Evening star., 1925-02-08
Current Entertainment of
Both Earth and Air
By Ph;1ander Johnson.

The nearest thing to a musical
play offered by the week just closed
was The Dove" Officially de-
scribed as melodrama, it is. in fact,
a romantic play of the highly emo
tional school. 1t reveals i'll Judith
Anderson an actress more convinc-
lngly temperamental (using the
word in its artistic and not its catty
sense) than any woman who has
been seen since years. Belasco once
said that he would have no music
In New York music has bred many
quarrels in the theater, and even
now his productions, too elaborate
TO dispense with any artistic en-
bellishment which might contribute
to mold the mood of the spectator,
employ music off stage and only
when it is strictly necessary.
x 4 x
The veteran manager, who has un-
questionably been through one of
the ordeals OF his remarkable ca
reer, returned to make his custom
airy curtain speech in response tc
enthusiastic demonstrations nightly
1t is probably the briefest curtain
speech ever devised. The people
know it by heart and like to hear
1t over and over again with some
thing of the same mental attitude
that children have toward bit of
rhyming or fairy tale.
X x x X
A part of the mans mastery of
the theater-a mastery which 1t has
been the interested privilege of this
city to see brilliantly demonstrated
at moment in his affairs which IN
view of certain relaxations in public
taste seemed critical-appears to
depend on his intuitive recognition
of certain phases of familiarity to
which the public clings, together
with keen, uncompromising recog-
their novelty and are due for rejec-
tion.
Willard Mack's newest play has a
vocabulary calculated to satisfy the
most inveterate profanity chaser of
seasons past. But today what might
have been regarded as chill con
carne in speech seems as mild as
porridge He tells a straightfor-
ward love story with vigorous SEN
tences through thrilling scenes and
leaves to the art of the producer the
responsibility of rendering plausible
to enthralled attention episodes
which might not stand with abso-
lutte security the test of intellectual
analysis. In casting the play Mr..
Holbrook Blinn is required to pro-
vide the burden of proof that the
story ought to end. as popular sem
timent demands, in joyous union for
lovers cruelty sundered.
X x
Blinn portrays excellently a role
revealing interesting mental COM
made more difficult for him by the
fact that the author has not taken
pains to reveal a CLINT in the nature
of Don Jose Tostado, the rich and
ruthless voluptuary, any trace OF
noble impulse, not even the refine
ment of a superb vanity. which
might quite account for his com
plete capitulation to an impassioned
plea to sentiment or pride. 1t is
Mr.. Blinn's acting, together with
that of Miss Anderson, and Mr..
Harrigan who plays the lover, that
conveys the impression of fact ac-
complished and the futiity of en-
deavoring to contradict what must
be true, because the audience has
seen it with its own eyes.
X x X
Released from the spell so ac-
curately woven about the senses, a
cynical auditor might be tempted to
reconstruct the closing scene in
imagination, something after this
mode, without effort, of course, at
subtle Celebrations
(Harrigan stands with his back to
the wall, gazing squarely into the
eyes of Blinn. with look of calm
fortitude combined with boyish in
nocence, such as shooting crap for
livelihood at Tia Juana could not
efface)
Harrigan-Shoot!
Blinn-That is precisely what
have intended to do for the last
hour or so, in case | caught you.
have q reputation to preserve as q
type Of pitiless unrehnemenL