The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1893-04-27

uen ana Toll. Inc CITY Is tne lOnellCSJ Spot
on Gods earth-that is, for the average
man or woman. The theater is created
by this morbidly developed need in the
human soul The theater first touches
character in the city in this hour of
crisis, in the reaction and recoil from
these dull elements of life, and it sweeps
with resistless power the half formed
character
Out of all the theaters in the city Of
New York you can count on the fingers
| Of one hand those that are conducted
upon strictly decent principles Ana
| even these are now and then disgraced
by performances which for the time put
| them on the level of the lower centers Of
evil. Some years ago, when distin-
| guished minister undertook an investiga-
ton of the underworld of New York city,
he started out one evening at 10 o'clock
| The detective officer who accompanied
him said to him 1T is only 10 o'clock,
and it is too early to see the places that
we wish to see, for the theaters have not
yet let out. The preacher said, "What
do you mean by thatY" "Well," he said,
"the places of iniquity are not in full
blast until after the people have time to
arrive from the theaters." In that sin
gle reply Of this police officer we are
brought face to face with the terrible
fact that the sum total of the influences
of our theaters today is overwhelmingly
evil and evil in its immediate results as
well as its ultimate tendencies
Second-I say it from the character of
the plays that, as a rule are produced
today. Instead of the intellectual work
Of a Shakespeare or one who modestly
aspires to be his disciple, we are now
| passing through the era Of the stage car.
| penter-the mechanic. 1t is the hour Of
the great tank act, of live horses on the
stage and of real fire engines that are
drawn across in the midst of tremendous
applause. 1t is the hour of mechanics
and cheap claptraps. As the fire engine
dashed across the stage in one of our
theaters the other night q poor woman
leaped from her seat raving maniac
and was carried to the lunatic asylum.
We do not wonder at this. The char
acter of the plays produced now in q
number of our theaters is enough to I'M
hinge the mind Of the average man and
woman if taken seriously.
AN INTELLECTUAL ABONiINATION.
For instance, there is play now run
ming in the city Of New York, and at one
of our theaters of high reputation, which
has for its end the glolifcation of lie,
the dialogue of which is full of the most
vicious sentiment, the moral teaching Of
which, as a whole, has little to redeem it
from any possible point Of view. And
yet have not seen single word in criti-
cism of this play which even takes note
of the fact that it is built on the idea
that happiness can be attained by decep-
ton and lying in the home.
Upon the other hand, conscientious
actor recently put ON the stage Of New
York q play with high moral purpose
and high literary merit. 1t was pre-
par ID with the greatest care of detail,
conscientiodsly performed. The motive
of the play was to show the iniquity Of
lie. Imagine the answer of the crit
les. They said he was fool. Why did
he ever confess the lie? Why did not
he live it out? They denounced the play
as an utter failure because of its moral
motive. That is to say, the men who
are doing the dramatic writing for our
great papers are incapable of conceiv-
ing moral idea.
The consequence is that there is little
influence being brought from the realm
Of public opinion to bear upon dramatic
representations in America today. l
am told by those who know that there
are men Of brains and capacity In most
Of our newspaper offices in charge of the
dramatic departments, but that their
criticism and opinions arc thrown into
the wastebasket again and again if they
do not tally with the interests of the ad.
vertising department.
There are some exceptions to the char
acter of the plays that are produced to-
day that are noteworthy. There are
some which teach the sanctity and purity
Of home. There are those who are Civ.
ing us sketC 8 Of real life in the south
and in the T. that are in every way
worthy Of enco ragement and support.
But taking the rheater as q whole, and
taking nine theaters out of ten and nine
performances ont Of ten, the character
lectual abomination.
Third-The reflex of character from
the stage is most damaging upon the
| character and ideals of the audience.
| Say what we please about the impersonal
character of those who act, the power
| behind words is character, the power be.
hind an action is character. 1t is eff
cient for good or evil as that character is
| good or evil. The character of the peo-
| pie who today are admitted to the stage
as actors and actresses calls for the
| righteous Indignation of all who have the
interest of society at heart or who have
any pride or interest in the stage itself.
Let man or q woman become notori-
ously infamous, and the doors If a certain
class of theaters today Immediately
spring wide open with offers of enormous
salary.
Let there be scandal in society with
an exposure and divorce, and if the
woman in the case is proved guilty and
the scandal is Of enough dimensions heI
fortune is made on the stage. The dis
| reputable woman connected with the
tragic life and death of Robert Ray
| Hamilton was invited to enter the dra
matte profession by those who are called
managers, and the attemP was actually
made to expose this parsonage for a con
sideration to the American people. She
was bounded off the stage by the de
termined effort Of two or three reputa
BILE newspapers. When John L. Sulli
van or his triumphant rival finishes his
brutal prize tight, he goes upon the stage
The success of these people has its i'll