Evening star., 1953-06-18

In It's pr0QucClon OF 6ernar
It introduces refreshing and hal
tainment. Heretofore, the fashio
the dramas summer nights to :
starry name.
Players, Inc, substitutes the
theory that the glitter should be
in the play. This is where it very
well lies in Man and Super
man" and a clever director -star,
Basil Langton, and a profess
sional cast make the occasion
pleasant by making this fact
clear. In Shaw's highly intelli-
gent, articulate and prolix =
way, his battle Of the sexes is
worth two dozen Of the pigmy
specimens Of the same theme to
which summer theater audiences
have been exposed for decades.
A large opening night audience
made it clear that it is happy to
go along with a man the likes Of
Shaw, whose flashing mind is in
elusive enough to insert book.
burning alluSion into Man and
Superman." Considering that
the play was written in 1908, this
is remarkably foresighted of the
author of the new Olney'S first
production.
Il 4 X Il
It is strictly professional job,
aS guaranteed, that is done on
Man and Superman" This Is
no more than Shaw deserves, to
be sure, but it assures audiences
Of an acting standard to which
they have not been accustomed.
It patiently augurs well for the
new operation.
Man and Superman," of
which Don Juan in He'll is the
usually unplayed epilogue, is
played by Director Langton and
his cast as Shaw advises in his
copious preface. Naturally, this
Is sound advice, and 1t leads to
o sparkling lesson in what Shaw
thought everyone, male and fe-
male, old and young, should
know about the sexes.
These, in case any one has been
remiss in reading the play lately,
are represented in the characters
of John Tanner and Ann Whit
field. Tanner, in a slightly in
decisive way, Is q genius. There
is hardly any, spot in which he
cannot think and talk his, way
to safety. The exception is pro-
vided by Miss Whitfield when
she, as Shaw'S Life Force, de-
Cides Tanner is the man that |
would make the most eugenically |
sound father for her children.
It is a violent resistance. full
Of tactical brilliance, that Tan
ner offers to Miss Whitfleld's
oblique advances. It is inevitably
doomed, but rarely has a play
wright sealed a mans fate with
such contagious merriment.
When 1t has been done in other
plays, Shaw is likely to have
been the author.
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There Is nothing any director |
can do to mask the truth that |
Shaw Is going to say what he has
to say in as many words as he
chooses. And through as many
characters, although a welter Of
both may be probably extrane-
Gus.
Accepting the fact that no one
can speak so brilliantly In this
century, Langton's Man and Su-
perman" is readily reconciled to |
Shaw's prolixity. It is obviously
all right in his book for a play
wright to be fascinated with the
sound Of his own words so long
as theatergoers share the fasci-
nation. This they have been
doing for so years in the case of
Olney's current play.
Another factor encouraging
Langton to go along with the
wild swirl of ShaW's wit is that
he plays Tanner, the masters al
most ceaseless spokesman in the
comedy. It is rare that an actor
Is permitted to seem so brilliant |
If he can make it-and the op-
portunity has made Langton q
dedicated disciple of Shaw.
He makes a winning Tanner,
q hero who withers the conform
ing males and females of his |
set, and who in turn is withered
by his failure to pierce the ar
NOR of Miss Whitfield.
The latter. a Shavian creation
OF dimensions equal to Tanners
in an inverse way. is played with
Just the right touch of irration-
atty by Miss Frances Tannehill.
Miss Tannehill's Ann is con-
cerned not at all with Tanners
reasoned awareness of their
common world. He is her quarry
and If she must stalk him
through a maze of words and
ideas, well. this slows her pur-
suit but in no way alters its
ending.
Shaw'S subordinate characters
also require playing, each being
sacred to the author in his, or
her, smaller way.
That Is the way they are ham
died In Olney's Man and Super
MI . IaSI Tam Elnr.li,a C&,.a l.n. i