ACT III
JONATHAN MAKES A WISH
[_The scene is a summer house on the estate of John Clay. It is charmingly furnished with wicker chairs and a table. The building is hexagon shape and we look into half the hexagon. The doors at the left open on to the path that leads from the house. The doors at the back open onto a garden path that leads to a gate. Eight weeks have elapsed since the first act._
_The curtain rises disclosing an empty stage. It is early evening and sunset is leaving only the faintest tinge above the hills. After a moment Jonathan enters. He is unchanged except that he still carries in his eyes some of the horror of his delirium. He opens the back windows and then sits above the table and begins to look at an illustrated paper._
_Nathaniel enters carrying a manuscript. He seems a bit less carefree than at his homecoming, and he also seems closer to Jonathan._
NATHANIEL
Well, my boy--
JONATHAN
Uncle Nathaniel, did you know that Caproni was an artist?
NATHANIEL
You mean the Caproni who makes the wonderful aeroplanes?
JONATHAN
Yes, sir.
NATHANIEL
No, I didn't know it; but I'm not surprised.
JONATHAN
Aren't these pictures fine?
NATHANIEL
Excellent.
JONATHAN
He made them.... They're like great dragon-flies, aren't they?
NATHANIEL
A whole swarm of them.
JONATHAN
It must feel funny to fly through air.
NATHANIEL
Would you like to try it some time?
JONATHAN
Yes... but I'd have to get used to it.... It must be like diving.
NATHANIEL
When you were very ill you seemed to imagine you were falling.
JONATHAN
Did I talk much when I was unconscious?
NATHANIEL
You talked almost continuously.
JONATHAN
Did I?... You said you'd tell me what I said--when I was strong enough.... I'm pretty strong now.
NATHANIEL
Do you know what I did?
JONATHAN
I don't know.
NATHANIEL (_showing manuscript_)
Can you guess?
JONATHAN (_Looks at manuscript_)
"Jonathan Builds a Fear." What does that mean?
NATHANIEL
When you were delirious I listened to what you said and then I made a story out of it.
JONATHAN
You mean this is all about me?
NATHANIEL
It's about a little hunchback who thought he was you.
JONATHAN
I know. I was always trying to make somebody know me, and finally I thought I jumped from the top of a hill and I seemed to be falling for years and years....
NATHANIEL
Those were terrible days, my boy, and do you know, we were afraid you wouldn't live.
JONATHAN
It was a terrible feeling.
NATHANIEL
I know, but all that's over now; and there's the whole story about the little hunchback you never were.
JONATHAN
[_Hank's whistle is heard. Jonathan rises very quickly and looks at Nathaniel._
NATHANIEL
He comes every now and then to ask about you and to get something to eat.
[_Hank whistles again._
HANK'S VOICE (_at back_)
Hi!
NATHANIEL
Come in, Hank.--
HANK
Is the old man here?
NATHANIEL
No.
HANK (_Enters through the gateway whistling_)
Hello, boy.
JONATHAN
I'm well now. How are you?
HANK
I'm beginning to get cold, so I think I'll go south tomorrow and I thought I'd drop in to say good-bye.
NATHANIEL
I'll give you an overcoat, Hank.
HANK
No, thanks. It's too hot to carry it. I'll get one when I really need it, maybe.
NATHANIEL
Well, here's something for you.
[_He offers him a five dollar bill._
Five dollars! No, thanks. If I had that much money I'd lose it maybe. Give me two bits and call it square.
[_Nathaniel hands him a quarter._
Thanks.... Well... good-bye.... I'm glad your back wasn't broke.
JONATHAN
Good-bye, Hank.
HANK
Good-bye, Mister.... I'll see you next year maybe, when it's warm.--Say, kid, I'd like to see that _Zenobia_ show again:--"Hail, noble duke," "All's well, Irene." "Not very well, noble duke."
[_He goes out, chuckling to himself._
_Aunt Letitia enters. As usual she has something to keep her hands busy. She seats herself comfortably in a chair that custom has evidently made her very own. In her work she shows the effect of time upon her eyes and she may feel a tiny draught that causes her to close the doors behind her and draw her scarf a bit more closely about her. Never has Aunt Letitia seemed more successfully the poor relation._
LETITIA
I thought you were out with John.
NATHANIEL
No.
[_Jonathan is looking at the manuscript._
LETITIA (_to Jonathan_)
How do you feel, dear?
JONATHAN
Fine;... I think I'll go in the house and read this.
(_To Nathaniel_)
I'm glad it isn't true.
[_He goes out._
NATHANIEL
It's the story of his delirium. I thought it would interest him--and relieve him.
LETITIA
Has John gone?
NATHANIEL
Only for a stroll--the doctor's orders.
LETITIA
Well?
NATHANIEL
Well?
LETITIA
Sit down.
NATHANIEL
In John's chair?
LETITIA
If you wish.
NATHANIEL
John's chair! The throne of the head of the family! (_He sits in John's chair_) Well?
LETITIA
Nathaniel dear, you are making John very unhappy.
NATHANIEL
And John has made me very unhappy, dearest Aunt Letty.
LETITIA
The feeling at the dinner table was almost unbearable tonight. There we sat strained and silent.
NATHANIEL
I am sorry. I try to avoid meals with John as much as possible.
LETITIA
You've been here eight weeks and John and I know nothing of you. For me it is enough that you are here; but John is the head of the family and he feels that you ought to treat him with greater deference.
NATHANIEL
It is revolting to me to have a tsar in the family.
LETITIA
Your father and your father's father and grandfather were rulers of the Clay family.
NATHANIEL
I don't question that.
LETITIA
You can't change John.
NATHANIEL
I don't want to change John.
LETITIA
Then why not tell him something about yourself?
NATHANIEL
It is none of John's affairs how or why I live. It is none of his affair how or why or when I shall marry Mlle. Perrault.
LETITIA
Perhaps not.
NATHANIEL
When I tell him anything, Aunt Letty, it will be one thing--I have stayed here because I love Jonathan, because he needs me. And I have listened to the boy's fears and to his hopes as they came out of his poor tortured little soul in his delirium. I have watched him during his convalescence, and I see in him a growing man in prison. John sees in him only the potential head of the family; but he is my flesh and blood as much as he is John's and I intend to set him free.
LETITIA
My beloved Nathaniel, John will not give Jonathan up to you.
NATHANIEL
I don't want Jonathan unless he wants to come to me, but I do want Jonathan's freedom.
LETITIA
Isn't he a bit young to have _freedom_.
