New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-09-30

BY HAYWOOD BROUN.

N' aHNN 4 OF AAtN 10 u pay WitN-
out a purpose. IL delivers its audience
from what Charles Lamb called "the
exclusive and all-devouring drama Of
common life; where the moral point
is everything"
The artificial comedy Of ConRreve
was the ideal Of Lamb, and It seems
20 have been the model sought by
Langdon Mitchell when he wrote "The
New York Idea for Mrs Fiske almost
ten years ago. But the play, PERHAPS,
as II is written, and certainly as II is
acted by Grace George, dips in and out
of the high and rarefed regions Of
pure comedy like scouting aeroplane.
Now and again, the pocket which sucks
it down is bit OF farce diversion, but
the deepest dips occur because Mr..
Mitchell-or perhaps it is Miss George
allows life 70 creep into the play.
One touch Of nature can raise the very
dickens with comedy of manners
conceived after the fashion Of the arti-
fetal school. in fact, the most eio-
Quent defence ever written for Con-
grove was made by man who said
that he liked his plays because they
enabled him 20 escape from the
pressure Of reality
Now. Langdon Mitchell has permitted
himself and his audience an occa-
sional fash Of human sympathy for
character. This is destructive Of tne
form Of dramatic expression which ne
has chosen Technically speaking
artificial comedy and sentimental COM
edy may not be combined. Yet every
technical obstacle IN the English
drama is no more than a cross bar Tor
some heroic high jumper or other 20
clear at bound. So il was that
Sheridan did combine artificial com
edy and sentimental in "The School
for Scandal and just so, with the
bar set down a little, Langdon Mitchell
has followed.
We don't mean that "The New York
Idea" is any the better for the fact
that its form is a bit bastard, but W.
do mean that dialogue such as Lang
don Mitchell wrote is The very hnest
sort Of ieeitimatizer So abundant
is the wit of the playwright that, al
ter lowering all his chief characters
with the most brilliant sort of talk
he has quips 10 spare for valet, groom
and butler.
There are enough good lines in
"The New York Idea" 20 salt sea-
sons output of plays for Broadway.
For our part, we could not quite &C
cept the spirit in which the piece was
played by Grace George and her corn
many. One critic complained Of Mary
Nash that "she occasionally adopts
conscientious artihciality that is pain
fully out Of keeping with the rest OF
the cast" If that is so, the fault lies,
not with Miss Nash. but with her as
SOCRATES. The New York Idea" was
i,sfT Of
artifciality.'
On the other hand, from the mo-
mont Grace George came on the stage
she held our sympathy. We felt bit
fearful when she went. We hated the
pcoplo she hated and we would have
left the theatre in a sorry frame Of
mind if she had not won her husband
back at the end. But in accepting
Grace George as vital and living
person we had 10 reject the rest. Iney
we're Just so many people IN a play
Nillamant, Fainall. Sir Wilfull WI
would. pcrhaps. We had the curious
impression Of gazing at an old play
print in which one character had come
10 life and left her companions lag
ging behind prisoned in ink and paper:
This is in no sense a criticism or
the associates Of Miss George. In
fact we think that Mary Nash, most
artificial Of all. most nearly compre-
bended the spirit Of the play. Ernest
Iawford. too, was delightfully."- impos-
chic We never doubted his non-eNist-
erco for p moment. and Conway Tearle
was amply unreal as John Karslake.
Iangdon Mitchell is partially respon-
sible for the fact that a real woman
has crept into his play Ia particular
be wrote the final scene between Cars
lake and Mrs. Carslake with feeling
for the sincerely pathetic opportunl-
ties Of the reconciliation. DIV thaI
was not the spirit in which he began
the play. For three acts the author
has held his characters at arm
length: he has treated them as persons
who feel no emotion which they can
not pbrase in an cpigram; he has
manipulated them for an audience 10
watch with an amused, intellectual ana
entirely neutral eve, and then Of
sudden he allows reality 10 come
stamping into his playhouse
The touch Of nature is hit IN the
last act. where Mrs Carslake hears the
earlv morning rattle of the milk carts
and reminisccs with her husband over
the good times they used to nave To-
pether on late parties before they
ouaTrclled.
Almost as the audience is ready TO
90 home IL finds that the author wants
its heart. after all; but perhaps ne
carnot get il 50 late in the evening.
Finding no need of the emotions IN
acts one. two and three, not a few per-
hams have allowed the heart night
of keeping only the brain, which or
dnarilv is not required IN the theatre.
perhaps some OF these persons may
not be able 90 accept the sentimental
ending Of "The New York Idea IN the
spirit in which II was written. we
did. but for our part we had aoah
dopcd frigid impartiality early IN the
evening
The story Of the play. briefly. con-
corns change of heart by Mrs. Gym
tbja Carslake and her altarside re-
nentance from remarriage when she
fnds that another woman is seeking
20 snare her former husband into
matrimony.
Possibly a line here or there has
been freshened up, but the things
,yhicb Mr.. Mitchell satirized are just
obou+ the same as when he left them
como nine years ago. In the FIRST act,
Tor instance, the discrepancy between
Mrs. Carslake and Philip Phillimore is
empbasjzed by making him read THE
Fvenjng Post" and her THE, Evening
TcIcgram. Even with the lapse of
time the papers are still somewhat dis
similar. q, ,,
o,,ertainment. but il makes us rather
,reorv 70 hear anybody speak OF II as
"tbc one great American comedy, as
w., few aid in the lobby Of the Play
bonse on Tuesday night. II by "Ameri-
can" an implication is made that the
"a" aeocts and illustrates certain