Variety (April 1920)

J?'■^-■^;^-W- SHOW REVIEWS PODO tjMtU Smltk Qt Um Snut S«|»«r. ......Murgtrtt Morrta Ftorenc* Snnunara lUidred Wilaoa ByUh Thomaf Orao* Ricluras Blanch* Brown BUI* Gerawbla -Kary Mitctwil XAalw RaaklB Florenw Brno* Hylah Seeder Alice Cavansfh Blanche Tenill Eunice Bizer DorU Marquette .Ruth Bhaw •K.».mv BeUea ..i.......Donald McDonald iiwbVamn T. .V.V.V.Kmeit piendennlng S. Eliwit •.. -Ctorleji Hampden i^to" Brown Roland jrounB Ansie Martla SSi. Elliott j^rsncoi* ' Haiel Turney .....Marlon Vnntlne Bob«rt Flacher "Washington, D. C, April 28. A mighty bltr. as well as friendly, audience waa at Poll's Sunday to witness the first performance of George Marshall's production of Avery Hopwood's musical farce. «Dodo." Marshall Is a local boy, iilB father was In business here for many years, and we all went to the Seatre prepared to like the piece •whethcF good or bad. Need it be Taid thft it was good: that Marshall has gotten a bully cast together; ♦hat the piece has been wonderfully dlrectel. as well as beautifully mounted and excellently lighted? No- we are all very pleasantly/aur- nrlsed. and when the prunirig knife IB used and matters smoothed out a little, this former farce of. Hop- wood's. "Our Little Wife" (tried out some few seasons ago with Margaret IlUngton in the lead) Is going to be *"tIw^ ca'st, headed by Koland Young Julienne Day and Emftst Glendennlng. is very ^ good. Tney K6t every bit of "meat" out of tholr . iespective roles. Miss Day and ■ Young both scored heavily, and Glendennlng proved a surprise. He possesses the best voice in the or- ganization. Here is where tlie building up must be undertaken. It was evidently Marshall's idea to get people who could act, but In domg this, with the exception of Glen- dennlng, he has sacrificed entirely too much on the voice end of his production. A number of the best fyrlcs of B. F. DeSylva, who also wrote the music, were lost, not even ))elng understandable in the fourth 'Tliss Day la delightful. After ■watching her performance it is Very evident why the piece was a failure with Margaret IlUngton In the role. The part is solely one for tlie .n- gunue type. Besides being very good to look at. Miss Day is a fin- ished comedienne. She knows the full value of every comedy line. Toung is mighty funny as "Bobo Brown. Particularly is this true of the first act., for. later on in the plav he seems" to drift a little, and In the second act Robert Fischer, in his old part as the .French waiter, very nearly "stole the proceedings' from him. Fischer Is immense. He gets at least 17 meanings out of every line' and shrug of his wonder- fully expressive shoulders. He was certainly funny. Young, however, will gradually finish ofC his per- formance. He has the conception all right. He Is a clever comedian ■ and surely looks Just what the role requires. , ..^ Glendennlng is always good. Don- . aid McDonald has his best oppor- tunity here and scored a marked success. Miss Marian Vantine was excellent, in the difficult part of Mrs. Elliott. iiCharles Hampden will be good as the Doctor when he gets over his nervousness, and this can also b6 said of Miss Hazel Turney as Angle. A word must be said .of the eight girls composing the cho- rus. They are all" individually and collectively clever, good-looking, are dressed exquisltively anjl can sing. The music that Mr.' DeSylva has furnished is good to listen to, but . It doesn't stick with you, although it is very pretty. Edward Royce staged the piece, and there hasnt been a detail overlooked. He l\as Introduced some little bits of busi- ness that are absolutely new and •very effective. His detail work is of the highest order. .Marshall is heading tlTfe show for a summer in Boston. Meakln. play, and Itta about them and their husbands that the plot la written. In the courtroom scene of the sec- ond act the pen of Mr. PepU has pictured the impossibUlty of worn* anklnd agreeing with rational calm upon any one subject and baa boldly deolared that the feminine gender makes its possessor interrupt any and all decorum with subjects of fashion and personality. Here also be has pictured men who possess no greater sense of