NATHANIEL
Aunt Letitia, I don't mean a silly license.--I mean freedom. If you are cultivating a peach-tree you don't expect oranges on it even if it could wish to be an orange tree, but you can help to make it bear better peaches. Jonathan isn't a mechanical business person. His bent is in another direction.
LETITIA
What are you going to do?
NATHANIEL
Frankly, I do not know.
[_Up to window._
All I know now is that I shall stay here until I find a plan.
[_Jonathan enters._
JONATHAN
Where is Uncle John?
NATHANIEL
He has gone for a stroll.
LETITIA
What do you want, my dear?
JONATHAN
Uncle John sent word that he wanted to see me here at 7:30.
[_Letitia and Nathaniel look at each other._
_Jonathan takes out a large silver watch._
It's 7:29 now.
NATHANIEL
John will be on time--count sixty slowly--
[_John enters. He is rather pale, seems pre-occupied and even more unapproachable than ever._
LETITIA
Did you have a pleasant stroll?
JOHN
I wasn't walking.
LETITIA
I shall go into the house, I think.
JOHN
No, Aunt Letitia, I would rather you'd wait, if you please.
[_Nathaniel is an interested spectator. He cannot understand why Jonathan should be present for what will probably be an eventful family scene._
Nathaniel, will you sit down?
NATHANIEL
Certainly.--Where?
JOHN (_tartly_)
Would you like my chair?
NATHANIEL
Thank you.
[_He sits in John's chair, much to John's annoyance._
JOHN
Jonathan, sit down.
[_Jonathan sits. John also sits. Aunt Letitia knows what to expect. Nathaniel is more curious than angry. Jonathan is attending his first family conference._
Jonathan, I've sent for you because I want to talk to you seriously.
JONATHAN
Yes, sir.
NATHANIEL
Do you think the boy is strong enough?
JOHN
The doctor told me today that he would be quite equal to it.... Eight weeks ago, Jonathan, you made an effort to run away from your home, because I punished you. In your foolish defiance of all family authority you suffered a fall that might have resulted in a lasting and serious injury. Fortunately you have recovered fully from the result of your fall.
NATHANIEL
Excuse me, John, but all of us know this.
JOHN
One moment, please, Nathaniel.... I have now arranged that you begin your preparation for your life work immediately. You will leave for Somerset School the day after tomorrow.
JONATHAN (_desperately_)
Uncle John, I don't want to go to Somerset School.
JOHN
You will leave for Somerset day after tomorrow. Good night, Jonathan.
NATHANIEL
Why Somerset?
JOHN
Good night, Jonathan.
[_Jonathan, dazed, goes out._
NATHANIEL
Jonathan will never go to Somerset School.
JOHN
Nathaniel, you forfeited your rights in the family councils when you ran away from home seventeen years ago.
NATHANIEL
This boy will run away again and again and I mean to save him from what I have suffered, if I can.
JOHN
Nathaniel, by what right do you attempt to interfere with my decisions?
NATHANIEL
By the right of blood and understanding.
JOHN
Blood and understanding? Where were you when Emily had to leave her husband and brought her boy into my home? Where were you when Emily died? I took Emily in and I took her boy in. As head of the family it was my duty to do so and as head of the family it is my duty to see that the boy is brought up in the best traditions of the family.
NATHANIEL
John, you can't force this boy into a mold.
JOHN
A boy of fourteen doesn't know his mind.... Do _you_ know what Jonathan wants to be?
NATHANIEL
Yes, a writer of plays, a theatre director, and an actor.
JOHN
Imagine!... And I suppose you encouraged him.
NATHANIEL
No, but I didn't discourage him. The selection was wide enough for him to find some lasting life work.
JOHN
He never told me he wanted to be an actor.
NATHANIEL
Oh, my brother, every growing boy has a deep secret wish that he cannot bring himself to disclose! As you know, I always wanted to be a writer, but most of all I wanted to be a left-handed base ball pitcher. And although I'm irretrievably right handed I used to practice--religiously--pitching with my left hand.
JOHN
That was juvenile foolishness.
NATHANIEL
Yes, but it was genuine.
[_John starts to speak._
What am I now? I am going to tell you, John--by and by. First, we must dispose of the boy.
JOHN
I shall decide about the boy.
NATHANIEL
No, John; the boy must decide for himself.
JOHN
He'd decide to be an actor.
NATHANIEL
If he did, what of it?
JOHN
I want members of my family to do useful work.
NATHANIEL
What _is_ useful work? An actor serves his purpose just as a plumber or lawyer serves his.... The only difference is that all of us are not plumbers or lawyers while all of us _are_ actors. Yes, John, we're all playing something--you are playing at head of the family, I'm--
JOHN
Still I do not regard acting as a worth-while or lucrative profession.
NATHANIEL
You never know, John.... Five generations ago the Clays were respectable carpenters. They weren't wealthy and they gave no promise of becoming wealthy. Then suddenly our revered ancestor became a successful maker of cypress drain pipes--sewer pipes, I think we used to call them! The family fortunes were founded!! Our ancestor bought a high hat and the esteem of his neighbors. Cypress was in time replaced by pottery. Conduits for wires and terra cotta building materials were added to our achievements and then in your régime superfine sewers became a specialty.
JOHN
Every kind of concrete work!
NATHANIEL
I beg your pardon! Concrete sewers and other concrete things.--Such is the foundation of the family.
JOHN
You are evidently ashamed of our business.
NATHANIEL
Not at all, but I cannot consider the manufacturing of sewers a greater achievement than acting.
JOHN
Nathaniel, are you an actor?
NATHANIEL
No.
JOHN
What are you?
NATHANIEL
For the present I am Jonathan's uncle.
JOHN
You have nothing to do with Jonathan.
NATHANIEL
The boy is not going to Somerset School.
JOHN
Nathaniel, I shall not tolerate your interference. Now I must ask you to leave this house.
NATHANIEL
What?
LETITIA
John... Nathaniel... my boys, it isn't my way to interfere; but please for my sake, for your mother's sake--think what you're doing.
JOHN (_With some tenderness he lays his hand on Letitia's_)
I have thought, Aunt Letitia. I can not allow this boy's life to be ruined as Emily's and Henry's and Nathaniel's were.
NATHANIEL
Ruined? John, I'll tell you how ruined my life has been and I'll tell you in terms you'll understand. My income last year was over $350,000!
JOHN
Are you acting now?
