Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-02-12
How to Write
A Modern PLAY

What constitutes financially m,
popularity successful play?" was %
ton asked of David Belasco bv
porter recently, and he replied. ..r,.s,
OF all 1t must be congenial ia ,ho
pathies or the human mind. esnooIan..
as regards the master passion.--,n,.s
secondly IL must have strong and nov;
situations, brought about in na,,,.,
ana simple ways. Thirdly. tho niS.
should not require deep or dIe,n,,,.
analysis, by which the audience ma. =.
wearied and puzzled with thrl,tr.
thereby losing the thread of tho s,ass,
Fourthly, the language of the obaras
tiers should be plain, direct and eas,, =,
understand, and the Incidents. whoth,.
comic or tragic, should drop in ms noar
~ as possible as they might hammer l.,
real life. "A perfect play is condenssa
reality"
How do you write your plays-do
you dictate them or use q pen?"
Those parts OF my plays" respondad
Mr. Belasco, which require study snch
as reference to science, music or ert T
write myself. But when | get To ia
more human side-when the villain ava
the heroine and the hero and perhans
the soubrette are hard at work matIn,
| dramatic history-then prefer To dic'
| tate. My thoughts travel fast then
| become the character l am creating
act the part from beginning to end
feel every emotion. ] swear. L cursa
| cry and laugh by turns. And all mi.
| time ! am debating as fast as tbe
stenographer can take my words. q,
course / have my spells of work. when
/ can do more work in three days than
can manage at another time in a
| month";
Then the reporter made him sit bolt
upright by firing the following question
ut him; who. in your opinion. is the
best American dramatic writer Of serl.
Gus parts?" After n few moments
thought he regained his composure and
replied: you have asked me question
which would be extremely difficult 10
answer without hurting somebody's
feelings. The accepted leaders of the
American drama are all men of educa
ton and talent. or they could not be
accepted as leaders. They write as ex.
perts, not as apprentices, and each has
his own peculiar manner of treatment.
You cannot make comparison among
Bronson Howard. William Gillette. Au.
gustus Thomas, Paul Potter. Franklin
Fyles and various others. including our
women playwrights. Writing play is
far more difficult than any one imag-
ines, and the playwright has to master
his trade. just as does the shoemaker
and the carpenter"
"Wherein do American playwrlshts
differ from English, French and Ger
man authors?"
"They differ little from their British
brethren save in being untrammeled by
dramatic censorship. The public Is
their censor and n sufficiently severe
one. The fact that American plays are
transferred unaltered to the London
stage and are there received as to the
manner born proves their family like.
= ness. The Germans differ from the
Americans by looking less to the events
. than to the theories, to action than to
= disquisltion. to reality than TO ideal
ism: also in treating of political and
!. social questions in didactic style
!, which the American more patient brain
. would not endure. The American play
= wright differs from the French in th'
looseness of NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. IL
dialogue. especially in the length ant
diffusiveness of speeches and in III,
:, reticence due TO the distaste OF I'M
= public for suggestive illusions forelgl
:, to the temper of the American people
y which the Puritan element still coniln
. ues to influence. In my opinion dramatI
!, writing has gained in simplicity AM
directness, but lost in purely literary
quality. When people want to enjol
a fine writing, they seek 1t nowadays It
books, not plays"
what is the best ingredient OF
ia good play?"
). "Of the hundred ingredients that g
to make up n perfect play SO are love
Stage pictures make the hundredtb."