Life — October 31, 1912 — page 20: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

*LIPE® Remarkable Achievement in Dramatization “TITTLE Women” is perfectly silly. Who in this cra wants to see the really truly life of a family of nice, human New England girls, with their little loves and ambitions and trials and tri- nphs, no matter how artistically and feelingly portrayed? No indecd. We're too far ad- vanced and progressive for such natural, home- ly and American things. Give us the “ Kat- ner Kids,” “Mutt and Jeff,” “Three ‘ag-time, turkey-trotting, bull-moos- ing, hobble-skirting and joy-riding, but don’t hore us with anything tainted with gentle wholesomeness or genuine sentiment. “Little Women” was for family reading when parents weren't busy in the rush of getting rich quick, suffragetting and social climbing To-day adults and youngsters of both sexes want something with more stimulus for the nerve centres and less demand on thought: and imagination. Nevertheless there seems even to-day to be a public for “Little Women” condensed into a couple of hours of stage diversion. This is high testimony to the clementary and universal human qualitics of Miss Alcott's simple picturing. To those who treasured mental acquaintance with the beloved Meg, Jo, Amy and Beth of the book it was at first something of a shock and disillusionment to sce them transformed into the coarser material of flesh and blood and costume on the stage. Done less simply, sincerely and even reverently, the theatrical rendering might have inspired a feeling of resent- ment and repulsion in the breasts of those who cherished the impressions gained by early reading of “Little Women.” As the play went on the feeling of artificiality wore off and even the most skeptical were forced to recognize that adapter, producer and impersonators had combined most remarkably in turning word drawings into living, breathing and talking humans. Even Jo, who, as depicted by Maric Pavey, threat- ened at first to be a grotesque and ludicrous caricature, soon grew into the picture and became only mildly exaggcrative of the Jo of the book and our fancy. Alice Brady's Meg was as adorable as the original, Gladys Hulette kept the pathos of Beth from becoming stage bathos and Beverly West re- sisted thoroughly the low comedy possibilities of Amy. The other familiar characters, who in the play as in the book furnish a background for the four heroines, were admirably reproduced. Marian Deforest, who wrote the stage version, and Jessie Bonstclle, who produced it, are deserving of high praisc for the perfection with which they have preserved the spirit of the original. Not the least of their accomplish- ments is their resisting the natural temptation to turn the death of Beth into another Little Eva episode in the way of harrowing the mourners. Mr. Brady is also to be commended for the faithfulness of the stage settings, which do much in providing atmosphere for the play. If this dramatization brings Miss Alcott's book more forci- bly to the notice of the coming generation it will have served a most laudable purpose. And the passing generation which knew and loved the book in their youth can sce the play of “Little Women” with enjoyment and without fear of de- stroying their precious memories. BW Vg rte w vee HERE was no need either for advertising or other pur- poses to make a hurrah about inviting a special audi- ence to witness the first performance of “ The New Sin,” by Mr. B. Macdonald Hastings. The play is perfectly able to stand or fall by its own merits or demerits. It is what it is and the paying public is going to judge for itself whether it ikes it or not, no matter what may be the opinion of an audience which accepted free tickets from the management. There is bound to be a wide difference of opinion because it is a play of conflicting values. Those who don't like talk may be attracted by its melodramatic features and the dra- matic interest of its story. The more thoughtful may be in- terested in the cleverness@with which its unconventional theories are advanced. It is a novel arrangement for the stage in more ways than its unusual feature of having not a woman the cast. On this last account it is not likely to be at all popular with the tired business man, whose theatri- cal solace is the girl-and-music show, There is certainly a difference of opinion as to just what sin the author meant to point out as the new sin mentioned in the tith His improvised commandment, “ Thou shalt not starve "—with the implication that any way to keep from breaking it is justifiable——seems to give a hint, particularly as one method of avoiding that sin is for the man of genius or the man with a mission not to let his productive powers be weakened by the obligation to help the less fortunate mem- bers of his own family. The play seems also to restate the Proposition “God gave us our relations, but, thank God, we can pick our friends.” Another sin pointed out is the injustice that can be done by a bad will and it is this that furnishes the basis of the plot. Incidentally the author takes a shy at the English custom of shop keepers boarding and lodging their help. As this custom is practically unknown here, and is made an clement of some importance in the play, it is not likely to add to the interest of American audiences. But “The New Sin” is well acted by its English company, most of whom manage to get their lines over without a too pronouncedly foreign accent; it tells a pretty strong story and has considerable humor. Therefore it may secure a public in spite of the impression its managers tried to convey that it was too good for the average Ameri- can audience, BAYH OD wY Ha wo “DOLLIES” is not a misnomer for the entertainment Mr. Ziegfeld provides at the Moulin Rouge. It would be difficult to imagine anything more devoid of the least suspicion of wisdom, using that word in its least ponderous sense. It doesn’t make even the usual girl-and-music show pretense of having a plot. It is simply a succession of songs, dancing, posing and nonsense without a connecting thread. Its main staple is girls, really very tastefuly grouped and dressed or undressed. It also has the inimitable Mr. Bert Williams, comicbook $.co