New-York tribune., 1911-01-31
THE DRAMA
Josephine Preston Peabody'S
Play. "The Piper" at The
New Theatre.

beauty. Of dignity and tenderness. a play
Of movement and aglow with living dra-
matte interest. The history OF THIS poetic
drama Is known we'll enough by this time
Its winning of the St-atford-on- Avon
Prize last year, It's presentation az the
Memorial Theatre In Shakespeare's town,
the success Il had in the British cities
on it, way 20 London. where IL met with
high appreciation. Perhaps Il j. not 50
well known that the play was no, written
for the StrstfoTd competition. II entered
that contest in the form of q printed book
mailed from America about three weeks
before. the lists closed. Its author. al
American poet Josephine Preston Peabody
(Mrs Lionel Marks. OF Cambridge. Mass,
had thought Of OTIS Skinner a. tire Amer
ican actor best fitted 20 interpret the prin-
cipsl part. III fact, il may be said that
The Piper was written for Otis Skin
ner. as "Chantecler" was written for
Coquelin. But, Mr. Skinner being unable
70 produce n within the time specified by
contract, the play was published Ia No
vember, 1909. and during the authors alb
sence at Stratford the rights for presenta-
tion here passed into the hands of The
New Theatre. where the irrepressible
genius for mlscasting characters, an OBJ
stinate and perverse influence which has
marred every piece but one performed in
that house. has again flung its dead
weight upon the ina ginatior OF dramatist
and spectator
The Piper IL a mans part The char
acter IS 50 Enthusiastically masculine that
no possible ingenuity can frame a plausi-
lie excuse for permitting a gracious, love
ly and enhancing woman TO act It, even
When that woman is Miss Edith Nynne
Matthison. the most accomplished and
poetic actress Of our stage. The Piper is
no pretty. fanciful and airy abstraction,
but living man among living men. The
play is not d dream-play like The Blue
Bird: 1t Is a drama OF human life. and
IL the lives depicted are those that had
food and raiment, and greed and love, and
sorrow and merriment six hundred years
ago In an Old World town. they are none
the less true 20 the natures that are
around Us in our own streets 20 this day.
The clothes and the houses have changed,
but the people have changed only their
names.
Robert Browning can be left out or the
discussion. he put the Hamelin legend
into verse for the English-reading world.
lie dio not invent the legend. Centuries
had passed * along in Brunswick before
he was born. Mrs. body has not dram
atized Browning's poem, nor has she
dramatized the legend. She has allowed
her poetic imagination to play upon the
ancient and familiar story and has created
something which later time may recog-
nize as finer and greater legend than the
we'll known outline which has come down
TO us from the year 1884.
The first American performance Of this
four act drama was given in The New The
atre Monday night. II vas received with
warm ana long applause. No play hereto
fore produced 1T this theatre has been 50
cordia tally rewarded with the plsudits OF a
great audience There was the extra
ordinary spectace-extraordinar for New
York-of the entire audience waiting after
the end Of the play and unanimously call
Ing for The author How we'll deserved
this tribute vas any one who has read the
play will understand easily. For here is
one 81 the plays that can be read as well
a. acted, drama that is a piece OF litera-
turc a. well a a piece for stage PER
for,uance. Il belongs, n time can be de-
pended on 20 back this judgment. 70 that
clas- Of plars for which. in his Columbia
University lecture the other DAY, Mr. henry
Arthur Jones expressed an eloquent hope.
II makes AZ once a popular appeal. and an
appeal 20 cultivated minds. II is cnarnl-
ine and durable contribution by ar Amer
icsn 10 the al TOO scant collection Of act
able snd readable plays
And Il says much for the living strength
or this drama that II achieved immediate
success al The New Theatre, although the
leading mans part was PLAYED by the lead
inc woman. II was not because Of this
curious misdeal but in spite Of II that the
play Vop the house u was natural enough
In .he circumstances that much Of the
et-playwrights meaning could not cross
the footlighJS Thus. in tho third act,
where there should be the contrast between
the strong man. The Piper. partly vengefui
FOR his own wrongs and partly on account
OF Uamelin's meanness. this virlle. defiant
fellow defylng a sorrowing mother and
even Christ himself. there az the cross
roads-instead OF this contrast, which the
scene needs. between this man OF energy
and the weeping mother OF lost child, you
see two agitated women. The lines show
clearly enough that the author meant 20
contrast here q mans sorrow and his souls
tumult with d woman's grief All through
The New Theatres performance Of the play
the man is missed. To that extent OF
course. the authors intention must be sub
merged. But Il would seem not 20 mater
At The New Theatre how play Is cast 20
long as II is not rightly cast.
c.tn fas . M
also said that 4 d woman must play this
mans part no other actress could play Tie
piper with such delicacy. charm. and poetic
epiri. as Miss Edith Wynne Matthison
gives TO IT, She was delightful. but she
was obviously "A woman masqueradng.
Sweetly. tenderly and az times roguishly.
feminine. she never for an instant suggest
"a a masculine spirit or a mans thought.
How could she? She is Edith Wynne
AIatthison. the most poetic incarnation OF
wOnanhood on our stage.
The Piper returns 10 Hsmeln az chief
Of a band Of strOllng players. lie comes
20 receive the thousand guilders promised
by the burghers FOR riddinS them of the
ulague Of rats. Hamelin, with the rats out
Of the way. forgets its word and refuses 20
nay the Piper Whereupon the Piper plays
in the marketylace. and all the children
come dancing 70 him. He pipes them up
the mountainside and conceals them there
inside "the Hollow Hill." which appears to
be a venerable ruin. There they stay a
week and a day while the town comes 10
its senses. II 10 its senses it can come.
Meantime the Burgomasters daughter.
Barbara. is compelled 70 do penance FOR all
the fools OF townsfolk; she must give up
her dreams OF the world and be
r,n~rfv~