Variety (September 1923)

Thursday, September 13,1923 LEGlffMATE ti BELASCO'S NEW UGHTING SCHEME - ILLUMINATES MRS. HSKE'S PLAY Italian Novelty Marionette Show Opens on Frolic Roof—Shipman'fc , "Crooked Square" Doesn't Start AnyAing—"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary" Parlor Comedy with Cast of Excellence XASY, QUITE COHTUAEY Iftrr We*!""* I*"- Fl«ke Sn CODildlne Winifred Frasrr y^ji.^ Nora Swinburne Soffrfly '• Francis Lister Sir Krnry Con»iaio» C- Aubrey Hmlth fA*. Conaidlnc Orlando Daly «lm^ ,. ...Naoe Kondo 11^1)0 ;....,. A. P. Kaye Jtnny ^ Audrey Cameron g]l0n Gladys flurftess IPjy Iftmmii Florence Kdney ^t^f Lennox I'awle i)avid Belasco, master of many ctfctta and a^ta that- combine to ■t4nd his presentations abov« those ef any other living: stage producer, •iTjtttroduced Mrs. Flske In a highly i: Mhllaratlng light comedy at the '. $aI*aco iiept. 11 with unequivocal -' ■iiccess, and sprang a surprise In a .new lighting method which may rev- ' l^lutlonlze the age-old systems of oproblnlng foot, border and spot- Ugbts for vision and effect. For the Dnt time In any theatre none of itbese wus employed. ...The lights were projected—or, jhkther, surtu.'ed—from.silver reflec- iitn set in boxes attacfied to the ;^lit8 of the balconies, one from the JInt and two from the second. ,i^(alnst these are thrown floods ' ittrough gelatines or dipped lenses in the natural rainbow colors) (vio- let, yellow. Indigo, blue, orange and ted) and they merge in an endless •elective combination of hues blend- ing before they reach the stage ,, ftpenlng. ; pThe re.'sult is any desired quality, ' .'liiade and degree of light. In the ', 4kmt act It was sent against an " Vrban blue sky background, and it .., Iraa thought that this was part of ^v the scheme; but In the second it •Wm aa effective in an Interior, prov- lii( that the stage colors are not in the conspiracy. The face lightings were as powerful as a apot could tiave made them, yet nowhere near aa glaring and synthetic. Every eomer of the stage was covered with as even, natural, solar glow. This can be regulated by shutters, of Which there are 15. any of which can b* used or blanked out. The ex- perimentation, of course, had set the lights for this play's uses, and they were all open throughout. These were not the only new lights to shine on "Mary, Mary, Quite Con- trary." The unsuspected genius of St John Ervine as a writer of . ■atlrical parlor comedy was one of :^ th« others. Mr. Ervine, author of v,M>» drab "Jane CMegg" and many ■■ one-acters of what we in the States f would call the O'Neil school, stops tthrth as a Clyde Fitch in breezy, ptoyful humor—very British, very ^X^HlellBhtful. '• Almost all of the cast was of , British importation, either recent or ^^ not so long ago. Mrs. Flske, never :' Identified with Englishisms, seemed to fit, however, and she did not '. ktrain her famous intonations either. •'■■■ As a temperamental, whimsical, at ■, times farcical star, she gave. If not if- the greatest characterization of her :■■, long and honored career, at least ;,, toe of the most flawless and most ■■'. pleasant Mary Westlalce would T "ever have made Mrs. Flske, but it "' Will sustain her. ♦' b/^*"" ""PPTt is perfect. Only a '4 J?'***^"' " seems, may assemble and j^ airect such synchronous harmony of «l Individual and concerted acting. ^ l«nnox Pawle in a last act "utility &,;plt Is illustrative of the caliber of ^ tWs organizatino—iPawIe is more of i,",r'•t*'" than half the half-made ones V, .*''o«* names shriek from the un- , Mushing billboards. V i»« Nora Swinburne Mr. Belasco ,( mtroducps a young leading woman M class, distinction, authority and , Charm; her diction is of the sort that only the better British schools c&n lend un. Francis Lister, Mrs. Flske's lead- •pg man, though unfortun.ately re- Quired to harp on but one note (he is • nery young poet), again calls for Ws off to this same excellent Whooling from over the pond. A. P. , K«ye and C. Aubrey Smith—the first ■V J* "8"o and "low" as the other la 1 J*"idcroun and dry—are of course, _jnown qu.intitles, and with tat roles . _, _..„ roles »»nie throuc-li to great good sport. rii t™' '''*"«'' reception and ntter- iik "I'^'os were more th.-in ex- "Deratinc—ihey were touohinB. She respondp.l .^fter the .second act with * «Deeoh such as is rarely hi^ard inese y,.:,,.