Variety (October 1958)

70 ixcnDCin p ss&im W«4ne«4»r, October 15, 1958 Shows on Broadway Gildlloekft Producer* Theatre pree ent a ti o n o£ Rob¬ ert Whitehead production of two-act (11 acenea) musical comedy; book by Walter and Jean Kerr; music, Leroy Anderson; lyrics, Joan Ford. Walter ana Jean Kerr; overall direction, Walter Kerr; dance and musical staring. Agnes de Mille; set¬ tings, Peter Lerkin; costumes. Castillo; Feder; musical director, Lehman Ingel; orchestrations, Leroy Anderson and Philip J. T-*"g? dance music arrange¬ ments, Laurence BosenthaL Stars Don Ameche, Elaine Stritch; features Russell Nype, Pat Stanley. Nathaniel Frey, Mar¬ garet Hamilton, Martin Wolfson, Kelly Brown, Donald Barton, Richard Arm- bruster, David Nillo, Dona Mural, Loren Hightower. At Lant-Fontanne Theatre, N.Y„ Oct. 13, J 58; *9JX top CS1L5Q open¬ ing). . Maggie Harris.Elaine Stritch George Randolph Brown....RnssA Nype Max Grady.. Don Amecm Lois Lee'.Pat Stanley: Pete ... Nathaniel Frey Andy.Richard Armbruster Assistant Directors.Gene Varrone, Sam Greene J. C..... Martin Wolfson Bessie .Margaret Hamilton Deputies..“....Del Anderson, Beau TUden Chauffeur ... Samye Van Singers: Jane Carlyle, Jeanne Grant, Josanna. LavaDe, Sadie McCollum, Rita Noble, Suzanne Stahl, Richard Arm¬ bruster, Del Anderson, John Carter, Sam Greene, Ben Parrish, Rufus Smith, -Gene Varrone. Dancers: Patricia Birsh, Lynne Broad- bent, Judith Chssin, Bunty Kelley, Mar¬ garet Lithander, Rnelda de Martin, Caro¬ lyn Morris, Dona MuraL Patti Nestor, Evelyn Taylor, Diana Turner,' Kelly Brown, Donald Barton. Michael Fesco, Loren Hightower, George Jack, Ronnie Landry, David Nillo, Paul Olson, Peter Saul, Ron Stratton, Numbers: ''Lazy Moon," "Give the Little Lady,” "Save a Kiss,” "No One'll Ever Love Yon,” Tf I Can’t Take It With Me." "Who's Been Sitting: in My Chair " "There Never Was a Woman,” "The Pussy Foot,” "Lady in Waiting,” "The Beast in You,” "Shall I Take My Heart and Go ** "Bad Companions,” "I Can't Be in Love,” "1 Never Enow When,” "The Town House Maxixe," "Two Years In the Making," "Heart of Stone." Air the first new musical of the season, “Goldilocks” hardly* ex¬ plodes with a bang. With reported-1 ly large theatre party bookings and the .absence Df new song-and-dance competition, the show should keep the luxurious. Lunt-Fontanne Thea¬ tre lighted for a considerable spelL It won’t cause a boom for the ticket brokers, however. The pro¬ duction reportedly cost over $300,000. “Goldilocks” is, the Walter and Jean Kerr show. At least that’s the way it’s generally referred to in the trade. Walter Kerr is the legit critic of the N. Y. Herald Tribune and his wife, besides being the au¬ thor of the bestselling “Please Don’t Eat the Daisies,” has written or collaborated with her husband on various shows, including •'King of Hearts,” and a couple of previ¬ ous musicals. The Kerrs have * supplied the book for “Goldilocks” and collab¬ orated with John Ford on the ly¬ rics, and Walter has staged the production. The music is by Leroy Anderson, his first legit assign¬ ment The dances and musical numbers have been directed by Agnes de Mfile, and are her best Broadway work-in some years. The excessively elaborate scenery is by. Peter Larkin and the over-dressily handsome costumes by Castillo” Robert Whitehead’s production is presented“hy the Producers Thea¬ tre, their first venture with a mu- Don Ameche and Elaine Stritch are costarred in the yarn about a shoestring movie producer of the nickelodeon days and the Pearl White-like actress he bamboozles into being the workhorse heroine of his quickie epics. Some of the shooting scenes are layghable, es¬ pecially a pioneer western se¬ quence and a grandiloquent Egyp¬ tian ceremony, but they tend to be repetitions of a single idea and are incidental to the main story line. There are an.unusual number of dialog laughs, mostly in the quiet, throwaway style of tne authors and not of the slam-bang sort, to con¬ vulse a Broadway musical audi¬ ence. Essentially, however, the book is the thin and uncomfortable element in the show. Miss de Mille’s ballets are ex¬ cellent and pleasantly varied in flavor, although possible a trifle lengthy, and her staging of the musical numbers has professional ‘gloss. There are several fairly good songs, including “Save a Kiss,’* “No One’ll Ever Love You,” “Shall I Take My