Variety (April 1953)

u LEOITBIATE PS^IETY Wednesday, April 15, 1953 Plays Out of Town Falls venture by a dollar-hungry entrepreneur whose plans are up- set when more sinister gambler- gangsters muscle in to rig the .terrific as it now stands, and Act I scheme. This is the serious note, Phitadelnhia Anril 10 t HI continually interesting because P^ us the imderlymg factorthat the PtiLlaaelpnia, Aprii iu. succession, of O Henrvish bfe of the man m the barrel is of Cowles and . Martin GabelJpro- Ot me suCCesSlOUOI U. iienoisn « onn non in bets Men of Bistineiion Plays Abroad The Tedtfr Bear London, April 9. Chandler Cowles and Martin Gabel *ro-| uie suwesstuu. vl v. .nciiijFiaii . T" ” ~ 7 ^c'nnn nnn in bote I Peter Daubeny. in association with Gor- duction of comedy in three acts by. Rich- \ double surprise switches. Men Of ii ?° account 'When $5,000,000 rn bets j don Latta and cy Endfield production of ard Condon. Stars Robert Preston* fea- s r\fsHnctinn M ctanriq an excellent t IS on the failure Of the leap over j drama in three acts by Jambs Warren. to?** David Btmis. Martin Bitt, Orson swnas Wflferitthe brink into the rock-strewn' Stars. Roger Liyesey. Ursula Jeans.. Di- Beam. Jean Carson. Ralph Bunker, Diana . cuance. tvaiers. g icc HaT/mi* Herbert, Cowles. Directed by JGabeU seJL.J . . . .. ■ — ■ j Whirlpool 165 feet belOW. I Apart from that note, “Big Leap** Us a hectic farce, with plenty of ! ■ ..s ■»*___ _i . » a i • e. J rin gs and costumes by David flulkes. At Locust St. Theatre, Pfailly. April 9, 19S# 93M top. • - Mayor Quinlan Donald Faster Inspector Mannion Rex Williams Pringle - - Peter Hogarth Frobisher .............. Mort Mardiall Claudette Chalfoate Diana Herbert The Say’s ftliscMc* * Dcillss April 4^ * _ _ _ Theatre '53 production of drama in !' laugh lines and situations, fused r_ >*• * . _ _ . . « V a * 1 « A . w _ L. 1 _ a. _ A.\ g - rected by Cy Endfield; setting. Richard Lake. At St. Martin's Theatre, London, April 6, *53; top $2. Doris Delaney Olga Undo Sonia Marten Margaret McCourt John Marten Thomas Sioore Margaret Bell Ursula Jeans vm'SxS dSrSSS: i w ; ith ^ w6 BStPf “J?® I dTH lrowscott d£ 3& SS Robert Preston | KSioKebind lSf- pleading of the tWO leadmg women I Det. Jimmy Blake Arnold. BeU j Sgfj^es prinje; costumes^rS? CteL- characters, jinx the plan when the j CharU^ Delaney Rog« v Liv^sey Judy chaifonte I*.’./ ?jgnc££i jp*®* 1 ** ' 33 ' DaUas * March 30 * * S3; J fey-like barrel boy is convinced*by j Pearl n*™* • * * Joyce Blaur Carleton Pelter Chandler Cowle* {vwn his new love that he IS Simply at- _ . . .... . , . . ^ ^ wv .^1 ' Lat^a Vining ’Mary *DeU Roberts tempting to escape the turmoil of [ t for the slow, ploddmg style Grace Barlow Norma Winters > modem life bv malrintf his self-pact | ^Sea by the autnor, tnlS play might Tfrhnw Ifiw • . . ^ . I Un ««a r\iw\«n Itif XTa Uoa 4 n 1 rAtt Edgar Grassthal Orson Bean s vining Aunt Florence Fran Carton j r „ M Barbara Edison ............ Fran Keegan Doris Commodore Dorothy Rice Marvin Flynch Ralph Bunker August Volpone Martin Ritt Daniel Gaffney David Bums UlUUCiU me uy i immi is uu ocu.-pav.i , • - . . T r , , , hSS Viiiii- Ed5SwSt r ^« wiU< suicide. At conclusion of the have proved a hit He has taken second act. he refuses to go over .an intriguing basic idea, but de Vi Vining Patricia Barclay t h e F a l.I s j Velops it m a leisurely, almost M,reu.rT K. K. Kto^Stoa j Color., BUim.lv PvlCT Jort.. j m,. FoOor chirk, Bnmr.u jth ere, but third act turns into - “Men of Distinction,’* which 5 » t ru j ii boisterous romp, when a substitute ‘ .. . .. j.,,J casiftl, way with an overplus of e Ji pedestrian writing. As a conse- Men ox UJSUnctlon, wnicn 5 t~;1a v qtnrm'c drama , * “•* J + “ preemed here at the Locust last; ‘Th^Day^M^Wef/^S^h had a : iVnnn