The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-12-06
HAS
SURE REMEDY
FOR SMUT
Let Public Stay Away and
DIRTY Play" Will Die in
Week, He Affirms.

In the hands Of the theater- going
public lies the remedy for the dirty
or the plain, 'tsmutty" production,
declares William A. Faversham,
veteran stage star and producer
1t VII take but one week to apply
the remedy and the result will be
permanent" adds F'aversnam.
What's the remedy? Why just
stay away from the theater. If
everybody remained away from
dirty show for just one week, the
solution would be found, for the
play would go to the storehouse.
No manager in the world. can stand
more than one week Of empty
seats, Faversham declares,
1T Is utter folly to expect relief
from the producers when the play
house that shelters the off-color
production is packed to the doors
nightly he explains. THE re-
former says There is no room in
the theater for the dirty show"
And the producer comes right back
and says No not even standing
room To be serious, while there
is a profit, and a huge one, in stag
ing and presenting such productions
there will be producers to put them
on. One Broadway producer may
feel a twinge of conscience but the
mediately attract another to take
his place should he quit"
Thus If we analyZe this present
tendency and reach the source of the
complaint, it is the fact that such
productions find such ready audi
ence. The truth is that once the
word is heralded that play is ex-
tremely risque or provides liberal
Topographic display the box office
lines Immediately begin to form"
Faversham was talking in his
dressing room at the Shubert-
Belasco Theater, where his latest
play, "A Lesson in Love-" is being
shown. II can look back to the
days of Augustin Daily and recall
when this so-called vogue of the sug.
gestive play seemed to have its be-
ginning" he added reminescently.
II remember opening with quite
distinguished company in a play
called 1.-The Conquerors," that had
what was then felt were very broad
situations. Today they would pass
In the theater as mere common
places. However, then as now, we
awaited the opinion of the critics
and when the majority decided that
it was somewhat daring, the man.
ayers called an immediate rehearsal
and started work on a new produc.
ton called Sowing the Wind. The
intention was to close The Con-
querors' after one week.
What was the surprise when the.
atergoers began to crowd the box
office, and before the week was over
we were selling out Veteran play
goers will also recall that Olga
Nethersole's 'Sapho' enjoyed tremen-
dOus popularity because of a situa-
ton that today would cause hardly
ripple.
The younger generation would
laugh and call it ridiculous were
they to know that in those days an
actor or actress who became unfa.
vorably involved in a scandal. do.
nestle or otherwise, automatically
cancelled his contract" continued
Mr.. Faversham.
"Such, however, was the case.
strange as it may now SEEM"
IL sincerely hope the present
craze for such things will pass" he
said, "for eventually it might lead
to a rigid censorship and that
would be the most deplorable thing
that could happen to the theater or
to the movies. But I repeat, the
swift and certain remedy lies with
the American theater-going public.
The question is will they have the
good sense to apply it,"