New-York tribune., 1911-04-02
THE PLAYGOER
The New Theatre Lectures on
Old Plays and Old Ways.


newspaper has called him. is not piiieo
for a run. but even with his four appear
ances he is likely 10 prove the most sue
cessful of the guest artists VINO nave
been seen on that capacious stage. Al
his first appearance the audience must
have been nearly twice as large as the
one that gathered in the same mouse
when the founders presented medal 10
Miss Ellen Terry. To be sure two snort
oieer and ancient plays were performed
as Illustrations to the first of Professor
Natthews's lectures. But on the Ellen
Terry day Maeterlinck's Sister bea-
trice" was acted. with Miss Edith Wynne
Matthson in the title part 1t is
significant that Professor Branoer
Matthews draws better than Ellen Terry
and Miss Matthison. I am not sure
what it signifies. even in the light OF two
other facts: The audience at Brander
Natthews's lecture paid for Its seats
the audience of the Ellen Terry alter
noon did not pay.
i, Perhaps the novelty of the ancient
PLAYS and of the presumably ancient
method of presentation drew the I'M
mcnse audience. If SO, shall we escape
the thought that even The New Theatre
public is keener for some new thlng Ql
ulavs four hundred and six hundred
years old can be called new thngs) than
IL is for that dramatic art which 1t is
supposed 10 hold so tenderly? This eX-
: PLANTATION failing, another presents itseH:
Your otherwise calm friends who are hot
for culture found in the occasion an op-
portunity for seraphic JOY If this were
not the case. will you not be compelled
to admit that Professor Brander
Matthews. with his old mystery and
morality plays. draws two heads for
every one attracted by Ellen Terry,
Edith Wynne Matthison and Maeter-
linck play?
Explain il?
But TO do that another lecture might
he reauired And only column is
available mere.
These New Theatre lectures on TIE
Development OF the English Drama are
interesting They are also instructive
II they were merely interesting the audi
eslces would be smaller, because humans
MAO are hot for culture care not so much
u be interested as TO be seen in studious
ecstacy. They do not support plays very
much, especially if they are good plays
well acted. They prefer lecture on
..--l.. tl,a 1r,ir q h la
performance of the entire play as given
on this very stage some weeks ago.
They glow gently with proud belief in
their superiority over the audiences Of
the Middle Ages.
After a thousand years of night.
said Professor Matthews in his first lect-
ure, the first glimmer of the drama is
found again in the Church. The Middle
Ages are truly the Dark Ages. There
we're no theatres. there were no libraries,
there We're no books. there was no print
ing. there were no magazines and no
newspapers There were very few means
of travelling abroad. Life was seden-
tary. Life was dull. Very few men
knew how to read and write The
priests used paseantry and primitive
form of drama to teach their illiterate
focks the meaning of the Bible stories.
Well. nowadays, life, if less sedentary.
is not without dulness. and although
everybody knows how 10 read and write
1t is a pity that they neither write nor
: read 10 better purpose. Millions read
nothing but newspapers and magazines,
and get from these soures and from the
: theatre most of their III adjusted knowl-
edge Of life Grye this public what it
wants" and you have certain phenom-
.na in printed matter and in acted plays.
And YOU will find this public" laughing
to-day at almost all the points that
amused the medieval spectators.
The medieval mind was curiously
lofty and grossly low" Professor Mat
thews reminds us; 'it had strong desire
to laugh. but had no sense at all Of in
congruity." | suppose il is far from
Professor Matthewss intention to imply
that in taste concerning the drama the
greater portion of 'the public" of to-day
has not advanced far beyond the public
Of the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries;
but If il were his peculiar fortune to
see, each year. nine-tenths Of the plays
that are performed in New York. he
would scarcely escape the conclusion
that the great public" Of the twentieth
century has strong desire to laugh"
and but q small sense Of incongruity
Happily he is professor Of dramatic
literature. and is not compelled to see all
the plays that come before the long suf
fering critics of the newspapers--a tribe
for which he is reported to entertain an
opinion as small as the ''public's' sense
OF incongruity-or he would am sure
acknowledge that a majority Of the new
pieces. season after season, have a char
acteristtc which he has observed in the
mystery plays-"the comic effects are
Iugeed in, inserted, injected. for the spe-
cial purpose of comic relief of making
the audience laugh" and that incon-
gruity bulks large upon the stage with
out in the least disturbing the dear
public"
Tomorrow afternoon Professor Mat
thews will deliver the third Of his four
lectures. This will deal with The Old
Comedy Period" Scenes from The
School for Scandal will be acted by the
New Theatre company. These scenes
will be set with the old-fashioned Slid
ing" scenes moved at the sound Of the
stage managers whistle; and smoky
IL. AIinkiee will rGnlace