nioht (Q) dpfinifplv ha«; thn '‘mnfc- T J ’ -^7 7, 1 I Sty mass nysiena, wilfl aiuu.uuu nigni (9». aeiinixeiy nas xne maiv ^ » 0 2 London staging, with Ian Hun-: lining both sides of mV of a potentially valuable pie« s ter tte lea(i role> gets its v _ s .; ^ectatore hning Both sid« M of stage property. Its major assets, : « v th opw s ^^sara. nere is wnere me surprise as of now are a first rate cast (oar- - a Sn: ^ st "L n ..Jl? v ' ; switch comes m for an unexpected ticularly well-chosen for types), a |i chief” l^iiappe for°the who-^ n ^j h H a n° US - ^- nale * Wh . ole sumptuous physical produrtioiu gei^J dunit fai^Hs PP general appeal “?Jf entalIy ’ Is m one set ' a hotel erally astute duection and a brand j shouldn’t challenge the hefty b.o. su a?' tin willi , „ „ romo t. r of sardonic, lusty humor that has ehown hv earlier of this season’s ‘ . Auslu ? > ” “ lls 88 , Promoter the further distinction of being fSc^Sses this-season s. glves a highly competent perform- particularly timelj’. successes ? anee; E. M Margolese is properly A..fbnc Dioh-irrt rvwiAnn bee 1 iMargo Jones, m her second di- sinister as the gangster-bettor who co^ted^a D^^at^aSjel^f^ a ^ oriaI , effort this year extracts j muS cles in. and Sammy Sales gives ofimllnh t able Performances from her casL f a fine, understanding performance n!5h?iriS2 M^ea^an^\«^! < ?Q* Especially so is view of the trite « as a philosophical cabbie. But top %h£ d mo™»S mucb-ado-about-nothing plot, which s honors go to Allan Bertram for his ^ sometim es offset by sub-p>ots ■ interpretation of a naive nature- paper. In the presentation Oi this: and often hv verbose dialnff i v.r.,r funa i»Iia ic inn fnicffni n r g - i luxci a uuiuuu ui a uaxrc uavui t- story, he has created the most radi- j °« e ” ^yjerbose dialog I boy Wpe. who is too tnjstfid of callv (and intrinsicallv unsavorv’M Central figure is a well-stacked, everyone till he is set anght by arri of male have IJ-ye^-old femme stndent who gets j the gangster’s moll with whom he graced any local boards in many a [ after-hours aid in her Latm teach- j falls in love season. In advance exploitation home. His wife, after 22 yeap On .the distaff side the three here, a direct comparison has been of bliss is at hand, but jealously j women m the cast contribute noth- noted between this strictly modem accuses both of a love affair Flee-1 mg in plausible acting ability, nor comedy and the rowdy Restoration [ mg teenager di^ppears, with, the plays j middlsaged prof upbraiding his * r* j ! wife, but admitting his normal re- °u%P^ n T 0r iP l actions towards'the young looker. ta S5ff d Provincial town of Rudford, Eng- SSS: ik !fe« e ^iHl5 est0r ? tlon land, is beset with rumors-lf ired FP ntrar 51 by classmates who say the girl was to most stage offerings, the end | seduced, was with child, and it’s Affanrf 1 #* 0 decide % paymg | assumed her body was tossed in ° f L“ d „!L e 5^2E. rf J“2fc the. rbrer by the teacher. Suspense racket men gnd swindlers not only still in the driver’s seat, but intent on further chicanery. This would seem to preclude much of any chance for the play in Hollywood, unless drastic changes could be made in the end. The current debits of “Men of Distinction” lie in the drawn-out and not-too laugh-filled first act and certain lapses (some in script and some in playing) in Act III. The plot's a rather complicated one, which probably accounts for the attenuated start, but this, as well as the last act's defects, should be amenable to expert fixing. Main characters (all male) are Peter Hogarth, bigtime public rela-’ tions man who is associated with an “entertainment” racket with so- ciety playboy Carleton Pelter as the operator; August Volpone, a not-too-much-reformed- gangster; Daniel Gaffney, an ambitious and notably