NATHANIEL
Yes, I'm acting--I'm acting in terms that you will understand.... You know that I'm your brother Nathaniel. Do you know who else I am? I am a writer and a playwright and a director in the United Baking Company and a stockholder in the National Munitions Company--munitions, John; think of it, millions, millions in them--and I'm willing and eager to take Emily's boy and educate him in the way he wants to live his life.
JOHN
What are these heroics?
NATHANIEL
I mean what I say. If need be I shall use brute force, financial force or any kind of force to free Jonathan from the misery that I endured in this house.
JOHN
You had everything you wanted.
NATHANIEL
Everything except freedom to think my own thoughts. John, some people are like reinforced concrete. Someone builds the iron frame and the wooden molds, then pours the cement and when it has hardened, the molds are removed and lo, you have a monolith--a solid unchangeable stone.
JOHN
You talk very well, Nathaniel, but I shall insist upon bringing up my sister's child in my way.
NATHANIEL
Would you have him run away as I did?
JOHN
He will never run away again. He has had his lesson.
[_Jonathan enters carrying a suit case._
JONATHAN
May I speak to you, Uncle John?
JOHN
What are you doing with that suit case?
JONATHAN
I'm going away.
JOHN
Who gave you permission?
JONATHAN
Nobody.... I've been thinking since a little while ago and at first I thought I'd run away again; but that wouldn't be quite fair--so I came to tell you.
JOHN
Take that suit case back into the house.
JONATHAN
No, sir! I'm going and nobody can keep me here unless they tie me.
JOHN
Well, I'll tell you one thing--if you leave this house without my permission I'll cut you off without a penny and you'll never be allowed to come back again.
JONATHAN
Yes, sir. I know that; but I'm going and I came to tell you good-bye.
JOHN
Very well. You've made your choice--and I never want to see you again as long as you live. Good-bye, Jonathan. Good-bye, Nathaniel.
LETITIA
John, don't say things you'll regret. Jonathan doesn't mean what he's saying.
JONATHAN
Yes'm, I do mean what I say.
JOHN
Good night.
[_He goes out._
LETITIA
Boys, you are so hot-headed--so much alike....
NATHANIEL
You dear, you have always been content to compromise while we two must go our own ways or not at all. You go to John. Help him as you can. He's not a bad man--he's just a structure of reinforced concrete. You love John and he in his way loves you. Go to John and comfort his outraged authority.
LETITIA
I'm sorry things have turned out this way. (_She kisses them_) Good night, my dears. Wait until morning if you can, my darling Nathaniel.
[_She goes out._
NATHANIEL
Now you've done it!
JONATHAN
I couldn't help it.
NATHANIEL
What are you going to do?
JONATHAN
I don't know.... They say there's plenty of work on farms.
NATHANIEL
You can't write if you work on a farm.
JONATHAN
I can earn some more money and save. Other boys have worked their way through school and college. I can do that.
NATHANIEL
Of course--that is a way out of it. Yes... of course....
[_Nathaniel opens the back doors and sees the thinnest crescent moon hanging in the sky._
The new moon.... They say if you make a wish on the new moon it will come true.
JONATHAN
You have to see it over your right shoulder.
NATHANIEL
You saw it over your right shoulder.
JONATHAN
I don't believe that, do you?
NATHANIEL
Well, suppose it were true, what would you wish?
JONATHAN
You mean for right away?
NATHANIEL
Yes.
JONATHAN [_carefully looking over his right shoulder._
I'd wish to be with you.
NATHANIEL
More than anything?
JONATHAN
Yes, sir.
NATHANIEL
More than being a writer or a theatre director or an actor?
JONATHAN
Oh, yes, I'm too young to start right away. I have to have an education first.
NATHANIEL
Suppose that wish couldn't be, then what would you wish?
JONATHAN
That you'd write me long letters and let me write you long letters.
[_Takes up his suit case._
I'd better be going now.
NATHANIEL
Aren't you going to tell John and Aunt Letitia good-bye?
JONATHAN
No, sir. I don't think I'd better. Uncle John doesn't care and Aunt Letitia will understand.
NATHANIEL
Yes, she always understands somehow.
JONATHAN
Good-bye, sir.
NATHANIEL
Jonathan, suppose we go away together. I'm not wanted and you're not wanted.
JONATHAN
You're going to Paris to marry Mlle. Perrault!
NATHANIEL
Would you let me be your father, Jonathan?
JONATHAN
Sir?
NATHANIEL
You shall go to the schools where you will find the work you want.... Will you be my son?
JONATHAN
Do you like me that much?
NATHANIEL
I like you more than that much. You'll get some long trousers and we'll plan and plan. Suppose we run away together.
JONATHAN
Do you think we ought to leave some word, Uncle Nathaniel?
NATHANIEL
Of course. How stupid of me.
JONATHAN
You write it.
NATHANIEL
No, we'll both write it.
JONATHAN
I don't know what to say. I've only run away once.
NATHANIEL
So have I.
JONATHAN
Did you ever run away?
NATHANIEL
Yes--when I was eighteen.
JONATHAN
Oh!
NATHANIEL (_taking up paper_)
The message ought to be short.
JONATHAN
Why did you run away?
NATHANIEL
I wanted to write.
JONATHAN
You did!
NATHANIEL
Didn't you know I ran away?
JONATHAN
No, sir; they never would tell me what became of you.
NATHANIEL
They didn't know.
JONATHAN
How could you keep it from them?
NATHANIEL
I changed my name--Mr. Alexander Jefferson, Sr! What shall I say?
JONATHAN
I can't think.... Did Uncle John lock you in?
NATHANIEL
No, I just ran away.
JONATHAN
How long did it take you to make up your mind to go?
NATHANIEL
I thought about it first when I was twelve. My father was still living then.
JONATHAN
Did you go to Somerset School?
NATHANIEL
Yes--for three years.
JONATHAN
What did you do after you ran away?
NATHANIEL
I had a very hard time, my boy--at first. I worked at anything I could get, then I got into a newspaper office, then I wrote "autobiographies" of famous men.
JONATHAN
I thought you had to write your own autobiography--
NATHANIEL
Not nowadays. Then I wrote some successful short stories, then some very successful long ones--and now I am independent; but it took me ten bitter years to make my first success.... What shall I write here?
JONATHAN
I never could think of things to say when I was going away.
NATHANIEL
Neither could I.
JONATHAN
Don't you think "good-bye" would be enough?
NATHANIEL (_writing_)
Capital.... "Good-Bye--Nathaniel." Now you sign it.
JONATHAN (_Signs_)
"Jonathan."... Maybe we ought to put a line under it so Aunt Letitia won't feel so bad.
