The Washington times., 1915-06-29
Plays and Players at
the TheaterS
POLLS.

1t IL not necessary that one should be-
lieve in fairies or witches or any such
things to grasp fully the spirit of The
Blue Bird" Maurice Maeterlinck,s alle-
gorical drama. in which the Poll Players
are defying all stock company tradi-
manner this week. 1t is not really es-
sential that q person should have any
but the most material mental equipment
to get both a meaning and real enter
tainment from the Belgian philosophers
masterpiece.
The peculiar quality Of 1.-THE Blue
Bird as dramatic sermon Is that its
meaning is so plainly given and the
fanciful pictures 1t unfolds convey such
direct answer to the unspoken thought
OF even a person least liable to flights
OF fancy that failure to understand, APP
preciate, and sympathize with it is al
most Impossible. no matter what the
character of the audience.
Basing his plea entirely upon that ele-
ment of the curiosity of childhood that
remains In the grownup, and telling in
allegorfcal figures what would be called
a moral story In any other form, the
poet has evolved settings for each phase
Of the play which demand attention by
their departure from convention, and
sustain interest by the simplicity with
which they are used
Not the least Interesting feature of
the production Of The Blue Bird" here
Is the manner in which the Poll Play
ers have gone beyond the limits of stock
company activities to meet its eXacting
requirements. In most plays a larger
measure of their success depends upon
the actor or actress than on any other
one factor. In the presentation Of an
Idea like that of Maeterlinck's s, the value
or The individual actor or actress be-
comes secondary to that of the stage di-
rector.
Director Harry Andrews. OF the Poll
Players, has done many rather remark
nj ,t.t Ii
nection with the company, but it is prob
able that he has never performed a feat
of such herculean character as the one
he accomplishes in The Blue Bird"
ton is kept moving with celerity, and
the management of the crowds on the
stage, mostly of children. is such that
there is no confusion, but a seemingly
perfect adjustment of each unit.
The important characters in the pro-
duction are the two children. Tyltyl, a
| boy. and Mytyl, a girl. who go on the
| hunt for the blue bird. In the char
ecter OF Tyltyl, Mary Eaton makes her
audiences forget that she is a ten-year-
old girl, and they give her the con-
| sideration demanded by thoroughly
| well-played and well-conceived charac-
ter by an experienced actress. Doris
Eaton as Mytyl is fitting companion
to her clever sister.
The Poll Players, as their audiences
have come to know them, are not as
conspicuous as the large corps of child
| rem and young girls used for dances.
choruses and tableauX. Miss Gilbert, in
the part of Light, is with the children
most of the time. Miss Dale as Night
gave a most finished performance in the
one scene in which she figured. Her
reading of the poetic lines gave each
their full value. and she contributed
the most beautiful of the several sym
bollic pictures in the drama.
Mr.. Roscoe as Fire, made himself
always a notable feature of each pic
| ture. Mr.. Fillmore as the cat, and Mr..
Haines as the dog. each contributed
thoughtful and thoroughly understand
able conceptions of roles most difficult
| to make plausible. John Kline was. per-
haps. the most conspicuous of the men
in the cast by reason of his effective
work as Father Time. and his appear
ance in the double part Of father and
grandfather OF the children.
the neighbor of the Tyls. was thor
Miss Mcdonald made a very pretty
and graceful figure in the character OF
Water. Mr.. Lowe was Sugar, Mr..
Harris Bread. Miss Selma Seymour
was Mummy Tyl, Miss Nelson was
Milk, and Ruby Raymond the "Happi-
ness of Being Well"
Between the first and second acts
Miss Agnes Whelan sang The Blue
Birds" an original composition by Man
ager James Thatcher. The dances and
ensembles were arranged by Howard
Leslie Holt. GARDNER MACK.