greedy D.A.; a venal expert on tax figures and a slightly screwy young man with ambitions to be a TV impresario. Last-n&aed is the only one who could be said to have any preten- sions to morals or ethics. Gaffney, the D.A., is out for a cleanup of this new form of vice racket and wants to put his finger on a logical Mr. X. Hogarth (definitely a logical and guilty party) is first choice, but, being wily, he wriggles out. From^-then on it amounts to an attempt by Gogarth, whose phone wires have been tapped, to put the D.A on the spot He achieves this by inveigling Gaffney into taking a job on a contemplated TV program, whose sponsors happen to be con- trolled by Volpone. The D.A. is a shrewdy and' escapes the net, and then the playboy is set as the vic- tim, but he, too, escapes, as does the balmy young would-be TV solon. In the end, the jovial male- factors seem to be intent on pin- ning the unenviable role on the shoulders of the tax expert. Casting, as noted, is superb. Robert Preston has the long and fat role of Hogarth, and save for one or two scattered scenes does a suave job; ditto for co-prhducer Cowles, who doubles as the dilet- tante playboy, Pelter. David Burns, who doesn’t appear until the mid- dle of Act II, is outstanding as the p.A.. if once in a while too loudly bombastic. Martin Ritt gives a smooth, amusing portrayal of the gangster, and a personal first-night hit was scored by Orson Bea, as the crew-hair-cutted TV novice. Ralph Bunker does well as the tax expert. There is no hero and no heroine; Instead there are a group of fash- ionably-gowned gals playing the entertainers, with all having CQUfll chances. Some smaller roles are nicely filled. David Ffolkes’ red-plush stage set is striking if slightly bizarre, but it entirely fills the bill sug- gested by the story With Act II builds in the three-day time span, with the frustrated wife adding to the uproar at hearing the conjured, tragic assumption. Upsetting also is the girl’s oddball aunt, who con- tents herself with imaginary lovers and would work her spell on her niece. Third-act return of the bewil- dered 3 girl unlooses fine acting by the entire cast in a highly charged finale. She has innocently Visited London for three days and brought near hysteria to two families, dis- missal from faculty to the profes- sor. Tragic windup finds the teach- er’s wife has committed suicide. As the distraught student, Mary Dell Roberts has her best role in seven straight productions. Here is a finely delineated character, and she adds a warm, sympathetic touch in the boff closing act. Dick Ewell is consistently effective as the teacher, and Norma Winters again impresses as the frustrated wife. Edwin Whitner gets over w'ell as the reporter-father of the student; Patricia Barclay adds slight com- edy relief as the harried mother, and Marianna Clore, a newcomer, registers heavily as the spinster aunt. Others in the cast disport adequately In brief roles. Trick lighting of a dual set is socko. Milieu in general is excel- lent, as is the modern costuming. Bark. do the newspapermen. Orenstein has incorporated plenty of good writing and imaginative plot de- velopment, but his direction needs tightened urgency, speed and men- ace, with latter from outside directorial source, “Big Leap” has good possibilities for Broadway adaptation plus ultimate pix possi- bilities on the theme and Niagara Falls locale. McStay. School for Brides Detroit, April 5. Gabriel Katzka production of coinedy In three acts (five scenes) by Frank Gill, Jr.. and George Carleton Brown. Features Mason Curry, June Fraser. Jimmy Brown, Nancy WUder, Diana Florey. Directed by Loy Nilson. At Shubert, Detroit, April 5. 