Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-12-08

more unfamiliar with the bound volumes
of the Gllbertian theatre. the American
dramatist is still blameworthy for reli-
| ance on Mr.. Golfers individuality to boil
ster up a padded, shambling. inchcate
| play that. judged by the very lenient
standard of farce, is still mediocre
product.
1t may be promised that few visitors
to the Adelphi Theatre this month will
leave that playhouse under the impress
sion that an evening has been i'll spent.
Mr.. Golfers .drolleries VIGOROUSLY dis
pei the mere shadow of such a reflection,
| though the query will the most PAINS
taking and polished funmaker In Amer
lea ever have a good play?" remains
unanswered.
A RETROSPECT of the general
"A histr'onic quality of the perform
ance suggests n postscript with refer
, ence to one of the stars supporting
players. Arnold Lucy. as the sacerdotal
mere babe in business" submits a
portrait of a clergyman that refresh
ngly runs counter to the overdono con-
rentional type of stage minister. Even
rs caricaturing his mirthful work i'm
parts flavor of individualism and
| sincerity.
Jogging the public's memory ought to
make this manifestation OF good art
ute comprehensive Mr. Lucy Is cne
Of the most accomplished character
actors extant Bernard Shaw, whose
proud punctilio" in selecting casts for
his comedies is the bane of London's
mpresarios, picked Mr.. Lucy to por-
tray the effective role of Mr.. Knox in
'Fanny's First Play" With delightful
Kate Carlyon. the comedian composed
the residue of the original company in
hat piece during its American tour
IN this same Adelphi Theatre Mr.. Lucy
presented conception of a middle
class Britisher uncannily akin to our
own notions Of MIR. Common People."
lis art was so fine that audiences natu-
lily remembered the conception. but not
the identity of the interpreter
such Is the really proficient char
tcter actors usual unhappy fate
Handsome leading men" whose versa
tility Is minus quantity are easily5re-
called. Players with a genuine gift of
portraiture pay the penalty of their ex-
pertness. Arnold Lucy, Fuller Mellish
Albert Bruning are three of the best
genre artists on the stage But their
names are never posted in flaming adj
vertising type. They get under the
SKIN OF character, and that's fatal TO
general recognition.
TNliE Spanish "zarzuela"-muslcal
- comedy in the 1berian yernacular-
Is reported TO have stirred up a deal of
interest lately in New York. Quinito
Valverde's "The Land of Joy" U.a TERRA
de Algeria Jeanne to Gotham and tired
business men, enervated critics, casual
p!aygoers, chronic theatre fans" mat
inee girls and all the component cohorts
of the general public have suddenly be-
come aware that American musical farce
Is III "A quagmire and that they order
things better'r in "A lind of whose theat-
"ical art We have long been SO densely
ignorant.
The modern Spaniard excels in light
music. His zarzuelas. as the writer can
testify from personal observation
parkle with life, pulsating rhythm, in
triguing melody. THE Land of Joy"
is but one gem in a dazzling galaxy.
la Gran VIA" Las Bribonas,"
Alma de Dios" are sung. whistled.
danced. strummed on guitars. clicked on
castanets from one end of the peninsula
to the other. Composers like Chapi
Nalverde. Serrano. the late Enrique
Granados and Don Tomas Breton have
delighted their compatriots for a genera
ton.
AT least two of these have titled pre-
tentious fields, but the others have main
~ sought to provide diversion without
stultifying the musical intelligence. If
conceivably they could exist in this
country they would be furnishing musi-
cal comedy scores. What relief that
would be from the vapid tinklings. the
HialnSO rob GI In nr
served with monotonous regularity to
our audiences!
No appeal is here made for 'high-
brow" offerings. Valverde yigor would
suit the 'Follies." THE Holy Roman
Empire said Napoleon on terminating
its existence, "is neither holy nor Roman
nor an empire" Most Of our so-called
musical comedy Is neither musical nor
comic. The chemical reaction Of our
alleged "froth" would be lead.
THESE painful thoughts have been
partly inspired by the addition Of
another dull. fiat, stale and Improbable
score In new musical play '"The Rain
bow Girl,' current at the Forrest The
atre. is void Of true melodic Inspiration
It's saccharine measures drool along.
sometimes tricked out with conventional
syncopation. while at others the poverty
OF ideas is masked by transitions of
key and very obvious ruses.
1t is unfair to composer Louis Hirsch,
however. to single him out for special
condemnation. He writes as ali the
rest 'of his kind, with "a certain fuency.
with evident respect for melodic themes
or the past, and with a Instrumentation
OF the relative values of sentiment and
sentimentality. His reminiscent offenses
are on the whole less fragrant than those
OF some Of his competitors. The most
shameless theft of this sort was COM
mltted last year when the score of
"Have Heart" disclosed the Rhine
Maiden's song from "Das Rheingold"
nasquerading as waltz ditty. AS
suredly Jerome Kern tapped a geyser
of melody for his inspiration"
ASIDE from the Indifferent score, how.
Ilever. there are certain factors OF
excellence in THE Rainbow Girl" that
may win success. provided a revision of
the cast is made. The plot structure.
definitely ascribed to Jerome X Jerome's
Fanny and the Servant Problem" is a
capital framework for light comedy.
The continuity of thought, so lamentabiy
absent from most musical plays, Is hap
ply discernib.e in Renno.d VOLTS IL
bretto The quaint juxtaposition Of Bo-