The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-12-06

performance. Now he is back again the finest role of his 33-year caree
 Carroll plays the part of George Apley in this play adapted by John P. Marquand and George Kaufman from the formers 1888 Pulitzer Prize novel giving pie ture of tradition-bound Boston aristocrat of 1912 that is side splitting funny and yet is not a mere caricature of a stuffed shirt, Carrolls Apley has character and it is as well rounded a stage port trait as you will want to see.
 The play itself is on the credit side of the season although it is not at its most believable in de- nanding a sudden radical change in Apley's character and shift just as sudden back to the status quo. But largely it is funny human and intelligent drama and must be seen.
 The action of the play occurs within a few days and revolveS about the efforts of Apley's son and daughter to break the rules and marry outside of the Beacon St. set. At first Apley is adamant, then he relents But when the out lander father of the sons sweet hea2t puts his foot down against having an Apley in the family, Apley is shocked back to the reali- zation that his first stand was right and that mixing just won't do. The son submits and is seen in an epilogue 12 years later, shortly after Apley daeth, carrying on in the tradition. The daughters rebels, however, and marries the man of her choice.
 Aside from Carroll the cast is merely wonderful. There are such fine people as Mrs. Priestly Nor riS0n, Janet Chandler, Margaret Dale, Percy Waram, Reynolds Evans, Catherine Proctor, Mar garet Philips, John Conway, Ivy Troutman and Howard St. John. The sets by Stewart Chaney couldn't be more right.
 Kaufman directed and did one of his best jobs. There are ensemble stage pictures-the clan before and alter Thanksgiving Day dinner, the ladies' weekly embroidery afternoon
 that are funny enough to make you laugh yourself right out of your seat.
 Tn short, Producer Max Gordon has himself another hit.
 TWENTY-THREE years after he and a co-author wrote about the Marines of World War I in the un- fOrgettable What Price Glory" Staling is back with solo play about the Marines of this war. It is 'The Streets are Guarded" an at times inspiring but too fre- quently muddled drama that is not quiet flesh, fowl or good red herring. Yet it is worth seeing because, de- spite its faults, it is above the gen. era1 quality of Broadway.
 Above all it is sincere. StallingS, by virtue of service in the Marines in both World War, is completely sold no these boys who go any place to do anything at any time. His chief protagonist is a Marine who shows up on Pacific Island just in time to help a stranded group of three Army airmen, three Navy men and Dutch nurse out of a tight spot. Then he guides an as- sault force that comes to their rescue in an attack on a Japanese garrison on nearby island and disappears. One of the Navy men, an old timer who believes in mir scles, swears that the Marine came 6own from Heaven to help them aut and Stallings never quite makes clear whether the Marine is a Heaven-sent emissary or a mere mortal, although it is quite clear that he regards Marines, living or dead, as no ordinary persons.
 There is some good acting by Len Doyle, Morton L. Stevens, Phil Brown as the Marine and George L. Stevens, Phil Matthews, Jeanne Cagney, sister of Hollywood's own James, is the only woman in the cast, John Haggott directed, John c. Wilson produced with M-G-M hacking and Lee Stimson did the sets.
 I WAS vastly disappointed in the musical version of the famous old Nlay 'Rain" which has been pro- euced under the title Sadie Thomp- son." by A. P. Waxman. It seems that it never should have been done. sEsain' is such Q strong story. one Of such definite mood. that decking ik out with interrupting musical numbers robs it of its effectiveness. Especially when the music and lyrics og Vernon Duke and Howard Dietz arc nin-of- -the-mill and do not com-