Evening star., 1951-03-18

TheChurno
fJuIiet
Miss De HoviIIond
Mildly Praised
as Actress
By Mark Boron
NEW YORK.

ktOIneO ana Jullet 1S O play sol
familiar that the performances of
the players are about the only
facets which can add something
new or different.
Chief praise for the productionI
|of Romeo and Juliet" which ar
rived on Broadway this week with
screen star Olivia De Havilland asI
the shy daughter OF the House of
Capulet, is given to production,
costumes and some Of the players
in the less important roles.
AS Juliet. Miss De Havilland
chose task which few actresses
today would venture and for that
she must be given a salute for
courage. Broadway audiences
have seen many notable produc-
tions of Romeo and Juliet" since
E. N. Sothern and Julia MarloweI
set high standard for those roles
in 1904. /
Cornell Rated Best.
In 1923 Jane Cowl, with Rollo
Peters as Romeo, and In 1893 Eva
LIE Gallienne with Richard War
ing attracted enthusiastic audi
ences for their performances.
The actress who seemed most
distinguished as Juliet, however,
was Katharine Cornell's tender
exalted performance in 1894 with
Basil Rathbone as her Romeo. AL
year later she again appeared as|
Juliet with a newcomer brought
from England, Maurice Evans, as
Romeo. This was Evans first per-
formance on these shores.
Following Miss Cowl, Miss Lei
Gallienne and Miss Cornell
whose performances are all we'll
within the memory Of today's|
playgoers - Miss De HavillandI
seems bit reluctant to expand asI
they did in Shakespeare's poetry
Her performance is too much like
a student actress reading precisely
for teacher except in one or two
OF her early scenes, her voice trails
OH to thin line which isn't
eloquent and which leaves the idea
that she is speaking for 'profes-
sor" Shakespeare, rather than for
Juliet.
But She's Lovely.
Physically Miss De Havilland is
tiny and lovely and ideally suited
for the child-like figure that JUL
Ilet was supposed to be at the age
Iof IA.
AS her Romeo Miss De Havil-
land has a young actor named
Douglas Watson who has per-
formed in several other Broadway
plays. This young man, a gradu-
ate Of the University OF North
Carolina. who has been a dancer
as well as actor. is q splendid
young Romeo. He performs the
part with the anguish and trou-
bled spirit needed by this heir to
the house Of Montague, and
measures up for everything need
ed in this production. A few more
years Of such training as he re-
ceives in this production and
Watson will really be ready for
classical Romeo.
But the thing. other than
Shakespeare. which makes this
Romeo and Juliet" something
with quite a few enjoyable mo-
ments is an enchanting produc-
Ition. Stage designer Olive Mes
sells crenelated settings move the
action past the Verona Plaza toI
Juliet's bedroom and Friar Lau-
rence's retreat with speed which
you might get on television pro-
gram.
While the Romeo and Juliet of
this production are not up to high
performances of the past, the
Mercutio is an invigorating, hu-
morous one that takes all honorsI
when the production needs a lift.
Jack Hawkins, a British actor who
has played on Broadway several
times before in Shakespeare and
in such plays as Journeys End
and Dear Octupus," is a Mercu-
ito who can, and does. measure
up to the antics that John Bar
rymore once before put into this
role in memorable performances.