Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1914-11-25
Be,sso,, Gives Idsas
Of Causes For Slump
IN Legitimate Drama

Clyde Benson, who he's become prom
inent on the stage thru his clever char
acter work in well known productions.
visited over Sunday in the city with
friends, coming here from Union. where
he has been spending short vacation
at the home of his parents, MIR. and
Mrs. H. j. Benson. Mr.. Benson Is en-
joying his vacation which began with
his retirement from the dramatic stage
and which will continue until he joins
the moving picture ranks in Caiifor-
MIA soon.
MIR. Benson retires from the stage
only for a temporary period. his adj
vent into the silent drama being only
| temporary. Depression in the iegiti-
mate stage business is the cause for
Mr.. Benson's change. and while here
Mr.. Benson expressed the opinion that
it would be year or two at least be-
fore the stage would return to any
thing like normal conditions.
The depression is due, In Mr., Ben
sons opinion, to several conditions.
some of which have existed for several
wears and others which nave arisen in
the last few months. Interest in the
sta Sc has been on the wane since the
a,iSen, of the moving picture theater
ard the Increased popularity OF the
vaudeville stage. The primary causes.
however were the departure from the
oid stock system of producing plays.
and the adven, of the so-called star
ring system: the over production OF
plays, the TOO elaborate staging OF
musical comedies. the production OF
plays that had won success on the
metropolitan boards by companies
made up OF second-rate actors. with
high standard of prices of admission
the increase in salaries of players. que
to the general prosperity OF the times,
and the bidding for services OF recog-
nized stars by the vaudeville mana
gers and motion picture producers. All
these conditions serve to bring about
climax which was fastened by the
general depression in other lines OF
business and the outbreak OF the Eur
opean war.
Musical comedy. which has been pro-
duced with all the eiaborateness pos
sible. has gradually dwindied. and IS |
generally considered TO be on the wane
Over production in this line has been
the death knell Managers We'd with
each other in the layishnesss OF pro-
duction. and where thirty people wouia
have served. often sixty TO eighty were
employed to make the production one
10 he talked about
The motion picture IS also doomed. IN
the opinion of producing managers,
and the public now demands large spa
cious theaters. With full orchestra. and [,
the better feature pictures. A feature
picture today Otter; costs many times ,
ths outlay for q metropolitan theatri-
cal production. The standard plays !
have been drawn on fc- materiai Tor
the silent drama. and the subjects are
becoming exhausted. The acme. j, is
believed. has been reached and the mo-
ton picture will retrosrate rather than
progress henceforth-
Theatrical managers. In discussing
the future OF the thsater. are now OF
the opinion that there must come about
the revival OF the meodranla and while
this announcement nay seem ridicui-
GUS to the initiated. IL is doubtless
true. The public. or ~ Der cent OF the
public wants meiodran1a- This IS
shown in the popularity of the thriller
in the motion picture. Ii is matter
of history that a large percentage OF
sEe Stage successes Ldfc HcrH AtiN'N7
dramas. ard that the interest In the
stage began 10 wane when the problem
PLAY. the society drama and the labored
-talky" modern play. such "a comes
from the English stage. made its ap-
pearance. Meiodrafre IS the play oil
the people. IN fact n is the stage. Tor
ii embraces the greater portion OF al
plays written and produced
While not generally recognized as
such in he public mind. the dramas OF
Shakespeare are melodramas: the plays
Of the early English piaywrights that
have survived are r,elodrama;ic, even
the famous old comedies having
to:cn of rnelodraua in their makeup.
and the ever popular productions oil
George II. Conan today are dependant
upon their melodramatic plots Tor
success.