'S3; S3.60 top (with two-for-ones). Charlie Earle Mayo Stephen Garrett Charr Vickers Julie Diana Florey Diaiui Ginny Raye Leslie Katina Vea Alice Genevieve Boles Jeff Connors Jimmy Brown Stephanie Helene Santley Ronnie Vanita Brown Frederick M. Hasty Mason Curry Dean Baxter June Fraser Mary Nancy W'ilder The Big Leap Toronto, April 13. Actors Co. presentation of comedy in three acts (six scenes), written and di- rected by Leo Orenstein. Stars Austin Willis, Mona O'Heam; features Sammy Sales, E. M. Margolese, Larry Martin. Settings by John Heltinga; lighting, Wil- liam Drake. At Royal Alexandra, Toronto, AprU 13, '53; $3.50 top. Bellboy - James Balfour Fran Decker Mona O'Hearn Jackie Pegeen Rose Tony Hartman Austin Willis Meyer Sammy Sales “°® Socrates E. M. .Margolese John Watson Lou Pitoscia Lucky Keeler ... AUan Bertram Larry Martin ^f rce !> Andy Halmay Radio Voices Lorne Greene, . . . Michael Cashin Reporters, Photographers... Jack Kuper, R. Messinger, Tom W'hiting,! Rose Oslcnder j “School for Brides,” designated as a farce comedy, is an empty show. Revival is getting a two-week j warmup at the 2.050-seat Shubert before taking to the road. First act is wordy to a point of boredom; second act perks a bit, although the wordage still is heavy. Third act shines dimly with lines and action which make the cus- tomers sit up and take notice in a half-hearted sort of way. Sparse audience (half a house) at opening Easter night (5) sat on its hands, with laughs coming infrequently. Play concerns a much-married millionaire (Mason Curry) who angels a school for brides in the hopes of finding a wife he can live with after the honeymoon is over. School is run by an ex-model agent (Jimmy Brown), who enrolls his cuties as students. Curry does a fairly good job with the material he has. Also sal- vaging something nut of their roles are Brown; June Fraser, as the dean of women, and Nancy Wilder, as Brown’s wife. All of them, how- ever, had trouble opening night remembering their lines, and the prompter, who fairly shouted the cues, had a busy night. The models—Diana Florey, Gin- ny Raye, Katina Vea, Geneviev^ Boles. -Helene Santley and Vanita Brown—are decorative. It's a pity they aren’t utilized to get some action in the play. Their costumes are prim and uninspired, leaving both male and distaff sides of the curtain as was the style In dav s k •TheXt^’ ^ dramas - such Direction is too slow, and as a result, action becomes mechanical and characters take on puppet-lik» qu ? U &* S ^f r edy in London New York veiled patness of text, but here it is revealed, and it interferes with one’s belief in reality of both plot and characters Jacqueline Porel, Re jane’s grand- daughter, scores as threatened wife. Jean Martmelli, as the former college chum forced into attempted murder, Jacques Berthier as the lover, and Pierre Destailles as the sly detective, all register. Curt . Stalftg 17 Jack Hylton Sam Byrd, presentation of drama in three acts by Donald Be van and Edward TrzcinskL Stars Harold Stone Lee Patterson, Garry Davis, Charles Bane’ Robert Shawley. Directed by Buford A™;^®/ A* Prince » Theatre. London. April 4, 'o3; SZ top. Stosh Harold Stone Harry Shapiro Garry Davis - Charles Ban? Herb Gordon Robert Shawley Hoffman BUI **“>" Lee Patterson Vernon Gray Horney George Margo Marko Gerald Blake Corp. Schultz Peter Swanwick Dunbar ..: Harold Ayer 5®*“ John Hollis Pe ter son *............... Gideon Selver German Captain Joseph Stein Geneva Man Hugo Schuster Dealing with all the smart pro- audie &ce cold. Setting is sparse and motional angles pf a dupe going ? unattractive. Tew. over Niagara Falls in a barrel, “The Big Leap ’ has a novel basic idea, pienty of situation comedy and lively dialog plus a switch ending onn Vi /v«<a Lh.i xL ~ J i _ . _0 quence,- .its staying prospects are slender, although the marquee val- ue of the stars, plus the