Variety (January 1922)

18 LEGITIMATE Friday, January 6, 1922 1 strain of comedy bo far aa the auditors woro concerned. £_ '. c:r!.'*i:» Un<\s as "By Cod, Drummond!" and "If you touch one hair of that girl's head, I'll kill you with my own hands." were sure to attain the ends. The story has to do with the "dastardly" machina- tions of a trio of schemers, who have set up a phoney sanitarium in a London suburb. One of the vil- lains, Dr. Laklngton, is an ex- physician; another, Carl Peterson, is a former American con man, whllj his feminine consort Is a hot and cold aide. They have somehow gotten In their toils a young Ameri- can multi-millionaire, one Travers, who Is carried from a London hotel by a variation of the badger game. Next door tt the sanitarium is the home of Phyllis Benton, whose brother was a wartime buddy of Captain Drummond. The latter, thirsty for excitement, had adver- tised for an adventure, and the girl answers, telling of her suspicions as to the terrible things she be- lieves are being done in the house next door. With his two very English pals, Drummond takes himself to the scene of the doings, and during the four acts of pistol i>hots, chloroform, drugged cigarets, secret doors, "needles" and the like, he effects the rescue of the wealthy young man, kills one of the conspirators and corners the others. It happens that two of the crooks make a get- away, but everybody is satisfied, in- cluding Phyllis, who puts the crusher on Drummond's bachelor- hood. A. B. Matthews, a skillful English actor, is the featured player, and he worked like a juvenile. His "big scene" came in the third act, when, with the reptilian, Dr. Lakington, there was a corking stage fight, ending with the medic's death by strangulation. In the rough-and- tumble struggle a glass on the doctor's table was broken and Mr. Matthews's hand was cut, he work- ing through the rest of tho finale act with a 'kerchief bandaging the member. The play was taken from a novel called "A Book of Adventure," credited to one "Sapper," whose writings describe how at least one person is placed in a bath of acid and how the others see the body en- tirely dissolve. That is a "thrill" which the play does not attempt. C. H. Croker-King as Dr. Laking- ton shares with Mr. Matthews the playing honors. Mr. Croker-Klng portrays a tarnished physician, steeped in the wiles of drug effects; snaky in action, forbidding in manner, cruel at heart. His every movement adds to the etching of the characterization and commands attention. Sam Livesey as Carl Peterson, the master crook, made a hard, forceful impression, providing contrast to the other lead roles, most of which are given to English players. Dorothy Tetley made a pretty Phyllis. The other feminine lead was capably done by Mary Robson. There Is perhaps little change in the lines of the play here, and only one was noticed. That referred to prohibition, described by an Ameri- can detective as "Riving us hell. Melodrama on Broadway has as much chance right now as straight drama, as witness the year's run of t*>o current "The Green Goddess, also of English authorship (William Archer), though the latter play is by far a more refined bit of writing. During the holiday week "Drum- mond" drew excellent business, and Broadway's opinion Is that it will be a money-maker. Jlee. FRITZ LIEBER (Shakespearean Repertoire) Fritz Licber, In association with Georgo Ford, leased tho Lexington on tho East Side for two weeks for a short season of the best known of the bard's works. Lieber opened Dec. "6 with "Macbeth," satisfylngly pre- sented in the accepted fashion. Licber makes no pretext at invest- ing his production with any novelty, hut present It "Just as she was wrote," reading his lines ponder- ously, with some tendency at times toward stagey strutting, but withal effective. , Lights and drapes are the basic props employed for the settings. As near as possible the star has de- cided to follow Shakespeare's Idea of the play construction, explaining it very concisely with this program note: "' Inasmuch as Shakespeare wrote without the use of a cur- tain many of his scenes are bound so closely together that any appreciable wait destroys the continuity of action. For that reason Mr. Leiber has ar- ranged to make tho intermis- sions between acts and scenes of a minimum duration. When the wait does not exceed half a minute the lights will bo kept clown in the auditorium in order to maintain the flow of action. Where there is a change in the dramatic progress of the play the lights will bo raised and the wait will be longer. However, no wait will exceed three min- utes. Mr. Lleber's supporting company fs adequate, including in the line- up William Daniels, Frank Howard, Olive Oliver, Waldron Smith, Louis Leon Hall, Philip 1>. Quin. John Burke, Constance Kingsley and W. lAoaard Gordon. Abel. "UP IN THE CLOUDS" A new jr ,,, *J' , ft] ptece, presented by Joseph Galtes, which opened at the Lyric Jan. 2. The