han expressive of
melody, though no doubt to make this true "melody" must be understood in
a large sense. How far away this is from dancing which consists in the
main of executing more or less complicated steps "in time" with the
music, or such appalling vulgarities as a cake-walk. It must be admitted
that one of the Tanagra figurines is sadly suggestive of a
characteristic pose in the cake-walk--though it may well be that it is
a mere pose which led to none of the abominations with which our stage
has been deluged!

In the case of Isadora Duncan we have seen poses and movements of
extraordinary beauty, exquisitely sympathetic with fine music. No doubt
occasionally she has made a concession, as on her first night, when she
danced to "The Blue Danube" waltz by way of an encore, putting, however,
her own interpretation on the music and her sense of it. Those who are
acquainted with Greek sculpture and with some of the classic drawings of
the old masters will see that to a very large extent her work is a
revival rather than an invention; but this fact--which she
acknowledges--in no degree diminishes the merit of her performances, for
the execution is of wonderful beauty and the application of the old
ideas to music of a different type is very clever.

Her work alone has well repaid the audiences, many members of which have
made several visits to the theatre; it has, however, been supplemented
by dances in which young children were the performers, dances so pretty
in conception and delightful in execution that one has felt the whole
house thrilling with pleasure. Nothing like these children dances,
nothing of the kind half as charming, has been given on the stage in our
day.

The one complaint possible against Isadora Duncan is that she has
rendered us immoderately dissatisfied with what had once moderately
contented us; and the fear is that we shall promptly have a host of
half-baked imitators, who will copy the mere accidentals of her system
without understanding the essentials, and will fancy that the whole
matter is one of clothes and music, and prance about bare-legged,
meaninglessly. It is hard to see how this is to be avoided until there
has been time for her pupils to grow up; it is certain, however, that if
the new idea, the new-old idea, takes root, there will be a revolution
in dancing, which may have far-reaching effects.

Drama of the strictly intellectual type will remain unaffected; possibly
there will b