The Omaha morning bee., 1924-06-15
AW- IN
Old Pl0y
Broadway Ya,uns at Cold
smiths Prize Farce, Sho,U-
ing That Tastes Change
as Years Take Flight
BY PERCY HAMMOND.

M must, ike 1lremen, sleep III
- readiness, IL they sleep at all,
with rubber boots and fire helmet
handy, all set to slide down the
creased pole and chase hot-foot to the
scene of drama The alarm this week
directed us to Cleveland for the open
Ing Of the national theatricals. where
by the selection of a presidential
nominee consummated. We were de-
prived, therefore, of the opportunity
TO witness the Players third annual
classical revival. The play chosen by
the managing committe for pres
entation this year was Oliver Gold
smiths "She Stoops to Conquer" a
play which has been so long absent
from the American stage that prob
ably Professor Brander Matthews
In the only critic of the drama among
US who retains a lively memory of
its qualities as an acted play. The
play was to run de week at the
Empire. with a cast OF stars, for the
benefit Of the Players club and the
Actors Fund. Mr.. Rascoe sends me
the following Impressions OF the
revival:
"Sir. I was reminded 1by the eie-
CANT and special handbill which was
distributed among the audience at
two bits apiece) that Macaulay had
said of She STOPPED to Conquer that
II is an Incompatible farce in five
acts When l saw Mr.. Avery Hop
wood between the acts pacing the
lobby with an distracted and puzzled
air on that saturnine side of his face
which is so much more expressive
than the bland, immobile side, won
dered IL Mr.. Hopwood could be pom
dering that dictum Of the critic-his
toriann. But, then I can imagine
Mr.. Hopwood concluding, with feel
ing of relief, after his meditations,
must not judge Macaulay to harshly,
for. after all, he never had an oppor-
tunity to see "Parlor, Bedroom and
Bath."' For certainly the great Gold
smith was a simple fellow with in
genuous ideas about the way a farce
must be constructed. He preserved
the dramatic unities which Aristotle
or somebody desiderated; for the
action of the play is confined to one
evening. and the scene shifts only
from a great house to an inn, to a
garden back of the house. and back
to the house again. The play contains
no visible bed.
But, IL Mr.. Hopwood or Miss Zoe
Atkins or any other modern farce
writer should write play wherein
people come on the stage FOR no other
reason than that other people have
Just gone of It, and people go off the
stare for no other reason than that
some other people are about to come
on, and II the continued action OF the
play depends entirely upon this hide
and-seek arrangement, 1 daresay the
script would give the producers
good laugh, but the producers would
not give the play a chance to hand
q laugh to anybody else. Then, Mr..
Hammond there are those naive and
preposterous asides. which l found
very amusing, whereby the charaters
explain that they are all undone or
tell you what Is going on in their
minds. Mr.. AL H. Woods would never
stand for that sort OF thing-not as
long as there Is a telephone among
the properties into which the modern
asides which explain the action may
be uttered with some semblance OF
reality. There Is a flapper in the play
elso. and very well acted she was
TOO. by the sweet and lovely little
Miss Helen Hayes: but you drama
critics would be bound to make fun OF
the love sentiments she addressed tc
Squire Hastings, which are couched
in stilted and sententious phrases
for all the world as IL she were recit
ing a piece at school commencement
exercises. And still. 1 make no doubt
that the speeches OF Constance
Neville Miss Hayes) to her lover
were faithful realism in Goldsmith's
day. 1t probably was the etiquette
the tradition, the training, the nat
ural things to do in the 18Th
century, for young ladies' to declare
their love with literary restraint.
am sure that Goldsmith would thinl
that some such expression by mod
ern girl In similar situation as, Say
Bimbo. there will be no more neckins
with this party until you sign thu
pledge: it's got 70 that just one smel
of the cork and you pass out like I
light was incredibly unreal and un
natural; yet Mr.. irwin Cobb's daugh
ter. in a recent article, says that 4
the way the modern flapper talks
And It would indeed. confess, sount
truer to life In o modern farce thar
the lines Miss Hayes was called upor
10 speak.
rTAa Qeldsmith play serves. tAsn