Evening star., 1922-05-23
muSementS
"Shore Leave"

Like rivulet of clear water
sparkling along into muddy the
atrical stream, the little play, "Shore
Leave" makes it's way into the tur-
bid flood of current theatricals. The
| Belasco Theater for the occasion re-
verted to type. The producer, whose
| name, even though at the right ha nd
end of the hyphen, lends the signifi-
| cant element of dramatic distinction
! dence on the stage. Manager Taylor
was again in Chesterfeldian super
vision of the front of the house. and
the audience had the traditional mood
or the first night; for the play. though
having had weeks presentation in
Baltimore, is still in its preliminary
career. 1t was confident audience.
whose expectancy was rewarded not
only by some vigorous incidents that
| commanded outbursH of applause.
but even more by the delicate and
sustained humor and sympathetic
sentiment with which the author.
Hubert Osborne. tells of sailor and
his sweetheart; of love at first sight;
a woman's faith and a mans forget
| fulnesS
The basic theme is more unfamil-
lar to Mr.: Belasco, for Shore Leave"
| tells again, but not in tragedy, of
| a Madame Butterfly who took SER
iously the fickle attentions of a sea-
faring man. This time the Madame
butterfy, free from oriental fatal
ism, refuses to pine away, but makes
| her dreams come true and wins at
| last devotion worthy of her own:
Frances Starr of course, is the lass
who loves the sailor; a bonnie lass,
| whose purity of mind is in refresh
| ing contrast to the precocious world =
~ wisdom which the stage has so
| persistently reflected as feminine
! IA q ,f
Barrie in literary expression, Barrie
Is still suggested by the manner in
which the heroine by indomitable in
nocence compels the world of stub
porn fact to yield to the spell of her
| imagination
| Bilge Smith, U. S. N is royster-
! ing, profane COB. but there is virility
IN mis- registering and his profanity
seems wholesomely human, in CON
traSt with the insidious innuendo
SO mercilessly deluged. James Rennie
plays "Bilge' and plays the role with
| the apparent ease and naturalnesS
which denote good art. The sailor
with whom he has the fist fight is
a clever comedian, so, are two or
three others of the sailors whom the
program does not clearly identify.
| Reginal Barlow makes a bluff and
nearly ea.captain and Mrs. Jacques
Martin is loveable soul, even as
| sue pfo" beats hlns Evelyn CARING
| ton, as a frivolous matron, is ponder
Gus without being clumsy, and
Schuyler Ladd, her youthful cavalier
is a first-rate actor without a great
deal to do.
! In this play MIR, Belasco adopts a
| middle course as to stage setting
| venturing neither opulent variety OF
scene, nor adherence to a single set
for the entire performance. The first
and last of the three acts show the
| sitting room of Comics cottage, and
! the second shows the deck of the
| ship to which she invites all sailors
| named Smith. in hope of finding rhe
man whom she esteems her very own
| because he has kissed her.
| shore Leave" is d bit of the gen
| uine. gem not of great weight, but
| of luster which outshines the paste
! and rhinestoneS of farce and revue
If it is not liked by the audiences
! upon which it must depend next sea-
son for long run. it will be be-
| cause taste has become so vitiated
by bizarre immoralities that so clean
cut and honest an example of sincere
comedy cannot for the present Quite
be understood.