The Washington herald., 1914-04-19
By JAMES $. METcALFE.

ny JAMES y. hETOALFE.
New York, April lS.-Easter week comes
in with a theatrical rush with which no
theatrical observer with only one pair
OF legs. one pair of eyes, and one pair
of ears could hope adequately to cope
In this rush of new productions the
Shuberts were wise to 60 against all
theatrical tradition in this town. and set
their production Of "Pinafore" at the
Hippodrome for Good Friday evening
Ostensibly this was only a dress re-
hearsal; but, in fact, 1t was a very COM
plete performance Of an entertainment
which bids fair to keep the big Hoppe
drome open well into he summer and
long after its usual closing time.
The Hippodrome has the advantage Of
making its big ship 'Pinafore" seem to
float. 1t is anchored in a tank Of real
water with a companion way leading
down to the waters edge. Little Butter
cup is rowed up to the ship In real
bum-boat, and at the crucial moment
Dick Deadeye is thrown overheard by his
indignant shipmates and actually has to
swim ashore-fortunately without damage
to his unpleasant makeup.
Mr. Arthur Voegtlin is responsible for
this as for many other Of the Hippo
dromes spectacular productions. He has
made 1t most impressive in many ways
and has paid a whole lot of attention to
naval detail Mr. Klein and his big or
chestra have an excellent respect for the
music. and altogether il is an unusual
and picturesque rendering of what is the
nearest approach we have to a classic
operetta of English origin in book and
score.
Bringing Back the Past.
What Mr.. Clyde Fitch himself con-
s-k.
been done with great success all over
the world, except in New York, has
just been put into revival at the Little
Theater by Mr.. Winthrop Ames- The
Truth" ran only two weeks m New
York when il was first produced, but
since then has been played for year
in London. has been translated and
successfully done in several Continent
al capitals. and served a seasons
successful vehicle for the late Clara
Bloodgood until her career in the part
of Becky Warder was closed by the
tragedy of her suicide.
In the present production Grace
George essays the role of the heroine.
who is charming in every other par
ticular, but who happens to be con-
genial liar and who lies, so far as can
be seen, simply for the pleasure of
lying. as she evidently gains nothing;
in fact, pretty nearly loses everything
by lies that are told only because there
is an abnormal pleasure in telling
them.
Mr.. Fitch never drew better types
than this far from unattractive hero
inc the father who bequeathed his own
tendencies TO his daughter. and the
coarse-grained widow. who simply had
to love some one, and who squandered
her love and her money on this male
deCadent- The types are so true to
certain phases of life and so admir-
ably drawn that it is no wonder that
Europe and America, at large. gave
The Truth" a better reception than
the metropolis in which The Truth"
was conceived and born.
Mr. Ames has revived The Truth at
time when good plays are scarcer than
hens mOl2rs. and just when New York
was yearning for a real play. He show
cd rare discretion in casting it, choosing
Grace George for Becky Warder. Ferdi-
nand GottschaIk ior her helpless but we'll
hammered, consrienceless, and self-indul-
gent father and retaining Zelda Sears in
the role of the worshiping widow. which
she created in TIE first production.
Grace Gcorge. with all her ability. is
one of the most difficult of our artists
to suit with a lart. Here is one where
her gIittering hardness, her good looks,
and self-posSessICn. her kitten-like charm
and. above Ill. hcr clear enunciatiOn unite
to make the part Of Becky Warder trl-
umph Of her many-phased career. Fer
dinand Gottschalk also scores in the part
Of the broken down man of good birth
and social standing, who for the sake
Of the creature comforts. is willing to be
the pensionar of the widow. who never
was anybody OF anything in a social
way. but was Obsessed Of the feminine
desire to have some one to love and care
for The minor parts are also well done,
ha
distinguished one in the subordinate cast
There is no question of the artistic eX-
cellence Of The TRUTH both a play
and in its present rendering 1t seems
likely that Now York will reverse its
earlier verdict. Gud that the piece may
remain as long as Mr.. Ames cares to
keep open the doors of the Little Theater.
Comic MeIodramn.
Criminal meIodrama conforming to the
type that Mr. Al Woods used to foster
would only be laughed at today. Thieves.
blackmaiIers, and cir kind have been
50 freely used as stage material, that ii
would take a pretty hardy manager or
author to get a serious hearing for the
kind Of play that reveled in their ex-
ploits, no matter how dramatic.
Mr.. Harvey J. O'Higgins and Harriet
Ford evidently reali-' this when. in
writing The Dummy" they made the
laughs of this kidnapping melodrama in
sired from the stage instead of originat-
ing with the audience. sense of humOr
is a saving grace. and today the audience
must laugh with a piece written in this
school and not at it The authors tell
a very thrilling story of kidnapping and
detective work but the main detective is
a lad who is funny in his amoItions TO
be what he calls a ''detectuf." but who,
nevertheless. Outwits the clever crooks.