Evening star., 1950-08-02

the closest thing to a comedy tt
parcel of dark brooding done by \
others in her generally good su
happy, just like in Hollywood
There is some comedy relief
scattered throughout the play, too,
whether by the design of the
author or Director Sam Wanna
maker. and with Ibsen, parishion-
ers. comedy relief is relief.
It has been the fate of most
1bsen plays to become dated and
a little foolish in day when
society isn't encumbered with all
those things he crusaded so
solemnly against THE Lady From
the Sea" fares a little better on
this score, since the dramatist is
dealing, basically, with that old
eternal triangle. which won't be-
come dated until bigamy is held in
much wider regard than it is at
present.
Without knowing it at the time,
OF course. Ibsen really was crusad-
ing this time for modern psychia-
try. What this Lady From the
Sea" needs is a series of quiet
sessions on the couch while her
subconscious is probed. A good
upper-crust psychiatrist could
have her Strengthened out and her.
husband broke in less time than
it takes to tell her story here,
which wouldn't be setting any
speed records, at that.
This woman's problem is this,
doctors: She is, or rather should
be, happily married, the adored
second wife of a doctor in a small
Norwegian resort town on a ford.
She is racked back every now and
then, however, by a call from the
beyond, and is firmly convinced
that she is haunted by a former
lover, a sailor who passed by one
day when she was living down by
the sea. She continually feels the
pull of the sea, or the sailor, or
both.
Her distress ultimately resolves
itself, after a great deal of dis
cussion, into the necessity for
making choice between her pres
ent husband and the old lover
who comes back to claim her. This
involves the insuring of her free
dom of will and the demonstra- |
tion of which claimant needs her |
most before she can resolve her |
troubled mind. 1t does not help
Mr.. 1bSen'S case any throughout
all of this that the Misses Joan
Crawford and Barbara Stanwyck
have been put with regularity
through far worse ordeals-tor-
lures which make Ellida's prob
lem seem rather elementary, like
shall I raise or just call with these
four aces.
1t probably is to the credit of
the Festival Theater cast playing
at the Olney prior to Broadway t
more than to Ibsen that this
LADY From the Sea" is fairly
absorbing. Even they will have
to be more assured before facing
New York next Monday night,
but certainly it is fine to have
Miss Rainer back and in role
which matches her intensity. FL
Ida is tortured woman, likely
even little silly by some stand
ards, and, silly or no, Miss Rainer
makes her completely believable. !
Even when she gets to brooding
about the sea so that you wish |
she would just go swim out into
1t like a lemming, there is charm |
about her. Miss Rainer's charm. |
She could win another Academy
Award any day they give her the
chance.
This Lady From the Sea" owes
q great deal. too, to Herbert Berg
hof's portrait of Ellida's husband. |
He has his tortured moments, too,
while his wife is being haunted
by that old lover, and it is Mr..
Berghof's feat to bring them all |
off with complete naturalness.
Among the others, Anne Jack
son ought to delight you COM
pletely as a pretty and pixie ur-
chin fascinated by the thought |
that young man with a pain in
the chest is going to die and |
doesn't know it. You will find
little complaint. either, against
Joan Chandler, Theodore Newton,
jeff Morrow and Steven Hill. (Mr.
Hill plays the only comedy char
acter in recent memory who is
funny because he is marked for
death, which must be some sort
of commentary on the general
tone of Ibsen.D
THE Lady From the Sea" can
stand some Tightening and faster
(and louder) playing. 1t had
some tagging moments last night.
1t would be the better, too, for