The Washington herald., 1910-01-30


BelascO-SRm bernard.
CasinO-COntiHuOUs Vaudeville.
Chase's-POIite Vaudeville.
AeRdemy-Yorke ii Adams.
observation-disclosures.
Gayety-BurIesGue.
Between a play Of optimism like The |
Dawn Of a Tomorrow. with its uplift- |
ing moral tone. and a play like "A Fool |
There Was with its depressing realism.
I'VE must perforce choose the former as
representing the best interests OF the
drama. But there is no denying the
strength and the truth of Mr.. Brownies
play. The hypothesis had been accepted
by the whole world as a painful truth
when The Vampire first was published
and Sir Edwin Burne-Jones' picture was
lshoWh in all its blood-curdling naked
ness. SO that all Nj Browne had TO do
was 10 furnish US the living puppets. and
this, so far as the TWO important figures
kare concerned. he has admirably done.
iHe has also given a poetic beauty TO his
Iines and a naturalness to situations
which must necessarily partake or the
weird.
he has m.nimized the supernatural As
much as possible and succeeded in con-
Sincing US that Kiplings man and wom-
an are real people who might be found
in the everyday walks Of life. He has
vitalized them. with the help Of two IN
usually clever actors, beyond the hazy
!BuTne-JOnes ideality with which imagi-
tnation had previously clothed them.
AS long as we had the opportunity last
week of comparing two plays offering
Esuch widely divergent object lessons. both
tending TO the same ultimate moral point.
st might be well to say that there are
lperhaps in real life more vampires than
r'GIads'' and more Men than Sir Oil
yer Hollis" Therein lies the strength OF
a Fool There Was" its unpleasant and
painful reminder of cold, worldly facts.
s'The Dawn of a Tomorrow is just a
.latter-day fairy tale, a typical sentiment
al outburst by Mrs Burnett. whose writ
ings always give evidence of having been
done for effect rather than from an ire
.pressible inspiration. Her sentiment Is
often found TO be mawkish and superb
cial; and If one goes but little below
the surface there will be found idealized
uareality.
For one more Merry Widow" we will
gladly give the whole past decade Of
other musical comedies. comic operas,
and conglomerate what-nots, including
comedians, near prima donnas. and
thrOaty tenors. But just as the Boston
fans sighed in vain for another robin
Hood" we fear Col. Savage viii spend
his time in longing for a successor to the
Viennese masterpiece. OF course. The
Merry Widow is not pssse yet, and viii
not be for some years, but that will not
prevent an exhaustive search for some
thing equally as good. which. alas, prob
ably Is as yet unwritten.
We are told that The Dollar Prin-
cess" now running on Broadway, is THE
writer saw and heard it. and as long as
he did not invite the comparison, does
not mind saying that 'The Merry Wild
ow" outpoints The Dollar Princess" at
every turn.
PercivaI Pollard, in his late dissertation
on the men and events OF American liter
azure and drama. has the following to
say in connection with theatrical exploit
.tation:
The very ratio in which the principals
TO a new play are advertised tells the
tale. First We are given the name Of the
6peculator who is to produce" the play,
as the jargon has it; who furnishes the
money and the authority. His name is
writ largest on the bills, as If, forsooth,
in buying the article he had become its
creator (That is the infantile reasoning
whereby the late millionaire Whitney,
buying the favorite for the Derby,
thought TO achieve reputation as d sports
man. Next in Importance comes the
actor. the fellow who repeats what an
other invented. The other. least and last
Is the author. Indeed. often the author
IS not mentioned at all What is true of
the advertisement is also true OF the &C
1ual bill OF the play; there you discover
the name Of the costumer as easily as
that OF the author"
The above, which the author uses as
portion Of q leading up TO q rather caus-
4ie criticism Of persons connected with
the stage. is a very fair statement Of the
modus operandi Of modern theatrical
Business. and the mental spreading out
of his idea is interesting, while one infer
fence at least is certain in its truth. The
best advertisement for a play is superior
quality. The great majority Of theater-
goers are only interested in a play as it
appears to them from the front. We can
Snot conceive how any great contingent
of the intelligent who wish TO be in
lBtructed or amused. as the case may be.
.can have any acute interest in, or even
afford time for thinking about, the poll
tics Of the theatrical situation. the mate
EF!al or other relationship Of those par
.ticipatng or the trades folk who furnish
the accessories. The questions at issue
are: Is the play worth while? and Are
the actors engaged sufficiently skilled to
give it an interesting Interpretation?
ola Gioconda1 in baltimore.