SALACIOUS SALOME.

NZ Truth, Issue 92, 23 March 1907, Page 5

SALACIOUS SALOME.

OSCAR WILDES PLAY PROHIBITED IN NEW YORK.

"Where art is concerned such a thing as a writer's personal reputation should not be considered. I think all true artists will praise 'Salome' and not condemn it." Such; was the expressed opinion of Ernest E. Coerlitz, acting director of the Metropolitan Opera 'House, New !York, when interviewed recently at the time the owners^ of the Metropolitan Opera House, prompted, bossed and bounced by a pack of hungry, lean, howling, hysterical helots, misnamed Ministers of religion, sent the following protest to Henrich Conried, who controls the performances at that Temple of Thespis ; "Dear Sir— The directors of the Metropolitan Opera House Real Estate Company consider that 'the performance of 'Salome' is objectionable and detrimental to the best interests of the Metropolitan Opera House. They therefore protest against any repetition of this opera. (Signed) . By Order, - FRANK Nr-iODD. v Secretary.' '? : . The protest, naturally enough, when it became public property that it was prompted by a PUSH OF PRAGMATICAL PIETISTS, created consternation m artistic circles, and indignation m the public mind. It is not the production of ."Salome" as a public performance, that has prompted the miserable •hounds to thus attempt to control artistic representations ; but because it is from the pen of dead and gone Oscar Wdlde, the lord of language, the prince of epigram, whose, sparkling wit and great genius should be, and is, remembered while we conveniently foreet the dark and depraved side of his swift and reckless career. The grave covers his coarse, rotting frame • but the creatures of his bright and bi" mind live for ever. He gave to Art all that he had, and it is riot Oscar Wilde, the homo-sexual sinner, whose memory we. .cherish,-; /"but Oscar Wilde, the sublime and the beautiful. It is only characteristic of these canting Christians, who preach Divine for givenness, that they should dig up a grinning skeleton of a once, hideous and corrupt human frame, and by its aid attempt to dim and damn the lustre of true and noble Art. "The Puritan hated bear-baiting not because it gave pain to the bear, but because 'it gave pleasure to the spectator" said Macau lay, and what was said of the snuffling, humbugging Roundhead of Cromwell's era, can with truth be said of their cruel descendants of to-day, "scattered as they are like the Hebrews all over the civilised world. Coerlitz, m the course of an interview said : "I see no reason that New York should take exception to 'Salome.' In view of the scandals m public life and m private affairs, I, can hardly see that New York can put itself on record as objecting to the opera as immoral. Europe has' accepted it as a* master-piece." ': WHOaS SALOME.,^ .-'.!. V- • Every Bibical student .knows by heart the stpry of the beheading of John the Baptist, The Precursor of Christ. It is told m St. Matthew, eh. 14, v. l-l i : ( •'•'/ At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus. And said unto his servants, This . is John the Baptist ; he is risen from the dead ; and therefore mighty works do show themselves m him. i For Herod had laid hold of John and bound him, and put him m prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Phillip's wife. ■ ; For John said unto him,- It is not ' lawful for thee to have her. And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet. • But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced Before them, and pleased Herod. ' Whereupon , he promised with an oath to give her whatever she would ask. And she, being instructed of her mother, said. Give me here John Baptist's head m a charger. And the king was sorry. Nevertheless for the oath's sake, and them which sat with him at meat; he commanded , it to be given her. And lie sent, and beheaded John m the prison. And his head was brought m a charger, and given to the damsel : and she brought it to her mother. In the story itself, Wilde has TAK&N THE UTMOST LIBERTY with the Bibical characters. He makes Salome the famous daughter of the infamous Herodias, a depraved wanton who falls m love with John the Baptist, the captive ol Herod. The involved story makes Herod m love with Salome, the daughter, through his marriage with Herodias, his brother's wife. The prophet repulses the unholy love of Salome. Herod begs Salome to dance for him. She does so reluctantly, and only after Herod has promised to give her whatever she desires. After the "Dance of the Seven Veils" she demands the head of John the Baptist on a charger. Herod grants her request as reliictantlv as she danced. Finally, the head' is brought and Salome fondles and kisses it, until the disgusted Herod cries, "Kill that woman!" His soldiers crush her beneath their shields as the curtain falls. Salome is a one act play written for Madame Sarah Bernhardt, and given a musical setting by Strauss. In its published form the play was embellished with the weird drawings of Aubrey Beardsley. Strauss' musical setting of the drama is not unlike those exotic" drawings of Beardsley—sensual, overblown, revolting and yet remarkably decorative. Late m 1905 the opera was first produced m Dresden, where it created a storm of discussion. Presently t was produced m thirty German opera houses and m a year was produced at the Berlin Royal Opera House, with the composer conducting. The censor m England forbade its production, and the German Emperor refused to attend the performance. Hci ,was long opposed to the pro-

