STORY OF THE PLAY
What a fascinating, little butterfly this Peggy Admaston was!
To Roderick Collingwood she was the most fascinating woman in the world. Peggy was the wife of the Rt. Hon. George Admaston, M.P., a strong-minded man, who took a stern view of life, and regarded politics as the one thing worth living for. George Admaston was many years older than his wife, and she felt her youth and natural gaiety cramped by her marriage. She was thoughtless, indifferent to conventionalities, and flippant. Men loved her, and she loved their admiration. Roderick Collingwood had come into her life, and he had thought that Peggy returned the love he bore for her. But while she liked him and encouraged his attentions, the idea of a stronger feeling towards him never entered her foolish little head.
Now a trip to Switzerland had been arranged between four friends, Lord Ellerdine, Lady Atwill, Roderick Collingwood, and Peggy Admaston. Collingwood schemed that he and Peggy should become separated from their friends, and they found themselves at the Hotel des Tuileries, Paris, alone. Believing it to be an accident, Peggy thought little of the affair until Collingwood entered her sitting-room just after midnight, when her maid had gone to bed, and made violent love to her. Then, and only then, did foolish Peggy' realise her mistake. To make matters worse the telephone bell rang. Collingwood answered the call. Admaston was at the other end of the wire, and announced his intention of coming straight on to the hotel. It was evident that he had been put in possession of the fact that they were in Paris and not en route to Switzerland.
Collingwood replied to the call, telling Admaston that they were all staying at the hotel. They had made a mistake and got into the wrong train. Next morning, before breakfast, Lady Atwill and Lord Ellerdine appeared on the scene, and they and Collingwood endeavoured to concoct some story for Admaston when he arrived. But Admaston would not be put off like that. When he arrived he questioned them, and the whole tissue of lies fell to the ground. He had received an anonymous letter telling him that Collingwood had planned the whole affair, and a detective confirmed his suspicions.
Peggy knew nothing of this, and was dumbfounded when her husband announced his intention of divorcing her. He would, listen to nothing. All her entreaties, sobs, and cries failed to penetrate his heart of stone. They had lied to him once. How was he to know she was not lying to him then?
A few months later poor little sad-hearted Peggy was broken on the wheel of the Divorce Court. Admaston had brought his case to the Court, and had engaged Sir Robert Fyffe, K.C., M.P., as his leading counsel. Mrs. Admaston was called, and slowly and surely did Sir Robert drag the truth from her. She admitted that Collingwood had been with her late at night in her room at the Hotel des Tuileries, that he had made violent love to her, that she had permitted his presence and allowed him to smoke a cigarette, that she had heard him lie to her husband on the telephone. Every little detail was brought out and emphasised by the astute lawyer. Time after time Peggy broke down, but he gave her no mercy. He suggested that the whole affair was one of dishonour; that in the eyes of the world she stood a faithless woman. Peggy burst into a passion. It was not the truth he wanted, she cried, but her, her soul, her life. What could it matter? Who would believe her now, whatever she said? But the ministers of the law took little heed. They advised her to keep calm and answer the terrible questions as they were put to her.
Whatever the sympathies of the Court may have been, the facts could not be denied. All were convinced of her guilt. But there was more damning evidence still. Sir Robert Fyffe produced an anonymous letter, which was read to the Court by the President. The letter bore a date on the postmark prior to the departure of the party for Switzerland. It stated that Collingwood had arranged the whole affair, and was to spend the night in Paris alone with Mrs. Admaston.
That letter, explained counsel, proved that someone was acquainted with the facts. They had submitted the letter, which, of course, had been received by Mr. Admaston, to every handwriting expert in the Kingdom, with no result. The writer could not be traced. Suspicion rested upon Collingwood. The motive was plain. He wanted to marry Peggy, and had arranged the trip beforehand, with the deliberate intention of getting Admaston to divorce her.
Even Peggy's belief in Collingwood began to falter. She learned for the first time that the "accident" had been arranged, and who else could have written the letter but Collingwood? Poor little Mrs. Admaston could bear her torture no longer. With a loud cry she proclaimed her innocence to the Court. Even her husband's heart was melted, and he started to help her from the box; but the restraining hand of his counsel held him back.
The Court adjourned till the following day, and Peggy went back to Admaston House to rest after her long ordeal. Mr. Admaston had decided to withdraw his case against her if only the writer of that incriminating letter could be found. If only its author could be brought to light and the motive proved, Peggy would stand beside her husband as his true wife once more.
