Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-04-04
''LlLioM" A STRANGE
FANTASTIC STORY
Deep Impression Made Here BY
Exotic Play With Joseph
9chiIdkraut 40 Star

4 7
cal play and, the play Of fantasy are
two quite different things was clearly
proved last night when Frans Mol.
mars "Liliom'' had its 6rst local pres
| entation.
1. That seems. Ike a fine distinction /,
and lacking in dictionary confirmation,
but a. the eight episodes Of this most
fascinating legend" are unfolded, the
difference becomes more and more
The fantasy is akin to whimsyl; It
brings to mind delicate and tender
!masininss, fairy.like lishtness snd---
| The fantasticsl play borders more on
the grotesque; It 10 sweeping. colorful.
often absurd, like a man taking q rum
ming broed jump beyond all bounds Of
Such Is ..Liliom" and the greatest
inipstice that could be done to this
unusual play would be to try to Hnd
a purpose" or a ''thesis" or q
moral for 1t. Mark Twain's in !.
structions in q preface about shooting
and banishment should be meted out
to the Unsuitable person who insists on
emhroidering ''Liliom" with a hidden
meaning. VIZ
But what was there throughout
three solid hours, was wonderful
sense Of color and atmosphere. the
fragrance Of acacia that poor little
Julie commented on, the throbbing and
passion laden strains Of that wonder.
ful new organ for the merry 80 round
which interested Liliom 70 much. the
uncanny appeal Of trains that pass In
the night which made Liliom solilo-
quixe on the night he was to commit
murder. NJ ssey
Why tack on to this pitiful yet ever.
persistently enticing story Of the love
Of Liliom, the barker and bouncer at an
amusement park and the little servant
| maid, an undercurrent Of profound
depth? That Is to ruin parts 6f the ex.
quisite earlier scenes and make impos.
sible the pure fnntastical ramblings of
the latter part. The fact Of the matter
is that Franz Molnar stuck fairly close
to the ground up to the point where
! Liliom, to get money to care for his
unborn child, was killed by the police.
Then with the careless yet always grace
full nonchalance that the continental
writer can SO well assume, NloiiiHr
| jumped the traces Of probability and
roamed at will. That he laid one scene
III tuo pOIlCe COuTI OL tuc ucyOhu 40 Nv
indication that he was trying to attack
ical problem. 1t was only the author
bidding his audience play follow the
leader with him on flight into realms
Of imagination and beauty.
Philadelphia will not see another
"Liliom" for long time to come and
it should, therefore, not be misunder.
stood while it is here. 1t is like misty
memory of n night on Budapest bal.
cony, mingling strange, gripping call
OF romance and a laughing, sneering
chuckle of reality.
With one exception. the cast land a
finer one could not be imagined) played
their roles in just the exaggerated vein
necessary. Joseph Schildkraut. him
self, as the boastful, coarse, upforset-
table barker, sometimes seemed almost
like figure from musical comedy, but
he was none the less the perfect
ns Mrs. Muskat; William Franklin,
as Wolf Berkowitz; Hortense Alden,
ms. Marie; Egon Brecher. as The
Sparrow. Yet. far from being criticism.
this is to say that they endowed their
characters with just the grotesqueries,
the swagger, the> sway and rhythm
that Molnar must have intended. The
one who played her part straight" was
Eva lie Gallienne, as Julie, far. far
different than on her last appearance
here. a pitiful, dropping figure, a
spectre against background of a riot
ing. colorful, noisy Coney Island.
Except for the first scene (which
lacked extras and was not especially
striking) "Liliom' Is staged and set
with an art that Is superb. To Lee
SimOnson who designed the sets, too
great praise cannot be given. The park,
the shack. the railroad embankment
and the "Police Court" were perfect
backgrounds for this exotic and al.
Turing tale.
Like strain of Brahms, fragmen-
tary, broken, possessed of call of an
undeinable something, sometimes ghast-
ly, sometimes chortling, "Liliom" may
seldom touch the heart, but It will
imprint itself indelibly ON the imagina-
ton