Evening star., 1951-08-12
The Passing Show
The Posing Show
Ideal Marriage Play
Work of q Bachelor
Hiding From Nozis, 'Fourposter'
Author Dreamed of Lost Bliss
By Joy Cormody

Circumstances surrounding birth of play sometimes
are quite dramatic too More dramatic perhaps than
play Itself.
This latter might comedy under consideration
here today but such entertaining that
to would be ingrattude.
The play nativity provided correspondent with
engaging stories is Jan de Harogs
THE Fourposcr" which winds happy olney
Iheater tonight after the usual Sunday matinee.
Thoue eht He Would Never See Play
"The Fourposter" comedy Harog thought he might
not live to see produced written attic Amsterdam
the attic in which Harog refuge
refuge 60 hastily in those desperate days full of Nazs
they filled with zeal to be the thorough conquero
in the whole history of warfare
Hume Cronyn and his wife Jessica Tandy who comprise
the entire of The Fourpoer like tell story
their comedys genesis almost much they enjoy performing
1t to delighted. bedazzled audiences.
They naturally humans with sharp dramatic and
they with the mind
Like any believed he facing death
Cronyn He and unmarried both OF which are
interesting view of the fact that his play about
more or less perfect marriage
He Brooded on the Marriage He Would Miss
Among experiences had had those he expected
falling of Hollands
De Harogs thought of mohe has later expainedwas
love, but he writer and this is the
theme that appeals most to the literary mind especially the
NJ Forster explains this most engagngly Iifes three
BIRTH marriage and death Since
man cannot unable about the
third he oeals extensively of all with love.
So The FourpoSter" is the play
around the marriage he imagined for himself and which he
plenty of time to write while hiding in the attic OF an
elderly womans home.
husband character in De Hartogs comedy.
those who think writer's write too much about writer's
eXcitingbut in The Fourposter
ALL his marriage that De Hartog
imagining and he and is. writer
FourpoSter' he is also an extremely modeS
one whom he dreamed is the bright beautiful wise
perfect character in the play She could very
girl the any man would chooSe TO
De HarogS JOY in her is one
of the greatly the which the Cronns
planning Broadway in the autumn Se clever ana
knowing commanding need arises endery submissive
permit her boyh husband to play that
he is
Husband the Weaker Character in Union
The husband quite inferior creature by comparison AS
he has explained De Hartog thought humby OF himself as
days He brash thought fuzzy at all
impulse and, he it, wrote badly.
He coud not think much of this sort of man husband
with which he could credit him the ambition to
worthy girl He would be mature, successful
profession adequate father the fine children of
thoroughbred WIFE and always gratefully and deeply aHeconae
reflection evident in The Fourposter
Identification by romantic
in the audience This invests the play with charm which MISS
completely begulng performances
1t was written his play of perfect marriage
entirely unforeseen way Tor Bacheo
chance to England came and he ed
leaving the manuscript behind In England he
met married and after the war; he went
back find his manuscript.
He Lived and Ploy Requires New Ending
Now quite as dramatically anything else connected with
Fourposer De Hartog finds himself with
problem hands AS playwright who expected
of husbands end to The Four
poster" Luckily die but unucy the original ending
for the play stand and thus stands out as its major
weakness.
If ne can find solution, resolution in time, the
Amsterdam 1910 may well nave one OF
the most delightful comedy hits on Broadway in 1851