Variety (Dec 1942)

so LEGITIMATE Wednesdsf, December 9, 1942 Plays Out of Town THE DOUGHGIRLS Bridgeport, Dec. S. f\>iiiPtl> in lUii-0 IK-IH l»y J(tKi-|i|t Kli'lils: iilMicfl li> t;<-i„^i- s. K:iuriniiii: MOllIni:. 1*'ir<liM ill, I',,';: i>i cy'MiliMl liy ,\htx Ciirtloii Hi ]\l M,-iiii<i'l:il AllillKirltim. lll'idKcpni't. lipi. 7;, Cm;.. Kilii:i \'ii'Kini:i I'lOliI Jiili:ii) r:iiliii:i Kinu C:i)<lci' Ml', .tdi.i.i-i S.vtlnov <:innl Culnnol tlJiiiy M:i!lsii-'l. . . .It<-4tl llruwit. A l>II!<''V ^IPniKC' fiilvoil M:il,l I .\liiry lOolM i I Mllilrcil HiilnPn ViviiiM Arlr-on U"hPl;in AtinihiM |{":m.i..v Icrry Vlior A I'on.'r HUKll Wlllliiiiisnn \N';iitei Waller r.cvk Null lliirip .\'ol;in HriKJ'l"'! Ci'M.'i .il Sl:iili . . WilliiiMi .1. Kelly Tiiiii l»iili,ii Viiuon S. Iliiywt.rili Jii.lue lliiiK'ii.i l:hil.i.' Kllirl WIIumm N:li:ili:i ("liLili-v,.!' .\tlPne I'llimis A Siiiinc. i ILiiolil CiMU (iiilpi I\ hifieiili OIno\ l\':iiirii l:ii. I-Mw:iril II. niil>inH Sy|yl;i .^liiriel Muli-liiMih ('li;i|il:iii) Sm-m-ii." ICe.mnlils l-:v:iii>; A .Mrs.*rii-.:«M Ilu-.'h Williamson TiiKolliy Wal.-li hiiiii K .M:ii il nialil SliMila'K l-'iiili'-s .\lailii>e liiif;..- l-'iKliei- .Nahnlai .\laxilli ranteleli-fr Saili-rs-.lyi iA Tli-'i-. (:i'.>r;;r r ilviMl. HlluU \N'illiaiiiHnit. .li»0|ili .Marliii. llaroM .Muiplty. Ufrii.iKl W illi 01. Whether 'Doughgirls' will be a dough show depends on what the ace of stage logistics. George S. Kaufman, makes of Joseph Fields' farce between tonight's break-in and the Broadway preem. Name pull of director, Max Gordon aegis and fev- eral leads recruited from Hollywood give entry a strong start, which it will need to overcome the weak script. In his lone authoring venture Fields, collaborator with Jerome Chodorov of Gordon's still-running hits, 'My Si.ster Eileen' and 'Junior Miss' (former also staged by Kauf- man), has been considerably less than successful juggling an assoi't- ment of plots and a stageful of peo- ple. The Kaufman help is already apparent. I ut there is still plenty of tightening to do. It's a racy play, one of the broad- est Gordon has undertaken. Which suggests another angle—Broadway's current sensitivity about the decency ceiling. Billed as 'the comic spirit on a lark in wartime Washington,' 'Doughgirls' is that to the extreme. With but one exception the national capital is presented as a place where everyljody pays attention to every- thing but the war, ofTicialdom puts sex No. 1 on the list, and nobody gets anything done. Although somewhat inept, the 'Doughgirls' tag refers to a trio of beauts of varied virtue who con- ■ verge with the men they pass off as their husbands on a suite of a fold-out Washington hotel. Virginia 'ield, sharpest of the threesome, pairs with a married chemist who is trying to peddle a synthetic rub- ber formula. Arleen Whelan, a dumb redhead, is attached to an Army col- onel but adds her bit to the war effort by acting as social secretary to her 'husband's' superior, an ex- Wall St. brigadier general. Doris Nolan, straightest of the girls, fran- tically awaits her divorce decree be- fore makinc it legal with a pilot off to the Pacific. All lose their men—Miss Field when the guy's real wife arrives. Miss Whelan when the general muscles in on the colonel. Miss No- Ian when the decree doesn't come in time for the wedding. By the fin- ish the original duos are reteamed. but some of it happens like bad musical comedy. The third act brings in a serious touch—the return of the flyer as a Coral Sea hero and a luncheon bid to the While House with the Roose- vclls. which dictates a nuptial cere- mony lor the aco and his gill. The traffic, nioie than the play can easily bear. incUirles such additional characters as a Rusiian girl tnipci who loves fresh air and the U. S. lend-lease policy; a lady 'judpc' or- ganizing a War Wives' Relief Corps which she want.-; Hie three pseudo- wives to join: a rubber administra- tor who w a.< Tiivhierly a' iaundry magnate: a sIk-'iijci- desperate for a place to sleep: an FBI man: a Rus- sian Di iesI: a-:.