show has been playing out of town with its present status, as witnessed on the initial evening, seeming to call for a bit more pruning if its New York run is to be prolonged a substantial length of time, no matter with what success the show met while on the road. Will Johnstone is credited with the book, Tom Johnstone the music, Lawrence Marston staged the pro- duction, while the dance numbers and ensembles are programed as having been under the direction of Allan Foster, Max Scheck and Vaughn Godfrey. Two acts shape up the outline of tho entertainment, with a quartet of scenes inserted into the final stanza. The first act is void of any changes in location. The script tells of an idealist possessing a rich father, dreaming of joining labor and cap- ital through the medium of the Alms, with the old boy opposing the idea of forming a producing company for the project and the venture about to go on the rocks due to the crooked director engaged but saved by the girl who, supposedly an amateur, turns out to be a star of the screen, east from the Coast to improve con- ditions in pictures. She grabs a hus- band with a wealthy father in the bargain. It's a light theme with not the best of dialog to aid m strengthening the plot to make it acceptable, with times when the action decidedly slows down to a degree that comes very near the stop sign. The music, while not exceptional, is tuneful but hardly adequate to the cause of lift- ing the piece out of the depths into which the script allows it to descend. Vaudeville supplied the bright moments in Ten Eyck and Weily, dancers, and Skeets Gallagher, who is doing nobly with a role that gives occasion to believe it is below the caliber he is capable of handling. The statuesque dancing of the for- mer pair, who are allowed two num- bers together, was more than cor- dially received in each instance, un- doubtedly partly due, at least once, to the previous lull in proceedings, made so by a dire lack in action and much witless conversation. Gal- lagher carried the comedy burden in a manner that spoke of personal at- tention having been given to the meager lines, and displayed enough ability to make him a fixture in legitimate attractions of the musical comedy type. The production as to scenery, less the set for the first act, which flashed forth apparent signs of shabbiness, and costumes was acceptable to the eye, with the listed 18 principals dressing nicely, and also the chorus of 16 girl members being above board on appearance. Other members who predominated were Hal Van Rensselaer as the idealist, Grace Moore as the film star in disguise, Gertrude O'Connor, playing opposite Gallagher in the laugh episodes, and Dorothy Smoller, who had nothing much else to do outside of looking good, but did it most prominently. Whether the show has been doing well on the road or not, it's been playing out of town since last April, and Chicago and Boston were very favorably inclined toward the piece, there remains the question if the previous success it has met with will be a criterion for the New York engagement. They're getting fussy, around here, what they pay $3.30 for. "Up in the Clouds" doesn't boast of anything special, outside of Gal- lagher, to recommend it at that price. Especially so if you compare it to "Tangerine" at a pop scale. Had "Up in tho Clouds" come in for $2 there might have been a chance, but Mr. Gaites should have known he did not havo a $3 Broadway cast. Perhaps "A Perfect Fool" fooled him. Sklg. Marguerite Forrest as the waitress who yielded to champagne and per- suasion; another Claude Coopers English sailor. Both wero exclama- tion points in a sea of prose. The unenlivened tempo at whloh this simple study of harbor life was played made it seem more like an amateur performance for the Ep- wbrth League than anything else. Two young printers from Paris ar- rive to sail for Canada, the more boastful of the two being diverted from his purpose by love of a girl, whom he wins from his friend in the second act. They elope, leaving the friend to pick up what's left of their purpose. All this is enlivened by the philosophising of the old boose- hound. Hldoux. Such is the play. Jacques Copeau produced it In Paris and It is done here in his manner, that is so naturally you almost go to sleep. More than any other, this kind of show needs theatrically effective devices to shove it across. Leed. HANKY PANKY LAND Playing on the Century Roof, which has been converted Into a one-floor theatre, "Hanky Panky Land" is devised as a holiday at- traction for the children, giving daily matinee and evening perform- ances, with a duo of morning shows also Included, during the two weeks the piece will hold forth. It opened Dec. 26. . . The producers of the "Greenwich Village Follies" are responsible for this show, which may be, in part, a revival of "Hanky Panky," played several years ago under William Morris' management. The title had been previously used by Weber and