New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-11-27
THEATRE.

to any performance in any sphere Of art But n b
not the whole OF the Law and the Gospels. and
II is not what makes The School Girr' SUCCESS
N this country. nor what made Tires Little
Maids n success though 1t may help with ths
more tasteful portion Of the public.
What really makes The School Girl a SUCCESS
IS the presence in the cast of Edna May, but
more than Miss May. OF three very droII comedians
The box office thrives the laughs the piece
evokes. and for these laughs the comedians,
responsible. The same true OF Three Little
Maids Mr.. Huntley was the true source OF It's
success here II thrives because it meets better
than most of the homemade article the demand
of the American public that first and foremost a
comedy shah be comic
Now. American musical comedies have for some
time in their efforts 10 be comic. more or less
abandoned the effort to be atmospheric" With
the exception Of The SHOTGUN hardly one OF
them comes TO mind which attempted sustain
atmosphere. either of locality OF style. None
OF them eXemPHfy the constant polite suppression
which makes the atmosphere" OF The School
Girl" And few of them have been such success
from point OF view that piece. Hence tho
conclusion IS frequently deduced. though quite IL
logically that this English atmosphere IS what
tue native musical comedy needs 10 brace H.
Doubtless a more polished and quiet style OF
singing and playing would benefit Il, but it BY
means follows that il is the cure.
It is not the cure. in fact The cure lies other
where. and -Ir. AIDE. uacousciously. perhaps. has
pointed it out assisted by Mr. Savage's laudabe
ambition 10 put his name only To American made
goods. The Sultan Of SuIu' was the sign Here
was a musical comedy. conventional on the sur
face. that yet came close home to all Americans.
touched their laughter by unconventional and
spontaneous comic episodes and speeches that had
some real attachment to the lie all know and
wrapped up in. "Pesgy from Paris starting
out one OF the best works Mr. AIDE has yet put
forward failed because it lapsed into the utterly
conven tonaL lost its hold American life The
shotgun finally, If spite Of its japanese "atrnos-
phere' and its pretty tiukly music is worth while
and popular chiefly because of the amusing figure
cut BY the Yankee promoter IN the COTean court
L makes some appeal to intellisensGe, Now. the
one take 0GenCe-make no appeal 20 the tntelil-
gence While figures no doubt familiar 70 the BIlI
while in the English production OF The Girl from
less tbat are in spite Of their decevinE atmos-
Phere," AT the least quite as silly; v3Guops ana
Of the elder day musical comedies that were once
Of The School Girl in fact. TO the light OF cod
lean musical comedy viii gain nothing by follow
ness H Of or an 3fSI WI" w ran truly 2 ony By
departing alike from this English school OF must
from its present blind ad6ereaee to the equally
silly fradHoHai R6Istlo St{5 o. opera oqBT9 hs 70
some Americans paJroaize musical comedy mat Is
without being asn4med
American musical comedy players. too. in spite
the English. Your English singer has 70 have
his properties INr every song Ilere must De
carload Of properties used in The School Girl in
the songs alone But Marie CahIN fold her
hands. stand perfectly SJiN and COCvUlse a house
with a song. So can Miss TempietOn. can Frank
MOuldn. SO can Raymond Hitchcock and Marie
! Dressler and dozen more. The writer OF Ameri-
musical comedies need not be handicapped by
the Invention OF comic properties he can give ali
mis- time to his lyrHs ard his play. He be as
clever rs Gilbert ard be OF adequate inter
prefer OF his words. if not alas of adequate
composer FOR his music Gilbert. The greatest OF
musical comedy writer's. convuiSed England with
Patience satire Of the aesthetic cult. Gilbert.
in all his librettOS however OUtlandish their set
tings kept his hold On life. That is why he was
/ IastingIy comic. Since his time the Outlandish
setting has been supposed by his followers 70 have
been Gilbert the the real II takes
genius 70 make nonsense sane and enjoyable.
Lewis Carroll entered the most difficult field OF
poetry and remains almost alone with Gilbert as
its master II Is the real sense OF Gilbert that
American librettiStS should lay hold OF. as George
AIDE did in The Su'tan of Sulu," and a lesser
degree in THE Shc-CfUn-'' Then their lbretros
will have some real claim on Intelligent atten-
ton and inspire real mtrth- And 10 will NOT bs
the men who create HbrettOs with antique Joke
book and a well stocked library OF French farces
who will then write musical comedies. but
the men who write with their eye the picture
the first hand observers of life, and whose hurnor 10
spontaneous and their own