The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-11-28

America is the result of a long post poned Intention on the part of Americans to duplicate the Free Stage" and "Peo- pie's theatre" movement which has been successful in the F'reie Buehne of Otto
 Brahm in Berlin, in the Theatre Libre
 of Antoine in Paris and in the Art Thea tre of Stauislavski in Moscow. Last year the plan had tentative be-
 ginning, but unfavorable conditions made only two performances given under the direction of Herr Reicher possible These two performances were artistic
 successes and proved the forerunner for the successful venture of this winter.
 The New York Times in recent issue published an interesting account of the
 working of the American Peoples thea tre and a conversation with Emanuel
 Iteicher, the great German actor and friend of the German working man. He says:
 How soon our faith was justified! The Freie Volkbuehne was an immediate suc cess, and just before the war the Verein had membership of over 120, 600, and
 the theatre which it had built was not big enough to hold it's members. who had to be accommodated at extra matinees at other houses. The criticisms and com
 ments that have heard from this public are extraordinary. So penetrating, so treffend '-there is no good translation for treffend, and Herr Reicher was speaking German.
 "'Our present plan.' he continued. is a combination of these two ideas-the Free Stage and the Peoples Stage. am almost more interested in the second de- velopment. President Wilson said re- , gently that the roots of the strength of a country are deep down in the people and that is my opinion. It Is to the plain people of this great country that I wish tD annpa1 TO the riph--vpS. tn too, for their appreciation, for their in- terest, intellectual and financial, We are going to make an appeal to all.'" The plan has been worked out in full detail and on Tuesday, November 16, the first of seven productions will be- gin at the Garden theatre, When the New Vine Blooms of BJornstJerne Bjornson will be the first piece given. PLAN FOR ADMISSION The plan of admission is as fol- lows:
 To obtain admission to the theatre a stamp is purchased for 25 cents at one of these stations, which is then at tached to the back of the membership card. A coupon is presented to the buyer at the same time. He presents this and his card at the theatre. chooses his seats, pays the difference. and has round hole punched through his stamp. After a three weeks run the bill is changed, and the second production is put on for one week for the members of "The Modern Stage and subsequently, runs three weeks fo- those of the Peoples Theatre" A monthly magazine, with interesting
 matter about the play, portraits of the
 author and of the leading opponents of the characters, criticism and com
 ment on the work, is issued and sent
 14 days before each production to sub seribers free of charge, and supplied
 as programme in the theatre Text
 books of the plays are sold in conti-
 Ee1tal fashion. in the lobby.
 MT. Reicher says one of his great
 est problems has been the choice of
 plays. The foremost object of the
 scheme is to afford opportunity to the
 young author This is to give him Il
 chance, it is proverbially hard for the
 young playwright to have his work
 produced-and we know that only
 trough the development of new play
 writing can we hope to get uncommon
 stuff and originality.
 Mir. Reichter says in speaking of this
 phase of the work of the American
 Peoples theatre: At present my effort
 must be made to concentrate upon
 making plays more and more realistic,
 We must develop playwriting in or
 der to save the theatre from the mov- ing picture"
 Great care will be taken in the se- lection or the cast. MT. Reichter is no believer in the "star system and will have none of it.
 INTERNAL REPERTOIRE The repertoire of this theatre is as international as possible. The Norwe- Eian comedy being the flrst-the second
 poItrays the great economic struggle