Fields. According to the program McEl- bert Moore did the book and lyrics, with J. Fred Coots writing the music, and Fred Helder (who plays the title role) the staging. The show is In two halves, with the con- tinuity resting upon a waif who starts out for Hanky Panky Land and comes into contact with the different nursery rhyme namesakes while on the way. A couple of vaudeville teams have been inserted into the running order in the forms of clowns and dolls, with Helder doing several dancing specialties and an ensemble of 24 girls (of whom none look to be more than 16) programmed as being Joe Small's Misses, supplying the back- ground for "numbers." However, it's in Alfred Latcl as the dog that the young folks will undoubtedly take the greatest delight. Latel is doing a corking bit of (if it may be so called) character work inside the skin and provided the outstanding individual effort. The piece has been nicely "done," which includes costumes and scen- ery and is bound to be figuratively "eaten up" by the youngsters. Business was reported as being somewhat off in the evenings, but strong at the afternoon perform- ances. If the show gave any prom- ise of strength it might be sent on the road. However, one result may be that Bohemians, Inc. ("Village Follies") may find another style of entertainment for the Century Roof. Al Jones, who chiefly promoted the kid venture, is said to havo been delighted with the Roof theatre ar- rangements and ito possibilities. Bkig. has been so ineptly handled. It would eem that ft social satire built arc nd a reverse of the Cyrano de Rer^n-ao idea -r-^uld promise much in the way of diversion. All the Dltrlchsteln play gets out of it is one sophisticated chortle when the self-satisfied husband finds his wife in company with the homely amateur Don Juan in circumstances that would arouse all his jealousy If the interloper had been hand- some, but which he complacently accepts as quite all right. The play is like a poorly delivered anecdote; tho wearisome elaboration of the tale kills Its point. Mr. Dltrlchsteln as always Is the polished comedian. His manage- ment of the trifling part Is interest- ing if only as an exhibition of grace- ful intellectual fencing. His la the outstanding role. None of the oth- ers is more than a pale figure dress- ing the picture, with perhaps the single exception of the frivolous wife given to philandering. Frances Underwood plays the part neatly, with a nicely balanced comedy sense. The enlivening moment of the play is the scene involving her and Dltrlchsteln in an ingeniously contrived and spicy episode where she unbends somewhat under the mellowing influence of an indiscreet liqueur, and epigrams crackle as a typical daring Dltrlchsteln situation is amusingly played out. The venture introduces a new the- atre to New York's already over- powering list. The house belongs in the "Intimate" class, with less than 600 seats, and it Is a bijou beauty, with natural wood paneled interior set off with exquisite Ivory decorations. It Is located on the uptown side of 49th street, half a dozen or so doors west of the Am- bassador. It is under direction of -the Shuberts, Lee Shubert standing sponsor for its first production. * Rush. MARRIED WOMAN Mra. Temple Mrs. Edmund Gurney Alice Matthewson Margaret Dale William Temple Orant Stewart Georce Herbert Percy Waram Henry Matthewson Marsh Allen .Sylvia Temple Beatrice Maude George Dellamy Norman Trevor Footman Edmond Morris Manservant Charles Herbert Maidservant Ida Moltnen FACE VALUE Cecilia Leonard Miss Nellie Hurt Henry Mr. M. A. KMly Edward Barton Mr. T.ee Millar Jose Henriqupz Mr. Leo Dltrlchsteln Alexis BorozouS Mr. Alexis Polianov Harry Stewart Mr. Hugh O'Connell Mrs. Rose Jennings.Miss Josephine Hamncr Alma Curtis Miss Frances Underwood Dr. Frederick Curtis Mr. Orlando Daly Arabella Mapes Mi*s Clara Mack In Mlsa Farrell Miss Mary Duncan S. S. TENACITY Thrive Marguerite Forrest Widow Cordior Jennlo Dlckerson Bastlen George Gaul Separd Tom Powers Hldoux Augustln Duncan An English Sailor Claude Cooper A Young Workman Howard Claney Another Workman Robert H. Forsythe An Old Workman II. Henry Handon Augustln Duncan presented "The S. S. Tenacity," translated from the French of Charles Vlldrac, with set- tings by Robert Edmond Jones, at the Belmont Jan. 4. It is a genre comedy in the sense "Three Live Ghosts" was, but it lacked the life, humor and plot twists of that amus- ing piece. All it offered was a com- ment on life as dull and draggy as any conversation in any cafe is likely to be. Theatrically effective acting might have helped, but the actors directed by Mr. Duncan offered nothing. Mr. Duncan and George Gaul headed the cast, and Mr. Duncan at least had a make-up. As a workman, Gaul with his lily-white handB brought laughs in the wrong place, and his idea of stago business seemed limited to lip-smacking and head-wagging. In short, tho man was swamped by the simplest at- tempt at charactrri/atlon. Tho