The sun., 1918-09-18
THE WALK OFFS Dig
NEW YORK SOCIETY
New Play by Hattons at
Morosco Adds to Their
Successes.
LOVE WOVEN INTO SHOW.
Millionaire Chevalier From
Kentucky Gives Emphasis
to Piece.
The Hattons are back. These observ-

ing playwrights never fail to add fllip
to the drama. whether they arrive In the
fresh weeks Of the early year or in the
later staleness Of the season. They are
80 unexpected, these Hattons. Nobody
can ever tell what they are going to
expose. But whatever IL Is, they are
almost certain to shock us.
Will II be society which they revealed
so frankly according to their lights In
Upstairs and Down." or will II be the
cinema. as in THE SQUAD Farm" or
maybe the life of the fashionable cou-
turiere. as In lombard Limited? To
whatever field Of sociological investiga-
ton the Hattons may turn their talents
they are certain to be diverting In their
own breezy Midwestern way. We con-
fess. however. to the greatest weakness
for their work when they have our So
clety under observation.
That is what the audience in the Mo-
rosco Theatre discovered them at last
night. "The Walk ors" is the title Of
the latest Of their plays that oliver Mo-
rosco has produced. Not since up
stairs and Down has New York society
been under the observation of this gifted
pair But in the play last night they
again pinned fashionable New Workers
against the wall. 1t was q millionaire
CHcNhncT ITOtu NcutuCky WnO' Poscu
against the background OF metropolitan
frivolity, threw all Its unworthiness into
relief.
A Girl of the Smart Set.
It is the duel Of wits between him
and a young girl Of poor but distin-
guished parents that forms the con-
fiict of THE Walk Ola" 1t Is the world
she frequents that the Hattons take
pleasure in painting with all the vivid
ness characteristic Of their social por-
traits. But there was none Of the
spirit of their old castigation of the
idle rich in the play last night What
the authors would probably call the
vealed in Upstairs and Down" was
altogether missing. The result was
what periously approached dulness in
the first act. A love scene between a
recently divorced pair relieved the Sec
ond act. which had shown little OF the
former spirit Of the playwrights in at
lacking their problems. Have the Hat
tons acquired o later manner?
The People of the Play.
Into the studio Of a woman sculptor
there came at intervals the usual Hat
ton women. who In spite OF their sur
roundings invariably suggest such a diff
ferent kind SO far as externals are con-
cerned. The dramatic action was al
most clouded by the smoke of cigarettes.
which failed. however. to impart any
glow to the conversation. The newly
divorced couple, the woman In tears and
the man always in his cups, were most
amusingly acted by Roberta Arnold ara
william Roselle. It was to them that
the audience turned for diversion. There
was a model picturesQuely played by
Fania Marinoff, and the high spirited
heroine. who has been described. was
acted by Carroll McComas. The virtuous
hero showed spirit when no conquered
her. and the libertine to whom she had
become betrothed in spite had to give
her up. But II was not in the mood OF
the Hattons Of other days. The old spirit
was missing. SO It may be that the
Hattons must be altogether themselves
or. we'll. rather commonplace.
The Acting Of the Play.
The acting was not subtle. All the
vulgarity OF thought and view that
guided the action of the play showed It.
self in every scene. Carroll McComaa
seemed hard and artificial as the heroine
William Roselle was an amusing In.
ebriate and had his share of the best
scene In the play. The men softened
none Of the characteristics the author
had supplied to them. Edmond Lowe
played the youthful Kentuckian with ar
accent which might Just as, well have
been used by his black servant But
that character played by Emmett
Shackelford served one useful purpose
He explained the title Of the play. The
walk Offs" are those creatures Of clay
who Just walked off before brains were
put into their bodies in the Garden OF
Eden.