-orted hotel help: and a half-d07.en spilors. whose bit is nothing at all lilje the South Amer- ican naval cont.ibulion to 'Sister Eileen.' Kaufman has orobably never had a busier assignment monitoring the doors and tolcplione. all of which are over-used. Comoarcd to 'Dough- girls' the famed 'Eileen' set was prarlically nctioiiless. The first ict of the Fields comedy is the stickout: after that the olay stretches to the final slepuD There are ni.iny ■^ock laughs and gags, remarkably few of which alli'fic to arlual people and doings ill Washington. The Coast conlinsent comes throu;ih superbly and S;bould prove a oleasure to Broadwaj/Srers. Miss Field, a stunning blonde, is exceMent as the hep gal. Miss Whelan ci cks as the naive redhead, and Miss Nolan .sup- plies balance In the sensible part. Arlene Francis dncs a bang-up job In the hoked snincr role, and Ethel Wilson and Muriel Hiitchi.son con- nect as the relief corns organizer and McCoy wife from Wisconsin. William J. Kelly's brigadier gen- eral, one of the funniest parts in the play, tops the male lineup. King Calder, Reed Brown, Jr., and Vin- ton Hayworth—also ex-Hollywood— are competent as the 'husbands,' and Edward H. Robins is right as the rubber chief. Hattie Carnegie supplied the garb for the title roles, all costuming be- ing under Bianca Stroock's super- vision. Frederick Fox's single mount- ing is sufficient for the comedy's needs. Because of un-Haysian content it is doubtful whether anything except the name of 'Doughgirls' is converti- ble to the screen. Biz fine on single night here, best of anv booking at house this season. Eleiii. Ill: Aiiii' MASHENKA Boston, Dec. 3. I in llii«-,> iii'lH liy AllnituriKiv: II pi'HiiMi.|,' ineht'nU'il liy III- llai- iii\fi'Hil\' lliiiniiilli- I'lilh aii>l ihi* l!i<l.'liJl>- I'lillii;' Mli-r. illiri'liMl li\ I'll li ■ Sit,hi. s-'ls 1,\ Itallaii'l 'riliiinliKini: HI Ifi.r.llf 11.1,1. Cainliiiiliir. .Mai-K.. lli'i'. :i anil A. I'.'. M"i.>a .Maili-lllii' Wall.iT Jli.ii.-ii..,y Menily Weisv.il .MaHlii'iika .\iino Viiliiam Tiiiii .iisU> ]lltiliai>l .laini-K \"i" liir Chal-li-K llran I.. iiMal <yni (!oi.s!!v .Villa lam- Sn»»nfer .Marilyn Wlii>.iii;iii lilaiia Itoi k v. Mini VI, 1,11- r,-illlili:e C'l'tiudi- WliiiJ Mashenka' (accent first syllabic) is a bright prospect for bigger things. The play has no connection what- ever with the film of the same name except that it's also a Russian-made, product and a good one: nor is it a war-play. Its main appeal in point of fact, is the- warm universality of its age-old Heidi theme, for it deals wholly with the efforts of a lonely, sensitive 15-year-old girl to be ac- cepted by her elderly grandfather and. so. by society. The obvious symbolism of present v.s. past is. of cour.se. worked in. but subtly, while the topical references are generally humorous. Simple enough, the situation de- velops when Mashenka, all but turned out by her stepmother, in- trudes on her grandfather's scholas- tic privacy. A grumpy, irascible old fellow living entirely in the past, he at first resents, then ignores ncr. When her crush on her music- teacher's fiance assumes pathetic proportions: when her friends ridi- cule her and when at last her step- mother comes crashing in to take her away, he realizes how much beauty she has brought into his life. The lo.ss of Aflnogenov, who died in a Nazi raid on Moscow, was. it Is plain to be seen now, a serious one for the theatre. His feeling for the dramatic line, for acute character- ization: his flair for gentle humor and nippy satire are always in evi- dence. 'The play, however, is struc- turally unsound as it stands for American audiences. Indeed, the curtain of the second act comes down on a wholly resolved situation, and an audience might well be forgiven for going home unaware that it isn't all over. 'Mashenka' is of such per.sua.-ive warmth and humanity, however— not forgetting the current interest in things Russian—that if the play were expertly adapted, it would very pos- sibly follow 'Life With Father' and 'Junior Miss' as a successful family comedy. It is. In any case, a fine vehicle for. say. Monty Woolley .ind an ingenue 'find.' Anne Putnam (Radcliffe. '46). who played the lead here, is practically the 'find' her.self. She played the role with extraordinary sensitivity for an amateur and her personality projected through the alarums of an amateur production. She was. moreover, excellently supported by Mcndy Wei.sgol and other members of the Harvard-Radcliffe troupe, which idiomatized the translation in rehearsal. The production was suit- able and the direction especially notable fur an amateur affair ONLY THE HEART Dnimo .'n Iwci ni-lii anil hIx aceiieji hy Hurlun l'''oote; preiivnietJ liy I lie Aiiierlcfin Actors Company: hIukciI liy Miiiy Hiinicr; Mfltlnff. I.,eslle Dornoy: niieiieil far lliiilleil enKOKemrnt (Der. .", iiiiiumli lie.. 11. ■4'Ji; nl I'rovlncclou-ii IMailmii-e. N. Y.: $1.0o ion. .Mamie Hnrdcn IliUlu VuiiHlin Indiii llomlllon leaniie Tufl.