faet strengthens the conviction he should have been a curate, devoting himself to tho ministry, not the stage, for he has a voice of some quality. In any rase, in this play, ho should have had the sentimental part in which Tom Powers' abilities were lost. A redeeming performance was that of Leo Dltrlchsteln brought his new ! play, "Face Value," adapted from the Italian of Sabatino Lopez by (Miss) Solita Solano, to the new 49th Street Dec. 26. The play has a witty idea—that of an extremely clever but supremely homely man defeating a handsome simpleton in a contest for woman's favors—but it makes pretty thin material spread over a whole evening's entertain- ment. And this in spite of the bland suavity of Mr. Ditrichstein's acting. There is a fifteen-minute passage of sublimated comedy leading to the delightful climax of the second act, but the rest of the three acts is tire- some with aimless talk and shuttle- cock of verbal fencing, badinage and labored repartee instead of dra- matic story interest. Except for the short Interval noted there is but the faintest tension of interest. All I:, all, it is a waste of Mr. Di- trichstein's talents for keen satire and his gifts for deft caricature. The disappointment is in no wise at- tributable to the actor, except in his choice of vehicle, but rather to the lack of substance in the play. There la a certain engaging hu- mor in this shrewd thrust at the type Identified as tho "male vamp" and in the calm self esteem of the placid husband who declines to per- ceive the dangerous rivalry of an- other man merely because he is physically unattractive. Women will appreciate the delicacy of the play's fun rather than men, but even then there Is such a lot of triviality and so small a portion of worth while entertainment that tho picking of tho nut yields too little meat to pay for the effort. Norman Trevor, with the aid of an "Inc." following his name, mado his debut as an actor-manager at the Princess, New York, Christmas eve in a comedy by C. B. Fernald, entitled "The Married Woman." If memory serves right thero was a previous production of the piece at one off the neighborhood theatres some time or another in the past. As a/comedy the play holds up nicely^ for\wo acts, the final act needing knitting together to make it stand up. There is a quality in the last act that does not seem to Jibe with the previous two stanzas, and it becomes a Jarring note. "The Married Woman" is intend- ed for smart audiences. The pro- ducers might bear this in mind when looking at the box-offlco statements. If the smart audiences do not pat- ronize within the first fortnight they may as well let the venture go by the boards, for the general public, and especially those that see plays from the popular-priced seats, will not care particularly for it. They will not And In its humor the broad lines jthe average run of farce au- thor's pen, and after all the Ameri- can public that can enjoy a comedy of manners is decidedly limited. Mr. Fernald has attacked his sub- ject in a manner Shavian, to say the least, but without the bite that might be expected from the Irish author. Had this play been dono 10 years ago in New York it would at that time have created for itself as great a vogue as did Shaw's "Man and Superman." Now, with- out the pounding home of the fact that there Is something sensational underlying the comedy vein, there isn't a chance the general public will rush to It. However, it has in its comedy a decided understrata of birth control propaganda, and that. If It Is necessary to make the appeal to the masses, will have to be the sales point of the publicity. The story is based on the right of the wife to have children, if she wants them. Not having children as a work-a-day proposition, but chil- dren for the sake of children, and what they will mean in their own generation. The question Is handled In delight- ful fashion to tho understanding, and those who wish to pose as such will come away from the theatre with a viewpoint governed by the ately. he was not as clever in chos* las; the ladles of the company. One would naturally think a male star would b* certain toJiuflA up hi- «»?aJL In those qt the opposite sex and that the men would be chosen with due regard, not to detract from the principal player, who was also the dominating business factor in the organization. But in both Margaret Dale and Beatrice Maude Mr. Trevor has se- lected two women who, while not aa completely satisfying to the eye as they might be as stage pictures still play with real charm and authority. The latter of the two Is the leading member of the trio of ladies that carry the principal roles. Miss Dale, as the secondary lead, was far more effective than Miss Maude. Mrs. Ed- mund Gurney, as a character grande dame, was quite the picture and the type. The men supporting Mr. Trevor are Percy Waram and Marsh Allen, who walked away with all the hon- ors that Mr. Trevor did not annex. Mr. Trevor