Roderick Collingwood called, and begged for a few moments with Peggy. He wanted to clear himself - to assure her that he knew nothing about that dastardly letter. Lord Ellerdine also called, and he was quite excited over an idea he had got. He had submitted photos of the letter to an expert, who said it was written by someone who was left-handed. Did that not throw any light upon the matter? The name of Lady Atwill crossed his mind. A sudden inspiration led him to the writing-table which Lady Atwill used. She had endeavoured to get possession of the blottingpad earlier in the afternoon, but the entry of Pauline, Peggy's, maid, had made it impossible for her to take it without rousing suspicion. When she next came into the room Collingwood watched her. She was about to remove a sheet of paper from the pad when he stepped forward. He bade her give him a small mirror from the mantelshelf, and then, holding it to the paper, he showed her the impression of the words she had written - the incriminating anonymous letter.
Lady Atwill fenced and fought, but Collingwood held her to her guilt, and, rather than he should carry out his threat of exposure, she sat down and wrote, at his dictation, word for word, the same letter that had so nearly brought ruin upon her friend, Peggy Admaston. Lady Atwill had assisted Collingwood in his love affairs with Peggy, and excused her conduct by suggesting that the whole thing was only a joke.
But there was a deeper side to the nature of Lady Atwill. She wanted Peggy to be divorced by her husband; she longed for her disgrace and downfall. For Lady Atwill loved George Admaston, and hoped that he would marry her when he was free. The startling news of the discovery was soon made known to Mr. Admaston, and Peggy, after saying goodbye to her admirer, Roderick Collingwood - who assured her that her wings were not broken - took refuge in her husband's arms, a wiser and a more thoughtful "butterfly" than before.
The Acting
We have been accustomed to associate Mr. Lewis Waller with the costume play for so long that his performance as Roderick Collingwood seems to stir us in a different way. Collingwood was certainly not a hero. No hero would play a trick such as he did on any woman, whether another man's wife or not. He must have foreseen the consequences, and to gain his own selfish ends he stooped to trap Peggy Admaston into a situation from which she could not extricate herself without compromising herself. That Mr. Lewis Waller should play such a part was little else than daring. Who but he could have got any true manliness into the character? And how magnificently Admaston atoned for his past deeds in the final scene of the play! To Mr. Waller's long list of successes must assuredly be added Roderick Collingwood.
Miss Madge Titheradge came into the play with a reputation already made, but she has greatly added to this as Peggy Admaston. Peggy is not an easy part to play. The scene in the Divorce Court must be a great strain upon her. The sudden outbursts of passion and despair, the efforts to control herself, and the deep remorse she felt when, slowly and surely, the Law dragged her secrets from her, were shown in all their varying aspects. It was a study of a tortured woman - not an ordinary woman of the world, but a delicate, cultured and refined little lady, to whom life had come in all its gaiety and most pleasant colouring. That was Peggy Admaston as she stood in the witness-box of the Divorce Court while porters and servants and paid detectives gave evidence against her - just a little butterfly to be broken on the wheel! And Miss Madge Titheradge never missed a point, even so much as the raising of an eyebrow. She was great!
Mr. Guy Standing played George Admaston. Mr. Standing is one of the most powerful and compelling actors we have (if America does not claim him). There was a quiet force and dignity in his wonderful voice, an evenness of tone that defied contradiction and encased the character in a suit of mail. The most plausible lies fell to pieces before that impenetrable front of George Admaston. It was the truth he demanded, and the truth he got. The men and women who lied to him felt that they were lying and that he knew it all the time. He loved his wife in his own hard way, and because that wife did not, or would not, understand him she must needs face justice alone. He knew of one law for a wife - faithfulness, and if it were not there he would not beg for it. He would have no wife without it. Those who have followed Mr. Guy Standing's career know how perfectly fitted he was for the part of George Admaston.
Lord Ellerdine was played by Mr. Sam Sothern. This none too bright peer of the realm was made a very amusing character by Mr. Sothern's rendering.
One of the most powerful performances in the play was that of Mr. Norman McKinnel's Sir Robert Fyffe. Mr. McKinnel might have been bred in the Divorce Court, so thoroughly did he portray the relentless, unflinching counsel.
Miss Beryl Faber found her natural ease and charming grace of movement a great help to her in her portrayal of Lady Atwill. It was not a nice character to play, but Miss Beryl Faber tackled the part with her usual earnestness.
The maid Pauline was entrusted to Miss Marianne Caldwell, who seemed to get a very true note into the part. Instead of Pauline feeling deeply for Peggy, it seemed as though Miss Marianne Caldwell was sorrowing for Miss Madge Titheradge. It was a most natural ,performance.