-. 'I'oiii Ilorden I'leeiniin IliimnioiiU .lulln Borden r„iiHiai>re Doii'liiiK .Siiiiney Ia,-niiellne A'ldru Allien Pri.i- Illiliaid Hnrc Well, at least the most disconcert- ing item about the current tenant at the Provincelown Playhouse would not be the play itself. The American Actors Co. is presenting from Dec. 5 through Dec. 14 a drsma by Horton Foole. titled 'Only the Heart', and for once in a long while the old Gnccinvich Village showshop is distiiS)!uished more for its uncomfortab'e seating than the production itself. Invariably the pre.sentation.s at Piovincctown have produced the initial di.scomfort. . The analogy, of course, must not be weighed with too great distinc- tion for the author. This drama of greed and frustration lacks many of the fundamentals that comprise good craftemanship. It has failed to im- bue its characters with first-rate action and dialog. However, by ex- perimental standards it's a better- than-average effort by a young play- wright who's been improving right along. Hilda Vaughn, whose face is prob- ably more familiar to picture aud- iences than her name, has Ihe lead, that of a mother who wrecks her own home and the life of her daughter by her greed and will to dominate. She gives an at-times commendable performance. but overacts frequently, a fault due more to direction lhan anything else. The only other dominating portrayal is that of Constance Dowling as the daughter. Miss Dowling is an ingenue who requires considerable schooling, but her warm blonde lovliness suggest some promi.se. and poise Kahii. R.U.R. (REVIVAL) ririiiim In ihiee n< (h. iire»«enUMl at llie llai lyiniire. N. Y.. Der. .1, ' I j. l,v Pnylil Siliii'iman nn,l I.. Daniid niaiiN: wrilien by Kaiel C.npek. KnKlli'li vcrnion l,y I'aul Selyer: stiiKed liy I.ee Slraiilr-ri:: HeUhiKU. r.ni iH Aronflon: t:i.;iu wip. Harry Domln Gordon Oliyer Sulla iludiun Uansen .MiiriuH I.ewiri WIlHon Helena lllory Killlli Alwaler 111'. Cnll Ilorare Hr.iliani .Mr. Kiiliry Iltinler Gnrdner !>■*. Hallemeler I.oiiIh Itfteior .Mr. Alqili!«l llliKO Hhah ('luiKul BUHinnn R<>Klniitd Mnflon Nana Mniie MuIho Danii It.ldiiiH Sydney SinUh Helena Kailiarlne Balrnur rriniiii. Wendell K. riilllliin r.oliol l.oy Nelson lloliolM—I.ewlH yieele. .Iny WllliiiinH. llolierl l.MW. l>iiye T:.rrell. Uenln DeiiuHle, Clein- enl BrH'-e, Tniii KniKhl. llnuK Alexander. MileR Dlr!{)ioii. Ci'iiiKe l^nmliinae. Allen Su-vensoii. Carl Itupi, r.nd Bill I.uzuruf*. When produced by the Theatre Guild 20 years ago 'R.U.R.' was re- garded as a dramatic curiosity, emanating from the late Czech au- thor. Karel Capek, who had a flair for writing strange tales. It is Ftill something of a novelty but impres- sion is that present-day audiences won't go for it, even though there are references to some phases of the present world conflict! Guild revived the play once be- fore, and so there was a controversy over the rights to the present revival, a couple of new showmen putting it on. "They provided an adequate pro- duction and cast, so it was a question of the play standing on its own. Man- agement was well aware that the theatre (Ethel Barrymore) is com- mitted for 'Three Sisters' on Dec. 21 but took a chance on the theory that if 'R.U.R.' got acro.ss, it would be permitted to remain. With bookings liehtened up there is small chance of th;it result. Play was al.so known as 'Rossum's 'RHINE' SKIDS, $5,500, IN PinSBURGH RETURN Universal Robots.' robot, of coiir.se. ■-"■'■'■^*gffpif.»t^,fi)»^f<f9^'«.^^^ 4-^^ is an island, and the time is 'the i-.iliiic.' when robol.s. male and fe- male, are manufactured. They're be- ing u.sed to do all the world's labor. I Then the robots revolt and mankind is wiped off the earth. Robots sue not supposed to have .sensibilities but that is not made quite clear, for il is slated they do 'remember' snd. , . »u T>u- > .a J >> when they fail at their duties, are lAalch on the Rhme flopped all ! .supposed to be sent back to 'the stamping mill.' which calls for great pain. ■R.U.R.' is interpreted in terms of Ihe present as comparable to the .euiiiit-nting of peoples in this all- oui war. Average audience may ac- cept that or regard it as too fan- tastic, although a proeram note oi'oles President Roosevelt: 'It is the yoiiiiR. tree men and women of the Un.ted Nations, and not the wound- up robots of (he slave slates, who ■ w.ll mold the shape of the new i wfii'iri.