legal requirements than do their wives, men who try to be clever by themselves and fall In the end com- pletely because they haven't taken any precautions. Mr. Peple's peo- ple are far less exaggerated than la usually necessary for farce, or even comedy, and here with both classes of drama commingling he has ad- hered to a plot that allows of this dexterous depth of substance In bis people, action and story. Besides Miss Grey the cast num- bers such accepted players of skill and characters aa Rose Morrison, Mabel Carruthers, Lillian Kemble, Julia Ralph. Vera Flndlay, Ida MuUe, Margot ■Williams, Roy Wall- ing, William Wadsworth, . Charles Mackey, George Christie, James Seeley, John Ravold and many oth- ers. THE CHARM SCHOOL. Washington. April 28. "The Charm School," which had its opening Monday at the Shubert- Belaaco, is a delightful comedy with an excellent cast, and has some very good music. It is the work of Alice Duer Miller and Robert Milton, while the music was written by Jerome Kern. The critics accorded it excellent notices, praising the entire cast, particularly Marie Carroll and Sam Hardy. The plot is refreshingly new and offers great opportunities for com- edy, and these opportunities have not been overlooked. The out-of-the-ordinary idea of the piece has to do with a young chap who has a girls' school left to him jvhlch he proceeds to run along entirely jazz lines, with himself at the head of it and his boy friends as the teachers. Sam Hardy as the director of the school is fine, and his Idea of the young man who thinks that girls should not learn Latin, Greek, mathematics and other accomplishments, but should be versed in the art of dressing, look- ing pretty and talking low and cor- rectly, and thus make themselves more salable on the marriage mar- ket, is going to add to this actor's rep. JVliss Carroll Is a Washington girl. She appeared here with the Poll stock and is a revelation as a differ- etit sort of the fascinating little in- genue type in every characteriza- tion. Other members of the cast scored, particularly Margaret Dale, Blyth Daly and Neil Martin. Aleakin. THE BROKEN WING. Quidhlta Gllberta Fauitt Dalboa .Leah de Picon Joso Geraldine Herman Luther Kurley Frank Andrews SylvestLT Cross Will H. GrcKory Inei! Vlllcrs • IneB Plaromer Captain InnoccGclo Thurston Hall Philip Marvin Richard Barbee Jerry Waldron Donald QrcRonr Marca U. W. Chambers Qorcla Geo. Spelvin Cecilia Ana MacDonald New York engraved thereon, and enters Into a scheme with one Syl- vester Cross, a crooked oil pro- spector, to get ransom from Mar- vin's rich relatives. With matured plans Cross goes to New fork and brings back with him Mrs. Marvhi. In the Interval the love affair be- tween Inez and Marvin has grown, but her foster father Farley obieots, as he wants his adopted daughter to marry the desperado. When Marvin's wife reaches Mex- ico Philip does not recognize her, and she can hardly stand the nerv- ous strain.. Captain Innocencio in- forms her that her husband is being held for a ransom of $10,000, but as she has not the cash she offers the desperado her Jewels, which he ac- cepts. The repairs on the airplane have been made, and Marvin takes a flight, which is the means of re- storing his memory. Eventually he recognizes his wife, and Inez ex- hibits Jealousy and hatred, and de- clares Marvin la her God-sent hus- band, but there Is nothing left for the broken-hearted Inez but to re- turn to her desperado lover, while Marvin and his wife return to the East. Among the players Mr.- Hall stands out prominently as the des- perado captain. He gives a con- vincing interpretation of the char- acter, and he has excellent support from Miss Plummer as Inez Villers. Miss MacDonald was not one whit behind the leaders in her portrayal of Cecill{i, and her delineation was one of The features of the produc- tion. While the other roles were filled with more or less satisfaction, hone of these call for special men- tion. All did their best, and for an opening night little fault could be found with the work in general. LADIES* DAY. Atlantic City, April 28. Picturing women as full of thoughts of hats, opinions of other