Identifier: ArenaMagazine-Volume40 (find matches)
Title: Arena magazine - Volume 40
Year: 1908 (1900s)
Authors: B.O. Flower (ed.)
Subjects: Progressivism -- United States liberalism reformism social reform Christian Socialism Gay 90s political commentary Benjamin Orange Flower Progressive era social gospel
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nd melodrama and, except ininstances where Rodion dominated thescene, it was lacking in Russian atmos-phere. The ending especially, whenRodion is depicted as becoming con-verted to religion through the repeatingof the Lords Prayer by a pretty younggirl was so crude and contrary to Russianrevolutionary character and so plainly aconcession to the conventionalties, thatit came dangerously near swamping Mr.Sotherns work with ridicule. Nothingso irritatingly inane and untrue as thiscould have been devised to recklesslyinvite disaster for any play. The wonderis that Mr. Sothern did not himself per-ceive this. He followed this with a productionDon Quixote, a dramatization ofCervantes novel by Paul Kester. Mr.Sothern*s art never reached a higherpoint than in his delineation of the oldknight-errant, who, like many doughtyheroes of to-day who fight to maintaintheories germane only to a past age, wentforth to perpetuate chivalry when the age Digitized by VjOOQLC The Notable Plays of a Season. 23
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(ACT III.—THE WITCHING HOUR. Russ Whytal as Judge Prentice, John Mason as Jack Brookfield and George Nash as Frank Hardmuth.) of chivalry was dead. All the sublimecourage, the misplaced idealism, thesincere faith, the indomitable spirit ofjustice, the reckless espousal of the weakagainst the strong, the single-hearteddevotion to his fair lady, Dulcinea—allthese elements which were so crystalizedin the person of Cervantes creation wereindicated by the actor with a rare sym-pathy, a charming quaintness and instinc-tive sensitiveness that touched the heart.For while you laughed at the mishapsinto which Quixotes enthusiasm led him,you did not laugh at him. We all haveour ideals—they are all we have worthliving for—and they, too, suffer whenbrought into direct contact with the rude,practical world as Quixotes ideals suf-fered. And when the dreams born ofour ideals are dissipated we may wellwish to pass as did he, broken-heartedand alone, among his dusty tomes. It is not clear why Bert

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