Life — April 25, 1895 — page 13: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Professor Smith; 1 WONDEK WHAT THIS BRILLIANT MICRO- SCOPIC OBJECT WITH WINGS AND ANTENNA CAN BE—LET ME EXAMINE IT ER THE MICROSCOPE —— “AM, IT IS MY ELDEST DAUGHTER'S NEW BONNET.” The cast of the piece is admirable, almost beyond belief. The excellencies are so many that it is difficult to discriminate, but there is no question that Mr. Lackaye's Svengals is the great triumph of the production. It is natur- ally a part that lends itself readily to the art of the character actor, but most character actors would have made of it a burlesque. Mr. Lackaye gives it a serious interest which is even more serious than that with which the author of the book surrounds it. His death scene is the most effective we have ever seen. His work has defects—but they are comparatively unimportant and could be pointed out only in a longer study than this. Miss Harned is far from shocking our ideal of 7réby. which is high praise, indeed. The Zou Zou of Mr. Dietrichstein is an ex- cellent bit, as are the Taffy and Lasrd of Mr. McIntosh and Mr. Glendinning. The Little Billee of Mr. Hickman is disappointing, but largely because, even in the author's creation, he is almost an impossible character. People who have never read the book would find the play an interesting one. Those who have readt, find their ideals of reading turned into flesh and blood. This is a unique experience and means great success for the play. But the basis of the whole remarkable carcer of “ Trilby ” is the elementary fact that its author took the simplest, most easily understood emotions of the human SVENGALI (Mr, Lackave) mind and dealt with them as only a genius could. Again, we say that this highly successful Metcalfe. HIS CULINARY AMBITION. S6-7 FEEL that I could live on love,” The sentimental maiden sighed. “*Do let me be your caterer,” The gallant youth replied. dramatization is the highest tribute to its intrinsic greatness that the book could have unless its pictured characters could step out into real life and walk and talk with us. A NEAT TURN OUT,