women, self-assertion, dress and concern for their husbands despite a boasted independence, Edward Peple's newest comedy, "Ladies' Day" began its career at the Globe Monday, presented by H. H. Frazee. Taking womankind as full of .these foibles and placing her in a courtroom as lawyer. Jury and wit- ness—Mr. Peple has constructed two acts of exceptionally interesting and laughable light comedy that borders closely on farce at all times—and a final act that Is purposeless as to forming a humorous conclusion. The piece may not exactly be called "clever," but it is funny and laughable beyond the average, and it has plot that Is meaty and Inter- esting. "Ladies' Day" has a chance of being the best farcical comedy of the passing season when the last act has been much revised. As It stands now its laughs are limited, its action uninteresting and its con- clusion not at all of Interest. The women comprise several from the aristocratic class, includ- ing two lawyers, a washerwoman, a cook, an Italian and others of like Ilk. The more clearly spoken and best-dressed element control the Cleveland, April 28. This new play by Paul Dlekey and Charles W. Goddard had .Its pre- miere at the Prospect Monday night under the auspices of^ Vaughan Glaser, who opened his stock season with Thurston Hall and bis Asso- ciate players. After allowances have been made for the first-night the entire pro- duction was fairly satisfactory and refiects considerable cre'dlt on all concerned. Candidly, however, the theme lacks cohesion, there is a straining after effects, the long waits between the acts cause a loss of Interest, consequently there was a drag that hampered the enthusiasm. But as a whole the offering earned more bouquets than'brickbats.* The staging effects and lighting left little undone In this respect, the deft hand of Will dregory as di- rector being conspicuous In this work The scene Is laid In the Mexican home of Luther Farley, an Amer- ican with religious convictions, whose adopted daughter Inez Villers Is being ardently wooed by.a Mex- ican desperado. Captain Innocencio Late in the afternoon a storm comes up and the superstitious Mexlcan.s fear trouble. In the distance an air- plane 13 hoard, and its movements are watched closely by Farley and his Mexican friends. The airplane breaks a piano or "wing" and crashes to earth. Two men occupy the machine-Jerry Waldron Is killed and his companion, Philip Marvin, escapes with bruises. He is nursed hy Inez Villers, but as a sequel to the accident Marvin loses his memory. His past life is a blank; he does not remember his name or that he has a wife in New York. A love match ensues between Inez and Marvin, which Incurs the jealousy of the desperate Captain Innocencio. Inez had Promised to marry the captain within thirty days provided she does "O^Pr ,/ more suitable mate, and In the in- "?val she has invoked divine aid in securing a good husband. Innocencio finds a cigarette case with Marvin's name and address in L'OEUVSE SIS ATHLETES. The productions of Jacques Co- peau at the Theatre du Vleux Col- ombier (so named after the street In which it is situated) are Invari- ably interesting, and "L'Oeuvre des Athletes" In four acts, by O. Duhamel, is no exception. Indeed it comes near being a chef d'oeuvre after the model of Moliere. As in the 'Precleusea Ridicules" it Is a farce sarcastically pulling the legs of certain individuals of the epoch, It comes near being a great satiri- cal comedy; it is crammed with keen observation and the plot is of little consequence. It preaches the doctrine that lion- izing of "arrivals" may disturb, the normal existence of a middle- class family. Beloeuf is a young writer, full of his own conceit and with the gift of causing others to consider he possesses the talent hlb own imagination has created. As a matter of fact he is suffering from a bad attack of swelled head. Arriving frdm a provincial town, prepared to conquer in a literary career, he is received into the home of relatives, a chemist. Beloeuf is not a cad, but he believes himself a genius and the family is led to think so from constantly hearing this literary light praise his own works. He courts the elder