New-York tribune., 1918-07-28

stage. The playwright succeeded in
making the spectators so distinctly
uncomfortable that they didn't give
rap how his story came out if only
the din would cease.
1t is probably fair to say, then,
that in the countries which have
seen most of the war there is no de-
sire to view over-faithful slices of
life in the theatre. The revolt
against naturalism is not founded
entirely on the horrors of war. Both
here and in England the conform
ity of opinion has not little to do
with turning dramatists away from
serious plays. 1t is difficult, of
course, to write a serious modern
play without touching upon the war,
and as soon as the dramatist
reaches the conflict his opinion is al
ready formed. Most people in both
countries are thinking alike, any,
way, and the minorities are largely
compelled in one way or another to
conform. There is, therefore, al
most no field for the conflict so nec-
essary to drama. If a playwright
brings pacifist on the stage in the
first act the audience is not likely
to become unduly interested in his
progress, since they know perfectly
we'll that he will be converted some
little time before the final curtain.
In Lavedan's Service" which Mrs.
Fiske produced here, the conversion
was long delayed and so insufficient
ly motivated that the audiences
would have none of it.
Of course, Germans are even
more out of the question than paci-
fists for dramatic purposes. With
the exception of Shaw, no English
or American writer has been able to
summon enough tolerance or good
humor in drawing Teuton to make
him anything but a lay figure of vii
lany. And yet "The Inca of Peru
salem," with all it's restraint, was a
more damning portrait of Wilhelm
than "The Beast of Berlin" or "To
He'll with the Kaiser" or any of the
more simple and direct attacks upon
the German ruler.
AS a rule, the most unpleasant
thing dramatist can do to anybody
whom he does not like is to satirize
him. Few Of our authors can use
satire now. 1t demands frigid i'm
personal attitude which will be diff
ticult to attain until some time after
the war. The failure of satire when
allowed to boil over was illustrated
in "Her Country" This little play,
which came here by way of Eng
land, undertook to reveal~the life of
the German at home. 1t began in
terestingly and amusingly as the
authors fenced about with the SUBJ
Ject driving the rapier home again
and again. Presently, however,
Berier lost his temper. The rapier
was not enough. He discarded it
for an axe, crowbar and a pair of
brass knuckles. Then he went to
work again, but it was much too
bloody job to be accepted as satire.
1t is possible to write satire on war
subjects if the Germans are rigor-
ously excluded. General Post" was
an amusing study Of the breakdown
of British social prejudices under
war conditions. 1t failed to attract
attention here.
A very fruitful and popular field
of war play lies in melodrama. We
have seen no first class war melo-
drama on the stage in the last three
seasons, but there have been a num-
ber of successful ones. Some have
dared the difficulties of representing
battles, fights with submarines and
such like, but all these things have
been kept to small scale by tying
them up closely to the fortune of an
individual, and usually an obscure
one. Thus Roi Cooper Megrue
placed the credit of winning the
Battle of the Marne to his hero, who
was young English officer, if we
remember correctly. Again, if our
memory is not at fault, he won the
battle to please young woman
whom he wanted to marry. This
may seem little far-fetched but it
is sound melodramatic treatment.
One cannot picture the spirit of
nation in melodrama. AS matter
of fact, Megrues play has served as
a model for long line of war melo
drama.
1t is probable that the only seri-
Gus plays to be seen here next sea-
son will concern the war. AS long
as the war remains the one out
standing problem of the world it will
be impossible to make audiences dis
play deep interest in any other prob
lem. 1t is possible, however, to
make the audience forget the war