The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1915-10-31

| lief from the boredom OF married life. as
necessity sometimes compels II to be.
The drone has always had his place in
! feminine estimation as compared with
the worker, so, perhaps. the present
authors are only putting into frank
dramatic expression a belief that is en-
tertsined by enough members of their
sex to make 1t plausible material for the
stage. With the advent OF female
emancipation and suffragism we are get
ting lot of new frankness from women
concerning topics that formerly were not
so freely discussed Perhaps The Mark
OF the Beast is. after all. only a revela-
tion OF a truth or partial truth. There
are two ways of disposing of the double
standard. and it may be that this play Is
meant to point out the advantage of
the one way which is not frequently adj
vocated in public discussion.
II one regards the piece simply as a
play without regard to its theme. there
is not much praise to be given. The
, authors were evidently so much absorb
ed in their argument and the situations
arising from il that they rather neglected
to smooth down tSe rough edges OF their
story. Mr.. Nash chose IL for a starring
venture. and played the role of the law
yer with vigor and conviction. George
Howard in the part of his friend sized
up well with the star. and the two erring
wives were made as credible possible
by Alma Belwin and Lenore Ulrich.
Those who like to delve into topics of
this sort will find THE Mark of the
Beast" educational in its line. The per-
son looking only for amusement will not
be vastly entertained by 1t. .
Back TO the CIoaks and Suits.
Our old Jewish friends. Abe Potash
and Morris Perlmutter. are again in evil
dence, the play this time being called
Abe and Mawruss." Montague Glass.
who created these heroes of the East
Side cloak-and-suit industry in their orig
inal literary form. is one of the authors.
and the other Is Roi Cooper Megrue.
Charles Klein was to have provided the
manuscript, but what work he had done
on it was lost with him in the sinking
OF the Lusitania.
This time We have the partners in the
period of their prosperity. Under the in
spiration of financiers of the younger
generation. Mawruss has been seized
with the get-richer-quick ambition. and
goes in for developing the old business
into The Cloak and Suit Company of
North America. with a big capitalization
of stock to be unloaded on the public.
high-salaried officers. and grand Offices
on Fifth avenue. Abe retains his old
conservatism, anu gets out leBltlTldIely
with his interest in cash. Later. when
the bubble bursts. this enables him to
come to the rescue of his old partner.
with the result that the firm of Potash
and Perlmutter resumes business at the
old stand in East Broadway, with the
members of the firm resuming their old |
quarrels and old anectionate reconcile |
atoms.
The whole thing. of course, is simply |
a thread on which to hang the character |
studies and characteristic incidents of |
East Side business. whose fidelity to life |
and appreciation of its humorous aspects
gave Mr.. Glass stories their fame. AS
Abe We still have Barney Bernard. who |
created the role in the other play, and |
realized the looks and traits OF the char
acter in a way We seldom find in char
acters transferred from books to the
stage. Alex Carr. who was the original
is not in the present cast
and the equally good realization and finer
acting he furnished is missing. The
character is now subordinated to that of
Abe, so that the latter has become a star
role, which is likely to furnish Mr.. Ber-
nard with steady employment for a long
time TO come.
Play from the Hungarian.
Rita Jolivet is the actress who was