The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-20
NATIVE PLAYS ARE FEW.
IyrRICtS DRAMATISTS POORLY
pEpBESESTED IN NEW YORK.

,I. ,to, ,b.v would prefer to present
., ,,,,,, American scenes and characters
,,,,,,, y,r. available, for the excellent rea-
.,., mat they are more likely to prove popu-
ur,, Nav York audiences than foreign
u,v. The MANAGERS who speak In this vein
r,to mn preten,e Of a desire to encourage
a. ,,ori,a, ANA from patriotic motives.
,r,ov nra merely talking business. With this
,ro,r,r,ce on their part in favor OF the Anne
,,.o, nl,v II seems difficult to explain why
g., few plays Of native authorship are sue
cossr,,,ly produced in New York. One Is al
,,rst ,orupted to doubt that the anxiety Of
,,, American managers to get hold of plays
n, thls kind is as great as they say 1t is. II
II ia their efforts are rewarded with. poor
,oe,,,s one need only read over the list
- nIays acted in New York last year to dis
cover how small share in an exceptionally
sgccessiul theatrical year the native play
wright enjoyed The season which closed
,a UNA excentionally prosperous
'"s' 'p' 40 :, -. ,,,.,oro,. a.,
MADE 'he ior'u"e' VI ''"0 ~
settled the careers OF two or three stars Sc
vsral rlays ran almost unprecedcntedly long,
49,. ,, % n, os+on,shinylv higb
hnu Fe'e'p'' N.Y. Wy ~,
son will be looked back on for many years
=, ,o,shls IN a CITY which pays more money
10 ,. 49,, INV otho- tn tho
LOT l's ai"''''"'' ~ -
world. So long as the pubic enjoyed itseh
and the managers. authors, and actors pros
,,.od u nroboh,v makes very little difference
P.'V'' :" H.. i. 4,
what the source vi 'ne pays ""' Du.
not hattering TO realize that among all the
Now York theatres last year there was but
0''' uo'"''' p'"' .,.. -, A.
was by no means 80 popular as Bulls vi tne
other pieces.
Arnro,,mateIv 1T new plays were acted
, ,..,.,,.., ,.o.,, s,,,. =,
curing inc past 'hea''''"i 'e"'on oonio VI
these were extravaganzas ana musical anairs
OF 90 casual a nature that their authorship IL
NM ,rnort.nt The treat majority of these
NV ...., -. p,--,,-,
pieces 'na' "e'e '''ooo"'u' Won e'"
origin All but one that reached 100 per-
fornancea were by English authorR One Of
49,. r,orad 40 +Ir,o. o,otbar 100 nm
'neee "ae p'"'ea -' '
other lo5' anotner lol, announcer no. wnlie
others reached the comtortaoie runs OF ~,
70, ana o.. Inese pia'e 49, so.eu at tne
principal theatres ana produced unoer the
best auepices Not all OF last seasons plays
ihich pleased New lork came from the Eng
llsh. Perhaps the greatest single success OF
ire season was fTencn play; wniie nve
other oranlae ,ransla.eI ana aoapteu from
French originals were played for more than
fifty times One was acted l4S times another
~ another VI, another 20, ana announcer OF.
II might De salh mat tns Two greatest sue
POSSES OF me american stage came last year
from me French; Ineee were Cyrano de
hs'seraC aEu HaHa' Ine iatter was act
90 N New YORK an winter and the other
could have been u previous arrangements had
not prevented IT. The German stage sup
Iil'u only one niouerately SUCCESSFUL comedy
t"r 'ne We" lFh thea'res. which ID In strik-
in IN, s s"n.raS' 10 us former contributions to
our Drama
There were more American plays acted
hst year IN We" YORK than French and Ger
man put 'cgciher but they were presented
uN'er very f'frrent circumstances from
u, se wnIch cou'u propabiy De called regu-
lar performances II the kind that determine
success mere They were played for weeh
q, we less "Nn"nslve theatres. or tried for
wv IiHn'S nhder unamh'tious circumstances.
Wv. , 'omt'su run secured ny any play or ma
~, 49, mu'hnrsnlp was ninety performances.
I, WIS no, a Drama dealing with an Anne
t''aN subject. but had scenes laid years ago
~. ~ IRAN !, IL was not produced at one Of
-, n.sn.EiasS theatres musical burlesque
~ A,He'Ithn autnorshlp, presenting very
nard d,d o na' was pLayed IA times. 1t de-
penoen quite aa much on the character OF its
CO. songs as It did on Its dramatic merits
Ira "'ost SUCCESSFUL play written by an Anne
:, an alu produced last year had ffty-seven
prLJ, n IAN IL Is really the only one
, n'n oan DO lairiy compared with the for
r e. pieces mentioned because 1t was Sc
49, 10 ors'natic eHort, ana produced in one Of
ror,h'a ,nta.res' ana under the most ia
s an"re AUSPICES. During year almost I'M
49, ~ IN pIosperi'y the American drama
on "e %as rSpresehted IN New York by only
nn nov pay wnicn look rank with the best inn
~ "" pieces
+b,t NV oI TINS. IL is difhcult to believe
NC, ,ne naive managers really care SO
and AVA o, AZ tney say for dramas Of local life
a. u .hsracter. The American stage to-day
.rnni,o aiV ~ amnitious forms Is practically
s tpn' rom europe. Notably successful
n,,rh plays have been written. but the
A. $500. 10 not suHclent apparently to meet
tbe,' ue ,li.n OF the public. Managers try
sInn, WIN some patience. The foreign play
a,mass nas value which the untried ma
-, 80 u'a ANA uoes not possess. 1t has had the
t sae vi success abroad. and to that ex-
t sent II ID less OF speculation. II may
nave succeeded In Germany or France, and
nay ueai win subject more or less un-
sul.eo ana unsympathetic to our stage; but
Even unaer those circumstances It Is a safer
proposltlon Tor the manager than the I'M
ueu Work: AS American plays are not
oousht py Foreign managers, their value Is
mi th4.