Evening star., 1954-04-20

Ii arrived III SOU1CC1l1I1S les
but not enough less to raise a sc
Of Inge's successor to Come Ba
Inge's plays af1irms the acute
ness Of his observations and the
warmth Of his pity for the hu-
man creatures who come under
it.
Picnic" like its predecessor,
is a study in loneliness and the
panicky futility with which its
victims grapple with it. It is
the story of a stranger who drops
into a small town. bringing with
him his own lostneSS to provide
a brief excitement Of the hopes
and fears he arouses in the
others.
The company which has just
brought Picnic" on the road Is
headed by Ralph Meeker. who
earned stardom for his perform
ance in the plays key role In
New York. Most of the other
parts have been recast, with such
players an Sandra Church. Daryl
Grimes, Louise Larrabee, Eliza
beth Wilson and John Becher.
There were signs that these have
not achieved, at least in last
nights performance. the har-
mony that Is easily within the
range of their capabilities.
And more easily within the
scope of Joshua Logan's direc-
ton. AS in the original produc-
ton, Mr.. Logan is in charge and
everything should be just fine
when Mr.. Meeker's new neigh
bors get settled.
4 + -
A two-family yard in a small
Kansas town, with the grain
elevator in the distance. is the
setting Of Inge's trinity written
play.
Here again he Is concerned
with what life can do handful
of pitiably vulnerable human be-
ings. The garden, or yard,
shared by the Owens and Mrs.
Potts is a humdrum plot until it
is stirred out CT cheerleSsness
into suspicion and suppressed ex-
citement by the appearance of
Meeker.
He is the sort who could not
fail to bring emotional havoc
into a manless area occupied by
attractive Mrs. Owen, her bud
ding daughters, and gentle, with
cred old Mrs. Potts.
The new arrivals weakness is
women, and while they have
been only dimly aware of it. it
is to develop he is also their
weakness This is a subject that
has been thoroughly explored in
more plays than have been
counted, to be sure. Neverthe-
less. 1nge. who has a sharp eye
for the touching depths of ap-
parently shallow people, finds in
the theme the same special quail
ity Of poignance that stamped
Come Back, Little Sheba."
It is quite a glandular storm
that begins to gather with the
appearance of the strange young
man. In size and shape, the
stranger is Adonis and the idea
of being Venus occurs to every
woman in his vicinity. Socially,
even these humble people are
the Superiors of the Meeker
character. He is crude, boastful,
vulgar but he represents a break
in the strangling monotony of
the towns life.
The drama Of Picnic" lies
not in the process by which the
predatory visitor chooses his
victim. 1t is in the plays reve-
lation that he is as much a
victim himself, poor, ignorant
devil who knows only one dreary
fact of life, that he is a per-
feet physical specimen and must
pay the piper. He does not want
to seduce the prettiest Owens
daughter, the towns beauty
queen It is just that it is their
mutual fate.
Like those of Inge's first play,
the acting opportunities of "Pic-
mic" are extremely inviting.
Meeker's. that Of the ignorant
young man who is most of all
irresistible to himself, is the
richest. It is an excellent imi-
tation of the creature that is
torn between pride and hatred
for itself as mere animal, trapped
in it's basest instincts and saw
agely i'll at ease in the presence
of the humbleSt back yard.
Miss Wilson as the Widow
Owens, fighting, against the
hopeless doom of her daughters
repeat of her own experience, is
another wistful figure in "Pic-
mic" And even more so is Miss