Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-02-07
"WHITE.HEADED BOY"
EXCEPTIONAL PLAY
Irish Company Gives Notable
Addition to Seasons List Of
Distinctive Productions

Brcad--A little company Of player,
rom ireland, over the seas, gave Phil
adelphia one OF its finest lessons in the
art Of character acting last night. and
mixed In so much that was laughable
and whole hearted that the meanest
spirited person could not accuse them ot
being prosy or, for one moment, unin
teresting.
When the roll is taken at the end
OF the year, the Irish Players presen .
tation of Lennox RobinsOn's "White
Headed Boy" must be included near the
top Of the list Of the well written, and,
what Is more strange, IL must be placed
Just as high in the ranks Of the enter.
tanning. Therein lies its originality
its widespread appeal.
The first night audience found it, a
two sided creation, built. perhaps by
accident. for two standards Of appre-
citation. Those that approached It as
a study In character were rewarded by
a gallery Of cameo-like portraits that
never for an instant stepped from their
frames. Those that went to pass away
an evening were rewarded by a SPAR
KING comedy that not only brought the
in the memory long after the last cur
:. The Geoghcgan family and their
white. headed boy" at once their Joy
and their burden, were as amusing as
the individual members Of the audience
humanity real.
1t took great acting to put over the
real force Of Mr.. Robinson's brilliantly
written comedy. and there was that kind
OF acting In plenty. 1t is seldom that
the city has the pleasure Of applauding
the ability Of man like Arthur Sin.
clair, well remembered here from eight
or nine years ago. The man is uncanny
In his power. whether it be for the
more easily turned laugh. or the subtle,
gentler suggestion Of pnthos or slyness.
1t would not be fair to say that Sim
clair dominated the scenes, though he
might have done so with an ordinary
company; Here. however, was the in
defatigable Marie O'Neill, red.faced. /.
buoysnt, capable as ever, mistress Of
Ellen. Sydney Morgan as George,
poor, barassed, peevish George, the
first to rebel against the spelling Of the
mothers darling, the "white headed
boy" was another who put untold art
as well as fun into hts role. Arthur
Shields was most delightfully."- believ.
able youngster in the name part, even
in his most selfish moments. And the
rest of tLe family, and their servant, and
their neighbors, were done, with a pos
sible exception or so, with rare kind
Of creative ability that startled the slug
gish, sated theatregoer out Of his seat.
1t would be futile to detail the plot of
such, n play rs this-like applying a
chemical test to a wonderful meal. 1t
is really all explained in the title. Denis
Geoghegan is the white headed boy"
at the beginning, and he is still the same
person at the end. All the fine plans
to bring him to his senses and set him
to work 60 to naught, and the prospects
are. at the final curtain, that he will be
just as serenely spoiled by his wife, and
by his children when he has them, and
by their children, too, which Is about
as far as the case need be taken. Every
body realized what they were doing ;
some of the family were even inclined
to be bitter about it, but there seemed
q sort of fatality about the thing. Denis
was born to be a "white. headed boy"}
they couldn't do anything to change that
state Of things even II they wanted to.
And that's about the way the audi
cnce felt about 1t, too.