New-York tribune., 1920-02-04
Reyond the Horizon
! By Eugene O'Neill
A Notable Plav
American Tragedy by Young
Author Is Tremendously
Poignant in Spite of
Rather Clumsy Final Act
THE CAST
Bv Hevwood Broun

nv f1cNWo0d IJaooki
e.rene O'Neills Beyond the Hori-
which was produced at special
~s.,nee at the Morosco Theater yes
ID is a significant and interesting
= hv young author who does not
ROT know all the tricks. Fortunate
y he therefore avoids many of the
.Osventional shoddy strategems. but
he same time there is an occasional
.,cnsiness which mars his fine intent
and achievement. Nevertheless, the
! ,lav deserves place among the note
rorthv achievements native au-
,,ors. 1t is frankly and uncom-
,rouisingly tragedy A happy end
nc would be unthinkable. but ONeill
has gone a little way toward an oppo-
.;,s extreme and insisted on polishing
sf his play with certain tragic happen
,rs which are not quite relevant to
Us theme
His story concerns two farm boys,
Robert and Andrew, closely knit,
tbeugh widely varying in type. Robert
lonos TO be free OF the grind of the
sar7n and to find adventure and re-
sase IN the far-otf places. Incidental
lv his health has not been good, so
lis family agrees when he accepts the
invitation Of seafsring uncle to take
nnc voyage around the world on a
.stiine craft. The very day before
his departure he finds that he is be-
loved BIZ the daughter of the neigh bor-
inc farmer He had thought about her
rmantlcally but reservedly. since he
tslieved that sne cared for his brother.
Her sudden confession that he is the
ore she loves sweeps him off his feet
momentarily and he decides to stay
on the farm The brother, chagrined
70 find himself not favored, takes his
place on the voyage.
The girl and the boy marry and he
makes fearful mess of farming. And
he finds that he has made mess of
lie as well. for the girl discovers that,
after all. il WAS the competent Andrew
whom she loved all the time In
bitter scene she upbraids him with his
uselessuess and tells him that when An
drew returns he can take to the road
II ne chooses and let Andrew run the
farm. On his return. however. An
drew soon shows that ne is entirely
cured Of his youthful love. and in
single day he is off again to seize a
business opportunity in the Argentine.
The uokless couple muddle along on
the farm and things go from bad to
worse, until in the last act Robert dies
Of consumption and finds his chance at
lss; to escape from the little valley
and 90 TO the far places
Of course. the fundamental tragedy of
ihp play lies in the fate Of the incom-
petent dreamer forced to battle with the
ahd fer a wing against every inclina-
ion and ab-iIty. His disease and death
are entirely fortuitious and indeed
trey lessen the poignancy of his fate,
winch would have had more force of
fear and pity if the author had left
him still engaged in his hopeless and
'thankess task of keeping on and on in
the dreary grind The hero is much too
deliberate in dying and the last act is
further marred by the addition of a
scene which Is unnecessary. and which
eompeis {. wait At time when the ten
''nn Is seriously impaired by the fall of
the curtain
9Neill begins crudely but honestly
sad frankly with q scene in which
'vo Of his chief characters sit down
and tell the audience the things they
ought to know, but after this prelim-
mary scene the play gathers pace and
power, and until the final act it is
magnificent piece of work, Il play in
nach the happenings are Of compelling
interest, and more than that play
IN which the point of view of every
one concerned is concisely and clearly
st forth II terms OF drama. Every
body VINO saw the best OF O'Nein's
snort plays when they were given by
TIE Washington Square. the Green
zen Village or the Provincetown
fiayers realized that he had an ex-
Faordinary ability to write true and
absorbing dialogue He mas done it
he Ter than ever ia Beyond the Hori-
zaA. Ills characters talk like real
people and yet the process of selec
t'on mas been SO shrewd that there is
none OF the deadening dullness of the
merely literal and Photographic.
Inc power Of the play is tremendous.
hut there IS 10 sense Of the authors
arol lirarlly moving pawns about into
Mpiauslble situations to thrill an au-
9'ence. L is as honest and sincere as
t. artistlc In the last act We found
d aistinct let-down. IN spite of some
pehdid writing for the theater be- /
,ause o'Nelll has BY that become so
'srred away with his theme that he
'as not been able to hold 1t at arms
ength and slash and cut in the light
II the fact that audiences are human
'nd fallible and demand a brovity in
ne re alton of al happenings which /
ieep them IN the theater after 5 in
ne afternoon or II at night. And
Nore than that, as we have said il
'oes not seem to US that the progress
q the hero's disease Is an inevitable
lart OF his tragic career
/ ne play Is TO be presented again at
natlnee on February and again on