Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-04-05
LINCOLN SHOWN
IN MOVING DRAMA
,,,, Drinkwater's Chronicle
p,av Recreates Substance and
Spirit Of Master American

,rcricans for whom Abra /.
Broau'ln' figure takes on the haio
ham lhI,,""rt;ons Of devoted sainthood
and proip"rdon. will find that figure os
and lnu,,oSsonist Of John Drinkwatcr : ;
the prI."e ,,iay abraham Lincoln. q,
chronic, and human. sanity anu
both 'Writtcn by this rising English
sain'eI,, ,wrirht for his own people IN
poet pay W. nf turmoil ant recon
their tl,"v tou without thoug Int OF fu-
structi,om ,,,,oriran , audience. the play Is
ture An, An,,nrossiyc for Americans labor
lichlI nr in,! rho same stress ana ritalltS
gH!ssoctic Hs without obvious wv WV"
sCiotS, wv, W." hc we'll to let Mr.. Drink
u "'ih Trough his programmed Au-
water X,t,c% sct forth his own ideas
thor S,jns jrU' thc play and the IDEAS ne
IN Wri''"s -" corry across the foothghts'
a. Whiting a dramatic concep''4n Ia. ",
tn nhpon, lincoln before ms own iIn,rod i'd
,on people. may perhnepS pehssrTatjons,
| tdh T.. one or two oDser erNa,'o'"' A. r,
to ofer o, ,,'orits or lack of them IN inc
Or un' Ina n is clearly not foI, ne
play as ""i Rnt | should like 1t to be
10 spessnnr that It is not the drama.
rfn!i!es business to compete elLner Tsn
| ,Ln historian or the pnaoff, DE- n nd of
NE ne, "f of the American Ctvil war anu toii III
| story mcrsonal career have been tolu
1dncon ai, and exactly. MY purpose
exhaus., a. select from these w such
has D',. 70 give, II may be, heightehed
sM1Scance wa TO certain STRAIN III LII
sigllL nboracter and to certain move
| coins ,S C,' ,SndencIes in the human mind
mCnS "' Ied and directed. | have NOT
hat .od ne to state everything, but 70
atIen'pm atIn psomcihing with imaginative iucid'
msso that. for this artistic purpose ,amo am
i 30 .'" '"nxample Of the greatest drama
BY me Go,.o adapted the events Of his
usS ! ny needs: feeling justited In
0N ~ iiteral fact to the service OF
snapntiel truth as I saw II, or IN the
esse,I 'essSentIon OF a fictitious character, such
.s Burnet Hook. Precise recorus anc aro
ss ssor,.sd D~d IN many volumes my nope
pteseha hson TO add n little to the spiritual
Interpretation of these ,..,
~. Drinkwater has notably achieved
Il. IDEAS and fulfilled his ideals. His
NAV % is arresting gripping and moving.
ESSre we're very few. If any. in the
1,J;once who were not affected by the
Snsodos in which he gives. through finely
JD,ailod scenes. panoramic view OF
T;nnoln's : career. Of his acceptance OF
tbs no. nomination. his Judgment of John
Prown's activity as a wrong philoso-
INV hia stand for the Constitution. his
.rorn of compromise, his policy that
"rom cant do right thing in wrong
rav" his mastery Of Cabinet which
considered him rustic and simple
minded, his fine compassion as shown
IN his attitude toward gold star
mother" Of tho day and toward delin-
ouent hoy soldier. his backing OF Grant
and his final tragedy. These are the
events shown in the six scenes, pages
torn from American history almost lit
prally and linked together by the sono-
rous verse. lyrical in tone. philosoph-
zeal in quality. recited by Chronicler
in Greek chorus manner.
Abraham Lincoln" is not drama
by any Of the old touctrstones or defini-
tons. Some Of its material is so ia
miliar MS to BE- in itself merely trite,
but It becomes appealing and great in
rs import as touched by the poets
Imagination. II has sequence, though
h0rdly plot Of action. but it has move
Is told by dialogue, which is never
word, or rhetorical. rather converse
riouaI and even casual, but always in
eyiDabc. Rightly has Mr.. Drinkwatcr
abandoned the devices OF conventional
niQuc" for "dramaturgic" formulas
and formalities would i'll befit the
gount and rugged form of Lincoln. As
i is, the large simplicity and the essen
rial dignity and the deep seated gen
vine greatness of Lincoln are out
standing on the stage and ever COM
municablc to the audience. He is In
It and beyond 1.-THE great figure Of
dCStiny--and doom-and democratic
topr
Frank MrGlynn rccrcatcd Mr.. Drink
waters imagined Lincoln with start
ling realism, but with more than mere
reality, II was n real Lincoln the au-
diNnc" saw and heard. and yet an ideal
Lincoln as we'll. The physical imper-
ttGnation of Lincoln AT three periods OF
bis career was Elusive; the spiritual
lincoln was always believable-and in
spring, OF the two score other char
srterS, not one failed to fit the scenes
and situations. The players who on.
trtcd Grant, Seward, Lee. Meade and
the other historic personages were ad.
mlrabio IN makeup and insight.