The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-11-06

l.
 Awake! for on the auditorium's Night Those gardens dawn that made old Per-
 sia bright;
 And Lo! our Guy Bates Post has deftly
 caught Omar al khayyam' poet man. alright
 Then see the Play, for seldom in our | Flight t~ Thro' Time the Hour to rest for such De-
 light--
 The Scenes are setting and their magic Switched for the Dawn of "Omar''-O
 tonight
 Bernard Savage HAsTwARD the course of drama takes it's way, and the splendor of
 A--A Orientalism that surrounds "Omar the Tentmaker''-the atmosphere of that strange eastern land where one finds pdace for the spirit and forgets the lone liness of city and people, a silhouette of camels stepping across mysterious desert lands; silver stars dropping low from the heavens minaret against a sombre sky; tinlling bell from near by mosque; and the breeding peace of Gods garden enfolding it all. Yes, this and much more that is fascinating in the land of old Naishapur-make us feel and exclaim, about the play paraphrasing
 The Rubaiyat'O that there is none to cancel half line, nor with his tears wash out word of it!'
 Some years ago Omar Khayyam was the obsession of the moment.
 Everybody was quoting the Persian poet and everybody was making "Rubaiyata of his own. There was Oliver Herford's | ''Rubaiyat of Persian Kitten" Carolyn Wells kept it in the air with her "Ru- baiyata of Persian Lamb Coats, Oyster Stews, Chafing Dishes and Other Things" If the quatrans of Omar didn't fall from i your lips with glib application. you were ashamed to go into polite society. 1 Omar gave place to Ibsen, Ibsen to Bernard Shaw. Bernard Shaw to Maeter- linck, and Henri Bergson, and now all these have revived a brand new interest | in Omar, since Rahindranath Tagore the Bengali poet, has come into popularity. 1 If you can find your way into any draw l ing room these days without seeing a copy of Tagore's Crescent Moon or his l Song Offerings" on the table, you are surprised to say the least of it. | Yesterday when I dropped in to see MT. ] Guy BdIeS GOSl, one or AnlerlCd s leaQlnS romantic actors who is playing an en- | gagement here in Omar the Tentmaker," none of the Orientalism that surrounds ! the play was evident; instead, youngish l looking man of strong, we'll knit figure, an intellectual, noble face, that might l have belonged to a man in any successful walk of life; but for the eyes which at 1 times have almost feminine softness and gentleness, and always with the far l vision of the dreamer, walked in and l greeted me. None of the exotic atmos- phere of Omar, or indeed of the other 1 characters which I've seen MT. Post play, notably with Mrs. Fiske in Leah Kleschna," and "Tess of the D'Urbe- l villes," was there.
 To my surprise Mr. Post for moment upset all my ideals in answer to my first question when he declared with vigor and sincerity that he didn't possess the stu dent temperament No, he wasn't a stu dent; he liked to play.
 | Now, although MT. Post made these statements, and crashing down went the idol his public had erected of this most dignified and studious actor. Still, didn't believe, nor do you. There is no deception quite so thorough as that we practice upon ourselves.
 q study, of course," said MT. Post, "in l the sense that every actor studies. l am acuteIy sensitive to my surroundings; soak up impressions as a plotting paper or a sponge, but I am not student in the strictest sense Years ago, an uncle of mine in Chicago, Judge Ostrander (his books on fire insurance stand in the legal world as Blackstone does on com- mercial law) took me into his library once upon time and showed me all his
 books. Pointing to row after row of them, he said: My boy, I've believed
 that the duty of every man was to study
 and work: I've gotten up at o'clock hx.1r, lyf Nk l6; I've read and re-read hundreds of
 books; they are marked; you can see for : yourself; don't make the mistake I have;
 don't do it; it doesn't pay" And you took the advice?" I asked
 curiously.
 "To an extent. yes'' he replied. "An actors life differs very largely from the average business man. With us imagina- ton runs riot always. New countries we pass through: new people we see. The tired business man (and~ I hate the ) phrase) works himself to death. and a , change of scenery-the sea or the noun tains-are prescribed; he goes, the new faces he sees divert him; his imagination Is allowed full play; he rests and gets well. With an actor, his life Is spent in Kaleidoscope sort of fashion; 1t is never monotonous. and he is always learning without study"
 And is 1t worth while the actors ca reer, compared with the successful busi- ness mans?" I asked.
 MT. Post Is a man of unexpectedness. : Never had talked to a man about his vocation before who did not tell me that
 in the background of his life was another
 vocation which he preferred; but not so
 with MT. Post.
 Tt was inevitable with me-" he said ' lpresently. flor I have always loved the stage and have never regretted that
 chose it as vocation. When I was a | youngster my ambition was to be fish
 erman; to wear high boots and a big hat . and fish,"
 You must have lived near the water"
 suggested.
 Puget sound" he said quickly. That
 idea soon got out of my head, however.
 and I became connected with theatre,
 selling programmes; imagine it. My life
 practically was spent in the theatre after
 James Brown Potter and Kyrle Bellew !. came to the theatre where was work t ing; they were playing Charlotte Cor I day. MT. Bellew heard my story, and told me at certain time, a year From U then, he was going to put on certain y play in which he could use me. Being : very young, I believed him, and I don't | know which was the most amazed, he or I, when I showed up on the very date he had mentioned. Well, that gave me a y start, and then comes a long period of hard work and some disappointments It
 isn't all happy. The sings and arrows of outrageous fortune must be borne, but y 1.-the compensatons are a satisfying equiv M alent"
 :, I thought for a moment and it occurred to me that 1t would be interesting to know . how this man who denies he is student s learned so thoroughly the characteristics