Evening star., 1925-04-05
Aweary of
First Performances
By Ph;1ander Johnson.

One of the most remarkable plays
of recent weeks was "Mismates," a
drama strictly OF the "we-strive-to-
please school. 1t was, in fact, a
collection of dramas from which the
auditor could select congenial pa
terial, ranging from the adventures
OF Jesse James to East Lynne"
Its only difficulty lay in the fact
that it interrupted one plot with an
other so frequently that attention
was bound to waver.
X X x
A hrst-rate scene OF detective
hnesse, with hands going up all over
the stage till the players looked like
a class in calisthenics, was spirited,
but hardly calculated to prepare the
mood for the dear old episode show
ing the discarded mother kneeling
before the sweet curly-haired child
in his nightie, who says to his step
mother: oh. muthuh. The pretty
lady is crying. Don't cry, pretty
lady. | love YOU 1t is all well
enough to run the gamut OF human
emotion. but it should not be so
nard a gallop over so many hurdles
K x
Whether audiences are interested
in the life of cocktails and jazz.
which fiction represents as bringing
fapper society into dangerous ac
quainance with the underworld, is a
question which the playgoing public
still leaves open to debate. 1t is
very difficult to throw glamour OF
romance around the roles to which
ha nj nf
tertainment, normally direct SYM
pathy. That "Mismates' has an in
teresting story cannot be denied. 1t
is not we'll enough acted to give it
a fair chance to fix itself seriously
IN attention.
A new musical show, "Mercenary
Mary" gave a remarkably good ac-
count of itself, considering the fact
that music and melodrama have been
thrown across the footlights so law
ishly that the once truStful has kept
moving further and further in the
direction of Missouri. 1t demands
10 be shown so explicitly that by
the time a really good entertainment
has had the benefit OF word-of-
mouth advertising, the engagement
for one week only has drawn to a
close.
In spite OF the suspicion which
the try-out performance now en-
counters. the inhuentiats forces of
the theater still continue to use the
Iine. First Time on Any American
Stage" with all the confidence of
earlier tradition. Those who do so
still see in ina gination the carriages
bringing the social life of the city
in joyous anticipation of an event
which. in addition to its artistic en-
dcavor, held a touch OF sporting in
tcrest Would the play be a success
or faiure?" The question was on
everybody's lips. and everybody was
on the qui vive to call for the author
and hail him as the hero OF the mo-
mcnt. There were comparatively
| few fat failures to prevent a first
night from being at least enjoyable,
even in cases where it was not over
whelmingly brilliant.
Some audiences still call for the
Author. but nobody ever appears ex
tspt Mr.. Belasco.
X < * X
1t has remained for Joseph NJ.
Gates. whose career as a producer
included many rst-on-any- stage
triumphs, to realize at last that the
phrase has utterly lost its magic.
He is at present the fidus Achates
OF Mr.. George ChooS, and in his ca
paCity OF publicity director of The
Sapphire Ring" he has spent patient
hours writing letters eloquently inn
ploring people not to get the inn
preston that the performance will
te anything in the nature OF try
,out. Speaking with the authority
which only a manager OF long ex-
perieBce dsres assume, Mr.. Gates