Hall, a drama by W. S. Gilbert. His tenure was brief as it was unfortunate. Mrs. Langtry held the house for a short time, and produced As You Like It and Esther Sandraz. But the old fatality seemed to have fallen back upon the St. James's until the advent of George Alexander, in February, 1891.

Commencing with a going success, brought from the Avenue, Sunlight and Shadow, following it up with Haddon Chambers's clever drama The Idler and Lady Windermere's Fan-the first of those brilliant comedies by Oscar Wilde, that promised another Sheridan, for such sparkling dialogue had not been heard on the stage since The School for Scandal, the new manager made a splendid start. Later on he gave another whimsical piece by the same author, The Importance of Being Earnest, which has been recently revived. Both were very much to the public taste. Liberty Hall, a pretty bit of Dickensonian domesticity, in which Marion Terry and Edward Righton acted so finely, did not prepare the public for the thunderbolt which was shot upon the Philistines from the stage of St. James's by Mr. Pinero on that May night in 1893, when The Second Mrs. Tanqueray first saw the footlights. It was certainly one of the most sensational first nights within living memory; the daring of the play, the extraordinary powers revealed by Mrs. Patrick Campbell, who, until then, had been regarded only as a competent actress, literally electrified audience and critics. "The greatest play of the century," was the artistic verdict. most immoral production that has ever disgraced the English stage!" was the whine of the Philistine. Controversy raged between the two parties, clergymen made Mrs. Tanqueray their text; but the work was so great, the acting so striking, curiosity so eager, that the public

"The

filled the theatre to overflowing, and Mr. Alexander's courage in accepting a play that even so broad-minded a manager as Mr. Hare feared to undertake was fully justified at the time, and yet more emphatically since. The part has been played by Jane Hading and Duse, studied by Sarah Bernhardt for production, and repeated again and again by Mrs. Campbell.

To the morality that is founded only upon supposed ignorance of vice, which, by putting a white handkerchief over an ulcerous sore, can persuade itself that the sore does not exist, Mrs. Tanqueray is an abomination. But to those who hold that exposure is warning, that it is better for the young to know the pitfalls in the path of life than blindly to stumble into them and be lost in the depths, it is a profoundly moral play. I was standing at the back of the pit one afternoon and heard two young men, evidently of reputable position, discussing the piece. "Well," remarked one, "I tell you this, if I had any connection with a woman like Paula Tanqueray, after seeing this play, I should cut her." So it was a moral to at least one person.

The Masqueraders, by H. A. Jones, which followed, clever as it was, did not enjoy a long run, perhaps because Mrs. Campbell failed as Dulcie Larondie, and Mr. Alexander's next striking success, early in the year 1896, was The Prisoner of Zenda, in which Evelyn Millard gave so beautiful an impersonation of the Princess. Plays followed by Pinero, The Princess and the Butterfly, 1897, an exquisite bit of work, but too subtle and refined for a general success; The Conquerors, 1898, evoked much disapprobation; Haddon Chambers's The Awakening was admirably acted by Fay Davis, Gertrude Kingston, and all concerned; Mrs. Craigie's The Folly of Being Wise, exceedingly

clever, but not convincing; E. V. Esmond's The Wilderness, in which Eva Moore was delightful both as a comédienne and an emotional actress, and Alexander was at his very best, which is very good indeed. Rupert of Hentzau did not rival the success of The Prisoner of Zenda, while of the revivals of As You Like It, Much Ado about Nothing, the glory was to the costumier and the scene-painter rather than to the actors. The Kendals played a season in 1898, and made a great hit with The Elder Miss Blossom, in which Mrs. Kendal showed to greater advantage than she had for some time past, in a very fine and pathetic performance.

The notable event of 1902 was the production, on a most magnificent scale, of Stephen Phillips's beautiful poetic play, Paolo and Francesca. But it must be

admitted the acting left much to be desired. Alexander was out of his element as the hunchbacked Giovanni; Miss Millard lacked freshness as the heroine, in fact, she was a little too staid; the rest of the caste indifferent.

If I were King opened the autumn season. With all its absurdities and perversions of history it was a capital piece of stagecraft, and most admirably acted, from the principal down to the smallest parts; the stage management was perfect, the mise en scène beautiful. Never has Alexander acted with more charm and abandon than he threw into Villon in the first act; a very striking performance was that of Miss Suzanne Sheldon, as Huguette.

In Old Heidelberg, his latest production, Mr. Alexander astonished his admirers by his youthful make-up; he contrived to cast off the years between youth and middle age, and appear as a veritable boy in look and word and action. I do not know when I have been so charmed as

by the simple beauty, so fresh, so unstrained, so pathetic, of the love scenes between Ulrich and Katie, the latter so delightfully acted by Miss Eva Moore, who in the early acts reminded me of Marie Wilton in her best days, as no other actress has ever yet recalled the inimitable Polly Eccles. I could not pay her a higher compliment.

Mr. E. S. Willard, after a very long absence in the States, has held the theatre during the lessee's absence with a play by Louis N. Parker, The Cardinal, which he brought with him from America, and has proved a

success.

The St. James's auditorium was entirely reconstructed in 1900; it is now one of the handsomest houses in town, and shares with His Majesty's the distinction of being the highest-class theatre in London. The only advantage the latter can claim over its rival is that it works upon a larger scale.

D

CHAPTER IV

The Princess's, 1840-1900-The Great Shakespearian Revivals.

URING the early years of the nineteenth century

there stood upon the north side of Oxford Street, not far from the Circus, a building called the Queen's Bazaar, used for the sale of fancy and miscellaneous goods. Burned down in 1829, it was rebuilt for exhibition purposes. Soon afterwards Hamlet, the noted silversmith, whose shop, at the corner of Sidney's Alley, Leicester Square, was a fashionable lounge for the jeunesse dorée, conceived the idea of transforming the place into a theatre, which was opened on October 5th, 1840.

That its construction had occupied some time is evident from a line in the announce-bill stating that permission to call it the Princess's had been obtained from the Queen previous to her accession to the throne; the public was also informed that "this new and elegant theatre was fitted up with a style and splendour never before equalled in this country." The first entertainments given within its walls were Promenade Concerts, the prices being one and two shillings. These were continued for some months with indifferent success; and it was not until December 26th, 1842, after undergoing considerable alterations, that the building was opened. for opera, varied by light dramatic pieces. The bill was La Sonnambula, sung by Madame Garcia, Weiss, Temple