I dttctdon of the piece, and finally consented to its production m Berlin with the greatest reluctance. The opera has since been produced m Italy and France— in both cases creating a stir. At Vienna it was produced under the sanction of the Emperor Fra/nz Joseph. He is a strict cerisor of operas, and When he passes a favorable opinion on a production it is pretty certain to merit it. "Salome" was produced m many European cities, and it was 'everywhere voted a master-piece— the libretto of Wilde's and the music of Strauss.. In the musical accompaniment of the gruesome story Strauss has availed himself of his wonderful command over the modern orchestra, to depict every detail with unflinching realism. THE. DISPUTE OF THE JEWS, is accompanied by an orchestraltangle- of dissonances likely to arouse the amusement of the audience. The raucous call. ol the peacocks on the palace terrace is depicted with comic fidelity to life. Herod's invitation to Salome . to share his fruits and wines with him is accompanied by luring, sensuous strains. Wthen the executioner descends into the cistern the severing of the head of the prophet and the dripping of his blood are gruesome bit of musical picturing. Strauss, the master of modern orchestration, who evolves more.tone colors and bizarre effects than any other composer, has here out-Straus-ed himself. The dance of Salome, which Wilde I calls the Danoe of the Severn Veils, i is nothing more than the "danse dv ventre," which '■'Little Egypt" and J her many imitators have made familiar to us since the Columbian Exposition. Owing to the tremendous physical demands which it makes on the singer, a premiere danseuse usually executes this part of the opera. Salome was a favorite figure m the old mystery plays, probably because of the obvious theatrical value of the character. This character .and John the Baptist have figured often m drama, opera', oratorio and -novel, b.ut none of these works has attained the notoriety of Wilde's play, which owes, fbs celebrity more to the depraved, repulsive nature of the heroine as conceived by the author, than to the inherent dramatic value of the play. , ' An interesting Version of the Salome story was presented m pantomime form m 1905 by the American dancer, Loie Fuller, at the Comedie Parisieime, m Paris. The work was made by Charles Henry Meltzer and Armaild Sylvester. Tfo,e music . was composed by Gabriel , Piernie. . There was only one act m "Salome." The cistern m which John the Baptist is imprisoned is in^- full view. It is here Salome, bounding with life and animal spirits, first sets eyes on the propjierb. She woos Mm with all the s fire and passion .of , her '^zces'sivcly^rdent ; nuture, !&* his 'thoughts otherwise occupied and secure m. his ,f*ith and REPULSION TO IMPURITY, repuses her m no unmeasured terms. She becoming enraged, and yet m all her anger chhgs tenaciously to the -abnormal desire which -he has awakened m her. The suggestion is that Salome's influence over her stepfather, the ruler, is not a pure one. Through him she reasons that she will accomplish her own passion and at the same time be revebged for her repulsed passion. Herod grants her her request, which is the severed head of the Baptist "upon a charger" if she will dance for him the "Dance of the Seven Veils." This over, John is beheaded and the head presented to the young woman. She gloats over it and then falls to caressinig. it, crying out that she would satiate herself with kissing the dead lips. This scene is given m full detail m the opera. The fact that the opera was sung m a foreign tongue, German, so that much of the detail was hidden from the majority probably of those who saw 'it the first time m America may account for the quiet/ wfiich prevailed throughout, saving a few instances when applause greeted an especially fine finale m the music. The "Evening Telegraph" had this to say : . . ■■-""•. "New York went after its musical sensation and it certainly got it. There have been many stories sung on the boards of the Metropolitan Opera House that would bring a flush to the cheeks of a, policeman— if he could understand— but it is doubtful if the operatic world know any other more shocking 1 spectacle than the Salome of Richard Strauss and Oscar Wilde. "Along with the obtrusive degeneracy of iite play as written by Wilde there is undoubted strength of imagination, but one could hear little of the words— Strauss' music drowned almost everything and during one or two scenes would indicate that the modern master of dissonance is either amusing himself ' tremendously or I enjoys being regarded as A CACAPHONIC MANIAC. "In the twenty minute scene where Salome stands before the head of lokanaan and signs her lustful love, ending with impassionately kissing his lips, the audience was remarkably patient. Many people left the opera house, but the majority of the vast audience sat respectfully still, j It is hard to believe that it regarded either the art of Strauss or Wilde as J an adequate excuse for such a spectacle. It was disgusting and ,degrading, and the saddest" part was its acceptance." • There were two performances given | m New York, and while there were many m the audience who shut their, l eyes or turned their heads away when th? "great scene" of Salome kissing the dead lips of the severed head of John the Baptist was presented there was no hysteria shown. There was certainly not uproarious applause, either, although the production viewed purely as an artistic one, was applauded by many. Critics as a rule deplored the degeneracy of the opera. The music was pronounced oy many a profound success. It tt<as daring m its theme, suggesting the audacious subject of | which it treated m a truly marvel- • k>us way. musical critics said..