* [ However, it is a rather leaden per- formance, and while the play has its I moments, there is little dramatic ' power. Cas' has several femme char- Pittsburgh. Dec. 8. le Rhine' flopped a over the Ni.\on in its return engage- ment last week, getting less lhan $5,500 to hit a new low for the .sea- son. Everything was against it. be- ginning of gas rationing, zero wave and also tbsence of Lucile Wat.-on fiom the cast on account of illness. Miserable biz nevertheless was -till something of a mystery since Lillian Hellman drama on its first visil here just about seven months ago got a great S18.000 and had to turn em away near the end of the week. Top was a^ain S2.75. Ni.xon currently has third return in a iiiw. 'Arsenic and Old t,ace.' but with (iriginal Broadway east this time, then gets 'Spring Again' f nd . goes dark Xmas week. Boston Comic | arters but it Is mostly a male play. Opera Company coming in fof- week The performances are satisfactory, of Gilbert and Sullivan repertory « fbee. Dec. 28. Had originally planned to (IViilidroion Salurduy (5» alter open Xmns night for eight days but /o?ir per/ormnnces; printed /or the decided to forego holiday weekend. | record). hside StdF-Li^ 'Rosalinda' is drawing excellent grosses at the 44th Street, N. y but because of the high operating cost, profits are comparatively mild There are 40 men In the pit, lowest pay for any of the musicians being $90 so that the orchestra payroll is $4,000 or more. Understood a move to cut down the number of musicians was clipped by the union because that or- ganization's emergency fund is tied in with the presentation of the show So costly an orchestra is virtually unknown in legit, but although 'Rosalinda' is an operetta form of 'Die Fledermaus,* the score calls for many instruments. Pit bunch had been conducted by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, replaced by Wolfgang Martin last week. Former was paid $100 nightly. He is under contract to Warners and is probably slated to return to the Coast. Show, which has around 60 people on the stage, is approximating $20 000 weekly, big money a* $3.30 top. Audience appeal is general, but a goodly percentage of patrons are refugees and the 'arty' crowd. Ticket sale ex- tends well into January. Although her name was used in all billing and advance publicity, Lucile Watson wasn't in the cast of "Watch On the Rhine' when It played a return engagement at the Nixon. Pittsburgh, last week. Miss Watson had been out of the show for nearly six weeks bedded in Oklahoma City with a bad knee, but no mention of this was made in attraction's copy because management felt confident she would be back before the Herman Shumlin hit reached Pittsburgh. Miss Watson's understudy, Zamah Cunningham, who has been lilaying the part ever since 'Watch' left Oklahoma City Oct! 16. had it here but Miss Watson was due to resume some time this week.' Edward Ryan, Jr., eldest of the three Mueller cliildren in Lillian Hell- man play, left cast here Saturday night (5) to go into the army, and was replaced by his understudy, Jimmy Dobson. Buford Armitage, stage manager of touring 'Claudia,' returned to N. Y. last week and was inducted by the Army. Being 45, he was just within the draft age, but passing the physical examination with ease was sur- prising. Last spring Armitage had an operation. He (Kilisted during the first World War, but was turned down because of a heart condition. Doc- tors then said he wouldn't live two years. Eddie O'Keefe. 'Claudia's' company manager, also returned after plant- ing the show In Chicago (Selwi'n). He reported ill and will rest at hom.e for about a month. It was a hectic initial Coast trip for O'Keefe, mostly because of transportation mishaps, due to the war. John Pollock is now back with the show. Children's Theatre, Pittsburgh, which has announced a series of seven kiddie plays for this season, is the brainchild and also is under the direc- tion of Grace Price (Mrs. Jerome Katz). wife of a Pittsburgh depart- ment store biggie and the niece of Al Woods, the old-time Broadway pro- ducer. Children's Theatre of Miss Price has been an in-and-out proposition until this season, when it was organized on a permanent basis to compete with annual series of Clare-Tree Major's New York company, which is sponsored in the Smoky City by May Beegle, concert impresario. Before that Miss Price annually directed two or three children's shows during holiday weeks for a local department store. 