Heart and Go?” and an almost certain number for disking by pop singers, a lament titled “I Never Know When.” But passable songs are one thing and audiehce- rousers are quite another, and "Goldilocks” is painfully lacking in a real powerhouse musical number. Don Ameche, who took over the top-starring role of the flicker pro¬ ducer during the tryout tour, suc¬ ceeding Barry Sullivan t who had succeeded Ben Gazzara just before the start of rehearsals, has wel¬ come animation and presence. But he lacks the kind of galvanizing drive that might overwhelm an audience and carry a show. He sings proficiently and acts accep¬ tably, if with a somewhat discon¬ certing air of detachment. Elaine Stritch is visually attrac¬ tive as the actress who relinquishes her ambition of marrying for social position and financial security in favor of stringing along with the infant film biz. She handles the Kerrs* brand of casual jokes with offhand deftness and sings well, being particularly impressive with “I Never Know When.” But she, too, seems only vaguely interested in the love story, and as with Ame¬ che, hasn’t bulldozer power. Russell Nype is warm and dis¬ arming as the society Croesus who. almost marries the actress but who merely balls, out the producer and prepares to make do with a pal¬ pitating non-show bizzer. He sings agreeably enough and actually seems to be thinking of what he’s saying. Pat Stanley registers effec¬ tively if not sensationally as the girl who yearns for the producer but learns to accept the rich man. She clicks *as a dancing comedi¬ enne, and just about ekes by as a singer. Margaret Hamilton scores as the standard musical comedy character woman, Nathaniel Frey is okay jn the.straight scenes as an incorrupt- ibly devoted cameraman, but seems to force the comedy scenes and numbers, afid there are the cus¬ tomary assortment of journeymen clowns, stooges, singers and dancers. Kerr has staged the proceedings with what appears to be the proper J amount of invention and propul¬ sion, although there isn’t quite the maximum degree of pandemonium in the movie shooting sequences. All in all, “Goldilocks^ has a prom¬ ising idea and some funny stuff, but lacks a knockout punch. Kobe. Drink to Me Only George Ross On association with John. Robert Lloyd) production of three-act (six scenes) comedy- by Abram S. Ginnes and Ira Wallach; statin*. George Abbott; setting*, .^John Robert Lloyd; costumes, Julia Sfe. Features Tom Poston, .Paul Hartman, Cameron Prud'homme, John MeGiver, Royal Beal. Shear Britton, Jack Gilford, Leona Powers, Georgann Johnson. At 54th Street (AdelphD Theatre, N.Y., Oct. 8, '58; $5.75 top ($8.05 opening) (be ginnin g Nov. 7, the top will he $6.90 Friday-Saturday nights). Stanley Farrington.... ....John McGfver Gregory Wendell .Royal Beal Bailiff .... John Allen Vicky Re mien ....... Georgann Johnson. Miles Pringle .Tom Poston. Judge . Truman Smith Prosecutor .. Lou. Polan James Porterman.Paid Hartman Joyce Porterman...Undine Forrest Dr. Ullman . Jack Gilford Princess Alexandria.Sherry Britton Mrs. Bavermeyer. .....Leona . Powers Sandy Wendell . Diana Millay Clinton Wheel ock.. Cameron Prud’homme Jurors.Leona Noric. Mary Stanton, Frank Ford, Don Penny If a couple of very funny scenes made a show, “Drink to Me Only” would be the new Broadway com¬ edy smash. But this Abram S. Ginnes and Ira Wallach farce -doesn’t sustain as a full evening. In fact, it just about collapses in the third act, and ends as a dud. If there’s not enough of a play for Broadway standards there’s hardly sufficient for a picture, and it’s hard to figure how the piece could be expanded more than it already has been. That leaves tele¬ vision, for which it might provide a convulsing half-hour, and of course “stock.” The whole comedy is based on a gimmick idea about how, in order to defend a client charged with wife-shooting, a young lawyer tries to prove that it’s possible to drink two bottles of whiskey during a 12-hour period and then argue the case in court. In perhaps the most brilliant comedy performance the masterful'George Abbott has ever staged, the attorney not only gets hilariously ossified but also manages to shake down his domi¬ neering boss for $100,000 and be¬ comes a member of the law firm, with billing above the other two partners. The courtroom scene immedi¬ ately following also opens uproar¬ iously, but it’s essentially an elab¬ oration of the same drunk routine, and it’s continued after the humor has been exhausted. The final scene has approximately as much bounce as a morning-after. As indicated, Abbott’s direction glistens with superb economy, drive and tempo. Especially in the ex¬ pertly pyramided invention of the long second-act souse scene, this hysterical hubdub builds to a peak of frenzy. As the dutiful-beyond-the-call-of- Blackstone lawyer, Tom Poston is side-splitting, and there are vary- ingly amusing supporting perform¬ ances by such knockabout comics as John McGiver {who has the appearance — and sounds—of an aggrieved moose, but is occa¬ sionally unintelligible), Cameron Prud’homme and John Beal as the harrassed legalites. Paul Hartman as the cheerfully daffy defendant. Jack Gilford as a bemused medical Uye and Kicking San Francisco. Editor, Variety: In re your review of th$ Old Vie “Hamlet in San Francisco, alas for critics whose ears are so attuned to disks, tapes, mon¬ aural; stero, etc., that they can no longer tell live music when they hear it. For that’s what it was, played by me and my merry men (ail loyal members of AFM). Arthur Lief. expert, Truman Smith as the toler- ant-as-Job judge, Leona Powers as the attentive witness of the liquor consumption, and Georgann John¬ son, Sherfy Britton, Undine For¬ rest and Diana . Millay as visual assets. John Robert Lloyd, besides be¬ ing associated with pressagent George Ross in the production, has designed three divertingly flossy sets and Julia Sze has provided eye-catching costumes. But even in a less cavernous house than the renovated and newly renamed 54th Street (formerly Aaelphi) Theatre,, “Drink to Me Only” would prob-i ably be too sketchy for Broad-] way. Kobe. Concert Reviews little Oreheftra Society (Thomas Schennan) Thomas Scherman, son of the Book-of-the-Month Club ’ tycoon, has for some years been providing New York with inter^sting and obs¬ cure musical curios. For the start of his Little -Orchestra Society’s 12th season Monday (6) he per¬ formed tin* masque “Comqs,” with a text by John Milton and music by the 18th-century En glish composer, Thomas Arne. • From a musical standpoint, the performance was a- Jut. Arne seems to have been the Dick Rodg¬ ers of his tinle, and his writings were abundant, including scores for masques, operas, songs, odes, son¬ atas and incidental music for plays, including works by Shakespeare. His melodies are tuneful, filled with flowing lines and pleasing to the ear. The arias lack drama and variety in content, but.they are a joy to hear, particularly when war¬ bled by the cast of singers Scher¬ man assembled for the occasion. As dramaticvfare, “Comus” did not fare so well, though the narra- ; tion and the spoken lines were de¬ claimed with fervor and intensity. The text is filled with glorious Mil¬ tonian prose, but the tale simply does not interest the contemporary mind. At no time were the pro¬ ceedings dull, but the lift of the performance was provided in the naive charm and simplicity of the Arne score. Veteran soprano Dorothy May- nor, who has not been heard here often in recent years, incited a brief interruption in the proceed¬ ings with her stunning perfor¬ mance. Appearing near the very end, Miss Maynor sang her long and difficult arias with clarity and beauty. It took courage on Scher- man’s part (and imagination) to cast this half-forgotten star of pre- World War £E day?, and he was re¬ warded with an exhibition of su¬ perior vocal gymnastics that won the heart and plaudits of. the ca¬ pacity house. Laurel Hurley, John McCollum, Laura Castellano, Max Adrian and others in the cast performed with distinction. The orchestra, con¬ ducted 18th century fashion by Scherman from the harpsichord, was first-rate. Wier . Anna Russell London, Oct. 7. New York’s Anna Russell packed the Royal Festival Hall on the opening date of a British tour of one nighters, wowing her audience with 110 minutes of musical mimi¬ cry, wit and polished professional¬ ism. • The first half was devoted to devastating observations in a song recital which took in the varying styles of a choir boy, an amateur lieder singer, a prima donna, etc. Miss Russell is ably accompanied at the piano by Eugene Rankin. Her lecture on the bagpipes and a potted version of “The Ring of The Nibelungs.” scored the