New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-11-09

LOnuOn season not one is announced
In Newcastle there has been one per-
Torrance of Hamlet; the only one in
all England. And concerning this
state of things Mr.. Jones, who does
not disdain emphasis, remarks tear
fully:
The naked disgrace. the naked
irony Of these facts jeers at all COM
ment; makes all excuses childish and
ridiculous
If you know anything Of the theat-
rical world in London you have al
ready laid heavy odds that this state
ment would not be suffered to pass
unchallenged. There is an English
champion whose lance is always In
rest; whose shield is blazoned with
his own achievements; whose banner
is written all over with the glowing
record of his deeds as actor and as
manager and as actor manager Need
name Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree?
The challenge of Mr.. Henry Arthur
Jones alone might not have brought
Sir Herbert into the field, but THE
Times" not having the fear Of Sir Her
bert in its mind. not only reported Mr..
Jones but backed him up. declaring:
I'VE do neglect Shakespeare
we do not make full use of the theatre
as a place where the science Of wise
living can be learned; our acting and
our knowledge of life suffer in conse-
quence."
To this the lessee Of His Majesty's
Theatre retorts, both in sorrow and In
anger, that THE Times" statements
are misleading and inaccurate; and he
must therefore say a few words, in
his peculiar English, "in extenuation
Of the public taste which is thus as
sailed" So he gives us long and
no doubt accurate list of his own pro-
auctions of plays bearing Shakespeare's
name; asserting further that, at his
theatre above named. out of fourteen
years six years and half have been'
devoted to the works Of Shakespeare.
It would be more accurate to say
they have been devoted to the produc-
ton of plays originally written by
Shakespeare such form as he
thought suitable to the theatre, and
reconstr, d by Sir Herbert Tree in
such form as he thought suitable to
his theatre; and to his own purposes.
They have been cut and altered and
pulled about till they seemed to him
adapted to the modern taste of the
paying public for spectacle. They
have been overstaged, overdressed,
and underplayed or overplayed ac-
cording to circumstances; but always
so presented that the appeal to the
eye comes first. Sir herbert is very
superior Snowman; well understanding
what an uncultivated public wants.
and willing to supply the demand. We
may regret that our Mr.. Bryan bad
not the advantage of some American
Sir Herbert, who would have known
how to produce him without jugglers
and pink -limbed acrobats as accessory
attractions. Whether to put upon the
stage a succession of travesties be
Indeed a proof Of reverence for Shake
speare or whether II redeems England
from the reproach Of neglecting her
one supreme dramatist is a question
hardly necessary to ask.
There was a reply from Mr.. Henry
Arthur Jones. He is a writer prac-
tised in controversy and puts a sure
finger on some of Sir Herbert Trees
fallacies. "Othello," for instance ran
for a little more than lonth; Henry
VIII" for a little more than seven
Yet "Othello" is one of the
four great tragedies; Henry VIII"
quite inferior play in which Fletcher
had a hand. The actor manager OF
His Majesty's says Shakespeare pays;
that his huge spectacular
and melodramatic productions pay;
Yet, in referring to the
performances by Sir Johnston Forbes
Robertson at Drury Lane and by Mr..
Granville Bakers company at tho
Savoy, he says, naively enough: II
admit the danger Of presenting
at more than one theatre
at a time" There must be a monop-
oily, then, and the sole lessee Of His
Majesty's Theatre is to be the monop-
olist. The day of the patent theatre Is
to return; to the end that Sir Herbert
be the patentee.
Mr. Jones naturally thinks his state
ment, and his implied claim to the ex-
elusive right Of representing and mis-
Shakespeare, are alike
arguments for n really national
theatre. He urges with force that
these vulgar pageantries which bring
money to the box office and make the
tudicious grieve tend to drive out Of
the field productions which rely upon
the play itself and the acting. Mr..
Granville Barker goes to the other ex-
IRENE. He provides scenery which re-
minds you OF the nursery with us
Noah's Arks and cardboard shrubbery.
Sir j. f. Robertson at Drury Lane
staged his Hamlet" with sobriety, and
night after night filled that vast audi
torium with an applauding multitude.
His acting was the chief attraction