NATHANIEL (_makes a line_)
Dear Aunt Letitia will understand. She is the blessed kind who always does. Now, where shall we put it?... On John's chair, and maybe he'll understand too.
[_He pins the note to John's chair._
JONATHAN
Don't you want to pack your things?
NATHANIEL
I'll wire for them.
[_Susan enters._
On second thought, I'll ask Aunt Letitia to send them.
[_He goes out._
JONATHAN
Hello, Susan.
SUSAN
Jonathan, I just saw Miss Letitia and she was crying.... What's the matter?
JONATHAN
I'm going away, Susan.
SUSAN
Where are you going?
JONATHAN
I'm going with Uncle Nathaniel. I'm going to be his son. And I'm going to a fine prep. school and learn to write and do what I like.
SUSAN
When are you coming back?
JONATHAN
I don't know. When I'm older maybe.
SUSAN
Can't we write any more songs?
JONATHAN
I'll send some words to you in letters.
SUSAN
Will you write every week?
JONATHAN
Yes.... Will you?
SUSAN
Yes. I wish I was going, too.
JONATHAN
So do I.
SUSAN
Maybe I'll come to see you graduate.
JONATHAN
That will be fine!
SUSAN (_She kisses him very simply_)
Good-bye, Jonathan.
JONATHAN
Good-bye, Susan.
SUSAN
I can hardly wait until you graduate.
JONATHAN
Neither can I.... Good-bye.
[_Nathaniel enters._
NATHANIEL
On third thought, I decided to wire for my things.
SUSAN
Good-bye, Mr. Nathaniel. I hope you'll have a nice time.
NATHANIEL
Good-bye, Susan.
[_He kisses her. She goes out._
JONATHAN
Good-bye, Susan.
SUSAN (_calling_)
Send me some picture postcards, Jonathan.
JONATHAN
I will.
[_He watches her._
NATHANIEL (_Goes to window_)
Don't you want to make your wish on the new moon, Jonathan?
JONATHAN
I don't know what to wish now. The only one I could think of has come true.
NATHANIEL
Good... come, my boy.
JONATHAN
I'll write a long letter to Susan Sample every week.
NATHANIEL
You can write her a long letter from New York.
JONATHAN
And I can send her picture postcards from every place we go to.
[_Arm in arm they go out talking._
_The Curtain Falls._
APPENDIX
A. M. PALMER--AUTHOR'S MATINEES
_Madison Square Theater_ 1887
MARJORIE'S LOVERS _Brander Matthews_ ELAINE (from Tennyson) _G. P. Lathrop_ A FOREGONE CONCLUSION _W. D. Howells_
THE THEATER OF ARTS AND LETTERS
_23rd Street Theater_ 1891
GILES COREY _Mary E. Wilkins_ SQUIRREL INN (from Frank Stockton) _Frank Presbrey_ THE OTHER WOMAN _Richard Harding Davis_ HARVEST _Clyde Fitch_
THE DECISION OF THE COURT _Brander Matthews_ _Frederick J. Stimson_
THE CRITERION INDEPENDENT THEATER
_Madison Square Theater_ 1897
_Berkeley Lyceum_
JOHN GABRIEL BJORKMAN _Ibsen_ {THE RIGHTS OF THE SOUL _Giacosa_ {THAT OVERCOAT _Augustus Thomas_ {FROM A CLEAR SKY _Henri Dumay_ EL GRAN GALEOTO _Echegaray_
THE INDEPENDENT THEATER
_Carnegie Lyceum_ 1899
EL GRAN GALEOTO _Echegaray_ TIES _Hervieu_ THE MASTER BUILDER _Ibsen_ THE STORM _Ostrovsky_ THE HEATHER FIELD _Martyn_ A TROUBADOUR _Coppé_
THE NEW THEATER
1909--1911
_First Season_
ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA _Shakespeare_ THE COTTAGE IN THE AIR _Knoblauch_ STRIFE _Galsworthy_ THE NIGGER _Sheldon_ THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL _Sheridan_ {LIZ THE MOTHER _Fenn and Bryce_ {DON _Besier_ TWELFTH NIGHT _Shakespeare_ THE WITCH (adapted from Scandinavian by _Hagadorn Wiers-Jenssen_) {BRAND (act IV condensed) _Ibsen_ {SISTER BEATRICE _Maeterlinck_ THE WINTER'S TALE _Shakespeare_ BEETHOVEN _Fauchois_
_Second Season_
THE BLUE BIRD _Maeterlinck_ THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR _Shakespeare_ THE THUNDERBOLT _Pinero_ {DON _Besier_ {SISTER BEATRICE _Maeterlinck_ MARY MAGDALENE _Maeterlinck_ OLD HEIDELBERG _Meyer-Foerster_ VANITY FAIR _R. Hichens and C. Gordan Lennox_ THE PIPER _Marks_ NOBODY'S DAUGHTER _Paston_ THE ARROW MAKER _Austin_
In addition there was a borrowed production of
A SONG OF THE PEOPLE _Michaelis_
MISS GRACE GEORGE--THE PLAYHOUSE
_The Playhouse_ 1915-1917
_1st Season_
THE NEW YORK IDEA _Mitchell_ THE LIARS _Jones_ EARTH _Fagan_ MAJOR BARBARA _Shaw_ CAPTAIN BRASSBOUND'S CONVERSION _Shaw_
_2nd Season_
EVE'S DAUGHTER _Ramsey_ ELEVATION _Bernstein_
WASHINGTON SQUARE PLAYERS[7]
_Bandbox and Comedy Theaters_ 1915-1917