The other parts were played well, and the play was given a mounting worthy of it.
ABOUT THE PLAYERS
MR LEWIS WALLER - An air of romance surrounds the acting of Lewis Waller which makes him the ideal hero in a costume play. This fact has been apt to overshadow the fine work he has done in modern drama, so it is a pleasure to find him scoring a notable success in the character he is now playing in "A Butterfly on the Wheel." Yet if I were asked to name the part which stands out most prominently amongst his large repertoire, Henry V. would be my choice. His performance as the gallant king was always a great one, and I well remember him at the Imperial Theatre in 1902. My heart throbbed and the blood bounded through my veins at the ringing cry, "Once more into the breach." Again, in its revival at the Lyric in 1908, war was the keynote: war was in the air, and Henry V. a fighter. I remember asking Mr. Waller how, while portraying the soldier-king with all his old fire, his acting seemed to possess that deeper sympathy which enabled him to lay bare the innermost recesses of Henry's soul. "Ah," he said, "Shakespeare must take the credit of that, for the longer you study his plays the more fresh beauties you discover in his characters, so one is always touching fresh depths. A wealthy friend once advised me to appear in nothing but Shakespeare. Had I taken his advice 'The White Man' and 'A Butterfly on the Wheel ' would never have been produced; but I asked him to back his opinion with £10,000 a year, and it was not forthcoming." Mr. Waller is a keen golfer, an enthusiastic motorist, and a great lover of animals. Until recently his favourite was a beauty of a bulldog called Miss Blobbs, but a few months ago she developed a deeply religious turn of mind, threw up the stage for the church, and now resides under the roof of the Bishop of Winchester.
MISS MADGE TITHERADGE - Miss Madge Titheradge, whose magnificent acting as the foolish young wife has aroused tremendous interest in every circle of Society, must feel proud of the fact that it will probably do more towards forcing our legislators to limit the powers of counsel in cross examination than any amount of speeches in Parliament. So much for the power of the stage and Miss Madge Titheradge's telling impersonation. The daughter of that sterling actor, G. S. Titheradge, she had, when a girl, the reputation of being a fine dancer, and was in great demand for fairy pieces such as "The Water Babies," in which she made her first appearance at the Garrick in 1902. At this theatre, a year later, she played Moonbeam in "The Cricket on the Hearth." In 1906 she joined Mr. Cyril Maude at the Waldorf, appearing as Nancy in "The Superior Miss Pellender" and Norah in "The Second in Command." Then followed an engagement to play, Lisa in the revival of "Faust" at His Majesty's in 1908, and the close of the same year found her installed as Mr. Waller's leading lady, a position she still holds. Some time ago, after "Bardelys the Magnificent" had been produced, she confessed she was not violently in love with costume plays. "What I really wish," she said, is a good part in a piece like 'Lights Out.' However, I must just possess my soul in patience." Well, Miss Titheradge has had her wish, and playgoers are enthusiastic at the good use she has made of her opportunity. A realistically sympathetic actress, her future is indeed a golden one.
MR GUY STANDING - It is an extraordinary thing how few English actors who migrate to America make a home there. They may stay five, ten, even twenty years, piling up the almighty dollar, but sooner or later they hear the green fields and leafy lanes of old England a-calling, and find the call irresistible. This was the case with Mr. Guy Standing, eldest son of Herbert Standing, who, after appearing in 1889 at the Criterion in Sir Charles Wyndham's revival of "Wild Oats," and under two or three other managements, including Drury Lane, sailed for the United States. His engagement was with Mrs. Bernard Beere, and in New York he played Captain Fairfield in "Lena Despard" ("As in a Looking Glass") during her production of that drama. He then toured his own company in a notable repertoire, embracing pieces like "The Little Minister," "Liberty Hall," "Mrs. Dane's Defence," etc., etc. A daring yachtsman, he has won any amount of prizes and has raced in several regattas on the Thames. He is also an ardent motorist, and handles his car like any professional. One instructive remark he made to me when talking of the stage in America. "The young actor over there," he said, "takes more live interest in his work than our youths do here. On a long railway journey I used to find them studying their pocket Shakespeare and the works of other well-known dramatic authors. Taking their profession so seriously, is it surprising to find the average standard of intelligent acting among the younger school in the States rising higher year by year? I would like to see the same state of affairs in the Old Country." Since Mr. Guy Standing's return he has given us some brilliant studies, and must be reckoned with in making up a list of our future actor-managers.
