The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-18

. y bbc -
weary situation Of self-sacri6oe. Instead
of working out his theme intellectually
and technically, Mr.. Thomas founders for
a while and then gra4ps at the flotsam and
jetsam Of theatric device, long ago ship
wrecked or wilfully thrown overheard by
masters OF his art. 1t il far from certain
that he has really anything to say. 1t is
all too certain that, IL he has, he is unable
to say it in terms of the drama. However
he begins, he ends by saying nothing.
In any walk Of life 1t is hard to say nothing
agreeably; but nowhere is it harder than on
the stage, There is something in the
vivacity Of Mr., Thomas's characters and
jests that ranges him with our best comic
dramatists. But the result is disastrous.
In the comparison, Gilbert shines as a
social s~atirist, Wilde as a pioneer of the in
~tellect, Barrie as an Attic philosopher,
George AIDE. in one piece at least-and that
a musical comedy!-as a master Of political
satire. In the first version Of The EN-
bassy Ball, " it is reported, Mr.. Thomas said
something about current politics; but it
had to be cut out because 1t was dull or
~clumsily offensive to popular taste, or both.
Aside from that. the topics of his wit have
been Of the most elementary ~appeal-the
faoetia Of the variety stage and the comic
papers. Sometimes he has made these
roaringly funny, as In "The Earl Of Paw
tucket." Sometimes he has fused into them
enough keeness of observation ar vitality
to produce a character full OF the potential
ity Of comedy, such as Kid Gdrpey in The
Other Girl" But far too often the lack Of
ideas and of dramatic technique has resulted
in pieces like Delaney" and The En-
bassy Ball -" which are a series Of 'laughs" as
vapid as they are incessant. The fact that
both plays bored mt even while l laughed
at them / set down as q personal eccen-
tricity--until I discovered that they affected
the public likewise.
1t Is a little unfair, perhaps to treat ones
hopes Of Mr.. Thomas as il they were his
promises. Certainly 1t would be most In
fair to use them to obscure his many valua-
BILE qualities. As American plays 60 his are
beyond question among the most vigorous
and amusing. The esse initial quality Of his
wit and Of his character dra wing is a quality
very rare on our stage, or IN our art and
literature, for that matter-a robust and in
vincible m%asoulinity. Very likel9 also 1t
is as impossible for him to be more than he
is as for the Seven Sisters to make them
selves eight. But this is very hard to be-
lieve, for all he needs in order to raise him
sell many pegs above his present level Is
to pursue his art with intelli gent sincerity.
Out Of the West comes a gent e remon-
STRANGE against complaining OF Francis
Wilson be cause in The Mountain Climber
he is only himself" Good old Joseph
Jefferson JefTersonized everything he did"
writes Mr.. John Williams. And according
to the good old theatric joke, John drew
and Sidney didn't; but acting lever had
anything to do with it, only personality
Admitting that all this is true. it is still to be
saidtha q de feet is nc less a defect whoever
has shared 1t.
But the comparison IL radically mis-
leading, Even in his own version OF The
Rivals"-"with Sheridan twenty miles
away'-Jefferson first and always thought
Of the character he was impersonating
rather than OF the theatrio point. His
methods were beautifully, supremacy legiti-
mate. Now this is just what Mr.. Wilson'S
methods are not. To raise the necessary
laugh he resorts to all the old tricks Of his
comic opera days, mugging without limit,
struttiDg as no human being ever die,
tumblinE over benches and playing hide
and seek with himself about the furniture.
All thought of fidelity to nature and human
character is thro wn to the winds. And to
make way for this sort of thing the play
itself has been re written and t~ransposed
from It's key OF farce comedy into that OF
the most ravag CANT theatrical farce.
The German piece, to be sure, was no mas
terpieoe, oven in Its rather humble kind;
but the fact remains that in his capacity
OF producer as we'll as of actor Mr.. Wilson
Is arttstically on the same level now as he
always has been. Andthis is the more note
worthy because In is previous piece,
cousin Billy" an adaptation Of Labiohe's
admirable comedy lie Voyage de NJ.
Perrichon,' he really did take a step, and a
considerable one, in the direction Of his pro-
claimed ambitions.
To record a fact, however, Is a very
different thing from complaining Of 1t.
the one being the duty which the reporter
owes to his readers, and the other a quite \
unwarrantable assumption OF the tone
magisterial. The performance. as has al
ready been related, Is most laughable
throughout, and bids fair not only to equal
that Of Cousin Billy in popularity, but
to surpass 1t. And in spite Of everything. |
Mr.. Wilson asserts a highly sympathetic
appeal. a most penetrating charm. 1t is
the sort Of thing any wholesome human
being ought to be able to laugh at once.
and a few hardy souls perhaps oftener.
Last weeks article about Mr.. Brady
and The Redskin" has called forth a lively
rejoinder-not from Mr.. Brady himself,
who Is mot at home,' but from his repre-
sentative, Mr.. Frederick Donaghey. The
ono important fact about this commune
cation Is that It is oouohed In precisely the
same style Of verbal dash and finish, Of
parliamentary name yelling
wit, as the letters which were
promulgated over Mr.. Brady's signature
last week when he was at home.' and
which were 30 different from his ~outspoken
and not always elegant u%tteranoes on the
stage Of the Liberty. Can It be that all this
has only been to boom that good
indian, because dead Indian. sThe Red
That Mr.. Brady and his press agent
have oonspired to convict the critics OF
oonspirngi Such things have been.
I1xry Nanu~~ |