The Washington times., 1914-05-05
NATIONAL

What's Wrong" with the co on al
ter II. which we supply after both Fred
erick Ballard. the author. and David
Belasco. the producer. overlooked IL
in the confusion OF producing the piece
on the stage at the National last niSht'
is a diagnosis, in addition to being a
play.
The colon is important because many
people think the title lacks a question
mark 1t does not. Mr. Ballard has
placed himself in the position OF a lee
Iurer at a clinic He has d great deal
to say on the subject he has chosen for
the lecture. He desires TO make every
word and every action count. he. thefe-
tore, disCords all supeTlatlNeS III MS
title and starts his play
Considered as a Cl nical diagnosis OF
Americanitis. the name be ng SIlpned
10y MIR Ballard, the production Is sue
CeSsiul. There is not moment IN the
first and second act %hen the fact that
the average business man in this couu-
try is speeding himself into premature
senile debility in his effort to acquire
money is not uppermost in the minds
of every person in the aud ence.
Feel the Excitement.
So plain is the situation that the
business men in the audience partooH
strongly of the excitement under which
tie land-se l.ng-ch :cken-far ming hero
VAS laboring. The chicken farm sec
ond act was slightly less intense in
its effect on the audience-just slightly
less. The third act-where the vile
and baby treatment has affected a
compete cure for the speed mania,
shows an entire reversal of the other
two. II sends the audience home in
the frame of mind o. the patient who
has been told by the Goctor that lie
Is suffering from a highly dangerous
complication OF diseases. a comDlca-
ton that might, at any moment cause
his collapse and death. and th.n is
told that it isn't necessarily fatal, and
that If he'll follow the physicians ad-
Vice, complete restoration 20 health is
not only poss. bic, bul necessarily posi-
tive. So much for the diagnosis.
As a play, Frederick Ballard mas
dramatized nervous prOstration. David
Belasco staged il in a sister act
with a real honest-to-goodness chicken
farm, and Janet Beecner adds human
Intelligence to such q point that the
neTrasthenic is cures. the chicken
farm forgotten, and the entire cast set
ties down to the business of living
real life under the best auspices after
having shown very clean laughable
comedy.
Shows Up Faults.
There are number o. people in the
world who do not like TO have their
little faults and failings thrown in their
faces And What's Wrong does that
IN an unmistakable way. There is no
getting around what the author means
whether he is aiming at nerves or
race suicide. If direct, straight-from-
the-shoulder facts coming over the
foctlights with the rapidity of machine
NINa -1nr- rk-.I
play ought to be wonder. Objection
might be made that the author has at
tempted TO do too much in the space of
time allowed him. But there is nothing
crowded and full of short cuts. The
staging Of the piece was perfect-as
Belasco productions generally are.
The chicken farm second act was a |
marvel. 1t vast was just chicken
farm, further than which there can be |
no description.
Quite aside from the other features |
OF the production, there is wonderfully
fine woman story in What's Wrong
that shouldn't be overlooked in the con-
fusion Of other things. 1t is the third
and perhaps the greatest-of the au-
thor's accomplishments. Jenny Brown, :
AS played by Janet Beecher. is a wom-
an who shows in her character and her
action as indeNing that character mod
ern woman IN her most perfect form. 4,
Not the travesty on woman that fills
the theaters. the bridge tables. the de- /,
partment stores, or the suffrage plat /,
forms But the ideal of modern wom- +,
ankind-the helpful. intelligent wife and !
mother.
Has Good Opportunity.
Miss Beccher has I wonderful oppor- !
tunity in the part. And Miss Beecher
accepts both opportunity and the re-
sponsibility it brings with her usual art .
she realizes the author ideal i'll her
Interpretation of his work.
Frederick Burton. in the part Of the
nerve-wrecked business man. is another
perfect picture that showed cnly lt ss
art than Miss Beecher's work.
n iidel Turner. Louise Sylvester
Richie Ling. William Dixon. Percy Hei-
ton. Susanne Villa. Grace Vernon. Jane
Shore. Henry Weaver, J. W. Kennedy,
Russell Simpson. the baby. and the
chickens. the pigeons. and the metre
nome, all complete an unusually we'll
chosen cast
The audience that Witnessed the pro-
ductlon at the National was very en-
thusiastiC. and at the end Of the second
oct compelled Mr. Ballard to bow his
acknOwlc dGments Of their salutations
and Mr. Belasco to make a speech of
thanks. GARDNER MACK.