of two daughters, to the despair of the younger, both being blinded by this bohemian without Ulent. The chemist's son and his as- sistant, however, are sceptic. Be- loeuf has no difficulty in getting the assistant sacked; it is more dif- ficult to deal with the son, a bright lad at the end of his teens. The youth, discovering bis sister is com- promised, threatens to raise a rum- pus if the literary light abandons the giri BO this study terminates by the engagement of the unsuit- able couple, whilA the son leaves with the discharged assistant for the colonies. Georges Duhamel has sketched a series of tableaux de- pleting the literary atmosphere with snobs Btruggllng to gain celebrity and gravitating around a new school which is the "work of the Athletes." Duhamel proves be is not of the school, for he has mor« talent than the-hero of his satirical piece. It is supposed to be a burlesque aimed at certain personages now trying to shine In la vllle lumiqre. but he charitably leaves as to our own con- jectures. .^ ^ at the Oymnase In "L'Anlmateur," a somewhat similar thesis for Its overture), has staged this effort to the best of his ability as the chief of the independent theatre society, known as the Nouveau Theatre Libre. We trust the next attempt of this group will prove a greater success. .ffenorci*. lES FOTACHES. Paris, April 21. The title signifies a boarder at a school, and the new farce by Ma- chard and Mouezy-Eon (who wrote the successful "Tire au Flanc" mil- itary comedy) is supposed to de- scribe life in a school In France. We trust ho Is for froin the truth. We witness the proverbial bolster fight and other admitted pranks, but there are scenes which constitute very risky entertainment. All the scholars are in love with a pretty adventursome actress who is the confidential favorite of the precep- tor. The head master also forgets himself and visits the lady. She gains admission to the boys' dor- mitory and Joins In the horse play, but all are finally excused because the principal is Implicated in. the in- trigue. The warm farce Is well played and probably only intended to amuse. It does this only in parts and is no credit to French literature. We have smut galore in many of the present stage productions, there being no dramatic censor to tone it down. Opposed to a censor's in- terference in theatrical work, I still (eel that a controlling hand Is re- quired at present in Paris. It is dlfllcult to reconcile the two views, and the public should be the Judge These effusions, which tare not ex- pensive to mount and play, seem to be profitable. Judging by the regu- lar audience, and authors are tempt- ed to satisfy the demand, particu- larly as such farces do not require any particular talent or bralnwork. Kendreto. MON AUOUS GEEBI. Paris, April 10.. The title has nothing to do with this new three-act farce by Pierre Veber. dramatic critic of the Paris edition of the "New York Herald." It is probobly chosen, like that of the average revue, for poster pur- poses, with the hope it may "bring 'em In." The Theatre des Boule- vards (ex-Novelty) has probably mounted the vaudeville because of the author's reputation, but it is far from being M. Veber's best effort. Aa usual, the story la spicy, like 'Triman Bernard of late. A hus- baad is contented until kind friends warn him hla wife la likely to get the bit between her teeth. To avoid W(!arlng the horns he encourages the flirt to visit him, where he hopes he will become attracted to a charming friend of the family. But the chap falls more madly In love with his wife. The husband's con- fidential object of playing with fire was for his wife to study the fellow closely and realize what a con- founded ass he really is. But the wife studied him a little too closely and becomes his mistress, discover- ing only afterward what the hus- band intended. It was sulficient, as anticipated, for the woman to know the man in- timately to detest him, and beg her husband to give him the cold shoul- der henceforth. All's well that ends well,, notwithstanding the precari- ous method of reaching the end. The farce Is not particularly bright and rather poorly played. Wo hope M. Lordler, the