intimate house in which it is staged may help it along for a modest run. Outstanding feature of produc- tion is the delightful moppet per- formance by 14-year-ord Margaret McCourt, who plays the role of a seven-year-old child. She has a bright, vivacious anfl intelligent approach, and is easily the domi- nating character. She plays one of two kids who are given asylum by their next door neighbor when their mother disappears. Subse- quently. the woman is found dead and, although there are no traces of foul play, an astute cop suspects murder. It transpires that the mother, who recently returned from Austria, smuggled diamonds from Europe which were probably concealed in the child’s most prized possession, a fluffy teddy bear. As the curtain drops on the first act, the benevolent nextdoor neigh- bor, who by now has become “Un- cle Charlie” to the kids, is re- vealed as the killer. Ensuing scenes are taken up with his-efforts to lay his hands on the missing jew els, alongside the child’s despair at losing her toy. Main role is warmly played by Roger Livesey, and he puts more into it than the play merits. But even his solid performance is not enough to sustain this three-acter. Ursula Jeans has little more than a succession of short and unim- portant walkons. Meaty femme role goes to Olga Lindo, as Live- sey’s mother, with a liking for li- quor, and she plays it with char- acteristic vigor. Arnold Bell turns in an average portrayal as the cop, and Douglas Muir is adequate as the local doctor. Other juve role, restricted in scope, is nicely played by Thomas Moore. Joyce Blair makes a de- lightful contribution as a local floozie in a role which is'quite ir- revelant, and. might well be writ- ten out. Direction by Cy Endfield reflects the leisurely writing. Rich- ard Lake’s single setting is quite Suitable. Myro. Crime Par fait' (Dial M For Murder) „ . Paris, April 3. Henri Bernstein production of play in three acts by Frederick Knott, adapted by Roger Feral. Directed by Georges Vitaly. Features Bernard Blier. Jacqueline Porel, Martlnelli. Pierre DestaiUes, Jacques Berthier. Set by Louis Suk: costumes, Jean Desses. At Ambassadeurs Theatre, Paris, March 28, *33; $3 top. Jony . w tn dU L® J Bernard Blier Patricia Wendice Jacqueline Porel Lesgate Jean MartineUi Inspector Hubbard Pierre DestaiUes Max Halliday Jacques Berthier “Crime” is 'the Roger Feral adaptation of London-New York’s , — detective play smash, “Dial M for* 100 S nm to do a b.o. biz with Murder.” and it is slated for a long I SU t-, str °Hg-meat themes, stay at the Henri Bernstein house I lm ? »s well cast for Ambassadeurs. * ro ^ e of the trapsetting wife. Teral. top Gallic TV producer ! is i ess to bIame for fact has retained script’s London back-lJ^SL a * bl l p ? rt of add * en ce mis- ground, and delivered almost! S£^ S l 00d h u er ro ^ e ’ J han the straight translation job. “Crime” I {f anaIato r. . who omitted to add * ’harshness in her dialog. Robert Lindner contributes a performance of precision. Supporting cast is good without exception. Bibiana Zeller, Erich Scholz and Viktor Stefan Goertz desexre special praise. i it « . . un- Had this play been produced here earlier, its prospects might have been brighter; as it is, the subject is stale, and the lack of marquee names will retract from general interest and universal ap- peal. Last prisoner-of-war drama 'here ran only a few weeks, which doesn’t augur well for a similar topic of alien brand. If some of the cruder comedy scenes had been eliminated, leaving it in the straight legit class, it would not have wavered between the two categories. The advertising billing as “America’s biggest laughter maker” is definitely misleading to British taste. The first-nighters gave a full-blooded welcome to tha mixed American-Canadian