The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-03-13
SAYS POOR ACTING
IS BAME OF STAGE
Vigorous Diatribe Against Present
Conditions, but Embarrassment
In Search for Remedy.

In the London Nation Fl. w. Mas
Singham utters a long wall over the
| degeneracy OF the British stage la
ments the impotency OF the various
Independent theaters to bring about
any true resurrection of dramatic art.
alludes despairingy to the vanity OF
hopes founded upon the insubstan-
tial proposals for a national or mu-
nicipal establishment, and asks plain
| lively what has become of the great
revival predicted as the inevita BILE
! tbleN consequence of the world wide
tragedy OF the war To this last oues-
ton there ia an obvious reply. 1t is
too soon to look for il. The needed
| inspiration can come only to those
who have supped full on the actual
horrors of the field, and they, as yet.
have other business in hand than the
writing Of plays, which taAaes time.
Fugitive war poetry OF n high type
we have had The great plays may
follow, but what assurance is there
that the would be produced? In any
case. their effect, IL any, would be
transient The theater cannot be
saved by good plas alone, The IL
oraries already are stuffed with them.
In England, just now. the stage is
abandoned to trivialities, mainly be-
cause London and the larger cities
nothing so much as the temporary
oblivion OF laughter. This Is not the
case here, but the conditions are little
less contem ptible. The theatrical dis
ease Is, and long has been, progress
sive, in spite of all the nostrums that
have been prescribed for It's cure.
This is because the amiable amateur
theorists who compound. and some
times administer them, take note only
a ha az 1Fxts 9w,sse \ H.
for tho original and deeply rooted
cause of the malady. THE malignant
canker Is not, as Is commonly sup
posed, simply commercialism, the de-
Velopent OF which is but one praise
of it. The theater. Ike all other ar
tistlc and educational institutions.
must be run--tf 1t Is TO survive and
srow--more or less upon a CONNER
cisl basis. IT has always been. from
EIizabethan days downward. even In
its best estate. commercial Artists
OF every degre must have bread and
butter, and, II they are to excel, must
be made to work for it, They can be
fostered, doubtless, 10 4 certain ex-
tent, by patronage, but that means
staEnation and ultimate decadence.
They can be impeIied to the highest
achievement--even phenom email genius
is not exempt from this law-only by
comIse tition, which necessitates the
development of capacity hard work
and education This is platitude,
but II Is also the sole and sufficient
explanation OF the indsputable fact
that with the extinction of the old
system of stock companies the race
OF great actors vanished. To-day. in
the whole English speaking theater,
there are not six, nor three actors
including both sexes---capable of a
really tirst-class embodiment of any
great character in tither tragedy or
high comedy, let alone both.
Here is the true secert OF the
theatrical decadence. which we are all
chattI'ing about and deplorinS. The
old stock companies--with which the
so-calleo stock com panies of the pres
ent have nothing. or very little, In
communicating each It's own pro-
vinca and being rivals supplied the
two thirgs necessary to the creation
Of good all-round actors. education
in ever hganch of the drama, from
farce &c poetic tragedy. and whole
some competition. All the players In
them we're exercised IN an mantle
variety Of parts in all kinds of drama.
as enumerated by Polonius - other
words. they were subjected 10 rig
orous schooling which qualified them
to pia creditably almost any part, at
a pinch, with appropriate style ana
diction. The best of them were
equally at home in Sheridan or In
Shakespeare. in fiowery romance or ia
sentimental domestic drama Now
histroinic education and histrionic
competition have both been virtually
abolished. with results that are only
too notorious. Thus the theater ts
doubly Handicapped, erst by the high
gravel blindness OF it's directors. who
are devoid OF all artistic sense ann