manager (and pic- ture export) will have better luck next time. Kenirew, beyond the chief one Indicated. Among the play's lesser faults ar« the creation of two women charaC'* tors who are unrelenting. Such poor pie may exist, but tho absolutely unrelenting is beyond general hu- man comprehension and so out of place In the theatre. People do not understand It and so do not sym- pathize, or example, in the first act we find tho Illegitimate daugh- ter of Mme. de Chauvalons' husband and his paramour returning from Paris. Madame shows her out ot the house, directing her to the quar- ter. In the next act we see her In the quarter. Quembo (the heavy) is wooing her. A big scene in which she sells her goods is staged (and none too well staged, for handling a crowd was beyond Mr. Eyre's stagecraft) and Quembo outbids every one, then throws Zabette the money and tells her to keep the goods. Almost it looked like a play when Mme. de Chauvalons enters. But Mme. de Chauvalons Is also un- relenting In her attitude. Where there should be a rush to the young girl's aid on the'part of some ime; none comes. Instead, the old priest enters and mouths pious platitudes, flnatly in« forming the girl that her lover baa Just been forced into a maniaga with the legitimate sister. The i^l falls down in agony, and as the sdik sets and the stage darkens .praya before the lighted crucifix. Thiiuc- ing it is the villain coming up tlia, stairs, she shrieks for aid, but it i4 not the villain. It la her younc lover come to spend with her his wedding night In the next act wa learn of the attack made on him aa : he left the following morning, and. from Zabette that she Is to have a child, but by now the tense feeling of conflict Is completely gone. We . are watching the end of a distress-' ing and undramatlc story. The acting was tmeven. Miss Victor has her moments. She has always had them, and it is probable she will be remembered in the the- atre aa a superb creator of bits. Mr. Corrigan, also featured, droned his way in an old-fashioned manner through a hopelessly uninspired part. Arthur Hohl. save for a cer- tain indistinctness at the beginning, was the life of the party and r..ust have been disgusted when the au- thor snatched the play from his grasp In the course of the second act. He might have saved it.. Vin- cent Coleman made a chai^pitng t>ic- ture but no more. Still, -the author put little or none of the fine, flash- ing manliness so necessary to real love scenes into his writing, and ao Mr. Coleman suffered. The writing of the young-man-of• jthe-world scenes was better with its fashionable badinage, and save for . an occasional hurry Fleming Wards did the part welL As the Belles Aftrancbl^ of the Quarter Maidel Turner. In particular, and Juliette Crosby, Margaret Bird and Marlon Dyer were excellent. Native roles were lifelike to a degree in the hands of Mary I,aura Moore, Ju- liette Crosby, Charles Krause and' Stewart Evans, while Ida Water- man and Helen Blatr did what was required of them in unpleasant but important parts. Much of brilliant, flaming qiiality of West Indian scenery was madel effective stage use of by Lee Simon*. son in the scenery. Leed, i't'^ X^ :. ^ '■:§^ • ■ ■.■-•.'•'is m LA, MAISOH EET FIAHIIES. Paris, April 12. The new Theatre Libre society presented this three-act drama, by Jacques de Zogheb, at Us last per- formance, but the success was not gteat- It is the first work of the young playwright and his debut is not noteworthy albeit the piece is Interesting, well constructed and has many redeeming points. The story Is unfolded In one day. in the home of a newspaper proprietor, Delabre. His daughter Nelly is, for.one of the unknown reasons which guide a girl to love the wrong man, in- fatuated by an opponent of her father. When she learns her parents Journal l6 to publish a letter which may ruin his adversary's political career tas already seen in Batalllo's "Animator"), the daughter commits the fault of revealing to her father that his wife, her mother, has been unfaithful In the past. The house is thus in flames, the home destroy- ed. And this treachery is useless for the fellow she loves and would save