The sun., 1918-09-11
CHILDHOOD DRAMA
AT THE PRINCESS
Stuart Walker Presents His
Own Play, jonathan
Makes a WISH"
STAGING Is EXCELLENT
Piece Is Somewhat Lacking in
Variety, but Acting Is
Excellent.
STAGING Is EXCELLENT
Jonathan Makes q wish"-At the

Whatever credit may lie in the
achievement OF having restored the
drama OF childhood to- present favor
should go to Stuart Walker. 1t was this
manager who last year made the anus
the figures out Of Booth Tarkington's
Seventeen" breathe behind the foot
lights. This year the metropolitan stage
Is Uttered with Riddles. They threaten
to elbow the German spies out of sight
in the great struggle for life which Is
Just now taking place among the mas
terpieces of our native drama exposed
on the theatres heights. At all events. It
was Mr.. Walker who first took these in
teresting Harrington young persons by
the hand and led them into view.
At the little Princess Theatre. in
which Mr.. Walker settled for a while
with his portmanteau dramas. he showed
last night the latest product OF his
imagination in dealing with the psyche
logical problems of childhood. Three
acts. called Jonathan Makes a WISH
form the play. Gregory Kelly. so i'm
portant in Mr.. Walkers successes in the
past. had the leading role.
Has q Toy Theatre.
The first act Of Jonathan Makes a
Wish" is laid in n lumber room, which
serves as retreat Ter -ounE Jonathan.
Here he has his toy theatre--and at
an old piano he and his little play
mate, Susan Sample, make up" songs.
Out of sight of stern Uncle John, Jond-
than is happy-but the head OF the Clay
! family has no sympathy for his
nephew's nonsense" and plans to give
him a business training that will At
him to devote his life to the glory of
the "Clay Concrete Manufacturing Com
pany."
Back to his old home wanders
Ndthdniet Clay, Johns younger brother.
who has run away seventeen years be-
fore because he preferred writing to
concrete. As a fellow dreamer. iona
than interests him; 50 they pass n
happy half hour In the old lumber room
talking about Jonathan's plays and sing
ing the song he made up" to Mile
PerratIt, NdthdnieFs betrothed.i JonG-
than is thus led to forget the strict
rules of his Uncle Johns household, %
when a stray tramp wanders in and
evinces an interest in his toy theatre
the owner is too delighted to send him
away. OF course Uncle John discovers
them. roughly bids the tramp be gone
and then Furnishes Jonathon by throw
ing on the floor his manuscripts and
other treasures before locking him In.
Now the AlIexory Begins.
Jonathan resolves 20 run away and
climbs out OF the high window. attempt
ing to let himself down by rope, but
IL gives way and he falls on the rocks
| below. The second act shows Jondthdn'
delirium-in which he is vagabond Of
twenty. crippled and hopeless, roaming
the country with Hank as companion
All the persons of the first act pas:
| before him, but fail to recognize him
and he Is wretched and despairing. Blu
| the last act brings n happy ending. foi
Jonathan gets we'll and Uncle Ndthuhie
helms him TO freedom.
Mr.. Walkers study OF the mental SUI
, ferings of a misunderstood boy OF l.
las an imaginative quality and a Ger
| tain grace In its revelation The ale
CORY OF the second act inevitably sug
rests Mrs. Gates's 1.-The Poor Little Ricl
Girl" although that drama was richie
| in invention and had no such lack o
| W .iety as occasionally threatened las
y ,xht to develop into tedium. The sym
| b ,lism of Mr.. Walkers work. moreover
was not always sufficiently incisive t
| grip the spectator.
The material means by which thu
story was told showed the authors skill
I, in practical stage Illustration. The iiIu
sion OF the second act. with the children
dancing in the sunlight. and the boy!
climb to the heights OF the green hill wa
well presented. But it Is altogether con
ceivable that Mr.. Walker. in writing tn
! play, and the actors in interpreting !
had much better opportunity to enjo!
themselves than the spectators who wer'
witnessing the achievement from III
other side of the footlights.
Gregory Kelly acted the fourteen
year-old boy with the restraint common
to him. He acted also with the intelli
gerce that is characteristic OF all h
does but 1t Is unfortunate that hi
meas are 30 limited and his style 81
lack & In variety. George Gaul read hi
speed hes with a command OF the fiori'
style that suited well some OF his ex
pansive gestures in the opening act. AM
Margaret Mowers piquant beauty sa
vorcd every scene in which she appeared
Beatrice Maude is as pretty as she wa
In Seventeen" and Edgar Stehli as tn
congenial vagrant has lost none of TIL
humor that he revealed in that sam
performance.