The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-04-29
COLUMBIA STUDENTS
SHOW Is AMUSING
"Take a Chance" Even Has
Some Jokes That Excel
BrOadway's.
PLEASES PLAZA AUDIENCE
Roy Webb's Music for Ken
meth. and Roy Webb's
Book Is TunefuI.

No one yet has discovered the solu-
ton to the problem. why is a college
musical comedy" But IL any person
athirst for knowledge went to the Hotel
Plaza last night 70 watch Columbia Uni
Versity's profound undergraduate schol-
ars become boys again with the varsity
show. Ttake Chance" came close to
learning the answer
In fact. he was due for quite a shock
Not that the costumes of the chorus
were in any way indiscreet, though the
laoies of the ensemble were all young
men and not co-eds, and the producers
could therefore, so to speak. take a
chance. No, what was likely to as
tonish any professional Broadway man.
aser who might have risked an evening
at the Plaza was the. high artistic vol
tage OF the performance. which could
galvanize some Wiseacre Square pro-
ductlons into life.
But then that was practically obvious
as soon as one saw the names OF Ken
meth Webb. '06. and little brother Roy.
10. attached to the programme as the
men who licked the book and lyrics into
shape. ard showed the chorus how to
kick above the belt. Their names have
been attached to all the Columbia Var
sity shows during the past few years.
which Is one OF the two reasons why
that university Is now coming to be
the other reason being Doc Clayton
Hamilton.
As for the plot--well, even the higher
education can't make a musical comedy
plot any more OF plot than Nature in
tended II to be. Suff1ce II to say that
Arthur Gray, a Columbia graduate, joins
the army, where he falls in love with
Betty High, despite the fact that she's
supposed to be camouflaged from mas
culine eyes in her Y. NJ. C. A.
workers uniform OF horizon blue
and Betty turns out to be the
daughter OF the president of Coal
wood College, so Arthur enlists there
that is. he enrolls there as a freshman
and he's hazed BY a sophomore whom he
once commanded as a lieutenant in the
army. because he paints his class num-
erals all over the campus and ono of
the college professors dons his paint
dsubed clothes and is mistaken for the
smart freshman and hazed by the sopho-
mores; and Arthurs father comes to his
sons fraternity house to get some COM
promising letters from a vampire with
whom he's been too saucy. and his wife
turns mp in time to catch him at it
Well, after the spectator succeeds in
task Is to discover what in Hail Colum
bla the title has to do with It, But he
needn't bother. because he should devote
all his attention to Kenneth Webb's book
which is amusing and could spare a few
jokes for Broadway shows-yes, sir. one
feels that it's even better than Tony
Sarg's marionettes. which Is really high
praise Roy Webb's music was excep.
tionally tuneful for such productions
especially in "A Flat on Morningside -
You and Ne and You and "A Rain.
bow Honeymoon and there were some
effects worthy OF the degree of NJ A
The two acts are laid in a frat house in
Coalwood College.
Percivsl Cowan, 10. hero of every var
sity show since his freshman year. made
charming Theodore Orgy. Mortimer
Van Raalte was Vincent Stanley. Har-
old Koran played the part Of Arthu,
Groy. Herbert RockowiU was Betty
High. Others in the cast were William
Taylor. Thomas Bernardo. F. w. Het-
field, Emil Gyess. Edward Clark. James
Fox. Hugh Burtis. H. Rauchfuss. Leon
ard Mannheim and I. Sagir.
There will be four more performances
of the play in the Plaza besides one
which will be given in the Riverside
Community House. Riverside Drive and
Ninety-seventh street, for the men OF the
fleet and the l65th Regiment.