The Washington times., 1914-10-12
PhotoplayS Having q
Broadening Effect
on the Work of
PlaywrightS

The influence Of the photoplay on
is a topic that is coming in for much
discussion Just at present. The mat
ter has been brought to a focus by
the utilization of moving picture
devices in some Of the new plays of
the last two seasons, and especially
of the present season. Maude Fealy,
who was a well known leading wom-
an few years ago. and was forced
TO quit the stage on account of her.
health. has made some very interest
ing observations on this subject Dur
ing her enforced retirement Miss
Fealy took up moving picture work,
rs ii kept her out Of doors a great
deal and afforded an outlet for the
great dramatic ability she possessed,
and for that revulsion against idle
ness which is the natural result
of long years on the stage. AS one
OF the leading women of the Than
houser Company in a number of i'm
portant productions, she became very
well known to photoplay patrons.
Now, fully recovered in health, Miss
Fealy is about to return to the stage
for her. At the same time she has
signed a contract with the Holland
Film Manufacturing Company, of
Boston, and will appear in a number
OF moving picture dramas. In her
discussion of the film from the point
OF view of the playwright she pre-
sents several new ideas.
Motion picture plays have not
only found place for themselves in
the amusement world. but they are
proving, | believe. a positive benefit
TO the regular stage, in broadening
the possibilities of playwriting, de-
clared Miss Fealy.
The explanatory device called the
'cut-back' has been used with great
success in Under Cover, and in
Wanted. s22. co. and has proved so
valuable both as explanation and as
q means Of increasing suspense, that
IL will doubtless be increasingly
used in the future.
Since a great deal of the power Of
q dramatic situation is gained from
letting the audience know more
about what is happening than the
actors of the story, nothing more
simple or effective could be ina cined
than beginning the action Of an act
several minutes before the previous
act was supposed to have ended.
Something already seen by the audi
enCer OUT ABOUT WDlcn lne characters
on the stage are ignorant. is about
TO happen. The thrills experienced
BY the audience while waiting 10 see
the effect upon the characters OF
something that is known 10 be
about to happen provides one Of the
kecnest sources OF theatrical enter
tainment the stage can offer. And
the staRt has learned this OF the
motion pictures.
Again the device Of a play within
a play has been brought back TO
popularity by its frequent ingenious
use I'm photo plays. particularly with
the resources OF the mooern stage
available for changing the scene by
fsding one picture into another.
dissolve as we call IL in work for
the screen.
perhaps the most striking instance
O. the broadening effect the motion
pictures have had on playwrittng for
the regular stage is in this years
s-vle OF writing the play backward.
as IN tho melodra ma. ON Trial. in
which the opening scenes show
court case near its conclusion and the
rest OF the play sets forth the causes
that led up TO the scene with which
the play begins Innocent" another
play on this model. also be 'ng played
in New York was written in Hun
gsry, .,,
teaching us TO be brief Never again
WILL Il be possible to give the old
rlsvs as thew were written with
their long soliloouies telling the au-
dience what IL already knows or can
guess. or the absurd asides thst were
relics Of a dav when the stage was
so dinly lighted that the audience
COLD not see clearly all that was
going on. and so had to be told IN
so many words.
Clever plavwr'shts OF TO-DAY VS.
ualize every element Of their story.
so that the dialogue is almost an
adjudication of what the audience Is
seeing. And this INSTALLATION has
made il possible to act long scenes
IN silence