The New York herald., 1921-11-17
MISS CROTHERS'S "EVERYDAY"
IS A COMEDY OF MANNERS
Several Domestic Questions
Settled in Play With Some
Amusing Scenes.

Miss Rachel Crothers undertook to
eettle several questions last night in
''F,vcryday." which Mary kirkpatrick
produced at the Bijou Theatre. The
finishing tour in Europe OF young
woman from a Western town had occu-
pied five years. She ought TO have been
rather well done by that time. In her
parents home she found II difficult to
understand the bullied. furtive mother
and the clustering father who did so
much for her and never spoke gentle
word to his wife.
She began her reforms by doing over
the drawing room. 1t was rather rep
resentative specimen of late Victorian
decoration when she came home to be
shocked by the room. The application
of her ideas left it colorless, if somewhat
Oriental in what the decorators call
feeling" The Slapper in the play
thought the best thing about it all was
the picture that matched the wall paper.
Departing from the field OF art, In
which she seemed to be at home. the
traveller picked out the richest man In
the region for her husband. Nobody
mentioned how much he had. but there
was casual reference to his last ten
millions" They were said to be made
too quickly. All this money got him
into trouble after the young woman had
expressed her great admiration OF
wealth In the right hands There was
Federal investigation OF this rich man,
which seemed TO suggest that the Gov
efnment did not regard his hands as
the right ones to be clasped about this
money.
Being kind TO one another, helping
everybody along-she boasted Of having
sheltered a prostitute in her apartment
nbroad-and similar doctrines were also
a part OF the equipment Of this young
woman who knew so much about art
and money. There was a rich boy in.
the town who loved her and a poor one
who hesitated to say so. although he
proved an eloquent mouthpiece for MISS
Crother's Indignation over the treatment
OF the returned soldiers. He had a
talent for drawing and after a while
won the rich girl. There was altogether
too much unanimity as to the unfitness
of the profiteer's hands to hold not only
his last ten million but all he had.
There was no doubt of the audiences
enjoyment of Everyday and all Miss
Crotherss theories. There would have
been. however, much greater artistic
satisfaction in her work II the play had
kept In the course the first act started
it. There were some admirable touches
OF nature in this first act It led the
taht IN its excellence.
Tho rich. noisy husband, the bullied.
frightened wife hiding furtively in
cotner of the gaudy drawing room
these were recognizable creatures. There
was less of life in the girl back from
hef educational travels in Europe with
the chaperon who brought in the street
walker the returned doughboy was al
together of the theatre. The fiapper also
wAs a graphic example CT this prevail
inf type which seems to use the same
language in every play.
Het none of these characters seemed
later to be doing In the least what they
would have been expected to. The man
off finance did not appear at all. But
ths heroine seemed to love him, so she
sebt a note to assure him of her loyalty
In his trouble. The solidarity of the
opening act dissolved in rather incom-
prkhensible and certainly uninteresting
motives. The strength of the drama
scanned to depart with the Victorian dec
orStions. There was some excellent act
ing throughout the whole of Every
day so there was cause for gratitude
Miss Minnie Dupree as the sick and
frightened little woman of the house
mSde n palely tragic figure, which was
quite the most impressive In the play.
Miss Lucille Watson, who was brilliant
assusual In manner, seemed rather hard
bN her side. Miss Tallulah Bankhead
was the daughter polished by European
training which did not reveal itself In
hef bearing. She stopped In accord
ante with the demands of the fashion
able silhouette and had altogether over