^ ]„ the American the- «re. an oxl(^nilcd, intelllBent, fcPlins outpour (if Kr.ioious gratitude and „,™ sentimrnt. As the audience »n », ''""^ to this woll-lovcd star, tron ''"''^'""•^'' homage to her pa- Mr. Ueiinpo also made a brief ad- dress. And whenever Mr. Belasco makes an address the play may be set down as a success. He is too cunning to express himself publicly when there is a doubt At the rare premieres that have ushered in Be- lasco plays which were destined to their doubts, Mr. Belasco could not be found. In this debut he prob- ably made no rash departure. At the hazard of growing bore- some, this reviewer feels it once more his function as a reporter of the theatre to state his opinion that David Belasco gives more to the in- stitution he serves and to the pub- lic he Invites than any other indi- vidual of his generation; that he is a sincere and devout impresario whose prosperity is rather fortuitous than deliberate; that both In the theatre, without, and on the stage, in the conception and preparation of entertainment for America, he is a kindly, generous giant. He should be held above any suspicion of com- mercialism and be regarded as a publicist toward the ethical uplift and the accelerated morale of his times and his nation. Lait. UABIONETTE FLAYERS Preaanted by Charlea Dllllncham at the Frolic on top of the Amsrterdaxn, New Tork, Sent. 10. tor run. Billed aa imported from the PlocoU. Rome, and under the direction of Car, R. Fldoim and Dr. V. Podrecca. Overtur*—"II Matrlmonlo SesraCo".. CUnaroaa 1. Prelos. 2. Seraphina on the Sphere. 3. Pierrots and DutterHiea. 4. "Crlsplno e Ck»mai%" (duet). Moalc by t,. and F. Rlcol. Scenery by Plerretto Blanco. Annetta /. .Clarie Vau^han Criapino Cyril WhltUe .S. Bll-Bal-Bul at Play. 0. Tarantella. (Music by Rossini.) Mr. Heddle Nash. 7. "Puas In Boots." Opera In tws arts and four acenea. After Charles PerraiHt. Mual<: by Cesar Cut. Stase sdttlnca by V. Graaal. Act I, Puaa KIta Edwards Th« Frlnceaa Ciaale Vaughan Jack Heddle Nash The Kins Cyril Whittle Tha Oct* Tito Varser Intermlasioo. Aot n. B. "Pusa la Bnota." 9 Tha Thr»M» Thieves In a Ca^. 10. Miss Lesnettl, NeapollUn vocalist. Klsa CIssle Vaughan. 11. Pumpkln-LAnd. MarioneMa Operators—The Famniea of (}amo, Dell'Acqua Oelrola and Repetto. ^ha orobastrm under ttie direction of Peace Ottona. This mannikin show Is a novelty, but Just how much of a novelty and what the draw will amount to will be determined by the social set. If society takes to the puppets as a light and new diversion the show will get over at its $2.50 scale, but if the socialites side-step it the roof will have to depend upon the chil- dren for matinees. At present two matinees weekly are listed. This marionette performance came from Rome, where It had a run for 10 years. Gointr Into Lon- don, It picked up a vogue, and C?harles Dillingham saw ft. The present Frolic root engagement is limited with the report Dillingham and the show's management repre- sented by B. Wolhelm of London in the business end, have agreed that upon the result of the New York engagement will rest the chance of a country-wide tour. Wolhelm has been away from New York for about 11 years. When previously here he was the H. B. Marinelll representative. Then ac- counted a crackerjack International theatrical agent, he since has de- veloped into a crackerjack inter- national showman, having theatrical interests of his own abroad. He imported the mannikin troupe Into England. The Judgment of two .showmen like Dillingham and Wol- helm upon a noveP.y attraction out of Europe for New York should found a pretty fair base, but there's the standing gamble always on how a show will look In another foreign capital. About 17 or 18 are working the strings back .stage for these puppets. ,ind at one time there were 17 man- nikins on the stage. Vet the en- sembles did not .secure anything in results lll<o the single bit* did, .su.li a.s an .u-rlal turn with one puppet in black or the nnlslilnf, 'iirodiirtion number" bit," "Pumpkin-band." The deponi*cni-e sof-mlngly haj booi, placid on a marion','tt«» npor- otta, "I'lisH In liodiH," with a Ivncil .score written for It. The singcMS brought from Kiigland, aided Ihe Impression, but through the severely straight manner In which the opera was given It became monotonous and remained too long in its two acts, although the entire perform- ance ran but from 8: SO until 10:20, with a 10-minute intermission. With puppet handling brusque comedy is wanted, the lower the better, and the lowest kind could have saved "Puss." It was only the cat in this bit 'hat held laughs, and those but slightly In a light traves- tied manner. A sense of burlestiue appeared to trail with two or three of the string handlers, but it was held down and given vent only with the soprano singing puppet A marked feature of tha en- sembles was that different figures would be manipulated