Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-12-21


Whlch 20 rear our theatrical young
ohesi there is uo one 10 teach the
Young Idea how 90 shoot dramatically,
no one to show them the way Co lcglti-
nate artistic success. There ls left In
this country no reverence Tor and no
teacher OF tradition In the old days.
when actors were rarcr but better. II
lnt manager OF IN thoutDr ola NOT have
th' requisite knowledge of his craft he
turned his artistic affairs over to one
VINO did know them and who strove
y, infuse into the rising actors the ira.
ultlohu Ideas or dramatic right
ana wrong. So the artistic end OF the
theater was kept apart from the box
Office end, and the result was that
the men and women who trod the
boards ana were fred with real enthu-
siasm for their work, were able to
learn from one who knew and who
could teach them.
IT was even so In the DAYS OF Au-
gustin DAILY and Lester Wallack," COM
unued Mr.. Bclasco. Then an actor or
au actress would attend TO the duties
OF The profession as one who attends
the school Oh life. They know that
from these men there were things TO
Doe learned, and they learned them wiz
lngly ana enthusiastically. II another
manager made them an offer they would
usually scorn the bids. convinced that
the schooling under these great men
was worth infinitely more than the fiat
terng offers from other theatrical man
og0rs, for from DAILY aud Wallack
they were getting what money could
not buy So they spurned the offers
and loved their master and their work
MONEY, NOT ART. RULES THE
STAGE.
but now" continued Mr.. Belasco
deprecatlngly, shat is "a vision of tho
past Money rules the stage today.
There is no reverence for tradition
or for teaching. The manager who Of
fers the geatest salary gets the great
est artists. Art has given way 10
money.
What encoura cement Is there In my
discovering new stars and training
them when / know that the morning
after one Of my artists has made
success, he on she would be approached
by other managers who win offer life
long contracts and treble the amount
OF any sum 1 possibly can pay? / tell
you O. is money and not art that rules
the American stage today
Then you regard the possibility OF
such things as "a national theater and
a national drama as improbable at
present?' asked the reporter
Absolutely hopeless, declared Mr..
Belaco How can there be such a
thing as national theater when the
only possible way OF keeping together a
company of good actors is by paying
Thorn more than any other rival man
agement is willing 20 pay them2 If
money rules, and so long as il rules,
you may depend upon IL that art viii
go begging and viii keep IN hiding.
Money win buy an artists service. but
it will not lure from him the best that
he has 10 give. There must be some
thing better and deeper TO bring this
out-you can appeal 10 his brains by
way OF your purse. but you cannot APP
peal to his heart by the same route
and unless YOU appeal 10 an artists
heart and draw from &C the message
which he has TO deliver to his world
Of audienCcs-unlcss you do that. I say.
you do not get the artistic best from
him. You can play with nature and
you may mock al IT, but you cannot
defy 70 and still enjoy the sunshine Of
life So IL is with an actor. He must
be To love with his "a. and ] consider
the art OF acting the most difficult OF
an arts--else he Is trlhiug with himself
and with his public, and great art does
not lie along those paths"
WITHOUT ARTISTIC CONSCIENCE.
Then what do you consider the root
Of the evil Of the present situation In
matters pertaining TO the stage OF this
country"
"The absolute lack Of artistic con-
science" retorted Mr.. Belasco. frankly.
aud the answer came like a stone shot
by a catapult. THE manager has no
artistic conscience. the actor IS lack
Ing IN Il and I've public 10 also without
10. ! venture 10 say that this nation
is without il. And so long as Il re-
mains without # you may be sure that
there Is no hope here for a national
theater or for a national drama"