New-York tribune., 1909-10-31
THE PLAYG0ER
BPOILING "ISRAEL" WITH "a
HAPPY ENDING"
Theatrical Views of Life-Tbe Speech.
of PLAYERS


happy" American managerial ending thar
with the ending originally and logically
worked cut by its author. Consequently
> at the Criterion, the managerial notion pre
walls. It may not be conceivable here thai
q French prince whose ideas. and ideals
Of aristocratic lineage and duty are OF 6
character so extreme that, while he leads
the world OF fashion, he also forms and
directs a powerful political party, the prin-
cipel object OF which is at once 10 nurse
and crafty fits hatred Of the Jews-It may
not be conceivable here that such a man
could not accept life after discovering HIM
self 10 be a Jew, the illegitimate son of the
oespised Hebrew when he had insulted and
had pledged himself TO kill His world has
passed beyond him. He can no longer lead
the anti-Hebrew party; he has no right 20
the name he has brilliantly borne: his
mother. the superb creature he had Wor-
shipped as a being but little lower than the
angels, If so low, has been the paramour
OF a Jew-what IS there for this youth, not
necessarily for any other, or every other
Christian youth similarly circumstanced.
but for this one, Thibault, the proud and
fiery Prince Of Clar? Henri Bernstein an
ewered: Death" Pressed by an Ameri-
can purchaser OF his play, he changes his
answer TO: Marriage with a sweet girl"
Bernstein's vision was clearer than his
customers The latter says: The original
Israel was q dead play. ending where IL
began There was problem" The state
nlent Is interesting and unconvincing.
Problems there were aplenty. Thibault un-
dertook to solve them in his own way. He
killed himself. This OF course, did not
solve the problems. but it did about all that
was possible with his special problem: How
a.
But this shocks an audience, says the
playbuyer. The audience must be soothed
at whatever cost TO truth. A happy end
ing must be devised. And of all the happy
endfngs' that ever were devised this one
IS among the most inept that ever crept
with mighty labor from the brain of man.
The audience is expected 10 be pleased be-
cause q girl IN whom it has no occasion
TO feel an instants interest transforms her
self from q Jew hater TO q lover of q Jew,
ttwhom she proposes marriage! How ar
tistic. how logical, how French! Thibauit
meanwhile. had decided TO enter @ monas-
terry, according to Broadway. Again, how
logical, how convincIngi In Bernstein's
original G. priest iabored unsuccessfully to
Persuade Prince Thibault 10 accept the
consultations OF monastio life And, OF
course, Thibault. being Thibault, and not
having 10 consider the idiosyncrasies OF a
Broadway public, as interpreted by man
ager, refused g course so preposterous. Life
ss he had lived II was dear TO hirn-not
rnonastio life, but the life of the turf, the
drawing-room. the club, the life political.
the hops OF driving Jewry from France.
lie was not G. religious man, had at no mo-
snent felt holy call. He was entirely of
this world. with this worlds sense Of
honor and glory and delight monas-
terry! Bernstein's Thibault would have
been es likely TO choose q boiler factoryl
But The manager says. Monastery" and
monastery 81 has 20 be, for New York;
And the mother has TO be dragged into
the last act for a few seconds. like a peni-
tent super; and the son has first. now that
Ia is q Jew. TO decide upon a monastic life;
then 20 decide 10 XIII himself; then to re-
solve 10 marryi How logical. how convinc-
ingi What happy ending" Now. all
the acting that has gone before goes for
nothing; now, IN truth. the play is "a dead
play, ending where II commenced" Not g
question is answered. The champion Of
Trench Christianity finds himself a Jew;
henoeforth he who scoTned lying must live
Hes; he cannot participate in the anti
Hebrew movement, which hitherto he has
LED; VII not publicly acknowledge his Jew
fish origin; Will live under the name and
title which are not his own; VIII pretend
60 be what he is not A happy ending!'
Cannot the public see through this rub.
bishy change In the powerful orginalr Or
VIII the next step in the publics alleged
love OF shailow-pated Happiness be Des
6ernona's restoration TO life, Otheiio's re-
call 10 Venice and his elevation 10 the
dcgeship. Hamlet's accession 20 the throne
OF Denmark, Ophelia's marriage and coro
ration, Antony and Cleopatra's conquest OF
Octavius Caesar, Lear's return 10 sanity
and power. and shylocks reception as ths
guest OF honor in The home Of PoTtia and
Bessaniof
Happy endings." indeedi Is the public
ss chuckle-headed as some OF the play
spoilers seem TO think It? Consider those
curious forms OF life which ever and again
IN numberless plays. strut on the stage a.
members Of Parisian. English. Austrian
American or any other exclusive" Of
fashionable society," The wax figures a
the Eden Musee or Nine. Tussaud's ar.
more like life. II managerial minds do no
know the difference, Is Il fair TO suppos'
that 'rhe public" does not know II, either
Such walking ladies and gentlemen, filters
In, naouthers OF small parts-lay figures
with concealed clockwoTk and phono
graphs would usually be better employed
Stage directors are known TO call some
times upon the services OF military men
erchaologists. bridge builders. distin
guished painters, even cowboys, when seek
Ing counsel upon the mounting and dress
Ing OF battle, historic, frontier. clasS
or other unaccustoIned scene; they put en-
g1neers. compositors. blaoksniths, on tn
stage to hold tina Mirror up to nature" bu
why In the name OF the dramatic veTities
snd even CT commeroe, Go they not occa
sionally consult with some one who ca
tell them how ladies and gentlemen IN Tn
modern world dress. walk, sit and talk
Some slight familiarity with these detail
would be OF service, and such queer assem-
iblsses OF uncouth persons who look lik
isbGrers end iaundresses IN evening dress
move Ike Joyous elephants, and talk lik
oo'suns with megaphOnes, might be It
placed with entities whose bearing, speec
Gnd hab.liments suggest. however faint.
some resemblance 20 the life which 1T
their province 10 depict.
As for the current speech Of the stage,
becomes cruder with each new seasol
lProuunciation is queer. enunciaton sug
.Hssts pudding-dlted mouths. emphasis
,sverYwhere but II the right places. and ir
L6a~f4oy. rises when ehoflld desrena 4