with mors skill, understanding or attractive- ness than the ethers. Through working of the lips or mouth when "singing" and with many lines at- tached that could be plainly seen against the colored borders (not changed throughout the evening, although the sets were) a figure here and there would be carried with more naturalness and dis- tinctiveness than its neighbor. Lay patrons of the class theatre may not be familiar with puppet shows. If that Is so, then this at- traction has the better chance. It aftordf the sight of automatons worked to resemble humans, and where, as with the Marionette Play- ers, the figures are much larger than customarily employed, with some seeming almost life-size, it may be- come a matter of mental marveling. But the- vaudeville-goers know marionettes; American vaudeville has had some of the best, and there has been none better than Mme. Jewell's. While this Frolic group may be more extensive through the go minutes' performance, Mme. Jewell, adapting her puppet act to vaudeville requirements within 20 minutes, may rest content wherever she is on the cireuits over here In the knowledge she Rett^r has been surpassed in manipulattb^^ nor en- tertainment—nor ideas. The Marionette Players has'^Mum- berleas settings, swiftly chan^^d, and the working is splendid mlntN^ over-anxiety on the opening nlght.N when the men in the wings dis- played a hand here and there, and also that border which brought out the lines, ofttlmes sharply, as these foreigners seemingly have given no attention to the wires or ropes, they being of different sizes without coloring to blend Into the setting and possibly aid the illusion. If the Marionettes get over in New York they will get over any- where, and for the same reason— auuiety. If the requisite play is made for the social elect they may %e landed, besides the ultra-forelcn element In this metropolis. The Marionettes would have been great in the days of the Frolio roof when it was the Frolic, and Zleg- feld's .with its cal>aret atmosphere superinduced by booie—that was booze. Alme. THE CROOKED SQUARE Melodramatic oomady by Samual Shlpmui and Alfred O. Kennedy produoad by Mrs. Henry B. Harrla at tlia Hudson S^t 10. Three aots and (our scanaa. 6taca4 Iqr Fred a. Slanbopa. Pete Edward Power Jamea Darnell John Parti Barbara Klrkwood Edna HIbbard Thomaa Itarvey Claude Kins Robert Ctibr Kenneth McKenna Teasia Asnea Mara PpRcy Patricia (Mrart Plnkla Bleanar Martta Matron Uda Kane Annie Jordan • Ruth DonnaHy Laura Dorothy West Tony Jack Zjarue T.aura'8 father John Hall Mrs. I!ymlly Burnham t,eonore Harrla Mr. EdKemora C. Henry Gordon Mtss Darby -fGraoa Burseas Mr. Dodson Franktyn Hanna Toyo T. Tam&moto Prince Stefano Sotenakl..aeorKe« Renavant Alice Harvey Oladys Hanson Smith Walter Howe Mrs. H. B. Harris has produced on and off for some years with rather bad luck, in selecting plays. In securing "The Crooked Square" last spring it was believed the would break the string, probably be- cause of reputation in authorship and the title. But when the play was presented in Chicago it could do no better than ordinary busi- ness and as the cast holds a score of players the production debit plied up. Since then considerable work has been done on the script, with not .a few speeches leaving nothing to the imagination. That factor may excite box ofTlce buying but it is doubtful it Ihe new play can land, for Its lengthy cast necessitates more than ordinary takings, .Samuel Shipman has been a fiend nn paradoxloal titles ever since ho and John 1! Ilymcr cleaned up with "K.Kit Is West." In tha interim "Lawful Larreny'" made Shippy .some money, thoush "First Is Last" was funny only in the title. ^The nriRlnal script of "The Crooked ijquare" was written by someone else. In this case Albert C. Ken- nedy was the writer. Years ago Kennedy was quite well known in melodrama and his "Lady Blarney" with Anne Ward Tiffany was on the boards for some time. Kennedy also had other dramas produced but has never attained his ambition of devoting himself only to play- wrighting. "The Crooked Square" Is melo- drama dressed up but which reaches far back. Kennedy doubtless sup- plied the drama and Shipman the speeches, the latter being bound to attract attention and perhaps dis- cussion. There are two kinds of detective agencies treated with. One a high class institution, the other one which "finger prints" notables and sells such information for po- litical or other reasons at a price. In this case one Thomas Harvey, a banker of spotless name, is lined up for a cabinet appointment, but foes desire to smash the man. Un- able to connect Hai