The San Francisco call., 1909-01-12
By Walter Anthony

AS play it has one excellent act
the third--and a fairly good act-the
second-with two tiresome and talky
acts-the first and fourth. AS a produc-
ton it is splendid and as preach
ment for socialism Upton Sinelair's
prince Hagen is only slightly cooler
than its authors speech at the Valen-
cia stheater last night at the close of
the first act.
Prince Hagen had its premiere last
night, as you may have judged from
the above, at the Valencia theater. A
stack of money has been placed by the
management of the playhouse against
the contingency of the dramas failure;
two weeks of hard rehearsing have
been given by the competent cast, and
Herman Heller has delved deeply into
Wagner's music dramas TO bring forth
motives for orchestral accompaniment
toathe action of a play which is found
ed on the wealth of Nibelheim. and Is
reared in high finance after a period
In the slums.
PLAY AN ODD MIXTURE
1t is an odd mixture, this play. 1t
is priggish in places, preachy frequent
ly with the authors view of socialism,
interesting for it's boldness and its wild
fantasy and for the reckless way its
author handles the billions of dollars
which he gives to his hero, Hagen. son
OF Alberich, king OF the Nibelungen
Hagen brings the world to his feet
He plays the game of Wall street and
beats them all. The third act sees him
cracking his whip about the ears of
coal barons, steel kings and the cap
tains of Industry. The fourth act sees
him telling the president of the United
States to wait until he's spoken to. It
is all very comfortable and splendid,
but not convincing.
AS a play, then, it will hardly serve
A drama must strike at the common
consciousness Of it's auditors, and must
not be in advance of the public's con-
victions. There may come a time
when Prince Hagen" viii occupy that
position toward the theater goers of a
future Utopia In that case the play
will not be needed, and its lengthy
speeches in the meantime do not make
good theatric entertainment, however
interesting and convincing some may
find them from lecture platform.
/ do not quarrel with Sinclair's So
cialism, but It's poor material for a play
Besides. some good republicans might
naturally take offense at the speech of
Hagen in the second act Hagen has
just been informed in a Bowery saloon
by a gray haired and long bearded
gnome-Peggy Monroe-thas his kinzly
father had died and left him an Is mile
tunnel in Nibelheim full of solid gold.
The information thus startlingly but
frankly impaired by the Nibelungen
pleases Hagen. who has just been MAX
ing a speech for the people. He intends
to be an alderman and later turn the
sluns wide open, to the end that society
may be destroyed, or at least changed.
With the knowledge Of his wonderful
wealth he changes his plans and de-
1t is very naive.
PLAY LACKS STORY
The trouble with the play, should
say after seeing it once, is that the
purpose of it's author was first to
write a treatise on socialism in four
acts, incidentally to write play.
Good plays, however, are stories first.
and as such must, If they would be
accepted, have in them the element of
possibility or plausibility. Fantasy
may take us, as in Wagners music
leads the way and that is fantasy's
queen. It is not impossible to give
faith to such a play, but never has
there been such mixture of gods
and men, gnomes and bellies, Nibel-
ungen lords and coal barons as are
huddled in Sinclair's drama Prince
Hagen
His sincerity and faith in his con-
victions shine In many scenes, but they
shine in speeches.
The production was enthusiastically
received, and tho demand for speech
from the author was insistent and en-
thusiastic.
ACTORS DO GOOD WORK
or the players there is not much
time to speak-the play wasn't over
until nearly midnight. Robert War
wick was the star Of the performance
and did splendid work He was wild
and untamed as Prince Hagen in the
first act; rough and brutal In the sec
ond; sinister, mighty and victorious in
the third, and beaten in the fourth. II
was excellent acting Miss Stoddard
was as convincing a millionaire's
daughter as the exigencies of her part
would permit and was effective and
fine In the last act. Herman Heller and
his augmented orchestra supplied. to
me. the best part of the play-the
music
ALCAzAR
Sweet Kitty Bellairs,a one OF the
Belasco series of plays at the Alcazar
theater, drew good sized audience last
night in smile of the fHin The rro