ha?i already turned his coat, becoming a keen supporter of the party so that he can eat his way Into the Ministerial cheese and rise to office. The actor Arguilllere (who plays MARTINIQUE Ded* ) f TtBxj XAxa% Hoora Tout* J Servants { Juliette Croiby Te, a nrdener Cbarle* Kraua Rufs QuemtKl Arthor Hobl Marle-CIemence de Chauvalons.Helen BUlr Madame De Chauvalons, her tnotber, Ida Waterman Per* Benedict, abbot of tbe monastery, Bmmett Corrlcan Stephant Segulneae. hU brother, Vincent Coleman Paul Vauceln. of Paris Fleming Warde Zabetta da Chauvalons....Josephine VIotor Ninl iiuy Laura Moor* Azallne Maidel Turner MazimiHon Besart. tier lover.Frank Dawson The Pastry Seller Stewart Svans 0( the Quarter— Cendrlne Juliette Crosby Tiore ., llarvaret Bird Their Lovers— _ .... Pierre Oirotte Donald Cair Fablea Larldea .....Howard Ilenchloy Loulouze Marlon Dyer Dlogenej, hor "Suite" Itoy Hunt Dr. Arnauld Robert Hey worth Sister o( Mercy ..Mcrcidos Loo In "aiartlnlque," which Walter Hast brought to tho Eltlngo April 26, Laurence Eyre, who wrote It, beckons us along a gay colored xoute sweet with strange, exotic perfumes and warm with primal passions. But toward the middle of his second act ho stops beckoning. His play also stops there. All that he has! promised filters away into the meaningless and meanders into nothing down the byways of melo-' drama. In other words, what prom- ised to be a success proved to bo a near-flop. Mr. Eyro. who came out and bowed and explained how much he owed to Josephine Victor (whereupon Miss Victor kissed his hand and he hers) should have real- ized how much he owed to himself. He should not have bitten off more than he could chew, nor attempted to write deep emotions when his gift Is for the lightest of comedy. Mr. Hast's mistake lay in letting these two put on his piece, but even expert stage direction could only have bettered It slightly. The stuff Isn't there. There are several reasons for this TldMTACItTOE. (2d Edition.)"' Over at the Shubert-Crescent In Brooklyn the second edition ot "Tick-Tack-Toe" la holding forth^ this week. The show b^ Sophie'; Tucker featured and is minus the i "Si author - composer - produoer-actor«>.4:;:.'^ Herman Timberg. -Vv ■ ;^ Tlmberg and the financial backers: i-^ ot the show had a run-in while the ! v:/^ show was playing New York, wltJi ; ;.;-i the result that Tlmberg was ousted : v^^ and now the attraction is presented ' ^v-J by Arthur Klein, with Herman Pec- '-'-i^-^ tenberg of New Orleans looming In. ' : V^i the ofllng. The tatter, stated Tues- : -''yM day night he and Klein owned the -:' ^;\^ show, but when asked what had be- ..;: ^f'?-'.! come of the Cincinnati capital that' - .'aCni'j was behind, said: '^ell we are go- •■■% Ing to help the boys get some oC r:':^ their money back." Tlmberg may . --;^ or may not be all that he says, but -'^v^ suffice that be has a "parsing baek, % :<:^ stage" Interest in the show anyway. ■.: That don't seem to be much of a t' privilege at this time and won't be until there is practically an etr- • ».i tirely new chorus with tho troupe. . •>• v:?^ Although Tlmberg is out of the-' -;:;,iJ show ofSiclaWy be does not seem ',;'C>% willing to stay away from It, and V'J Monday night was very much pres- ent In the front row. According to those connected with the company, everyone on the stage knew be was there. The result was that a most ragged performance was given. Tuesday night tho show was but lit- tle better and the indications were; that someone would have to take - It in hand, that is, someone with production ability, and whip it into shape. As it is now It won't do, for there is nothing In It except Sophid Tucker^ and even she cannot carry the show along without aid. This doesn't mean that there isn't any cleverness among those Sup- porting Miss Tucker, but there does not seem to be the material to work wltlu The only hit In tho show waA the appearance of Miss Tucker la her vaudeville act down in the sec- ond'act of the show, when she tie4' things up completely. "Tlck-Taok-Toe" In its present shape is designed for Chicago duro Ing the sununer, due to arrive therft about sis weeks hence. Much work ■H -.•5i >: ..a' ■ -it/