vey with women, the under cover "information bu- reau'' works upon his wife, who listened to the polished gab of a Russian prince broken by the war and willing to pick up an honest dollar any easy way. The banker's house Is filled with servants In the f)ay of the bureau with the object of forcing a scandal and sloughing the Washington Job. The scheme Is given away by a little girl from the South who at first Is on the verge of taking to the street and who is framed by the bureau and sent to the reformatory for a time. Edna Hlbbard, once of musical comedy but more recently in drama ("The Bad Man" and last season in "Orlngo"), and Ruth Jordan, who has made a name tor playing saucy stenogs and the like, are the out standing players in "The Crooked Square' because they are given quite the bulk of Shlpman's speeches Some of those lines are trite, others right oft the griddle, but most are amusing. Miss Hlbbard after vainly attempting to convince the head of the detective agency he ought to give her a Job declares a woman can work with her two hands or else with her body and It looked like the latter for her. When the man otters her a $20 bill she refuses but cries: "Meet me on 42d street In an hour and let me earn that bill." "The Crooked Square" is disclosed to be Broadway, anyhow In the mind of the girl from the South, and she or Shippy (nay be right Miss Hlbbard says about it that; "All good New York men have pre- vious engagements and those who haven't are Just previous." She says too that it la "a city of present piromises and future disappoint- ments." Pretty i.,arly every char- acter in the first act has "lines." It may be information or experience that "any man who loves his wife mlist be a bit Jealous" and "suspect a woman of going wrong and she'll go wrong." A scene in the discharge room of the state reformatory for women brought the "shockers" which seem to htive been Inserted with an eye to the box office. A number of femliilne derelicts are enacted. One who naa done time for over a year Is met by a dope fiend lover who frankly tells her she has got to go out "hustling" right off the reel. The girl rounters by saying she is going back to her folks, calls him a "dirty " and rushes oft. The gem of the scene comes when the girl who was framed Is told by a house maid who borrowed her mis- tress's bag and for.TOt to put it back in time that: "Street-walking is an art; you can't acqulr# it; you're either born with it or you ain't." ' Realism no doubt was expressed when the heroine told the man shp loved about following the direction of a detective, being taken to an apartment and being told to strip. She didn't and was rushed to a police station. A real laugh came when near the climax of the story Miss Donnelly said to Miss Hlbbard: "I'm a Catholic and you're a Protes- tant but I guess we can pray to- gether for the same cause in spite of the Klux." Next In line was the admlselon of the prince that he lived at 180 Bleecker street. Shipman has not been as adroit as formerly in working out his cur- tain lines. T.ie first one, "Meet me at 42d street," counted best, but the second act was "Ood, deliver the goods," which wa« not so good, nor the finale line, "The Almighty did it." Georges Renavant enacted the prince with conviction and he looked the part without u.slng hirsute adornment, Oladys Hanson was ex- cellent a« Mr.i. Harvey, though she had not a great deal to do. Claude King played the banker fairly well, while John Park looked the high- class detective. Kenneth McKennst was liked foi his Juvenile and C. Henry Jordan made a sleek "In- formation" getter. 'The Crooked Square" Is hand- somely set. The first scene Interior has been cleverly designed and car- ried out, while the last act is given the proper drawing room atmos- phere. The chief fault of direction in the Chrisim.as chimes in the re- formatory scone. If that was the director's idea. There are times when ' TIi" Crooked Sunarc" Is exlrem>-Iy t:ill!.v and that may lir- tlm r"il iintt'T with It. While ttie tilay Is In <\nnhi for P.ri)-.