players, W'hose acting ability responded to every call put upon them, but the b.o. appeal can be rated no higher than even. Grim story of brutality and be- trayal among a group of American prisoners in Germany at the tail end of the war provides a good background for contracting char- acters and mounting tensity of sit- uation. Company is headed by Garry Davis and Robert Shawley who ap- peared in the original production, with other parts well played* by Harold Stone, Lee Patterson, George Margo, Charles Bang, Har- old Ayer, and excellent support by native actors in the German roles. Play, well directed by Buford Armitage, ran smoothly after out- of-town opening. Clem. (Closed last Saturday (11) af- ter nine performances.) Tha Shrike _ . Vienna, April 7. . Josefstadt Theatre production of drama “) *“ r ®* * c ^* hy Joseph Kramm. Stars vuma Degischer and Robert Lindner. Directed by Warner Kraut. Settings by Harry Glusck. At Josefstadt Theatre. Vienna, March 18, '33. This depressing clinical study of a New York mental clinic was well received at the German language preem by those who stayed to the end, but a good part of the audi- ence (optimistic guess—20?o) left during the intermission. Life is are here, but the three-act comedv will need plenty of tightening and more lively directorial pace. In theme and major characterizations, it s in the genre of “Three Men on a Horse •’ and "Room Service,” and with competent doctoring and major recasting, shapes as a lively romp once the action is speeded up Currently the writing is consider- ably superior to the acting inter- pretations. Piece deals with an o.ver-Niagara Brandeis Fest to Offer Poulenc Opera in U.S. Bow Waltham, Mass., April 14. First American performance of Francis Poulenc’s comic opera, ‘Les Mamelles de Tlresias,” will highlight the second annual Bran- dels Festival of the Creative Arts June 10-14. Fest will again be under direc- tion of Leonard Bernstein, Bran- deis professor of music, who also composed the music for the Broad- way hit, “Wonderful Town.*’ has been given smooth, profes- sional staging, star cast, attractive set and costumes, and is typical, tasteful Ambassadeurs production Bernstein wants to hold it at his. house until next February, when ne will have new plav of his own I ^ * ready to go In. If things work out 1 • Due {? awkward and as planned. “Crime” 8 will run i i?^S ma f, lve , ^a^Iation by Jochen through June, have usual French I R Ut f ’ ?11 Pj ayers are handicapped two-month summer layoff reopen £i« trying ^ to i under seore the in- in fall, and play better part of nllt I [ lgues ar \ d .gloom. A few added season. Such a plan however mav! n? e ^/? pI - a, , ning N ‘ Y * laws ’ are over-estimate “Crime’s” Paris's?^ Jw 1 ?? the audience. But ing power. Show “m beeS ni^ * th w the forgot to do. received and advance is good butL^ W r ? ra Ht of Zurich d »rect- it seems unliSsly that thpfuii Fnr?b as g . uest - With an eye for heavy success it enjoved in T nnZ £5 i dramatic effects. It would have New York will be en be H er to show the interior Paris. 6 du P llcated in | of the N, Y. mental clinic in a less Pix-legit star, Bernard Blier takes on the lead role of the hus- wh0 .wants to murder his faithless wife in order to inherit hei fortune. As the mystery is re -1 Y.®S® d e ear Jy la Play, the suspense ^ bl ^ in b °th second and third acts, and crix here felt the audience should have been held in ignorance until near the final cozy and comfortable manner. As it is, no fear was injected.Maas. Students of the drama depart- ment of the School of Performing Arts, N.Y., will present Christo- pher Fry’s “Ring Round the Moon” for two performances May 2-3 at the Kaufman Auditorium, N. Y. Production is being staged by Mi- chael Howard, a faculty member.