Widnes Examiner. — 1912-03-30 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

ROYAL COURT THEATRE.  "The Witness for the Defence."  Modern " Society" problem plays are somewhat rare attWarrington, which ought to provide an additional reason for generous Dublin appreciation, somehow or other "The Witness for the Defence ' has not drawn large audiences at the Court Theatre this week. The Warrington public is becoming notoriousl• fickle, and moreover shows a tendency to appreciate the most what is least worthy of aporecia,tion.Here we have a play from the pen of Mr. A. E.W. 'Maslen, one of the most brilliant of present-day writers, Ind a play moreover which Sir George Alexander 'made memorable in London. Yet our local 'theatre-goers have scarcely awakened to the fact that an exceptional treat is afforded them by Mr. Alban Limpute Company. "The Witness for the Defence' is an absorbingly interesting study of the mental processes and conduct of ordinary educated people faced with emotional and tragic situations. A drunken, sneering, violent brute of a husband is shot by his wife in a fit of very natural terror and hysteria; he meets with his deserts and passes from the story. But the legacy he leaves is the trial for her life of the widow, who is only saved at the last moment by the coloured evidence of a friend and former lover who knows what lead up to the crime and was present a moment or two befote it occurred. His view is that justice was done when the husband met his death, and that nothing is required of the law but an acquittal of the lady who WAR guilty in deed but not in intention. Subsequent developments shift the scene from India where the tragedy occurs, to Little Beding in England. The lady falls in love, becomes engaged and deems the secret neo she is not called upon to tell to even her affianced husband. Henry Thresk, the champion of the early days and at the trial, thinks differently, and a very strong and dramatic scene between the two focuses the deepe4 attention en Act 3. There is an unexpected denouement, but in the long run everyone earns the justification of all concerned and the lady wins a longdelayed peace and happiness. Mr. Mason' has presented a very strong play, ingeniounly constructed and written with a forcefulness and intensity which are made apparent by the sustained interest of various scenes when only two people are on the stage at once. No ordinary playright can make' the dialogue of two persons suffice for the absence of nearly the whole company for lengthy periods and Mr. Mason's success in this respect is a testimony to his powers of characterisation and genius for writing words, phrases, and arguments which make an appeal to the intelligence. The company, as a whole, presents the play most effectively and artistically. Miss Barbara Everest, as Stella Ballantyne, bears off the palm for a dramatic, yet skilfully restrained presentment of a very emotional role. She was, perhaps, a little weak in the first scene when living "under the terror" of a bully, but in the succeeding scenes her acting was full of charm and dramatic power. Mr. J. Herbert Beaumont was quietly effective and forceful in the truly Alexander-like part of Henry Thresk, and filled a big nlace in the progress of the play. The clever light comedy of Mr. Ardene Linden was frequently delightful in the character of Harold Hazlewood, the humanitarian, whose principles require such a lot of consideration and oft-times- fall foul of the dictates of ordinarS common sense. In the part of the lover, Mr. Chas. Mansell was a little deficient in lover-like ardour, and has not quite got the knack of infusing the necessary realism into a stage embrace. The various scenes were skilfully presented, but we fell foul of the " curtain " to Act I. when the tragedy misses fire to some extent (like the gun), and the dead man makes a prosaic bow to the audience within five seconds after being well and truly murdered. This was the only inartistic detail in the whole of Mr. W. J. Butler's fine presentment of all the naked devilry that can be seen through the cracked veneer of a gentleman addicted to cocktails and cursed with a vile temper.,,