(lwriv It looKs iil<e excellent m.aterlal for pictures, wlileh are thi' out '"■■ niodepu produ'-lion attempts ■ ibc; THOMASHEFSET'S TEDOISH CO. ("The 3 Little Business Men") rrrsentod by Harry Tliomashefsky at tha nayes. New York, Sept. S for run Dorea Thomnshefsky. Rudolph anl I.udwlg Siita Htarred. A comedy with music In three acts by Oscar M, Carter. Muklc by Joseph Chernlavsky (also orchestra conductor): lyrics by Mr. 8ata and Kl. (lee; alaged by Iloros Thomashetsky: scttines by JxjuI llrombers. Max Thomasbefsky, manager. Tonia Pola Carter Jim Kennedy Richard Webb Helena Danllevaky Oolde Tubrltsky Sophia Danllevsky Reglna Zuckerbers Mr. Manilelbaum Rudolph Uchlldkraut Hyman Smith Irving Oroasman Alexander Danllevaky.Borea Thomaahefsky Mra, SmIIh Freda Zlebel Mr. Smith Ludwlg Sata Mr. Dillingham A. Krber Mr. Oarflnkel Uershon Rubin (The character o( Mr, Mandelbaum la ac> caslonally played by Oershon Ruble.) The Thomashefskys not alone moved their East Side Yiddish com- pany to Times square Labor Day (at the Bayes) but they moved the (East Side along with it -V pushing throng mobbed the little inconvenient and stingy lobby of the Bayes about show time, perspiring and probably swearing at the delay occasioned by the two stow-golns elevators which transfer patrons to the root theatre. It was a better-calibred crowd, though, than usually found on Sec- ond avenue, with the chance that many there came down from the Harlem section to gree: the three Yiddish stars, Bores Thomashetsky, Rudolph Schlldkraut and Ludwlg Satz. E^ch of these players, so popular in Yiddish theatrical circles, received hug-> receptions, perhaps Mr. Thomashetsky the most vocif- erous, and all of thein could teach the American actor on the mode of accepting reception plaudits with- oujt leaving their character. These Yiddish players are actors all of the time. They suggest a hard training that made them ac- tors, not good looks nor matinee stuff. Just hard and fast actors who act Besides there is a wbolesome- ness to their appearance, with the matronly roles beyond mistake and the Juvenile and ingenue exactly that No one paraded, no one posed and no one strutted—their business on the stage was strictly acting. The workmanship could not be missed. "Whether that mar be credited to the stage direction of Bores Thomashetsky or the Yiddish method is immaterial—it Impressed Itself. ♦ "The Three Little Business Men," a comedy with music, is too light for any of the cast to indulge in heavy dramatics. The piece Is done in Yiddish with some slight varia- tion into English, and there Is a mass of dialog in the first act that ran for over an hour. In the East Side Yiddish theatres, when a mus- ical comedy is presented, there is more music and comedy business Cban developed in this piece during the first act. The trend of the story at the Bayes could not be gleaned without a fair knowledge of the Yiddish tongue and required trans- lation. Three novelties In Yiddish playing did come out during the first act (with the remaining two surmised since the dialog could not be under- stood). One was Reglna Zuckar- berg tig Sophie Danllevsky, a ntoe looking bninet Ingenue, singing in Yiddish In a duet with Irving Qross- naan its Irving Smith, the Juvenile, with an extremely pleasant voice singing the. same song In English, It had the effect of a counter-lyric. Another Was Pola Carter as the maid, of the Danllevsky household, toward the finale of the act strum- ming a guitar and getting a Hawaiian effect in the music while doing a number that suggested Yid- dish Jazz as it may be understood or Interpreted, with Miss Carter fol- lowing it With what sounded like a Yiddish "blues." The other bit was Richard Weber as Jim Kennedy appearing as a col- ored messenger boy at the start of the act, really colored,- talking in English and doing a dance before exiting. In story (without accuracy guar- anteed) It seemed that Mr. Schlld- kraut as Mr. Mandelbaum had called at the home of the Danllevskys on Riverside drive. New York. When the head of the house arrived home Mandelbaum attempted to persuade him to engage in the bootlegging business on the .lower EHist Side, there to make a Russian whisky from a formula held by Mandelbaum, (It's somewhat Indefinite whether Mandelbaum had the formula or knew whece—it- could be obtained, with Danllevsky's money.) Into the midst of this persuasion y Mandelbaum entered Freda Zlebel as Mrs. Smith, looking for her hus- band (Ludwlg Satz), a window washer. Mrs. Smith believed Mr. Smith was trying to hide from her. She tells her opinion of her man and leaves. Satz arrives, to wash the windows of the apartment. He over- hears Mandelbaum and Danllevsky ■peaking of the Russian whisky and formula. Smith pleads to be taken along and in the business with them. He wants to lose his wife; he can't stand her any longer after six years of wedded life and relates his woes, concluding by saying the breaking point was when ho caught Mrs. .Smith "feeding a 'Shlckscr*" at the kitrlivn ilonr. To torre his entrance Into the '•otnl>in:itioii Smith professes to l;tiow a ffiimiiia for the Russian whi.skv Cmentionf d by name, with tha name always bnnging a lauffh), and