'Arsenic and Old Lace' divvy for November amounted to $14,400, small in comparison to former disbursals, but the angels are all very well satisfied regardless. The flock of backers of 'Strip For Action,' which Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse are also presenting, with Oscar Serlin, have received ini- tial checks, which represent 10 per cent of their investments. Latter is not profit but is on account of production. 'Strip' has been earning an operating pi'oflt at the National, N. Y., and in addition to the coin dis- tributed there is a $10,000 reserve fund. Show cost around $60,000 to pro- duce, backers including most of those who have pieces of 'Arsenic,' plus some others. Further complication attended the closing of "Three Men on a Horse' after it folded on the subway circuit recently. Salary guarantee money of $2,000 was deposited with Equity by Alex Yokel, and when the actors were paid off there was approximately $600 remaining with a similar amount also on deposit in connection with the show. A restraining order for that coin was placed by attorney Milton R. Weinberger on behalf of the backer, but Yokel sought to. recapture the residue from Equity, to pay off obligations of the show, such as author's royalties, trucking and unemployment insurance, the whole amounting to around $900. Understood that Lawrence Gelb, the backer who has pieces of other shows, dropped $11,000 on 'Horse,' also that Weinberger put $1,000 into the revival. Shuberts have made a claim against Carol Reed, a chorine In The Merry Widow,' on tour, asking for two Weeks' salary because she left the show without.due notice on the final day <Nov. 28) of its recent Philadelphia engagement. Girl did not appear for the evening perform- ance but sent a note to the effect that she was ill and could not continue the tour. Doubtful that Chorus Equity will okay the claim because of the illness contention. Miss Reed was paid for the week at the matinee, which is the general custom, and because she missed one performance the manage- ment is entitled to one-eighth of $45, her pay. Seattle gets comparatively few road shows, which may be one reason why its censor board was finicky about the engagement of 'Claudia.' which played the Metropolitan there some weeks ago. Censors then wanted a number of deletions, and several words were dropped, but a certain objectionable kTs-smg scene remained in the performaFitgr'''"'''"■'''" Last week the boai-d called in the theatre management when the matter of license renewal came up and, according to the local press, the board was more successful in censoring news of the huddle than il was in c.i'.- ting out parts of Claudia.' Liccn.se was renewed. Dre.ss rehearsal of 'Doughgirls' was played Friday (4) but without Lily Cahill. She was trying on hats at a modiste's, fell on the stairs and in- jured her ankle so badly that she could not go on. Muriel Hutchison re- placed her. Latter wa.s originally cast for the part but withdrew to lake a belter one on "Cry Havoc' in rehearsal. Mi.ss Hutchison went to Bridgeport for the first tryout show Saturday (5) and to Washington early this"week but Natalie Schaefer was due in the part, starting last night. Managers have been asked to consider securing accommodations for Negro players on the road. Problem does not particularly concern all- colored outfits, but those attractions in which there are partially mixed casts. Finding living quarters for them appears to be getting increasingly difficult. Association of Theatrical Agents and Managers has been contacted and advance men have been requested to make advance reservations for col- ored players when they're acting similarly for others. Although 'Cry Havoc' has not yet been produced in N. Y., it was of- fered recently as a prospect for the 'command performance' in connec- tion with the President's Birthday Ball celebration in Washington next January. President Roosevelt announced that the celebration of his 61st birthday should provide the usual events which sustain the Infantile Paralysis Foundation. This fixes the date of the. 'command perform- ance' as Sunday night, Jan. 24.