gave a performance that was restrained, but that added to its effectiveness. Mr. Waram was a blustering British type of hubby, while Marsh Allen was simply a howling delight in the comedy role of the hub who had been led to the marriage halter some Ave years pre- vious to the time of the opening ^f the play. In the finish, however, he turns out to be a real brick. C. A. de Lima is credited with the staging,of the performance, while In a business way the credit for the promotion of the formation of Nor- man Trevor, Inc., may be credited to John Tuerk, who Is the general man- ager of the company as well as the manager of the Princess for Cora- stock & Gest, where the play was presented. Mr. Tuerk may at least be accredited with splendid judg- ment in selecting class for hie first promotional production venture. Fred, THE WHITE PEACOCK Anna Ludmllla Toretska Marietta Doris Carpenter Don Miguel Di Rlbera T Bantallos.... I^eon Gordon Rafael Roderisuoz E. L. Pernandea Rovette Dl Rlbera Y Santallo* Madame Petrova The Countess Wyanock Let ha Walters Captain Hubert I,an* George C. Thorpe Don Caesar Dl Mendosa Gonzales Malcolm Fassett Jo*ellto Charles Brokaw Pedro Judson Langill manner In which the "smart" peo- ple accept it. Let's hope that the Princess will house enough of that class each night to impress the rest of the audience. Mr. Trevor, in addition (o being ul the head of tho producing company, Is also the star. Hidden away on the program is the statement the play Is under tho direction of The Sel- wyns. Does this mean that we are on tho threshold of a new era In tho theatre, or does it mean that no mat- ter if the actor does manage to fi- nance a production, he will not feel sufficiently safe unless he has the guidance of an experienced mana- gerial hand? From common gossip prior to the making of this presenta- tion, that latter view is the one that must be accepted. Mr. Trevor has gathered about him a supporting company that re- flects credit upon himself, inasmuch as he has selected actors in his sup- After a lapse of several years de- voted to screen work, during which time a short vaudeville tour was also played, Olga Petrova returned to the New York legitimate stage Doc. 26 at the Comedy in "The White Pea- cock," a romance in three acts, writ- ten by her. The Petrova vehicle completed an eight weeks' road tour prior to "'being brought into New York, and proved a draw in the week stand cities on the strength of the star's screen prestige and a well- managed publicity campaign. Wom- en can largely be relied upon for what success the pieco may attain, both on Broadway and the road, as It contains a direct appeal to fern* inlne audiences. Petrova spent a large portion of the past summer in Spain, which country is chosen as the locale of the play. Undoubtedly the idle time spent in that country furbished her with the ideas for the piece, which is filled with romance, intrigue and melo- drama, with the final touch a dash of old-time melodramatics which does not prove altogether satisfying after two Interesting and spirited acts. The theme deals with the eternal triangle idea with a novel twist hero and there. The infidelity of Don Miguel disrupts his married life, forcing a stand of Independence upon his wife, who takes up painting as a livelihood. In her art work a fond- ness for a male model springs up, the model in turn proving to be an escaped corivlct and the accused slayer of his father, a former pre- mier. In the development of the play the husband and an accomplice are brought forth as the real slayers, which results in the former's death and the Just reward in the shape of the dead man's widow for the falsely accused youth. The greater portion of "The White Peacock" is Interesting. The second and third acts stand up nicely with the first, somewhat talky at tho start, which tends to get the play under way at a slackened speed. Tho star, with a rather interesting accent, gives an intelligent perform ance in the role of the wife u with Malcolm Fassett a capable leading man as the model. E. L. Fernandez is one of the play's best assets in the acting division. The remainder of the cast is adequate. In addition to the authorship Mme. Petrova is credited as the creator of two of the three sets, with tho third the work of Clifford Peinber, he In turn having executed all three. In the production end the Petrova vehicle Is well fortified. The run of "The White reacock" on Broadway In all probability will be limited, but It should prove a sure money getter on the road. Hart. It's a pity so fascinating a subject port that are clever, but, unfortun NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYHOUSE The second subscription perform- ance of the Neighborhood Playhouse of tho Henry street settlemeni opened Saturday with a pantomim* program of which "The Royal Fan- dango," a Spanish ballet in u\>- scenes, with book and mmlc by Oc- tavo Morales, was^ tho prime f< ' (Continued * page 19)