Putnam patriot., 1930-10-30
New York. october 2sth, I9s0.

Workers least of all. 1t seems scarce ly possible that it IS little over twelve months ago that New York was a riot of expenditure, luxury. wholesale gay ety and almost drunken prosperity.
 However, there are a few bright spots left and the old town still offers something Co see. Hard times, ap- parently, cannot stem the day to day magically changing skyline. Where the old red brick Waldorf Astoria of tarnished memory once raised it's ven erable head, the enormous Empire State Building now scars upward to a terrific height and dominates the city. The more feminine Chrysler Building enjoyed but a brief moment as the worlds highest building before ex- Governor Smith and his associates began the erection of this eighty story affair that swings upward into the clouds and forms a new pinnacle to that irregular man-made range of Titanic Buildings that is modern New York.
 Mir. Freediey's Girl Craxy''
 Down in the streets below, however. all is not SO well. In the shopping districts, surrounded by police, strik- CTS in the dressmaking establishments along the Avenue are marching up and down. blue signs pinned to their chests. In the great shops such bar gains are offered as never before since the chaotic era began, and yet there are few to buy. Boys and girls who came to the city to seek fame and fortune are going home by the train load to spend the winter at the par ental fireside and sigh for the city every time the radio is turned on.
 But hard times or no hard times, some things must go on. In the theatre. despite dire predictions. there are pieces that are doing exceedingly well and among the first three. we are happy Co say, is Mir. Ninton Freed leys smashing musical hit, Girl Crazy which in the parlanee of the theatre. Is packing 'em in nightly and at Wednesday and Saturday matinees. Mr. Freedley's show has a western background. George Gersh- win music, plenty of good comedy talent and a splendid dancing chorus. Another musical hit is ''Fine and Dandy" in which the inimitable com edy of Joe Cook prevails. Thirdly, George $. Kaufman and Moss Hart in a superlatively funny farce of Hol- lywood life, "Once in a Lifetime" have, to date, scored the biggest success of the year. Once in Lifetime" is the kind of farce that moves so quick ly that the audience hasn't time to res cover from one laugh before there is another that almost stops the show Mir. Kaufman himself appears in one of the leading roles and is as funny as any other member of the east.
 Miss co~l in Shakespeare
 We haven't had time to see many plays but we did see lovely Jane Cowl making Shakespeare merry and de, lightful in a beautiful production of Twelfth Night" which even that most suavely insolent of all the critics Percy Hammond of the Tribune, was forced Co admit was one of the best Shakespearian performances he had seen ln many day. Sadly, those who love the theatre saw the curtain come down last week on "Mr. Gilhooly, the dramatization of the novel of thu same name, in which Helen Hayes ana Arthur Sinclair gave performance 1 that were better than the play as a work of dramatic art deserved. And while the critics weren't SO high iT ! their praise of Miss Akins "Th, 1 Greeks Have a Word For It." tho story of three tempestuous gold-dig gers. we found plenty of laughs there
 in and we were not surprised when W, heard that despite criticism the pla, has built up into fair success.
 We shall be very sorry, too, i
 Lawton's Campbell's satire of tn,
 southern life. unfortunately named Solid South," does not enjoy tn, prosperous run which 1t deserves
 Possibly southern childhood was re
 sponsible for the fact that We enjoyed every moment of the play and laughed all the way through 1t and recognized many types that are by no means fic tional
 In the music world, hard times hay, | had little or no effect. With pearl. and diamonds gleaming in the parterr, | and standees crowded at the rail- ths opera opened as usual on Monday night with the inevitable performance of Aida. Opera. after all, is q  habit and certainly habit seems to be the principal ''raison d'etre' of the ! Metropolitan for Mir. Gatti promises nothing this year more exciting than ! the production in February of Deem. Taylor's opera, Peter Ibbetson, [ based on the du Maurier novel and the Barrymore play. The rest of tho roster sounds pretty cheerless. There are no startling singers coming for ward, there is not even the advent of Marion Talley to create publicity or excitement. There are no gods or ! goddesses tc add to the wagnerian ! list. Meanwhile. one reads of many new operas and singers in Chicago. of . the coming to the Windy city of mag nifcent Lotte Lehman, but New York drones on with the same old re- pertory and the same uninterestine singers. It is pleasant to be middle. aged and to be able to remember that once in the Metropolitan were singers