MR. NORMAN McKINNEL - The Counsel for the, Prosecution, as played by Mr. Norman McKinnel in this piece is a virile and lifelike tour de force, the whole conception of the character being a magnificent bit of acting. Mr. McKinnel never intended becoming an actor, for his father, like most Scottish fathers, meant him to follow in his footsteps and qualify as an engineer. There being no school of dramatic art in the early nineties, he had to gain his experience with companies like Mr. Bandman Palmer's in Shakespeare, and Mr. Edward Compton's, in old English comedy. During this time he played many parts more or less successfully. Speaking to me of his early struggles, he remarked: "My apprenticeship lasted far beyond the usual five years, for it was not until 1906, twelve years after my start, that I got a real chance. It was at the Savoy in 'The Shulamite,' when I was cast for Simeon Krillett. This stern old character strongly appealed to me, as it would to any Scotsman acquainted with the history of his country. When studying the part, I found a wonderful similarity between the narrow-minded, intensely religious Dutchman, striving to be just according to his lights, and an ancient Highland elder. No, it was not my favourite part, that privilege belongs to John Anthony, in 'Strife.' Yes, I think our drama in this country is steadily making progress, on the move, as it were - but there is one thing I would like to see remedied, viz., the scanty notice taken of the producer, who does not get nearly enough credit for his work. If a piece achieves a tremendous success, who is it you see called before the curtain? The principal members of the company, and the author - never the man who has spent weeks in shaping a perfect ensemble out of the play and acting material at his command. Just as when a horse wins a classic race like the Derby, it is the owner and jockey who share the plaudits of the crowd, and only those in the know congratulate the trainer, who has toiled night and day to turn out the winner in perfect condition." So finished our chat, and I carried away the impression of a strong, typical Scot, who, having applied all the force of a peculiar brain-power to a study of the drama in every detail, is fast becoming an important factor in the theatrical world.
THE AUTHORS
Mr. EDWD. G. HEMMERDE - Athlete, playwright, politician and barrister, Mr. Hemmerde has won his spurs at all four. Yet the ordinary observer would place him in the order mentioned, for he is a splendidly built specimen of an English gentleman. The keener student of humanity, however, would note the broad expanse of forehead, the thoughtful glance, the powerful jaw denoting grim determination and size him up as any of the other professions, for politics at £400 year must now be included. Born in 1871, he was educated at Winchester where he not only proved himself an able scholar, but secured his place in the XI. From there he went to University College, Oxford, where he took a 1st Class Mods. and devoted his spare time to the river. He became a brilliant oarsman and won the Diamond Sculls in 1890. A fine platform speaker, he has represented East Denbigh as a Liberal; but is now "resting." As a dramatist his collaboration with Mr. Neilson has been particularly successful, and their latest play, "The Crucible," has aroused intense interest amongst all thinking men and women. A good many critics have kicked; they did the same over "A Butterfly on the Wheel" How sore their toes must feel!
Mr. FRANCIS NEILSON - Francis Neilson was born 1867, in Birkenhead. Educated at Liverpool Institute, and privately under Mr. Finlayson, he spent eleven years in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and when he was nineteen he wrote verse and short stories for American newspapers. He was a dramatic and music critic at twenty-two, and wrote for the Theatre Magazine. He assisted Dion Boucicault the elder at Madison Square Garden School of Acting; read, re-wrote, adapted, and produced plays at twent-three; wrote the librettos of "Prince Ananias" and "La Vivandiere" to Victor Herbert's music. Mr. Neilson was a journalist and novelist at twenty-five. He became associated with Charles Frohman's productions in 1891; returned to England in 1897 with William Gillette in "Secret Service"; went to Bayreuth with Anton Seidl; wrote "Manabozo" for Seidl; settled in London the same year, and produced "Rip Van Winkle" at Her Majesty's Theatre for Hedmondt. For Edwardes and Frohman, at the Duke of York's Theatre, he produced many plays. He met Mr. Hemmerde in 1899, and in the same year produced "Sherlock Holmes" at the Duke of York's. The next year he went to the Royal Opera, where he directed the alterations to the stage, and re-staged the Wagner operas. While at the Opera he produced "La Tosca," "Der Wald," "Much Ado About Nothing," etc., etc., and published "Madame Bohemia" in 1901. Since Mr. Neilson took up politics actively in 1902 he has fought four contests, and has been elected twice for the Hyde division of Cheshire. He and Mr. Hemmerde began to work on "The Butterfly on the Wheel" during the general election of 1910.
SCENES FROM THE PLAY
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