The Cercle Francais scored another great success upon the event of the second performance of Le Malade Imaginaire in Boston last evening. Copley Hall was crowded and the applause was frequent and enthusiastic from the moment the curtain rose. Taken as a whole it may fairly be said that the performance last evening was the best ever given by the Cercle Francais.
The acting throughout the play was of a high order and far above the standard usually set by an amateur cast. In particular the way in which Schurz played the role of Argan was noteworthy. In many places his acting was worthy of a high place upon the professional stage, and his reading of the French lines was almost perfect in accent.
Among the other characters W. H. Cram deserves great credit. He did not perhaps make as good a picture of femininity as E. G. Knoblauch in the part of Angelique, but his animation and his excellent interpretation of a difficult part placed him second only to Schurz.
F. H. Kinnicutt acted the part of Diafoirus fils with an appreciation of its opportunities and a faithfulness of portrayal that won him the applause of the audience.
G. Hills deserves credit for his impersonation of the irascible old M. Purgon. He seemed to lose himself completely in his part and brought down the house with his tirade upon Argan.
The dancing of the two ballets was enthusiastically received by the audience, each being encored. The pleasure of the spectators communicated itself to the dancers, and the steps weee executed with a precision and a uniformity that was admirable.
After the amusing and satirical ceremony which ends the play, all the performers marched upon the stage and formed in rows, making and exceedingly pretty and effective tableau. As the curtains were drawn back for the last time every one on the stage sang to the air of C. L. Smith, Jr.'s march, which was written for the play.
The last performance of Le Malade Imaginaire will be given in Brattle Hall on Saturday evening.
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