INTERIOR _Maeterlinck_ EUGENICALLY SPEAKING _Goodman_ LICENSED _Lawrence_ ANOTHER INTERIOR LOVE OF ONE'S NEIGHBOR _Andreyev_ MOONDOWN _Reed_ MY LADY'S HONOR _Pemberton_ TWO BLIND BEGGARS AND ONE LESS BLIND _Moeller_ THE SHEPHERD IN THE DISTANCE (pantomime) _Hudson_ THE MIRACLE OF ST. ANTONY _Maeterlinck_ IN APRIL _Stokes_ FORBIDDEN FRUIT _Feuillet_ SAVIOURS _Goodman_ THE BEAR _Tchekhov_ HELENA'S HUSBAND _Moeller_ FIRE AND WATER _White_ THE ANTICK _Mackaye_ A NIGHT OF SNOWS _Bracco_ LITERATURE _Schnitzler_ THE HONOURABLE LOVER _Bracco_ WHIMS _Musset_ OVERTONES _Gerstenberg_ THE CLOD _Beach_ THE ROAD-HOUSE IN ARDEN _Moeller_ THE TENOR _Wedekind_ THE RED CLOAK (pantomime) _Meyer_ CHILDREN _Bolton and Carlton_ THE AGE OF REASON _Dorrian_ THE MAGICAL CITY _Akins_ _Monsieur Pierre Patelin_ AGLAVAINE AND SELYSETTE _Maeterlinck_ THE SEA GULL _Tchekhov_ A MERRY DEATH _Evréinev_ LOVER'S LUCK _Porto-Riche_ THE SUGAR HOUSE _Brown_ SISTERS OF SUSANNA _Moeller_ BUSHIDO _Izumo_ TRIFLES _Glaspell_ ANOTHER WAY OUT _Langner_ ALTRUISM _Ettlinger_ THE DEATH OF TINTAGILES _Maeterlinck_ THE LAST STRAW _Crocker_ THE HERO OF SANTA MARIA _Goodman and Hecht_ IMPUDENCE _Auernheimer_ PLOTS AND PLAYWRIGHTS _Massey_ THE LIFE OF MAN _Andreyev_ SGANARELLE _Molière_ THE POOR FOOL _Bahr_ GHOSTS _Ibsen_ PARIAH _Strindberg_
REPERTORY OF THE STUART WALKER COMPANY
THE TRIMPLET _Walker_ A FAN AND TWO CANDLESTICKS _Macmillan_ SIX WHO PASS WHILE THE LENTILS BOIL _Walker_ THE SEVEN GIFTS (a pantomime) _Walker_ THE MOON LADY (a pantomime) _Walker_ NEVERTHELESS _Walker_ GAMMER GURTON'S NEEDLE (adapted by Mr. Walker) _Stevenson_ THE LADY OF THE WEEPING WILLOW TREE _Walker_ THE GOLDEN DOOM _Dunsany_ VOICES _Flexner_ THE CRIER BY NIGHT _Bottomley_ THE GODS OF THE MOUNTAIN _Dunsany_ THE MEDICINE SHOW _Walker_ THE VERY NAKED BOY _Walker_ THE BIRTHDAY OF THE INFANTA (from Oscar Wilde's Story) _Walker_ KING ARGIMENES AND THE UNKNOWN WARRIOR _Dunsany_ IT PAYS TO ADVERTISE _Megrue_ THE DUMMY _O'Higgins and Ford_ THE CONCERT _Bahr_ KICK IN _Mack_ SEVENTEEN _Walker_ SEVEN KEYS TO BALDPATE _Cohan_ THE COUNTRY BOY _Selwyn_ YOU NEVER CAN TELL _Shaw_ OFFICER 666 _McHugh_ BROADWAY JONES _Cohan_ THE WOMAN _DeMille_ THE SHOW SHOP _Forbes_ A NIGHT IN AVIGNON _Rice_ THE SON OF ISIS _Kelly_ STINGY _Parry_ THE BOOK OF JOB ROMANCE _Sheldon_ STOP THIEF _Moore_ THE HERO _Brown_ THE MISLEADING LADY _Goddard and Dickey_ ALIAS JIMMY VALENTINE (from O. Henry's story) _Armstrong_ PASSERS BY _Chambers_ SEVEN UP _Coleman_ THE THREE OF US _Crothers_ THE FORTUNE HUNTER _Smith_ ALICE SIT BY THE FIRE _Barrie_ THE WORKHOUSE WARD _Gregory_ THE WOLF _Walter_ THE TRUTH _Fitch_ JONATHAN MAKES A WISH _Walker_ THE LAUGHTER OF THE GODS _Dunsany_ THE TENTS OF THE ARABS _Dunsany_ THE CINDERELLA MAN _Carpenter_ GOOD GRACIOUS ANNABELLE _Kummer_ LEAH KLESCHNA _MacClellan_ OVER NIGHT _Bartholomae_ THE PASSING OF THE THIRD FLOOR BACK _Jerome_ MILESTONES _Bennett and Knoblock_ KISMET _Knoblock_ DON _Besier_ THE GIBSON UPRIGHT _Tarkington and Ailson_ THE MURDERERS _Dunsany_ TOO MANY COOKS _Craven_
* * * * *
CASTS
THE LADY OF THE WEEPING WILLOW TREE
CAST FOR OPENING
O-SODE _Harrie Fumade_ O-KATSU _Annie Lowry_ OBAA-SAN _Florence Wollersen_ THE GAKI OF KOKORU _McKay Morris_ AOYAGI _Nancy Winston_ RIKI _Wilmot Heitland_
THE VERY NAKED BOY
CAST FOR OPENING
HE _Willard Webster_ SHE _Dorothea Carothers_ BOY _Gregory Kelly_
JONATHAN MAKES A WISH
NEW YORK CAST
AUNT LETITIA _Elizabeth Patterson_ SUSAN SAMPLE _Beatrice Maude_ UNCLE NATHANIEL _George Gaul_ UNCLE JOHN _Ainsworth Arnold_ JONATHAN _Gregory Kelly_ MLLE. PERRAULT _Margaret Mower_ HANK _Edgar Stehli_ ALBERT PEET _Joseph Graham_ MARY _Elizabeth Black_ JOHN III _John Talbott_
First produced at the _Murat Theatre_, Indianapolis, August 12, 1918.
At the _Princess Theatre_, New York première, September 11, 1918, Elizabeth Patterson played Aunt Letitia, which was played in Indianapolis by Judith Lowry.
FOOTNOTES:
[7] Taken from Prof. Dickenson's book, "The Insurgent Theater," in which a number of interesting and more recent repertories of "independent" theaters are given.
A SELECTED LIST
OF
DRAMATIC LITERATURE
PUBLISHED BY STEWART & KIDD COMPANY CINCINNATI
* * * * *
DRAMATIC LITERATURE
_European Theories of the Drama_
_An Anthology of Dramatic Theory and Criticism from Aristotle to the Present Day, in a Series of Selected Texts, with Commentaries, Biographies and Bibliographies_
By BARRETT H. CLARK
_Author of_ "Contemporary French Dramatists," "The Continental Drama of Today," "British and American Drama of Today," etc., etc.
