New-York tribune., 1919-09-27
Drama
IAN Exchange of Wives" Il
the New Comedy at
the Bijou
By Haywood Broun

Few will deny that there are humor-
GUS possibilities in a play of bawdy
implications. 1t may be gross and good
humored or smart and witty, but
Cosmo Hamilton's new piece, "An Ex-
change of Wives" is neither, and ac-
cordingly the author has managed to
devise an entertainment which is both
nasty and dull.
We suppose the trouble lies in the
tact that the authors ostensble pur-
pose Is to point a moral. Nobody is
ever quite so heavy-handed as a moral
lst intent upon using immoral ma
terlals for his own purpose There is
always q lack of spontaneity which is
destructive. Like most moralists, Mr..
hamilton approaches his subject GIN
gerry: His is a running broad rump
into the spice fields, and the run is a
good deal longer than the jump is
Droad. Though he swaddles himself in
heavy sweaters, Mr.. Hamilton finds it
necessary to jog around the track a
good many times before he can open up
MS pores sufficiently to say "Damn!"
The air of preparation hangs heavy
over every indiscretion whispered be-
h1nd the back of the hand to the audi
ence. Any one who has listened to in
innate stories has learned to dread
those anecdotes which are introduced
with preliminary "Well, | certainly
have a good one for you to-day Just
wait TIL you hear this, and you'll die
laughing" Story tellers seem to for
get that the death may come during
the wait
To the credit of Cosmo Hamilton it
niuS' De SAID that once ne gets his play
out on sleeping porch he does his
best to be shocking He works hard.
but to little avail. After so much her
aiding of shocking things to come, the
revelatlon is bound to be disappoint-
ing. The sleeping porch is the one
novel feature in the play. 1t NAV be
said for this new school of sleeninp
porch comedy that it is an improve
ment upon bedroom farce in that it
keeps the characters out in the open
ar Mr.. Hamilton, however, forgot to
supply anything but an air of heavy
boredom
The play is built around the familiar
idea of woman who seeks to win
pack her straying husband by making
MN jealous. For her purposes she
selects the husband of the woman to
wnom ne is making love. After that
things happen as they invariably do in
the working out of this theme. Mr.
Hamllton's fidelity to the formula is
touching. He has not even forgotten
to end his play with the line, 81
wonder." Although the statistics for
1918 are not yet in, we are willing to
wager that it will be found that the
number of plays which end with a
wonder" still exceeds those which be-
gin, THE masters not up yet"
There is no natural moment in the
play, but for all it's artificality there
is no compensating wit 1t is a veri-
table exercise in appositeness. If one
character says BLACK" another is sure
to answer white" Butter" follows
bread" as invariably as might" fol-
lows day. Man, maid and butler
speak in epigrams of the meaner sort
All in all, IAN Exchange of Wives
seems to us fitting climax to week
Which has brought forth "Katy's
Kisses and "Roly- Boly Eyes"
Several good players are wasted in
the comedy. And of Miss Chrystal
Herne it may be said that even if you
had never seen her in happier circum-
stances you would realize that she was
an actress of rare charm and skill.