.)
died a virtnous, joyless spinster into whose life
no sort of happiness had ever come. When he
discovered his daughter’s liason with Fritz, long
before she told him, he determined that her light
should contain some Joy even at the cost of her
ingocence. The“ lesson“ of the dramatist linds
its exposition in the consequences of the father’s
philesophy as well as the tragedy of the daugh¬
ter’s ignorance.
Both the individual acting and the“ team
plar,to use a sporting term, deserve the high¬
Pest praise. Katherine Grey as Christine exhibits
unexpected emotional strength. During the first
act she indicates by her manner rather than her
speeches, Christine’s approaching disillusionment.
#ier scenes with Fritz in the second act are full
of spontancity, and her simulation of unselfish,
unreserved love is excellently done. In the last
art, however, Miss Grey rises to the highest type
of emotional acting—represssed passionate grief.
When Christine learns of Fritz’s death and as
the realization of her inferior place in his af¬
Pfections comes to her with enmulative force, the
actress becomes almost terrible in the intensity
of her acting.
Phyllis Rankin gives a verv satisfring por¬
trayal of a Vienna grisette, Theedore’s sweet¬
heart, who has had too many love affairs to
take ang one of them serionsly. Sarah Me¬
Vickar as a prudish, gossiping housewife is also
very good, though ner performance###fthe role
is along commonplace lines. John Dean is gen¬
erally satisfzing in the role of Fritz. The char¬
acter in less skillful hands might be made a cad
or worse, but as Mr. Dean plays it there is noth¬
ing more dishonorable than carelessness depicted.
Robert Conness is well fitted with the part of
Theodore and plays it finelg. Albert Bruning
as the deceived husband is on the stage only a
few moments during the ürst act. but his acting
is well nigh flawless. George Henrv Trader as
Christine’s father has an opportunity to show
what an artist he is in both acting and make-up.
It would be hard forthe most captions to lind
a fault in his work, even on the closest analysis.
The play is well staged, with evident care for
minute details. Taken altogether, it forms an
interesting and profitable entertainment that is
unfortunately likely to prove caviare to the the¬
atregoer hunting amusement.
NEW YORK DRAMATIC NEWS—February 23, 1007.
—
The Keckoning.
Offered at the Berkeley Lyceum Theatre Feb.
12.
A three-act drama by Arthur Schnitzier.
Production by Robert Hunter.
Fritz Sommer... John Lean
Theodore Kalser Robert Conness
Mitzi Schlaeger Phyllis Rankin
Christine Wehring Katherine Grey
A Gentleman Albert Bruning
Mrs. Catherine Binder Sarah MeVickar
Hans Wehring George Henry Trader
Some time ago there was produced at
the Irving Place Theatre a play called
Liebeli, which has finally found its way u
to the English stage, through the medium
of Robert Hunter, who offered it at the ##
Berkeley Lyceum Theatre last Tuesday
night. Its English name is The Reckon¬
ing, and it was very well staged by Fred¬
Ferick Sullivan and Gustave von Seyffer¬
Stitz, who was connected with Mr. Con¬
ried’s forces at the German Theatre for
eseveral years. With a meagre plot, scarce¬
ly any semblance at all of a story, the#
play was skilfully handled by a company
Sof excellence. It is merely a tale of a
girl who loves above her station, to find
her hero involved in a love affair with a
married woman, subsequently being killed
in a duel with the husband. It is a play
where you have to draw a great deal upon
imagination, for in the first two acts
things move very slowly, and it is only
the distress of the young girl over her
lover’s actions, his hasty departure to
death, which made matters interesting in
the third act.
The story tells of two young bachelors,
who entertain a pair of young ladies in
their quarters. One of the girls is friv¬
olous, the other is a sort of emotional
creature who is madly infatuated with
one young man who, while he professes
to be fond of her, has had an intrigue
with another woman. During a supper
party the husband of this woman arrives
and returns some letters, with the under¬
standing that they are to meet upon the
field of honor. The ladies are sent home,
and this closes the first act.
The second act shows the quarters of
the heroine, where the story further pro¬
gresses with no particular object, and the
third act is where things begin to hap¬
pen. The end of all of it is a tale of too
much confidence in a scapegoat. Kather¬
ine Grey, who played the heroine, had her
opportunity in this act, and developed as
an emotional actress of some quality.
Those who remember the strong scene she
had with W. H. Crane in Business is Busi¬
ness, will find equally as clever work in
this play, and she was rewarded with sev¬
Veral curtain calls. John Dean, who has
never been conspienous by any great
amount of work, played the hero in a
very good fashion, and a fine character
study was that of the old musician,
handled by George Henry Trader, Rob¬
ert Conness, a very graceful actor, has the
making of a fine light comedian, and
Phyllis Rankin, as well as Sarah Me¬
Vickar, made much of their parts.
Mr. Hunter is to be praised for staging
the play quite appropriately, considering
the meagre facilities at the Berkeley Ly¬
ceum, and if The Reckoning never gets
beyond New York there is some satisfac¬
tion in knowing that goed acting can
sometimes aid a poor drama.