The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1902-09-13
The Stage Irishman.

| q 'AGE productions of Irish life and
y character, on the whole, have not
been greatly exaggerated in this
country, leaving out the grossly absurd
and offensive representations seen only
| in the vaudeville theater. The drama,
along with giving rational amusement
| to its patrons, has helped the American
to comprehend the genuine Irishman
| in his life at home and enlist his re-
spect and sympathy. If there be
| little mischief in the plot or in some
of the parts taken by the stage Irish
man, so much the better, because while
| it increases the interest of the audi
ence it fails not to excite admiration
for Irish wit, the ready gift which gives
him an advantage over all other races
in the poor mans struggle for prom
inence in his adopted country. There
is nothing about the phlegmatic Briton
or Teuton to excite the sense of humor,
and no playwright has even attempted
to emphasize the improbable except
the author of Emmet's German skits.
These would fall to pieces did not this
Irish actor impart to them all the life
they contained. OF course we speak
only of the character and life of the
common people, emitting dramas de-
plotting high life and those that belong
to Shakespeare.
Dion Boucicault, author and actor,
was one who took advantage of time
and circumstance to place the Irishman
where he belonged upon the American
stage in such plays as the Colleen
Bawn' and the Peep o. Day Boys"
Boucicault is dead, and we cheerfully
absolve him from the offensive Irish
wake scene in one of his plays. We
have been told that this scene is no
exaggeration of the real thing in vogue
in many parts of Ireland at the time;
but Irishmen in this country and their
children abhorred the memory of it
and were mortified to witness it's pro-
duction upon an American stage. Bou-
cicault atoned for this mistake by
bringing out in most of his characters
the strong love for country and the
Irishman's readiness to fight for it
against all odds. This is what counted
with the American people,
The writer remembers the passion ex-
cited against England in this country
during and after our civil war. No bet
ter time could be selected for present
ing the merits of the Irish revolution
airy cause before the American people,
and nothing could impress them or
teach them easier than the Irishman
upon the stage. This was done through
such plays as the peep o. Day Boys"
with Laura Keene and others like her
in the principal roles. The American
patrons of the theater went into rap
lures over the heroic denouments in
the plot and waxed more enthusiastic
than even the Irish themselves. The
Fenian movement received a great i'm
petus just about this time, and was
warmly supported by many Americans.
The A. o. H, in it's denunciation of
the stage Irishman, should have drawn
the line at the vaudeville perversion.
This appears to have been its intention
rather than to discourage the charae-
ters which Irish actors and Irish schol-
ars have produced. If the Irish drama
helps to enhance the admiration of
Irish nobility of character along with
creating amusement for patrons of the
theater, it is able to do the same serv-
ice for the Irish cause as the Irish
propagandists are doing for the Land
League. 1t is long time since we have
witnessed anything like THE Peep O.
Day Boys" never has it been staged
out in this mountain country. A play
like it in some respects and yet unlike
1t in most respects, would attract at
tention to present conditions and give
the American an excellent idea of what
the Land League is doing for Ireland.