The Irish standard., 1909-04-17

vet coat became him.
Dressed quietly in black, an anxious
look in his eyes, and with but a word
or two for his friends beside him.
synge sat prepared to see his two chill
dren play before him. His hair and
slight beard were black and the finely
nodded face naturally pale. Some
there We're who voted him weird. But
that was after the play.
Noiselessly the curtains were drawn
on Riders to the Sea-" and the quiet,
throbbing tragedy in the poor fishers
cottage by the Atlantic was rs-en-
acted. Beautiful in it's conception,
subdued in its language, and wildly
natural. for twenty minutes every soul
in the audience was enthralled. It
was easy to feel that there were tears
about, and in plenty. The author did
not respond to the call.
THE Playboy of the Western
World" began in quiet which held for
about ten minutes Of the first act.
Then a phrase from one of the actors
caused pitite to hiss. A few in front
looked around in annoyance: Quiet
again. Enter the hero-the man who
killed his father.
From that moment the name of
John NJ. synge was anathema in Ire
land And William Butler Yeats, poet
and poseur, as he was then called
rather unfairly, took off his velvet coat
in the fight for the art he espoused.
Feet tapped the floor. kissing be-
came general, shouts were hurled at
Yeats, synge and the players. songs
were loudly chorused until a pande-
monium reigned. Even from the stalls
protests We're tmade. Imagine that
scene sustained for an hour and half
Not a minutes cessation. Not ten
lines Of what actors and actresses
were saying could be heard in the
house. Still every word written by
synge was spoken by them and every
detail acted as if the audience were
normal. They We're a courageous set
those young men and women on the
stage.
The rage of the audience seemed
finally to concentrate on Yeats and
Synge. the former not fearing to make
his elegant figure conspicuous, the lat
ter stolidly sitting in his stall with
eyes for nothing but the players, his
features drawn and pale. A friendly
hand on his shoulder warned him the
curtain had fallen. He was looking
but had not seem.
Next day the papers devoted col
umns to the extraordinary demonstra-
ton against the play. Few expected
that the management of the Irish The
alter society, Mr.. Yeats, would have
the hardihood to again. produce the
piece. ~ ..z..... ...
But the "poseurs" knee was not sup.
plant. He was fighting for true AR
for the people. and the people must
take It, The following night. in spite
of the presence in the theater of scores
of helmeted policemen. the noisy pro-
test was continued by a packed house
Yeats had a number Of the objectors
elected, and the magistrate was busy
next day filming all sorts and conditions
of men, including journalists, $40 ant
costs each.
So 1t went on for a week. Play and
police by night. the magistrates court
in the morning. Not until the tenth
night had quiet been completely re-
stored and the play, one newspaper
stated, concluded amid "thunders OF
applause
Mr.. Yeats, before putting on his vel
vet coat, invited all the enemies of the
play and the Abbey theater to debate
on "The Playboy of the Western
World" on the stage and in the house
where 1t was played a few nights at
ter.
"Gentlemen of the little clubs and
societies, do not mistake the meaning
of our victory" he said then; Il,
means something for us, but more fol
you" 1t meant more still for the
stricken heart Of John M. Synge. 1.-THE
Playboy of the Western World has
never since been played in Ireland.