biggest success of the evening. Seated at the piano, she demonstrated ^per¬ fect timing and amazing mimicry while ridiculing and simplifying concert traits. British loved her. Bary. Ronald Scofield, of the Sanata Barbara (Cal.) News-Press^ is in New York covering Broadway and off-Broadway shows. , f Inside Stuff—Legit A story from London in last week's issue reported that Wendy Craig, imported to repeat her original West End performance in the Broadway production of “Epitaph for George Dillion,” has a contract for only eight weeks, including the four-week tryout tour and four weeks in New York, commented that some years ago Vivien Leigh had a deal for only thre§ months on Broadway. Morton Gottlieb, who was company manager for “Edward, My Son” during the 1948-49 season, points out that Peggy Ashcroft’s costairing contract in that show provided for eight weeks’ appearance, includ¬ ing the five-performance tryout in New Haven and seven weeks in New York. She was subsequently succeeded by Adrienne Allen. John Gielgud, who for years has had a standing invitation to star in the Stratford, Ont., Shakespeare Festival,. wants to—but not in Shakespeare. So he told Sydney Johnson, Montreal Star’s theatre critic, after the one-night teeoff of his North American tour in “Shake- speares Ages of Man” in the Stratford Festival Theatre. He’d like to dp “Cyrano de Bergerac” if he can get a new adaptation from Christo- pher Fry. He says he has already played all the Shakespearean roles he is young enough to play, and Is tired of them. Contract of-the Coast company of “Auntie Mame” with the Louis R. Lurie-operated Geary Theatre, Frisco, calls for 80 house seats night¬ ly to go to general manager Ben F. Stein, instead of 60 pairs as re¬ ported in the Oct. 1 issue. Also, typewritten In the contract is a clause giving 100 opening-night house seats to Stem, on top of which he asked for another 150, as was reported. All negotiations were by long-dis¬ tance phone, as Stein was not in Frisco for the confabs. Shows Out of Town Epitaph lor Geerge. Dillon Baltimore, Oct. 13. David Merrick A Joshua Logan produc¬ tion of three-act (four scenes}- drama by John Osborne and Anthony Creighton. Staging. WilUam GaakUl; scenery, Siepneii Doncaster, supervised by Ralph Alswanc costume supervision. Heltn* Pons. Stars RUoen Herne, Robert Stephena; features Alison Leggatt. At Ford's Theatre, Balti- n»e. Oct. 1% '58; $49$ top. Jbrie Elliot.Wendy Craig Ruth Gray . EQeen Herlie Mrs. Elliot . Alison Leggatt Norah Elliot....... Avzil Euar Percy Elliot .. Frank Finlay George Dillon . .„.;.Robert Stephens Geoffrey Colwyn^tuart. .James Valentine Mr. Webb. David Vaughan Barney Evans...Felix Deebank If playgoers who kept John Os¬ borne’s “Look Back in Anger” alive on Broadway for a healthy spell are still in the mood for “Angry Young Men” who spout bitterly and endlessly about every¬ thing from sex to religion, “Epitaph for George Dillon” should be their dish. The hero of the drama is a blood relation to the Jimmy Por^ ter of “Angex’.” Dillon is an actor- playwright, an “artist” with not too much to show but ample to say for himself. At least the talk is forceful and articulate. Dillon plants, himself on a Brit¬ ish middleclass family that wal¬ lows in the kind bourgoise things that are repugnant to him. but worthy of his most inspired ridicule. An arrant opportunist, he feigns sincerity, gratitude and me¬ diocrity to keep himself close to the hands that feed..him. To Ruth, the aunt, played expertly by Eileen Herlie, he is most revealing, and it is when these two hold, the stage, that co-authors Osborne and An¬ thony Creighton are most theatri¬ cally effective. Comprising the family in addi¬ tion. to Ruth are the mother, who invites George to live with them, her scorned husband, and their two dimwit daughters, one a looker and the other a frump. The father thinks George is worthless, the aunt tries to see him for what he is, one daughter is impressed by him and the other unimpressed by anything. Conversation gallops along until George is told he has TB, one of the daughters becomes pregnant with his child, the aunt moves out and Dillon is trapped as part of the mediocrity he has been decrying. # “Dillon” should be satisfying to playgoers who like their comedy- drama on the intellectual side. It’s not an action play, for dialog is tiie thing, and