Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-04-27


this week.
1t Is several years since Edward Harrigal
was in Pittsburg. The last time was in 1885,
believe. when he presented THE Leather
| Patch" He was then on his way to California
to give them New York slum life for the firs
time. From the fact that he is only now re-
turning to the East, it must be inferred that
the Harrigan drama was enjoyed on the Pacif,
Slope A man of good parts is Harrigan. HI
writes smoothly, in his own sphere, as ht
acts, and he has been as prolific as dramatis
as any man would reasonably be expected to bt
who first creates his play and then exemplifiei
| 1t before an audience. Not only in the leading
| characters that he assumes is Edward Harri
| gan to be regarded as the realization OF his own
| dramatic ideas. He is his own stage manager
and every movement and line in the play is
watched by him. His plays are his own in every
| sense Of the word.
About year ago 1 CHANGED one Saturday
evening to be strolling along the Bowery, Baxter
street, Mott street, Mulberry street and other
| famous thoroughfares of questionable New
| York, in company with Dick Quilter. MIR.
| Quilter is a Pittsburger, and was an actor in
Harrigan's company for five years. "Ah,"
said he, with a ruminative sigh, 81 know all
these places well. They bring back old times,
indeed. You know we have represented these
streets and the people on them the stage
hundreds of times. Harrigan used to make his
people come down here and study from life the
characters they were to play. Many a time I
have wandered around here with him picking
up bits OF character for use on the stage. Why,
the very clothes we wore were purchased in
Chatham square or Baxter street. Harrigan is
a realist, tell you, and when he processes to
fectly."
pho d
Opera House stage in a tank, must feel that his
efforts are rather circumscribed, after being
used to the broad expanse of smooth water in
toronto Bay. And yet, considering all things
there is as much Skill if not strength, employed
In rushing across space of 80 or 40 feet at full
speed and stopping yourself inside of 10 or II,
as In covering three miles half q boaI's length
ahead Of powerful rival.
sxs
Hardie and Won Leer have been together for
so long time that one olmost forgets how
gracefully Sara Won Leer supported Agnes
Hall few years ago. Hardie, too! Was he
not great man in "A Child of the Slater"
However, you will see them at Harris this
week. and you can decide for yourself.
tx&
Mr.. Edward A. Dithmar. in the course of an
exceedingly well written article in the New
York Mirror of last week, shows why good
plays are rare now and are rapidly becom-
ing rarer. Mr.. Dithmar does not tell us any,
thing absolutely new in the matter, but he puts
well-known facts SO clearly and tersely that
they are well worth reprinting. He says: "The
American thester is in a transition state, just
now the shrewd manager is never looking for
good plays but always for play, one that will
suit the taste of the ordinary playgoer from
Maine to California, and that will be paving
property Tor, say. five years. Such plays are
made not by dramatists, but by stage managers
and masters OF mere stage craft. AS the in
vestment must be large and the risk is great.
new experiments are avoided. The most sue.
cessful plays-those that yield the largest
up on the stays out of well-tried materials.
Meanwhile we are producing very few plays
that, judged by the only correct standard, can
be called good plays. Almost the best
things we have are the very acrobatic
farces SO much in vogue at present
that are SO heartily despised by severe critics,
They at least truthfully reflect something of
the essential spirit of this particular age, and
frequently contain new ideas. They are
coarse, sometimes crude. ill-made, but on the
whole they compare favorably with the farces
of Murphy, Garrick, Fielding, Townley and
others that are included in standard editions
of plays and have places on the shelves of
scholars libraries. ] honestly believe that a
school of dramatIsts would very speedily arise
in this country if there were announcement
for the writing of good plays play written
upon the right principle would be likely to
repel speculative manager, for if it resembled,
as might be expected, the best contemporary
fiction it would be distinguished by subtle |
satire, delicate analysis OF character and re- |
fined idealiZation. Some OF the popular play |
wrights are capable of much better work than |
that they turn out to meet the demands of the |
market"