Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-01-22
LETTERS
From an Amateur Critic

From an Amateur Critic
To the Photoplav Editor:
In your editorial a few weeks ago you
| extended an invitation to amateur
! critics to come forward with their views
! on the current attractions in the theatre
both the spoken drama and the movies
have always felt that If we were to
be guided by the views of some of the
| critics as n criterion by which we deter
mine what is best in the theatrical cal
cndar we would he denied many pleasing
: performances.
Take. for example. George Jean Nathan,
| whose entertaining pages are one of the
| features of The Smart Set While I
| thoroughly enjoy his articles, | have al
ways imagined the man suffering with
acute indigestion or some physical all
ment which prevents him from seeing
and enjoying all the good things i'm life.
| His attacks on the construction of
plnywright's endcavors are caustic, to
say the least and in many cases, no
doubt are well founded. on the other
hand, he uses up valuable space, for in
stance, in eulogi2inE Miss Ruth Chatter
ton. True. no doubt. Miss Chatterton de-
serves credit for her efforts in the milk
and-watery Daddy Long Legs" but
why should n man Of Nathan's Calibre
waste rcams on such insignificant per-
fOrmanCes when a better work and an
abler thespian is allowed to receive. from
his pen, only n few scathing paragraphs?
Another case in point is the efforts OF
II Philadelphia correspondent to one of
the New York theatrical weckles. His
record of our dramatic bill-of-fare could
be made as readable as the Chicago or
Boston writer's to the same paper. but
the man in question seems to he satisfied
when he has informed us of the attrac-
tions at each of our theatres and then
adds that Gillette Is the same Gillette
or Ralph Hertz carried the burden of
the performance and let's it go at that.
In speaking OF the opening bill at the
Little Theatre, he sums up Lord Dunsany
and his "Glitering Gate" as "a weird
performance of two burglars before the
gates of Heaven" Shades of William
Winter!
Speaking of the Little Theatre. I con-
slider that the Stage Society is deserving
of all possible praise for its painstak-
ing and conscientious activities. Some of
it's offerings were not as smooth as one
would desire but the selection OF It's
little plays shows forethought in Choos-
ing those choice outputs of the master
minds which we are seldom privileged TO
enjoy outside of our libraries The In
dividual performance of some OF the
members of the different casts would have
been a credit to a professional aggrega-
tion.
The presentation of THE King Of the
Black Isles is worthy of repetition III
one of it's future lists of plays, The
settings, costumes and pantomime were
all that could be desired, with this one
eXception-eliminate the four or 1--WE dane
ing girls in the second part, Their cos
tunes, dancing and mannerisms somehow
did not tit in with the rest of the pic
ture. If dancing and posturing are re-
quired let Margaret Whitaker contribute
more of her very able characterization.
Music by an orchestra or trio Of mu-
sicians would be welcome additions be-
tween plays, as the waits are very tire
some OF course, scenes cannot be
changed with the rapidity manifested re-
Gently at the Broad when The Price"
was the attraction.
This was a much-deslrCd novelty, but
the noise of the mechanism reminded one
of the quick changes at the New York
Hppodrome some few years ago. Indeed
on the opening night Of Miss Dunn's debut
the rumbIing and grating of the movable
stage was almost as disturbing as were
the Tumblings of the occupants In
ground floor box. Why do people, sup
posedly well-bred, come to the theatre
with their gossip and leave the genteel