A book of paramount importance. This monumental anthology brings together for the first time the epoch-making theories and criticisms of the drama which have affected our civilization from the beginnings in Greece down to the present day. Beginning with Aristotle, each utterance on the subject has been chosen with reference to its importance, and its effect on subsequent dramatic writing. The texts alone would be of great interest and value, but the author, Barrett H. Clark, has so connected each period by means of inter-chapters that his comments taken as a whole constitute a veritable history of dramatic criticism, in which each text bears out his statements.
Nowhere else is so important a body of doctrine on the subject of the drama to be obtained. It cannot fail to appeal to any one who is interested in the theater, and will be indispensable to students.
The introduction to each section of the book is followed by an exhaustive bibliography; each writer whose work is represented is made the subject of a brief biography, and the entire volume is rendered doubly valuable by the index, which is worked out in great detail.
_Prof. Brander Matthews_ of Columbia University says: "Mr. Clark deserves high praise for the careful thoroughness with which he has performed the task he set for himself. He has done well what was well worth doing. In these five hundred pages he has extracted the essence of several five-foot shelves. His anthology will be invaluable to all students of the principles of playmaking; and it ought to be welcomed by all those whose curiosity has been aroused by the frequent references of our latter day theorists of the theater to their predecessors."
_Wm. Lyon Phelps_ of Yale University writes: "Mr. Clark's book, 'European Theories of the Drama,' is an exceedingly valuable work and ought to be widely useful."
_Large 8vo, 500 pages Net, $3.50_
* * * * *
_Plays and Players_
LEAVES FROM A CRITIC'S SCRAPBOOK
BY WALTER PRICHARD EATON PREFACE BY BARRETT H. CLARK
A new volume of criticisms of plays and papers on acting, playmaking, and other dramatic problems, by Walter Prichard Eaton, dramatic critic, and author of "The American Stage of Today," "At the New Theater and Others," "Idyl of the Twin Fires," etc. The new volume begins with plays produced as far back as 1910, and brings the record down to the current year. One section is devoted to American plays, one to foreign plays acted on our stage, one to various revivals of Shakespeare. These sections form a record of the important activities of the American theater for the past six years, and constitute about half of the volume. The remainder of the book is given over to various discussions of the actor's art, of play construction, of the new stage craft, of new movements in our theater, such as the Washington Square Players, and several lighter essays in the satiric vein which characterized the author's work when he was the dramatic critic of the _New York Sun_. Unlike most volumes of criticisms, this one is illustrated, the pictures of the productions described in the text furnishing an additional historical record. At a time when the drama is regaining its lost position of literary dignity it is particularly fitting that dignified and intelligent criticism and discussion should also find accompanying publication.
_Toronto Saturday Night_:
Mr. Eaton writes well and with dignity and independence. His book should find favor with the more serious students of the Drama of the Day.
_Detroit Free Press_:
This is one of the most interesting and also valuable books on the modern drama that we have encountered in that period popularly referred to as "a dog's age." Mr. Eaton is a competent and well-esteemed critic. The book is a record of the activities of the American stage since 1910, down to the present. Mr. Eaton succinctly restores the play to the memory, revisualizes the actors, and puts the kernel of it into a nutshell for us to ponder over and by which to correct our impressions.
_Large 12mo. About 420 pages, 10 full-page illustrations on Cameo Paper and End Papers Net $2.00_
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* * * * *
_Four Plays of the Free Theater_
Francois de Curel's _The Fossils_
Jean Jullien's _The Serenade_
Georges de Porto-Riche's _Francoise' Luck_
Georges Ancey's _The Dupe_
_Translated with an introduction on Antoine and Theatre Libre by BARRETT H. CLARK. Preface by BRIEUX, of the French Academy, and a Sonnet by EDMOND ROSTAND._
_The Review of Reviews says_:
"A lengthy introduction, which is a gem of condensed information."
_H. L. Mencken (in the Smart Set) says_:
"Here we have, not only skilful playwriting, but also sound literature."
_Brander Matthews says_:
"The book is welcome to all students of the modern stage. It contains the fullest account of the activities of Antoine's Free Theater to be found anywhere--even in French."
_The Chicago Tribune says_:
"Mr. Clark's translations, with their accurate and comprehensive prefaces, are necessary to anyone interested in modern drama.... If the American reader will forget Yankee notions of morality... if the reader will assume the French point of view, this book will prove a rarely valuable experience. Mr. Clark has done this important task excellently."
_Handsomely Bound. 12mo. Cloth Net, $1.75_
* * * * *
DRAMATIC LITERATURE
_Contemporary French Dramatists_
By BARRETT H. CLARK
_In "Contemporary French Dramatists" Mr. Barrett H. Clark, author of "The Continental Drama of Today," "The British and American Drama of Today," translator of "Four Plays of the Free Theater," and of various plays of Donnay, Hervieu, Lemaître, Sardou, Lavedan, etc., has contributed the first collection of studies on the modern French theater. Mr. Clark takes up the chief dramatists of France beginning with the Théâtre-Libre: Curel, Brieux, Hervieu, Lemaître, Lavedan, Donnay, Porto-Riche, Rostand, Bataille, Bernstein, Capus, Flers, and Caillavet. The book contains numerous quotations from the chief representative plays of each dramatist, a separate chapter on "Characteristics" and the most complete bibliography to be found anywhere._
_This book gives a study of contemporary drama in France which has been more neglected than any other European country._
_Independent, New York_:
"Almost indispensable to the student of the theater."
_Boston Transcript_:
"Mr. Clark's method of analyzing the works of the Playwrights selected is simple and helpful. * * * As a manual for reference or story, 'Contemporary French Dramatists,' with its added bibliographical material, will serve well its purpose."
_Uniform with FOUR PLAYS. Handsomely bound._
_Cloth_ _Net, $1.75_ _3/4 Maroon Turkey Morocco_ _Net, $5.00_
_The Antigone of Sophocles_
By PROF. JOSEPH EDWARD HARRY
_An acting version of this most perfect of all dramas. A scholarly work in readable English. Especially adaptable for Colleges, Dramatic Societies, etc._
_Post Express_, Rochester:
"He has done his work well." "Professor Harry has translated with a virile force that is almost Shakespearean." "The difficult task of rendering the choruses into English lyrical verse has been very creditably accomplished."
_Argonaut_, San Francisco:
"Professor Harry is a competent translator not only because of his classical knowledge, but also because of a certain enthusiastic sympathy that shows itself in an unfailing choice of words and expression."
_North American_, Philadelphia:
"Professor Harry, teacher of Greek in the Cincinnati University, has written a new metrical translation of the Antigone of Sophocles. The translation is of fine dramatic quality."
_Oregonian_, Portland:
"A splendidly executed translation of the celebrated Greek tragedy."
