The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-01-19
WRITING PL LAYS FROM
NOVELS NOT SO EASY
Much Easier Originate Theme and From it Weave Play
Than Catch Sentiment and Thong of Another and
Construct One, Says Author of "Macaria.

To the average layman the words
playwright and 'dramatist" are
synonymous. Yet there IL a wide diff
ference betweea the two.
The playwright" is one who takes
an original theme or plot and from
i. writes or weaves his play with no
set rules other than the skill and con-.
struction of dramatic technique.
The "dranatist" Ii one who takes
a book, story or a translation and
adapts 1t for stage presentation. This
may seem the easier task, but, strange
as IL may appear. 1t Ia indeed the
more difficult. The playwright fol-
lows his own inspiration and creates
or omits as he pieases, but the dram
atist must take the book and infect
himself with its atmosphere. it's mean
ing; catch the spirit OF what made
1t successful. study the scenes that
the reader remembers best and then.
tossing the book away, proceed to
write the play He cannot follow the
book as one may think and. alas. is
so many book writer's insist for any
book followed verbatim and placed
upon the stage is bound to fail.
Not even a speech or IA line that
is printed in the book can be follow
ed word for word upon the stage, as
the difference between the written and
the spoken word is as wide as night
is to day. The dramatist, If he does
take the speeches from the book, must
entirely reconstruct them ana pay
heed, not to how they read or look,
but as to how they sound. He must
also infuse new blood into his char
acters and make them real human
people, for. odd as it appears. the pub
lie VIII read and enjoy all sorts of
impossible creations in book, but
upon the stage, when they appear be-
fore them in flesh and blood, they
must he human. else they Will be
treated with ridicuie.
other important points he must fol-
low are time and action. One may
take days or weeks to- read Il book
the play must tell all in an evening.
and while the novelist has pages upon
pages OF description to tell of his
scenes, the dramatfst must arrange 1t
all in an instant,
And, above all, he aust have COM
edy---and lots Of II, The public de-
mands ii in play where il viii over
look its lack in a book. 1t was a
wise philosopher who wrote Genius
can only work unfettered. unbound by
rules" Hence the playwright may be
a genius. but the dramatist must be
one OF knowledge of stagecraft. tech
niuue, VINO must eutt ana lotioW GER
tain laid down rules and at the same
time create, while the playwright has
only the latter to do.
The task of adapting an Augusta J.
Evans book for the stage is consid-
cred one OF the most difficult endeav-
ors ever presented to a dramatist, ow-
ing to the great length OF her won
derful descriptive matter. 1t took
Charles Marshall Jelieff. the dramatist
of "Macaria." weeks OF :ncessant Ia
Dor. night and day, to make the stage
Offering, with tho happy result that
everywhere it has been presented 1t
has met with the approval of those
who have read the book as well as
the theatergoer who has not.
The great charm OF the play lies
in the big heart interest and the
abundance OF delightful humor Of the
real refreshing kind that brings q
hearty laugh and q genuine smile to
the face OF the most blase theater-
soer. 'Macaria" comes to the Acad-
envy Tuesday. carrying complete
scenic production and electrical ef-
fects, as exact as any Belasco ever
offered. together with a cast OF sterl-
ing artists. and offering the first and
only real play OF The Lost Cause"