Evening star., 1950-10-17

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whose Cocktail Party" is selling
out every performance and caus-
ing more arguments than Tru-
mans domestic policy.
The author in question is the
late Sir James M. Barrie whose
current Peter Pan" revival has
outrun all other productions of
the play. AS it spins along weav-
ing its small, sure enchantment in
a city which cultivates disillusion-
ment, a happy thought grows
about Peter Pan"
This is to the effect that per-
haps it should be kept running
forever. as kind of civic exhibit
designed to prove that New York
has not entirely lost its innocence.
There is nothing official about this
to be sure. 1t is just an idea that
occurs to some New Workers who
like their home town better when
Peter Pan" is in revival. And to
some others who like to have
Barrie around for ready reference
when American and English play
wrights are being compared too
bluntly. He is fine support for
Shakespeare and Shaw. Eliot, too.
* " X y
There is no doubt about it, the
st. James Theater is one of the
happiest spots in the theater area.
This was the true wonder of child
hood that Sir James captured and
to which he attached the wings
with which Jean Arthur, Marcia
Henderson and the others of the
current cast are flying.
These two, as Peter and Wendy,
respectively, are the stars of Peter
Pan" Their work is completely
delightful and so is that of Boris
Karloff who divides himself down
the middle to play the father of
the Darling children and Capt.
Hook. Nevertheless, the man who
comes closest to Barrie in his
genius is John Burrell who de-
signed and staged the latest Peter
Pan revival.
For IS years now, designers
have been trying to mechanic
Sir James Imagination, so to
speak. On the whole, they have
been rather successful, Burrell
most of all.
Never has Barrie found a more
inspired collaboration in making
humans of all ages aware that
children are the ones really quail
fed to put reality into it's properly
secondary and inferior place. Be-
tween them and the still ecstatic
players of Peter Pan" they make
all the really important things
abundantly clear. Live guilelessly |
and guile is frustrated, know that
you can fly without wings or an
internal combustion engine and
you can fly just like that.
1t is all splendidly exciting all
over again and the perfect anti
dote especially for children whoI
do not know that long before
Superman and Buck Rogers, there
was this wonderful superboy, |
Peter Pan.
The one sad note that creeps in
Is that the production is so
intricate that it cannot be travelled
from one end of the country to
the other, forever. People, who
are lighter and less intricate
mechanically, will just have to
travel to New York. It's worth it.
X X X
Broadway postscript: It rs no
secret that New York teens with
people. :. You meet them every
where, in theater lobbies, beverage
dispensaries (retaiD, on the street,
at luncheon and dinner, but not
breakfast. One girl than
whom you will never meet nicer
is Margaret Phillips, now playing
Celia in "The Cocktail Party" i
The Welsh girl who was the toast
of the town for her performance
in Summer and Smoke" two
seasons ago, still thinks the
Tennessee Williams play better
than it came off in that produc-