_Herald_, Boston:
"Scholars will not need to be urged to read this noteworthy piece of literary work, and we hope that many others who have no special scholarly interest will be led to its perusal."
_8vo. cloth. Dignified binding Net, $1.00_
* * * * *
"_European Dramatists_"
By ARCHIBALD HENDERSON
_Author of_ "George Bernard Shaw: His Life and Works."
_In the present work the famous dramatic critic and biographer of Shaw has considered six representative dramatists outside of the United States, some living, some dead--Strindberg, Ibsen, Maeterlinck, Wilde, Shaw, Barker, and Schnitzler._
Velma Swanston Howard says:
"Prof. Henderson's appraisal of Strindberg is certainly the fairest, kindest and most impersonal that I have yet seen. The author has that rare combination of intellectual power and spiritual insight which casts a clear, strong light upon all subjects under his treatment."
_Baltimore Evening Sun_:
"Prof. Henderson's criticism is not only notable for its understanding and good sense, but also for the extraordinary range and accuracy of its information."
Jeanette L. Gilder, in the _Chicago Tribune_:
"Henderson is a writer who throws new light on old subjects."
_Chicago Record Herald_:
"His essays in interpretation are welcome. Mr. Henderson has a catholic spirit and writes without parochial prejudice--a thing deplorably rare among American critics of the present day. * * * One finds that one agrees with Mr. Henderson's main contentions and is eager to break a lance with him about minor points, which is only a way of saying that he is stimulating, that he strikes sparks. He knows his age thoroughly and lives in it with eager sympathy and understanding."
_Providence Journal_:
"Henderson has done his work, within its obvious limitations, in an exceedingly competent manner. He has the happy faculty of making his biographical treatment interesting, combining the personal facts and a fairly clear and entertaining portrait of the individual with intelligent critical comment on his artistic work."
_Photogravure frontispiece, handsomely printed and bound, large 12mo Net, $2.00_
* * * * *
_At Last You May Understand G. B. S._
Perhaps once in a generation a figure of commanding greatness appears, one through whose life the history of his time may be read. There is but one such man today.
_George Bernard Shaw_
HIS LIFE AND WORKS
A CRITICAL BIOGRAPHY (Authorized)
By
ARCHIBALD HENDERSON, M.A. Ph.D.
Is virtually the story of the social, economic and æsthetic life of the last twenty-five years. It is a sympathetic, yet independent interpretation of the most potent individual force in society. Cultivated America will find here the key to all that is baffling and elusive in Shaw; it is a cinematographic picture of his mind with a background disclosing all the formative influences that combined to produce this universal genius.
_The press of the world has united in its praise; let us send you some of the comments. It is a large demy 8vo volume cloth, gilt top, 628 pages, with 35 full page illustrations in color, photogravure and halftone and numerous pictures in the text._
_$5.00 Net_
* * * * *
_The Changing Drama_
By ARCHIBALD HENDERSON, M.A. Ph.D.
_Author of_ "European Dramatists," "George Bernard Shaw--His Life and Work." Etc.
A vital book, popular in style, cosmopolitan in tone, appraising the drama of the past sixty years, its changes, contributions and tendencies. Has an expression of the larger realities of the art and life of our time.
_E. E. Hale_ in _The Dial_: "One of the most widely read dramatic critics of our day; few know as well as he what is 'up' in the dramatic world, what are the currents of present-day thought, what people are thinking, dreaming, doing, or trying to do."
_New York Times_: "Apt, happily allusive, finely informed essays on the dramatists of our own time--his essay style is vigorous and pleasing."
_Book News Monthly_: "Shows clear understanding of the evolution of form and spirit, and the differentiation of the forces--spiritual, intellectual and social--which are making the theatre what it is today... we can recollect no book of recent times which has such contemporaneousness, yet which regards the subject with such excellent perspective... almost indispensable to the general student of drama... a book of rich perspective and sound analysis. The style is simple and direct."
_Geo. Middleton_ in _La Follette's_: "The best attempt to formulate the tendencies which the drama is now taking in its evolutionary course."
_Argonaut_: "Marked by insight, discernment and enthusiasm."
_Large 12mo. Dignified binding Net, $1.75_
* * * * *
_Short Plays_
By MARY MACMILLAN
_To fill a long-felt want. All have been successfully presented. Suitable for Women's Clubs, Girls' Schools, etc. While elaborate enough for big presentation, they may be given very simply._
_Review of Reviews_:
"Mary MacMillan offers 'SHORT PLAYS,' a collection of pleasant one to three-act plays for women's clubs, girls' schools, and home parlor production. Some are pure comedies, others gentle satires on women's faults and foibles. 'The Futurists,' a skit on a woman's club in the year 1882, is highly amusing. 'Entr' Act' is a charming trifle that brings two quarreling lovers together through a ridiculous private theatrical. 'The Ring' carries us gracefully back to the days of Shakespeare; and 'The Shadowed Star,' the best of the collection, is a Christmas Eve tragedy. The Star is shadowed by our thoughtless inhumanity to those who serve us and our forgetfulness of the needy. The Old Woman, gone daft, who babbles in a kind of mongrel Kiltartan, of the Shepherds, the Blessed Babe, of the Fairies, rowan berries, roses and dancing, while her daughter dies on Christmas Eve, is a splendid characterization."
_Boston Transcript_:
"Those who consigned the writer of these plays to solitude and prison fare evidently knew that 'needs must' is a sharp stimulus to high powers. If we find humor, gay or rich, if we find brilliant wit; if we find constructive ability joined with dialogue which moves like an arrow; if we find delicate and keen characterization, with a touch of genius in the choice of names; if we find poetic power which moves on easy wing--the gentle jailers of the writer are justified, and the gentle reader thanks their severity."
_Salt Lake Tribune_:
"The Plays are ten in number, all of goodly length. We prophesy great things for this gifted dramatist."
_Bookseller, News Dealer & Stationer_:
"The dialogue is permeated with graceful satire, snatches of wit, picturesque phraseology, and tender, often exquisite, expressions of sentiment."
_Handsomely Bound. 12mo. Cloth Net, $1.75_
* * * * *
_More Short Plays_
BY MARY MacMILLAN
Plays that act well may read well. Miss MacMillan's plays are good reading. Nor is literary excellence a detriment to dramatic performance. They were put on the stage before they were put into print. They differ slightly from those in the former volume. Two of them, "The Pioneers," a story of the settlement of the Ohio Valley, and "Honey," a little mountain girl cotton-mill worker, are longer. The other six, "In Mendelesia," Parts I and II, "The Dryad," "The Dress Rehearsal of Hamlet," "At the Church," and "His Second Girl," contain the spirit of humor, something of subtlety, and something of fantasy.
