Evening star., 1938-12-06

Enthusiastic Cl6QueS LOT CIlc pTOOuC|
night at the National Theater where
q distinguished audience composed
of persons not members of the Inter-
Cnational Ladies Garment Workers
Union gave its unqualified approval
to the spiritedly impudent enterprise
pins and Needles" probably the
most publicized theatrical Droduc-
ton of decade, lends itself to COM
parison with no other stage offering.
Others have been more satirical and
irreverent and still others have been
more sleekly professional. None,
however, has ever managed to
achieve such mood of youth giving
a lusty Bronx cheer for the poignant
futility of its elders in making the
world habitable. Moreover the whole
thing is accomplished with cheer
fulness that is practically the most
captivating spirit ever contrived by
a cast engaged in selling laughter
to an audience.
The show is one of those things
which must be seen to be appreci-
ated an dthe theatergoer who neg
lects to find room for it on his
Agenda Is the kind of person who
deserves an agenda.
X X X
If 1t Is not too late to say so, there
are no stars in pins and Needles" "
On the contrary, the cast includes
a co-equals, recruited from the
ranks of the International Ladies
Garment Workers Union-a bunch
of youngsters who can sing, dance
and act with a vital kind or irony
which puts them in the position Of
talking back very intelligently to
their elders.
Few of the current mores and
morbidities, if the two are not sy-
nonymous, escape the barbS of those
who wrote the book and music of
"Pins and Needles" From the slyly
half-apologetic opening number in
which the entire group gives its i'm
preston OF itself and the audience
until the closing ensemble, We've
Just Begun" the music and dancing
rake the current scene with fire
that is as delightful as it is deadly
in its intent.
Comprehensibly, dictators come
In for some of the least gentle rib
bing of the satire. Little time is
lost in getting to a combination of
stork derbies and Mussolini, which
turns reproduction and totalitar-
ianism into some of the most cheer
full mocking music that has found its
way to the stage in many year.
Good as it is, the sketch repre-
sents merely beginning. Most
amusing of the caricatures of the
times is that which unites Hitler,
Mussolini, Japanese military fig
ure and Neville Chamberlain in a
sketch called -Four Little Angels
of Peace" The subject of dictator
ship is not probed very deeply, but
the surface over which the music
and lyrics of Harold j. Rome skins
yields considerable harvest of
merriment-perhaps the greatest in
the show.
The production turns its attention
to other subjects than politics, with
most of the music written by Mr..
Rome, incidentally. Labor gets
more than a nod, for example, in
the by now well known sketch for
which, Mr.. Rome wrote "One Big
Union For Two" Modern advertis-
ing is examined, with sweetly tragic
overtures, in Dear Beatrice Fair
fax" sung by young lady who has
bought every product of current
beauty chemistry and still cannot
get her man. Higher education S
futility is impudently exposed in
the song of Vassar girl who takes
her erudition into the world to find
a job in Macy's bargain basement.
A great many other current phe-
nomena are examined in the same
mocking mood. the single sentiment
tai exception being one of the best
known sketches in the revue, Sun
day in the Park"
Many of the sketches of. Pins
and Needles" are so well known that
1t is reasonable to assume they may
have lost their SAVIOR. But the as
sumption needs more than reason
on its side, as last nights audience
demonstrated with the sketch in
which it is pointed out that it's
not cricket to picket"
Among the many persons who de-
serve credit for the fine flavor of
the show, the standout is Mr. Rome
whose music and lyrics, together
with some of the dialogue, consti