The New York herald., 1922-07-02

Married a Dumb Wife" Mr.. Jones
has had a wonderful opportunity to
assimilate the modern idea of play
producing in all its force. He saw
Reinhardt manipulate the dramatic
themes until he extracted both color
and essence and added color and
essence of his own in allopathic
doses. He gave a unique demonstra-
ton of his skill with Arthur Hop
kins's production of Macbeth" for
John Barrymore. something which
had aready been accomplished by
Reinhardt in Berlin with Hamlet"
in which he used the same scenery
throughout. curtains being used in
stead of scenes, the tones being alter
nately softened and heightened with
light effects. The effect was simple
and stern.
Mr.. Jones's effort here was not
satisfying to the public. If it had
been attempted with a modern play
the artistic values and results might
have been more generously ac-
claimed, but the attempt to mod
ernize" Stakespeare's fine old plays
found the public unwilling to accept
the change. The synchronizing of
colors with lights in productions
other than those with which tradi-
ton has surrounded most of the
great roles with certain characters
tics that are almost as hard and fast
as the laws of the Medes and Per-
slams may be certain of reward, but
tradition demands conventional see
merry for Shakespeare's plays, and no
one is going to be foolish enough to
persist in 'circusing" the bard.
Robert E. Jones Experiments.
However. Mr.. Jones, better than
most artistic designers, knows that
the theater is very much alive and
ever ready for the fullest, widest cx-
preston of the authors thought. He
valiantly attempted to show Mr..
Hopkins how to convey the synthesis
of color, sound and movement by
supplying the decoration which bound
the whole and aided in throwing
across the footlights perfect rhyth-
mic presentation.
Margaret Anglin, who has been Sc
lecting her own plays and compa-
nies for several years, has always
mounted her productions suggestively
and artistically, her production last
year of the "Iphigenia in Aulis" of
temnestia, being particularly note
Euripides, in which she played ely
worthy. This production was staged
with striking beauty. with a back
ground Of Agamemnon's headquar-
ters that suggested the spaciousness
Of ancient Athens. Here, amid har-
moniously changing lights, the beau
tifully arrayed chorus moved in
series of unforgettable pictures, ever
changing and ever blending as color
after color was thrown on the silks
and gauZes. In the production OF
Electra" of Sophocles, Livingstone
Platt built for Miss Anglin the stage
UP from it's ordinary level. on which
stood the altar of Dionysius, by
means of stairs, which formed in the
middle platform sufficiently large
for the dramatic action. Two square
pillars projected from the upper
platforms, with the palace of Aga
memnon on the left.
There has never been a more i'm
pressive or ina aginative setting for
any of the attempts to revive the
Greek tragedies in New York. TIE
lighting was from the stage, and
save when the shadows were thr@wn
on the cobalt blue armament. the
background was impressive in its
sense of death. 1t was one of the
finest accomplishments of Mr.. Pldtt.
Another Of Mr.. Piatt's artistic tri-
umphs for Miss Anglin was his pro-
duction for Euripides's "Medea,' and
which established the majesty and
classic spirit of the representation.
Miss Anglin's production of the
Woman of Bronze" though requiring
only one set. is so elaborate that IS
cost of transportation would be
heavy item. There are solid stone
pillars that reveal their massive nnal-