The times., 1898-05-22

who retain pristine productions year aft
er year Old melodramas and older fare
IS are being daily brought to light again.
Long ago it was conclusively proven
that while English authors do much
good work all that is English Is not neces-
sarily good. Several elaborately mounted
and carefully produced importations have
failed miserably this year in places where
local pieces have succeeded. Zone Sum
mer's Day" and "Change Alley are
marks when contrasted with
dozen money makers from the home mar
ket- Never before have SO few pieces
been brought from the other side
1t must be confessed that the very best
work of the season, however, has not |
been done by new and untried men, but |
by the old standbys Mrs. Ryley, Clyde |
Fitch, George Broadhurst. Augustus |
Thomas and few others have continued |
to bring forth from under their facile |
pens the most excellent of stage litera-
ture. But many of these people are get
ting well along In years and each season
marks the death of at least one celebrated
playwright. As result of this and the
brain cramp that comes TO all men when
they are said to be written out" the
product from this source has become more
scant every year. And meantime no new
recruits who have come up seem to be
able to show themselves in the light of
ROIlly SuCItSSOFs. MICH OtNdSlObdllS
ter the field. as II. A. Du Souchet did.
and glimmer for time. but they gener-
ally shrink back into place very shortly,
and even when they do not are too small
in number to count for much. The Won
derful difficulties that still menace the
young aspirant such as are not easily
conquered AS the demand for plays
grows greater than the supply establish
ed authors begin TO make terms which
arU fnx 90 q tn a
yet the ambitious youth with the rubber
bound manuscript has no easy time of il
in working his way up to the coveted
honors
In the first place, despite what is said
on the subject in novels and other cheap
literature play writing is more of trade
than an art. Its rudiments must be learn
ed even as one learns blacksmithing or
| carpentry. but with the difference that
| application Will secure the latter while
/ wonderful talent, perseverance, energy,
/ indomitable viii, high spirit, close appH-
/ cation, fine temperament and a dozen
/ and one other things are necessary be-
/ fore man can begin to learn how to
/ write. Unless the candidate has all of
/ these 1t is quite useless FOR him TO spend
I time money OF energy III a vain attempt
! that can end only in disappointed ambi-
/ ton and useless hope. Then there is an
( added unlikeness. Anyone may appren-
! tice himself TO a blacksmith and work at
the trade because there are established
rules by which he may go. He knows
{ that It is necessary TO know about weld
4 ing a nail before he can attempt to shape
4 a horseshoe. and he schemes and plans
! accordingly. But every man cannot
learn how to write play in the same
I way. and the lack of instinct in the mat
! ter makes the difficulties corresponding
I ~ great. He must have technique and
frui iriy iG a irr1-o=GfHla
! him to attain. There are few opportuni-
! ties for becoming a member OF the craft.
! and fewer men who are able to grasp
! them And when they are duly in hand
he must be careful not to exaggerate.
| Too much pIaygoing or playreading
may be as stunning in its effect upon the
mind and as blighting to originality as
would too little. misunderstanding or
! u7isinteT7retati0n may easily have the
/ same effect and, altogether. the would-be
! student finds himself in no enviable po-
! sition- He IS willing and anxious 10 learn
and yet discovers his chances to be IN
| certain, his field limited and his results
! doubtful. To be successful he must pos
| sess what he has little way of obtaining.
And after an author has been so lucky
as 10 write a really good play he still
| finds himself in a quandary. While as
| has been said, il IS much easier for him
| 70 obtain hearing now than ever be-
| fore it IS still practically impossible for
| the unestablished and unknown aspirant
| 10 get fair chance. He finally learns
| that he must expect buffets and trickery
| dishonesty and discouragements, and
! above all. that he will receive. in gener-
| al, the treatment accorded a book agent
or beggar II remains 4 matter of ex-
cessiye difficulty II not Of downright i'm
| possibility for an unknown writer to
| place his product in that busy and un-
! feeling part of the theatrical business.
! the Rialto- Hearings are hard to obtain,
| and fairness not at all a consideration.
| BY these tactics and by his fear of the
smallest mistake the average manager
| does himself as great an Injustice in his
necessity as he does anyone else and he
i must eventually come to realize this when
| he understands just how close TO a mo-
nopoly play authorship has fallen. He
! Chances over and loses many things In
/ Which there might be a fortune for him
| self and the gifted exploiter
The history of My Friend From In
| dia'' has become more than provertdaI.
| For years that manuscript was taken
| from door 10 door. and whenever its
bearer entered managers office there
| was a panic. But Smyth and Rice ac-
| cepted the farce at last. staged It. put Il
| on the road. and made over $50 900 out OF
| II during its first year of existence Bur
| there Is no rose without Its thorn and
! perhaps. after all, one cannot blame pro-
| ducers for lack Of faith. For months az
ter the story Of My Friend From In
| dia was made public the lucky owners
of the play were besieged-engulfed with
| manuscripts in all shapes and forms from
| Wouid-be authors, whose Enclosures fire.
| quently represented their first effort. For
| a long time Mr.. Rice read a dozen plays
! day. and after keeping up the strain
| for lengthy period he succumbed. hay-
| ing discovered Just two offerings worthy
| of consideration. Could the average
reader see the worthless and absolutely
| impossible trash that floats into mana
| gerial offices every now and then in
| great bundles. could he realize the work
| involved in reading such manuscript,
and the small number worth reading, to-
| gether with the sanguine hopes and
| words of the writer. he would cease to
| blame the individual who is being asked
| to spend his money on matter that has
| absolutely no chance OF bringing him
| anything better than ruin and bank
| ruptcy. The comic side to most of these
| plays is great, the demands of their au-
! thors and the character of the matter
| being often irresistibiy funny but II is
| frequently pathetic too, and the sorrow
| is generally that of the aspirant
| While neither side has much excuse to
blame the other, crop of capable play
! wrights can hardly be expected while
| this state of affairs continues. There are
! flats in this city where families with chill
dren are not taken as tenants, and yet the
| youngsters cannot be born at the age of
| thirty, and were they not brought into the
| world ar all there would never be fami-
| lies to occupy flats. Not seldom these
| infants are troublesome, but they are nee