Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-02-14


history's great ladies are luckier than
its heroes in having Helen Hayes to
play them while the latter must de-
pend upon more minor and made
quate mimics. In the Army, eSpe-
cially in one of its hospitals where
bellicosity outruns both feverS and
pulses, one would hesitate to make
such an observation, not because it
is not obviously true, but because all
observations are challenged. Thus
do sick and injured soldiers fill their
chatting, idle days. On the whole, it
is an interesting experience to share
with them, but it is a much more
placid one merely to write column
which contemplates what Miss
Hayes has meant to historically i'm
portant members of her sex.
Because she is around to imper-
senate them, to give them a deep,
new warmth of life long after their
time, women who made their marks
are safer dramatic material than the
comparable males.
Pity the Male Geniuses.
That, of course, has not kept play
wrights from turning out hopeful
manuscripts in recent years on
Shelley, Keats, Rembrandt, William
Goodwin, Thomas jefferson, Alexan-
der Hamilton and other masculine
geniuses who contributed something
to the dignity. the beauty or the
progress of mankind. A good case
could be made, however, that it has
kept these plays from being success
full. Without exception, they ex-
pired very quickly, living long
enough only to give the critics and
public opportunity to observe it was
silly of So-and-So, the actor, to re-
gard himself as capable Of evoking
the greatness of Such-and-Such the
genius. With the exception of Ray
mond Masseys portrait of Lincoln
in Robert Sherwood's lofty play it
has been critical routine to approach
such plays with a weary conviction
that genius should have been allowed
to speak for itself.
In general, even the best of actors
have had the worst of fortune when
they undertook portraiture of the
historically renowned They have
succeeded in creating the impression
that two very dull fellows, the real
and the fictional ones, were victimiz-
ing an audience which had done
nothing to deserve it.
Contrariwise, in her sphere, Miss
Hayes has achieved the reverse
effect.
Ill-Advised Enforcement.
It is a matter of vivid theatrical
record that her reign as Queen Vic
toria in Victoria Regina gave
promise of outlastiilg that of the
| original For three seasons, from
there to. there, Miss Hayes ,re-en-
acted the life of the greatest woman
ruler, and the most dramatic one,
since Elizabeth. AS Miss Hayes i'm
personated her, Victoria came to be
almost as beloved of the American
public as of her own people. She
was more than merely great
Empress-Queen, and not all the
brilliance and grace of playwrights
who wanted Miss Hayes for other
chores could divorce her from the
Victorian role. 1t took finally a
play of her husband, Charles Nc
Arthur, to get Miss Hayes off to
the English throne, and that it was
not a very good play-in fact quite
bad one-made the separation all
the more regrettable to a great
many people.
Before Victoria, another Queen
profited enormously by the skill
with which Miss Hayes was able to
reach beyond her regal trappings
to find human heart. That Queen
was MARY of Scotland" her au-
thor. Maxwell Anderson. Both
Mary and Mr. Anderson benefited
vastly by the fact that Miss Hayes
was available at the time for the
title role, a fact that was under
scored by the then immature Kath-
aryn Hepburn's subsequent venture