The Washington herald., 1909-03-28
me Critics Function.

me Critics Function.
No less closely allied 10 the theater
than the actors and the manager Is the
dramatic critic. The two first mentioned
may doubt the utility of the critic. and
have been known to express themselves
upon the subject IN no unmeasured terms
But when all IS said and done and the
relation between the critic and the people
Of the stage is brought down to the last
analysis. it will have to be admitted that
&; is the critic who is looked upon as the
court of last resort When everything
is ready for the public. when actors have
rehearsed their parts. when authors have
given the last final touches TO their lines.
when managers have paved the way 20
the utmost for the success OF a perform
ance, the work Of the critic begins. II IS
10 him that the public looks for a truth
ful opinion. II he Is not trustworthy. Il
does not take the public long to find Il
out. and his criticisms lapse into dis
favor.
No one is capable OF judging the work
Of others unless he exercises the utmost
restraint and preserves his equanimfty
intact The moment prejudice begins to
creep into his reviews, they become
worthless. To point out errors is easy. It
is traditional that the mote in a brothers
eye is more easily discernIble than the
beam in our own. To rhapsodize over
merit Is equally easy But the real critic
is the one who not only points out the
flaws, but he who suggests a remedy.
Unless We can give man advice as 10
future behavior. there is no use condemn
ing him for his present faults
Consider the responsibility OF the dra-
matte critic who has set himself the task
Of being fearless and truthful Let no
one envy him his lot In his line OF duty
he occupies a position absolutely unique.
Thousands Of dollars may be spent upon
a production before the curtain rises on
the first performance and months OF
idrudgery IN rehearsal. making the total
az stake beyond the power OF the average
/ theater-goer 70 realize. But however
great the critics concern may be for the
actors and the managers under such cir
cumstances, the duty ne owes the public.
by virtue OF the confidence reposed IN
him. is greater, and must be his first
consideration.
Many OF the people connected with the
theater would do away with the critic
altogether. establishing. as it were a
sort OF haphazard theater-going on the
part Of the public. who would thus never
be able to find out whether OF. not they
were going to be edited by a perform
ance until after they had paid their
money for the privilege OF finding out
The patrons Of the theatcr would thus
share in the financial speculation with
the managers. instead Of us being as
sumed by the latter alone. The fact
that the public has nothing to gain BY
such a speculation is lost sight OF. In
vestments in theatrical property bring
such enormous returns that Il seems only
fair that those to whom the profits will
accrue in case OF financial success should
carry the whole burden.
The critic has nothing TO do with the
business side OF the stage. His function
is to treat every production on its ar
tistic merits. regardless Of its CONNER
cial aspects He has no more right 10
print lies about a dramatic performance
than his newspaper has the right to
print them about any other matter OF
public interest.
/ One thing, however. the critic must
always bear in mind and that is that
the producing department OF the stage
has right to serious consideration. The
Herald has always frowned upon that
class Of criticism which praises indis-
criminately or dismisses without a fair
hearing To treat with levity or to slur
over the virtues or faults of a play or
the work Of an actor is not fair. Every
one has the right to be treated accord
ing to his merits. and IL a comedian es-
says TO play Hamlet and his perform-
ance shows an utter lack OF ability or
veriSimilitude. still he must be given
credit for an earnest effort. Because he
has failed IS no signal for critics to wax
merry. Rather they should point out TO
him his errors. and by a judicious and
serious discussion try to influence him
for Improvement
Nor IS IL the critics function 10 advise
the public to stay away from a bad per-
| formance- II he does so, he lowers his
/ dignity quite as much as II he stood out
side OF the playhouse in the capacity of
barker" urging the crowds TO take IN
the show. His province is to state the
qualities and the values as he knows
them. His readers can agree with him
or not. as they see fit or rather to the
extent that he has inspired their conf
dence by telling them the truth.
The critic cannot permit himself 10 be
influenced by interested people. II he
purposely roasted" a good show because
OF some real or fancied grievance against
any one. he il Just as bad as though
he praised a poor one because he had
been wined and dined by its promoters
Not for one instant can he afford TO
jeopardize his reputation by misrepre-
senting facts, for he not only risks his
own standing as a critic and the sin
| cerity Of his employers. but he reflects on
the intelligence OF his readers.
The ubiquitous press agent has evolved
the term show shoppers" We salute the
I idea as a new one, but somehow the
phrase reminds US Of the old aInterative.
"She sells sea Shells" which We couldn't
] say quickly without tripping.