The Washington herald., 1913-11-30
By JULIA CHANDLER MANz.

BY oA14N1'
If there is a man. woman, or child
who falls into pit of vice in this
twentieth century let them not blame
the theaters. Let them not rise up and
say. 81 didn't know" for IL there Is one
Isolated danger in all the world to
which they have not been informed by
the modern dramatists 1t would take
more than the physical eye to discover it
Frankness is the dominating character
Lstic Of the present theatrical season.
Nothing is left veiled. An investigator
of crime tells us that there are $4,000
girls IN the United States who annually
disappear into white slavery" Since the
production of ''The Lure in New YORK
PLAYS dealing with this. the lowest strata
of social life, have multiplied to an extent
perhaps not realized by us because, un-
til this week, the white slave hystsria
has not come under our personal eye.
Certainly even the better class theaters
Of New York and Chicago have been
packed since the Inauguration OF the
present theatrical season with morbid
ly curious public eager TO see such I'M
sheathed explorations of vice conditions
as are contained in THE Lure" The
Fight" and Little Lost Sister. Ana
now the movies have fallen in line.
A big electric sign in front OF weber
Theater, New York. announced new
vice photoplay last week called franc
in Souls" which is reported to be most
sensational and realistic presentation OF
the white slave evil
Not satisfied with the number of folk
who can be reached through "he theater
Miss Virginia Brooks, the noted wee
fighter whose book, Little Lost Sister
will be presented in dramatic form al the
Academy Theater this week, will dis
tribute 1000 free copies OF her story
among homes for girls and public IN
si:tutions early in December.
Whether we do ct do not believe that
the number of stupid. foolish, ana isnor-
ant girls is sufficient to warrant me
present campaign against mo "hlte
slave vice we must admit that even eN-
fertional CAGES are dramatic, full enough
NJ sensational episodes to make theme
# absorbing interest when Sraphically
PRESENTED III play
1t was from Miss Brooks series OF
articles written for a Chicago newspaper
that z. Z. Pose, the dramaust ana pro
ducer made she Little Lost Sister
drama which shifts from the unccngeniai
small town home Of vivacious girl 10
a Chicago brothel for which latter she
ltGNCS iGA P1ASASo1A
slave recruit y
Because of the virile manner in which
the subject is handled in both book and
play Little Lost Sister" has created
sensation second only to that OF The
Lure"
Enthusiasm, if expressed for a worthy
object, is a good thing, but one can have
a superbundance of even good thing.
Granted that sociological conditions are
such as to justify such dramas as The
Lure" The Fight" Rachel Crothers
new play Ourselves Little Lost Sis
ter" and scores of others dealing with
the gutter; and that ignorance in sthls
enIightened age is such as to justify
Damaged Goods and its echo The
Blindness Of Virtue''-even granting al
This, which we do with incredulity, we
are still mighty glad that there are lett
many producers who are concerned with
calling public attention TO the COM
mensurate growth in beautiful subjects
upon which to build a drama, Of which
there is no more notable example than
THE Blue Bird" which returns to the
Belasco Theater this week. When the
New Theater production first came to
us in the fall of 1911 it was in the first
flush of its New York triumph, having
hung up a record of 26S performances at
the New and Majestic Theaters. New
York, the first season, and having come
back to the New Genamed the Century,
Theater that same fall
Winthrop Ames, as the director of the
New Theater experiment, controlled
The Blue Bird rights and leased its
scenery and effects to the road producers.
An inkling of the fantasy's touring career
was furnished by the first Washington
engagement, the receipts of which totaled
$4,000 on the single week. Thence the
spectacle started north, east, and west,
playing to the capacity of the respective
theaters in Boston, Montreal, Toronto,
Pittsburgh. Cleveland, Detroit. and Chi
cago. The second road season. a trip TO
the Pacific coast was taken. During the
two seasons the single company played
about 500 performances, entertained
nearly a million playgoers, and took in
F75O, Goa record for a non-operatic at
traction in this country.
Several unusual circumstances are
connected with the tours. First. Maeter-
linck's royalty amounts to Is per cent. an
unusually high percentage of the takings
he is richer by S175,0O0 as the result o.
the three years run. Next, the enormous
rental of $500 per week was paid for the
production itself. This was subsequently
commuted by a cash payment in i've
figures. the Shuberts buying the effects
outright. Despite these heavy charges
the $1,000 week for railroading, and the
big salary list providing for a hundred
people. "The Blue Bird" was a big
financial winner for its American pro-
prietors.
Looking over the worlds map, it ii
interesting TO note that Russia alone
vies with the United States in the total
number of BLUE Bird performances
given and in countrywide popularity
But since Winthrop Ames made the New
York production. almost every othel
worId-capital has presented The Blut
Bird" spectacularly. Paris gave II II
the spring of 1911 with Nine. Georgettt
Leblanc Maeterlinck, the authors wife
in the role of Light London revived j
the following holidays as a Christina
pantomine. Tokyo had it for six months ii
a japanese version. Finally in January
of- this year Max Reinhardt made a no
liable German production at the Deutsche:
Theater. Berlin, simultaneously, as il
happened, with the first visit of tht
American company to San Francisco.
Thus Maeterlinck has circled the eartl
with his happiness girdie, the delicious
fancy and sunny optimism of the plaI