Life — December 30, 1920 — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

A <D now to take up those plays which have already opened as this article is heing written. There are so few available to-day that the sight of Madge Kennedy devoting her many talents to a play like to make one gnash a tooth. Every once in a while, out from the laborious grindings of the old-fashioned crook-play machine, comes a spark from Miss Kennedy, and you see what might have hecn. A good comedy line entrusted to her is thrice blest, for aside from its original value she enhances it with her unusual understanding of the comic and an exceedingly attractive look about the eyes. In “Cornered” she has good comediennes “Cornered” is cnouy ~LIFE- the difficult task of delivering almost bur- lesque lines in the manner of one saying something really good, and the funny part of it is that you actually do think the lines are good—for a minute. It is the sort of crook play in which the slangy boys in. the out quick “You're with an arm full of cels and not lose onc.” That's the value of world slang. underworld snap other like > tight you could swim a river phrases at each American under- But a great deal more time could have been saved in writing “Cornered,” and Miss Kennedy could have spent it rehearsing for something worthy of her. Robert C. Benchle: It saves so much time. CONFIDENTIAL Gwe g to the time it takes to print Lire, readers should verify from the daily news: papers the continuance of the attractions at the theatres mentioned. More or Less Serious Belmont —" Miss Lulu Bett.” Notice later. Bijou.—" The Skin Game.” — Showing what happens when a patrician condescends to fight against the pushing new generation. An interesting and well-written drama by Galsworthy. Pro —" The Women of Bronze.” On the hypotenuse of an old-fashioned trian- gle play Margaret Anglin erects a square which equals the sum of all the rest of the emotional acting in town. (A slightly clum- figure which simply means, “Don’t miss ) Garrick. Heartbreak House.” It may mean something and it may not, but it is for the most part very amusing and you can sleep through the scenes which aren't. (A Mr. Shaw wrote it, by the way.) Maxine Elliott's panish Love.” Am- orous dalliance executed with much the same spirit_as that of a bullfig Bright colors and Spanish dancing on the side. Morosco.—" The Bat.” Think of a crime. Multiply it by two. Add another. Multi- ply the result by four. And here they are, including the crime you first thought of. Playhouse —“ Thy Name Is Woman.” A pretty little domestic scene in the Pyrenees, in which Mary Nash flashes her eyes con stantly and Jose Ruben wields an extremely mean dirk Thirty-Ninth Street—" Samson and De- lilah.” “The Russian actor Ben-Ami's first part in Enghsi, played with extraordinary skill, making a memorable event of a Scan- avian tragedy of artist home-life Times Squa The Mirage.” One, of those plays ab irl who came to New York to make good and made a lot of money instead. Florence Keed does all that can be done with the part, but there isn't much leit of it after all these years Comedy and Things Like That Astor. —"Cornered.” Belasco —* Deburav.” To next week Root William Reviewed in th be reviewed ~“ The Favershar Prince delig Pauper.” swashbuck- ling in a pleasant little dramatization of the Mark Twain story, beautifully staged. A good holiday play Broadhurst—" When We Are Young.” There isn’t much that you can say against it except that it isn’t very good. It's clean and wholesome, and Henry Hull and Alma Tell are in it. You can take it or leave it and never know the difference. M. Cohan —" The Tavern.” Ar- in a delicious burlesque of roman tic drama, the wildest and most illegitimate production ever staged. Something to tell your grandchildren about. Cohan and Harris.—“ Welcome Stranger.” Rustic play of conventional mold, with enough good acting by George Sidney to make up for its general lack of taste. It's about a Jew who shows a Yankee town a ‘ew. pointers. Comedy—" The Bad Man.” Holbrook Blinn in one of the season's notable charac- terizations, that of a gentleman bandit who cleans up the Mexican border with gun and satire, inge—" Ladies’ Night.” About the only play im town that you would feel ashamed to be seen coming out of—unless you were leaving at the end of the first act Very popular. Empire-— next week. Forty-Eighth Street—“ The Broken Wing.” An airplane crashes through the wall of a Mexican house early in the play and from thei on it deals with amnesia and broken Engh: in what is generally con- sidered to ve an interesting manner. Fulton.—“ Enter | Madar Superior light comedy of artistic temperament call ing for supericr acting—and getting it Gaiety. —" Lightnin’.” Reaches its 1000th performance on New Year's. Greenwicn Willa mY The Beggar's Opera.” To be reviewed next week ly sentimental little y girl who hooks the Prince of by breaking the Virginia record indeed Hudsou—* The Meanest Man World.” George M. Cohan lending his ad characterization to an wise onal business comedy | Little —The First Year.” funniest plays 9 ve ever it all Mary Rose.” To be reviewed A high about a Vi Wales, there Girls’ Associ and the Prince's heart. Ver dole conven: 1229 you wonder how Frank Craven ever knew Lycewm.--"'The Gold Diggers.” Ina Claire in a box-office success dealing with chorus xirls and their revenue agents. of the few plays about the war amusing enough to carry it on Pork—" Bab.” All sub-debs home boarding-school should take their pare! see Helen Haves in this, It will he son to thet viewed later. Plymouth —" Little Old New York.” An attractive glimpse of Manhattan in 18to and also of Genevieve Tobin in boy's clothes Punch and Iudy.— Rollo’s Wild Oat.” Roland Young in an amusing little piece about a young man who would play Hamlet Another of those Kummer-Young trifles which lend deiicacy to season Republic.—" Daddy Dumplins.” play for Christmas week if yc having your heart b children and an old man Eye and Ear Entertainment Apollo.—" Jimmie.” Frances White in an ickily sentimental musical comedy, if you can picture sucea a thing. The sic is very pleasant, Casino.—" Honeydew.” Fortunately a good cast is entrusted with a score by Efrem Zimbalist, sv the book doesn't make difference Central—" Atgar lish spectacle, almost ruined by of the five hundred worst American j but saved by the strictly Parisian naivete of Alice Delysia and the Poiret gowns, Century.—" Mecca.” A__ procession gorgeous trappings and magnificent with a great many people on the stage once, presumaiily all those who have wr open letters in praise of the entertainment Century Roof—An elaborate revue along akout 11:30 Pp. M. for tho: who are work ing late in town, Cort— Jim Jam Jems." A jazzical comedy, containing some good features out of vaudeville. Globe.—"' Tip-Top.” stageful of musical One which is through from sto a les- Coo-Coo Cottage.” To he re- Just don't much A French and En the add Fred Stone and a entertainers giving a very pleasant show. Write a polite note to your ticket agency inclosing a pearl, and maybe they will get you Hippodrome —" Good Times.” Juvenile conversation about this performance will outlast most of the Christmas toys. Knickerbocwer—" Mary.” Some sic and govd dancing carrying story along at tremendous speed Liberty —" Lady Billy.” Reviewed in this issue. Longacre.—" Pitter-Patter.” in a musical version of Rain.” Not so good Lyrie—" Wer F. viewed next week. New Amsterdam viewed week Selwyn sic and amed Frank nable catchy Ernest Truex “Caught in the mily Tree * Sally.” next “Tickle Me.” very nice Tinney. Ver bination * Gree wich comicbooks.com