The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1911-10-21
ADJUSTMENTS
Acndcmy-.Thc Countr~ no.,
nee and night mutt
and night. matinee
The Country Boy"

"fhe Country Boy"
Eor straight comedy, pure an, nm
eehieu; Tor character drawing 80 ner
.,II, . anat the people portrayed in the
most OF US have seen and known. Tnr
e'e.erhess and wit. without a suny
s pI,I phrase. and for sound philos-
Cphy, not delivered by a hear, I'd nrs
lessor in the form Of a drv lectyr.
put smoothly and naturally in the
oVui sc OIL conversation-just talked
give me The Country Boy
Edgar Selwyn's wonderfully success
~ Pa IS oiied as comedy. and 1t
40 certainiy that. but it is Just
as ..ss,i certainly great deal more.
a "a, failure until he admits i; him. him
Eli, Is only one OF the many lines
Vim meat in them which the cynical,
naIsh, tender hearted newspaper man
Merkle, speaks TO the boy who comes
rom the little country town to New
sn nt9 sscaq 1s. he thinks in his cock
nome nome are are not big enough for his abiii
ties The boy does not succeed: he
iIh inbt sb.5 Ghum in all innocence OF
deserts him in his darkest hour, when
MS money is all gone and his sweet
neaft at home has thrown him over.
IN, me chorus girl makes him shudder to
the bottom OF hts clean young soul
when he finally understands her and
IN mis- misery, he determines to END IL
all by the gas route" because OF his
u.
ne had only not found himself, and
when Merk!c. by a wonderfully in
senious trick or ruse. has set him on
mis- feet again, the two of them. with
Joe Weinstein. ticket speculator, 20
10 the boys home town, start a news
paper. and all's we'll.
i, me nrst act is merely explanatory;
scene, is eNquisitely funny; the third
is, at times. tense, and throughout
written with the utmos, skill and
l FNnt
act is clever and funny again-and
happy.
The company. opened less than a
made for few of the actors, who were
not altogether easy in their parts. But
on the whole the performance was
more than good, and the two prin-
manner that deserves high praise. VIII
fred Lytell was. to my mind. much
more convincing as the boy, Tom Will
played the part here last December.
An unusually ice-lookng young man,
with good head OF hair" (vid Mid
Channelp he played easily. naturally
and simply. entirely avoiding the pout
ing, obtrusive boyishness that. spoils
the work of so many juveniles. as it
marred that of Hawley last season.
success of the play depends more
largely. upon the performance of the
man who plays Merkle, The newspaper
upon tudt Oh any other IN
the cast. and in the selection of
Stapieton Kent for the part the man
agement is to be congratulated His
method differs somewhat from that OF
George A. Wright whom we saw last
year, in that IL is Il little bit more
mildly humorous. in spite of the char
acter's chronic Crouch. Humorous
may not be just the word--at least. he
is not quite so "snarly." Wright had
an ugly voice, this man has 4 deep
and powerful one, which he uses with
great effect. and he is. altogether, a
bit more human, more lfe-like than
even the grouchiest kind of a city
editor. lie has one of the best parts
ever written, and he gets out OF 1t
everything that even the author could
desire
The women in the piece do not mat
ter much. which is rather fortunate
Lizzie Mccall was fairly satisfactory
who played Jane, the boys sweetheart,
las a nasa! quality of voice that would
lit her better for the part of the
chorus girl, while it was somew hat
difficult to understand the fascination
of the chorus girl. as she was played
by Rosamond Carpenter.
William Moran was good as the
slangy Weinstein, longing for the
White Lane. and kicking himself when
he thought of the nifty little danes
floating around Forty-second Street
and the careless way he used to pass
them up"
Altogether. an excellent performance
of a famous comedy. And again only
half house. w. D. G.