Evening star., 1928-10-28

Two productions OF exceptional
interest stepped into the Wash
ington season. One holds an ap-
peal Of great popularity based on
the past performances of the
charming Jane Cowl, whose versa
tilitieS have ranged from an ini-
tiative in the underworld type of
drama when that type of drama
was young, and eliminated in a
performance of Juliet which has
not been eclipSed by any of her
more recent portrayalS. The
other production, Revolt" bases
its appeal on literary and artistic
merit, with little prestige on
which to establish reclame.
"The Jealous Moon" takes Miss
Cowl into collaboration with Theo-
dore Charles, and it may be fully
expected that Mr.. Charles and not
the actress will be regarded as re-
SponSible for shortcomings in the
verbal expression and the dra-
matte structure. No one will ad-
nit that a player of classical roles
with such versatile accuracy could
not be anything she chose; even
an author. In view Of the fact
that authors are much given to
plant, while players are hailed
with applause and bombarded
with salary contracts, it is not al
together clear whether so many
actors have been conspicuously
ambitious to seek, in hours Of in
tellectual leisure, to abandon the
rouge pot for the laboriouS eXac-
tionS OF the ink well. Mansfield
had his playwriting moments, e.
n. Sothern had them, Mrs. FiSke
collahorated with c. M. S. McClel-
Ian, whose mastery of fancy and
phrase in the lighter vein was not
considered enough to warrant
trust in him for a serious story Of
Leah KleSchna." Many others
have written and then waited for
some patient professional fiction
maker to come along with one
of those accidents" which are as
snmed merely to happen and to
owe their favor more to the star
than to the intrinsic merits Of the
manuscript.
= y y 4
Few plays are produced, even
OF the newest type, which do not
owe some obligation to literary
predecessor. Revolt" with its
compact crystalline analysis, may
owe something to IbSen or even to
Suderman, but Jealous Moon,"
diffuSe and illogical, certainly
owed nothing to its predecessor,
'The Road to Rome"
%% \ X
It was evident that it was not
this moon of very ordinary senti-
ment that constituted the light in
the box Office window. It was
rather the glittering effulgence Of
the old Roman and Carthaginian
war panoplies so deftly travestied,
without sacrifice of philosophy,
and even of a certain shade of
moral precept, with which Robert
Sherwood captivated the theater,
that brought the public Fastening,
money in hand, in glad expec-
fancy Of another large experience.
** ~
Regarding a play as kind of
mental machinery, there is al
ways likely to be found dead
center which requires poetic mo-
nentum to carry the action across.
In that recent presentation called
'The Crooks Convention" con-
cerning which a limited public
conducted a clinical. inspection,
the dead center which brought
somewhat fantaStical idea to an
abrupt stop and then left it to-
tailSpin was the evangelical ora
ton, delivered when criminal i'm
pulse was at its height with such
astounding fact as to bring the
wickedest promoters of crime into
sobbing repentance. The sermon
was very short. 1t was not con-
Vincingly expressed in words nor
well delivered.
Moreover, it had the misfortune
to pick a bad spot with relation to
timelineSs, for there never was a
period when the public was so
abundantly supplied with oratory
and so eXacting as to its quality.
X X
The dead center in Jealous
Moon" is prepared with an elab-
crate determination which the
humblest play mechanic would
grieve to behold. After establish
ing a very pretty f1gurative rela-
tionship between Pagliac Meri-
Wales marionetteS pulled by