New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-01-08
FINE FEATHERS"
E. Walters Drama of Frenzied
Finance Genes to AStor.
THE PLAY WELL BUILT
Develops Theme with Insistence
and Strength, but Requires
Courage of Audience.

/
first niehter in town. or is it contas ious?
Perhaps that is one of the points Fine
| Feathers" makes.
The author calls his drama a play OF
to-day, and for once the label is apt
| For II is as recorder Of certain facts
and feelings that arc in the air now that
| the play has distinct value Nor does
the fact that Fine Feathers" is grim
tragedy put il out of harmony with the
times. even If the times often seem. from
comic supplement point OF view, to be
so gay.
The play goes al ,he problem Of the
| twenty five dollar-a-week clerk. He is
honest. of blithe disposition and not par
| ticularly ambitious. lie is the kind that
| in medieval days used 80 90 soldering
/ about the land without 2 care. a thought
or responsibility. In these DAYS there
is no such glad way OF wandering through
| life. One must choose treadmill and
! trot on it: that is If his genius Is not for
money making. SO the poor incompetent
] throws away his useless talents, whatever
! they might have been. chooses or hap
/ pens upon his treaduill and trots with
fairly good grace When his wife frets
| at her dull routine at home. regrets her
youth and beauty. which arc going I'M
adorned. the husband has half-hour's
despondency curses fate rails Al himself
and then relapses into his hslf-contcnted
dog trot again.
! II. however. the man has a wife who
| has determination and ambition enough
TO drive her dear boy. her dear, loving,
| honest, poetic. perhaps, but incompetent
! boy, out into an attempt to do big things,
rivalry with the big men who are COM
| petent he will sooner or later fall from
whatever height she drives him TO. IL
she has driven him into the game OF
high finance" his crash will be tragic.
As water seeks its own level. so do
people.
! This is the theme OF Fine Feathers.
! In this play the wife firing day by day
I Of the staten Island bungalow and the
economies and monotonies incidental 10
| keeping up a home for two on s25 a week.
| begins 10 dream OF the magic lives the
! rich are leading. Never have people lived
| so magically as the fortunate few can
! to-day At least so II seems 10 those VINO
| cannot try il. The wife forces her nus
| band into a questionable deal In which
! by sacrificing his fine sense OF honor,
| but apparently doing no one any harm
thereby. he can gain a powerful friend
and make $4,000. lie goes into the deal
on the strength OF her ambition. Az for
himself he has neither the courage nor
| the callousness OF conscience 10 do the
thing.
lie becomes a hnancier and gets on
: u ia. out On
sea with competent men-competent. that
| is. to play the money game-snd he -
like a ship under full sail and no rudder
| lie crashes headlons in two years. loses
every cent and is broken by the same
| powerful friend who had used him a.
! a tool in the first place BY coincidence
! the gaining OF the original 5000. gain
! that was 20 hurt no ole. turns out 10 oe
] the death Of hundreds. So the stricken
! and broken man shoots himself and the
! curtain descends on DARK stage with
the wife moaning terribly on the sofa and
! the police knocking at the door.
| Mr.. Walter has concentrated his
strength 10 develop his theme. He mas
! but seven people in the cast and all bend
! their attention and their energies on the
one line OF interest There II 10 side
! play. What comedy there is Is brought
! in Al the expense OF staten Island and
the Utopian Land Company. which sells
! happv homes 10 the newly marfied-in
/ other words. legitimate comedy, once
.Iobn Brand walks I'm the door however
! TO persuade Bob Reynolds to take s+'"'
/ in exchange for a schoolboys conscience
/ there is not q word OF movement that
~.
Whether the onlooker likes the grimncss
I Of the play OF whether he cares FOR the
1 theme play at all. with its enort to- put
/ to-day" on the stage with photo-reaism'
! does not concern fair estimate OF 'Fine
Feathers" The play realizes itself com
pletely. II is mastery play OF It's KIND.
The part OF the man who was driven
! oN his treadmill was PLAYED with nervous
force by Robert Edeson. The mental
! brea kdown and helpessness, combined
/ with the assurance given by great ph!si-
col strength. were we'll shown. Mr. Eide
! son has probably never played more
irving part. The self-contaned poiSe oil
T Wilton I.ackaye ia the role OF the man
who MAS competent. was JOY To water.
, Few men on the stage can look Ike cap
tains OF finance but Mr.. l.ackaye can
| lolita Robertson had a certain coorIess
force as the ambitious wife. And Max
! Isirman as "A talkatiye socialistic but IN
! corr,Iptible friend OF Reynolds. put a
| great deal OF life into the DICK Meade.
! Special mention for quite unique method
i'm comedy should so to Amelia Suineis
! for nor Frieda As a g. a week hired girl
who was worth - less she was perfection.
Whether the thrilling strength OF Zine
| Feathers" will carry IL 10 favor In spite
of ifs gloom haunted ending Is prob
lem. The play has an Air almost OF
scandinavian oppressiveness about its
final act II has worse doctrine than
that the wages Of sin are death. II IL the
wages Of incompetence that brought about
destruction In this case. On the other
hand. If the man had not rebelled. but
had STAYED on his mill. then his portion
| would have been moIotony.
Ees.de Mr. Walter such person as
Mr.. Ibsen is a gay and frivolous come
dian.
CAST OF FINE FEATHERS.
Airs Collin, Observation-Disclosures. Rose Coshish
{ d. H.,rolds ...............i olta ROBERTSON
Bob E-A nolGt. - ~
Dick Meade. ''''''''' 80 80 -,
} Iobn Brand. ................ iton Lachsl,
FrieGa ...........'..'.' ,' ILL.,