New-York tribune., 1920-05-02

'
"a Julia Marl"we to New York af-
WI ter an impressively successful
tour in Shakespearean roper
tory has suggested to few friends of
the American theater that the imme-
diate future might bring classical rep
ertory to American audiences as it has
not been brought in years.
1t was with this in mind that several
questions were put to Mr.. Sothern.
What is your opinion as to the pos
sibility Of establishing a classical rep
ertory theater in the United States,
either through municipal theaters in the
larger cities, through stock companies
or through q combination of both?" he
was asked.
POSSIBILITY means. first Of all, sup
pose, commercial possibility" replied
Mr.. Sothern. ''The rapid growth of the
greater metropolitan centers of popula-
ton, such as New York, Chicago, Phil
adelphia and Boston, has made these
cities capable Of supporting either mu-
nlcipal theaters or stock companies.
The experience of Ben Greet in Lon
don, where he has been playing Shake
pearean repertory to audiences of chill
dren for year with great success, or
the success of John Craig in Boston;
the successful tours of our own COM
hat nf oil
only few illustrations of the CONNER
cial possibilities in classical repertory.
"There must be, however, no attempt
to compete with the commercial theater
on the part Of those who lead such a
movement. The repertory should be
limited to the two or three standard
dramas that each generation has given
to the stage and to the great classics of
English drama"
"But can actors be found to-day" Mr..
Sothern was asked, "who will be willing
to take up this work? There are, after
all, richer rewards for less arduous
work"
spoken of must come from the actor"
answered Mr.. Sothern. "The great am
bition of the actor, if he be sincere at
all, is to distinguish himself, and it is
through the classical drama that he
can satisfy this ambition. The move
ment for a classical repertory theater
demands first of all leader, a manager
of the proper imagination and vision
1t may also need at the first financial
support that it is almost certain to win
from friends of the American theater.
But it will receive its strongest i'm
petus from the actors who associate
themselves with it,
For the actor there are no parts like
those in Shakespearean drama. Him
self complex being, he finds in Ham
let es complex creation-a melancholy
man, yet with his moments of humor-
as many-sided being as men are in
reality. Let an actor play a thousand
parts, and he is yet bringing himself
to the possibility of playing a few parts
we'll; he is developing the possibilities
of the instrument that is himself. The
truly great parts that the Shake
spearean dramas given to the actor
compensate for the years that he has
given to the study of diction and voice
control, to the conquering of an obsti-
nate body. In short, the ambition Of
the sincere actor to distinguish himself
In great parts will make him the warm
est supporter of classical repertory 1t
is, of course, through the stock COM
pany, that best of dramatic schools,
that the next generation Of actors
should come to the American stage"
"Your own successful tour" we sug-
gested, would seem to indicate that
the public would be hospitable to such
a movement
"1n Chicago" Mr.. Sothern continued,
"at the close of the matinee perform
ance of one Of the comedies in our
repertory youngster in the audience
whispered audibly, This beats the
nickel show That was historic re-
mark. 1t reveals so truly the reaction
Of those who see Shakespeare for the
first time, and who find in the poetry
and the color and the vitality Of the
plays something far better than the
nickel shows. They find nothing in the
plays which they cannot understands;
they find the music Of good diction and
Of the well turned phrase, the grace of
gesture and movement; most Of all,
they find n vitality that Ia not in the