Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 24, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 October 1901 — Ben Hur a Great Production. [ARTICLE]

Ben Hur a Great Production.

All who have seen the Klaw & Erlanger dramatization of Gen. Lew Wallace’s “Ben Hur,” at the Illinois Theatre, Chicago, agree that stagecraft has done its utmost to create a splendid stage pageant. General Wallace himself has struck the keynote of the intentions of Klaw & Erlanger in these words: “I have been trying to devise a play which any Christian person, man or woman, might attend without violence to his conscience, or without shocking any principle. I think that has been accomplished and I may invite the whole Christian world to see this performance.” Every detail of the book, with the exception of the Crucifixion chapter, has been followed out exactly as laid down in Gen. Wallace’s great tale. Descriptions which the author gives are followed with absolute fidelity, The scene painters, the costume designers, and the stage mechanics have caught the real atmosphere of the Holy Land in the time of the Messiah. The chariot race is more than realistic. It is real. The spectators are seemingly a part of the throng that sat in the amphitheatre at Antioch. The twelve high-spirited horses race as truly as did ever horses in the dust of the hippodrome, and when “Ben Hur” wins, and the stage populace lifts up a tumultuous cry, those in the theatre join in the cheers. It can be definitely stated that the limited engagement of “Ben Hur” cannot be prolonged, and the closing performance will take place upon the date originally set. Seats' are now on sale for any of the performances up to and including October 12th, It is suggested that desirable locations can be obtained for Wednesday matinees. The advance sale brings crowds of people in front of the theatre all day, but is so cleverly handled by those in the box office that seats may be procured for almost any of the performances,