Osborne and Creigh¬ ton come through with some biting, entertaining, sometimes brilliant and almost .always interesting lines. There are dull patches here and there when the talk stops, but these are few and serve as breath¬ ers. The acting is superb, with Miss Herlie and title player Robert Stephens taking first honors. Ali¬ son Leggatt, as the mother, pro- k vides most of the laugh lines and does well by them. The others are not to be ignored, particularly James Valentine as the religious man who’s a target for Dillon, and Felix Deeband as a theatrical pro¬ ducer. An irritating aspect of the show, particularly to patrons, in the rear of the house, is director William Gaskill; frequent way of having the players read their lines while facing upstage. This is especially difficult as the British accents al¬ ready have spectators on edge in an effort to understand all' that is being said. The single set by Stephen Don¬ caster has the right note of drab¬ ness, and the lighting and costumes seem appropriate, Cedro. Crazy ^October New Haven, Oct. 8. Walter Starcke presentation* of three- act comedy by James Leo Herllhy. Stare Tallulah Bankhead; features Joan Blon- deD, Erfelle Winwood, Jack Weston* Collin Wilcox. Fred Belr, J. Frank Luca*. Staging. Herllhy; scenery, Ben Edwards; costumes. Alvin Colt. At Shubert Theatre, New Haven. Oct. 8, '58; $4.80 top. Dorris Cotton . Collin Wilcox Daisy Filbertaon.Tallulah Bankhead Rudy Filgertson. Jack Weston Thelma ..,. Joan BlondeU Boyd ... Fred Belr Charlie .. J. Frank Lucas Miz Annabel Cotton.Estelle Winwood This is a weirdie. It has an ac¬ tual skeleton in a closet, an assort¬ ment of unusual characters, and a pratfall by -Tallulah Bankhead in an angel costume. It adds up to an incongruous piece of stagecraft and, subject to smart doctoring, is a questionable bet for Broadway. “Crazy October” is localed in a roadside inn near a small-coal¬ mining ghost toWn. Owner of the spot dominates everyone she con¬ tacts until her not-so-bright son uncovers a family skeleton that brings the mother up on the short end of the rope, and everybody walks out on her. The role of the inn proprietor could be interesting when it is developed, but its po¬ tentialities have not yet been fully realized. However, the actress does - okay with what she has. Joan Blondell, playing a heart- of-gold pros tie, maintains pleasant contact with the audience. Estelle Winwood's version of a hypochon¬ driac widow is excellent Collin Wilcox as a smalltown girl.experi¬ encing her first touch of love, and Fred Beir as the personable lad re¬ sponsible for it .make a worthy team. J. Frank Lucas scores in a brief appearance as an also-ran suitor. Jack Weston gives a know¬ ing interpretation of a lightweight mentality. Ben Webster’s single set of the inn lunchroom is appropriately commonplace and the Alvin Colt costumes, with exception of the prostie’s classy wardrobe, are ap- serviceable. The author’s staging is coherent to a degree, but reflects bis own scripting uncertainty as to proper approach. Bone. Edwin Booth Hollywood, Oct. 8. Jo*e Ferrer 8c Playwrights Co. produc¬ tion of three-act drama by Milton Geiger. Staged by Ferrer; setting and lighting. Zvi Geyra; costumes, Edith Head. Start Ferrer, Lois Smith, Lome Greene; fea¬ tures Ian Keith, Richard Waring. At Huntington Hartford Theatre* Hollywood, Oct. 7, '58; $5.50 top. William Winter . . Lome Greene Junius Brutus Booth, elder-Ian Keith. Edwin Booth (as boy)_Stephen Frankea. Junius Brutus Booth, younger Sydney Smith Edwin Booth... Jose Ferrer Asia Booth ... Marion Rost John Wilkes Booth.Richard Waring Mary Devlin ... Lois Smith Edwina Booth .Patricia'Kane Although Jose. Ferrer gets an ovation for his title performance in “Edwin Booth,” the Milton Geiger drama doesn’t impress as much of a vehicle. It is trying out at the Huntington Hartford Theatre here, prior to San Francisco and ulti¬ mately Broadway. The piece tends to be a series of sketches covering 42 years of,the famous tragedian’s life,; and al¬ though it is theatrical and at times moving, it lacks dramatic form and cohesion. Geiger has laid much of the con¬ tinuing exposition in the hands of a narrator, and while the words are compelling and often humor¬ ous, the device doesn’t maintain pace. The frequent play-within-a- play interludes of Shakespeare are (Continued on page 74)