Evening star., 1924-07-20
FORCE
CHANGE OF FRONT
Romance interviewer With
Fancy Trend of Ttealer
Coming Season.
BY Consolidated Press.

By Consolidated Press
NEW YORK, July 19.-Tired of the
realistic plays which hold them up to
ridicule and are harsh and jarring in
their incisive exposition of the crueler
side of human nature, the American
theater-goers are forcing the pro-
ducers to change front for the COM
ing season.
Romance has crept back into the
theater. AS the Fall list of shows
is being announced, it becomes more
and more apparent that romance, in
terwoven with fancy-not the out
and-out romance OF the stage for
20 years-is to be the prevailing
trend in the plays that will be staged
this year.
For two years the theater-goer has
NE and contacts. Eugene O'Neill
with his frank Anna Christie" set
the M fashion and has been responsible
r1F miscagsnsfion It's s3ntnuansn His drama of
Got Wings failed miserably to make
any visible splash in theatrical
-'.ta-S Main Street" ridiculing the
small towns, and The Iiero," of
successes. Children of the Moon,"
realistic play by Martin Flavin, a
Chicago business man, pronounced by
critics to be admirable in technique
and presentation, fell fiat on an un-
responsive public
This, coupled with the success of
romance, typified in Rostand's
"Cyrano de Rergerac" and Shaw's "St.
John both of which ran far beyond
the expectation of their producers,
presages the trend for the coming
season.
See CoIorful Romance.
The old type of romantic slush will
not be popular. On the other hand.
fantastic type, colorful and seasoned
with wit. Rostand's "L'Aiglon," one
hears is to be produced by the
theater. guild, which is devoted to
has met with financial. as we'll as
artistic success. Another production
IN contemplation by the guild is
Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra" ro-
mantle and colorful satire. At least
two of the new plays will be in
costume. therefore.
Only where realism has been re-
1ieved by the touch OF comedy has
any enort at dealing with the foibleS
and failings of the American home
met with success. "The Show Off"
which won the Pulitzer prize for
1924, and Meet the Wife" an ever
SO light presentation which depicts
the social climbing cubwonlnn in
all her vain glory, are notable eN
amples of this.
More plays of the type of Frederick
Lonsdale'S Spring Cleaning" a So
phisticated comedy of domestic life,
and Aren't We ALP" after the same
manner, are coming along both from
the pen of the British Lonsda1e and
the American playwrghts.
Foreign Plays Popular.
Foreign plays have enjoyed popu-
larity in the theater, particularly the
English offerings, among them
Rain" Spring Cleaning" "Outward
Bound" The Outsider The Dane
CANA" a drama from the Hungarian
'Vadja," proved another success OF
the theater guild.
The success of these sophisticated |
managers fiocking to Europe and has |
set the playwrights of this country as |
their copy books. 1t is an open Sc
cret on Broadway that Charlots re-
vue although British and, therefore, |
prejudged as phlegmatic and with.
out humor has proved the biggest hit |
of the season among revues.
The Cinderella type of plot for
ing. The more sophsticated-the
vulgar-type is taking its place. |
kid Boots" for instance. Ziegfeld
musical comedy, has its touch of the
principally upon the humor of Eddie
Cantor-and that humor is not to be
repeated in childrens books.
Drawing Room Farce Looms.
The old bedroom farce has about
disappeared In its place is the
drawing room farce, with smart
people and snappy lines, relying more
on dialogue than on situations.
Meanwhile, "Abie's Irish Rose"
termed by critics without exception
as the worlds Worst Play" is in
its third year. and one critic has
written, upon seeing it for the sec
ond time that he would not hazard
the opinion that it will close before |
1912 The play will have made some |
thing like S5.OOO,OO0 for its author by
the end of the present year. 1t has |
broken all records for long runs in |
every city, outside of New York. !
where it has been presented, and it |
is well on it's way toward the record |
here. .-.....