_Brooklyn Daily Eagle_: "Mary MacMillan, whose first volume of short plays proved that she possessed unusual gifts as a dramatist, has justified the hopes of her friends in a second volume, 'More Short Plays,' which reveal the author as the possessor of a charming literary style coupled with a sure dramatic sense that never leads her idea astray.... In them all the reader will find a rich and delicate charm, a bountiful endowment of humor and wit, a penetrating knowledge of human nature, and a deft touch in the drawing of character. They are delicately and sympathetically done and their literary charm is undeniable."
_Uniform with "Short Plays" Net, $1.75_
* * * * *
_The Gift_
A POETIC DRAMA
By MARGARET DOUGLAS ROGERS
_A dramatic poem in two acts, treating in altogether new fashion the world old story of Pandora, the first woman._
_New Haven Times Leader_:
"Well written and attractive."
_Evangelical Messenger_:
"A very beautifully written portrayal of the old story of Pandora."
_Rochester Post Dispatch_:
"There is much poetic feeling in the treatment of the subject."
_Grand Rapids Herald_:
"THE GIFT, dealing with this ever interesting mythological story, is a valuable addition to the dramas of the day."
_St. Xavier Calendar_:
"The story of Pandora is so set down as to bring out its stage possibilities. Told by Mrs. Rogers in exquisite language."
_Salt Lake Tribune_:
"The tale is charmingly wrought and has possibilities as a simple dramatic production, as well as being a delightful morsel of light reading."
_Cincinnati Enquirer_:
"The love story is delightfully told and the dramatic action of the play is swift and strong."
_Buffalo Express_:
"It is a delightful bit of fancy with a dramatic and poetic setting."
_Boston Woman's Journal_:
"Epimetheus and Pandora and her box are charmingly presented."
_Worcester Gazette_:
"It is absolutely refreshing to find a writer willing to risk a venture harking back to the times of the Muses and the other worthies of mythological fame. * * * The story of Pandora's box told in verse by a woman. It may be said it could not have been better written had a representative of the one who only assisted at the opening been responsible for the play."
_Handsomely bound silk cloth Net, $1.00_
* * * * *
_Comedies of Words and Other Plays_
BY ARTHUR SCHNITZLER
TRANSLATED BY PIERRE LOVING
{"_The Hour of Recognition_" {"_Great Scenes_" The contents are {"_The Festival of Bacchus_" {"_His Helpmate_" {"_Literature._"
In his "Comedies of Words," Arthur Schnitzler, the great Austrian Dramatist, has penetrated to newer and profounder regions of human psychology. According to Schnitzler, the keenly compelling problems of earth are: the adjustment of a man to one woman, a woman to one man, the children to their parents, the artist to life, the individual to his most cherished beliefs, and how can we accomplish this adjustment when, try as we please, there is a destiny which sweeps our little plans away like helpless chessmen from the board? Since the creation of Anatol, that delightful toy philosopher, so popular in almost every theater of the world, the great Physician-Dramatist has pushed on both as World-Dramatist and reconnoiterer beyond the misty frontiers of man's conscious existence. He has attempted in an artistic way to get beneath what Freud calls the "Psychic Censor" which edits all our suppressed desires. Reading Schnitzler is like going to school to Life itself!
_Bound uniform with the S & K Dramatic Series, Net $1.75_
* * * * *
_Lucky Pehr_
By AUGUST STRINDBERG
_Authorized Translation by Velma Swanston Howard. An allegorical drama in five acts. Compared favorably to Barrie's "Peter Pan" and Maeterlinck's "The Blue Bird."_
_Rochester Post Express_:
Strindberg has written many plays which might be described as realistic nightmares. But this remark does not apply to "Lucky Pehr." * * * This drama is one of the most favorable specimens of Strindberg's genius.
_New York World_:
"Pehr" is lucky because, having tested all things, he finds that only love and duty are true.
_New York Times_:
"Lucky Pehr" clothes cynicism in real entertainment instead of in gloom. And it has its surprises. Can this be August Strindberg, who ends his drama so sweetly on the note of the woman-soul, leading upward and on?
_Worcester Gazette_:
From a city of Ohio comes this product of Swedish fancy in most attractive attire, attesting that the possibilities of dramatic art have not entirely ceased in this age of vaudeville and moving pictures. A great sermon in altruism is preached in these pages, which we would that millions might see and hear. To those who think or would like to think, "Lucky Pehr" will prove a most readable book. * * * An allegory, it is true, but so are Æsop's Fables, the Parables of the Scriptures and many others of the most effective lessons ever given.
_Boston Globe_:
A popular drama. * * * There is no doubt about the book being a delightful companion in the library. In charm of fancy and grace of imagery the story may not be unfairly classed with "The Blue Bird" and "Peter Pan."
_Photogravure frontispiece of Strindberg etched by Zorn. Also, a reproduction of Velma Swanston Howard's authorization._
_Handsomely bound. Gilt top Net, $1.75_
* * * * *
_Easter_
(A PLAY IN THREE ACTS)
AND STORIES BY AUGUST STRINDBERG
_Authorized translation by Velma Swanston Howard. In this work the author reveals a broad tolerance, a rare poetic tenderness augmented by an almost divine understanding of human frailties as marking certain natural stages in evolution of the soul._
_Louisville Courier-Journal_:
Here is a major key of cheerfulness and idealism--a relief to a reader who has passed through some of the author's morbid pages. * * * Some critics find in this play (Easter) less of the thrust of a distinctive art than is found in the author's more lugubrious dramas. There is indeed less sting in it. Nevertheless it has a nobler tone. It more ably fulfills the purpose of good drama--the chastening of the spectators' hearts through their participation in the suffering of the dramatic personages. There is in the play a mystical exaltation, a belief and trust in good and its power to embrace all in its beneficence, to bring all confusion to harmony.
_The Nation_:
Those who like the variety of symbolism which Maeterlinck has often employed--most notably in the "Bluebird"--will turn with pleasure to the short stories of Strindberg which Mrs. Howard has included in her volume. * * * They are one and all diverting on account of the author's facility in dealing with fanciful details.
_Bookseller_:
"Easter" is a play of six characters illustrative of human frailties and the effect of the divine power of tolerance and charity. * * * There is a symbolism, a poetic quality, a spiritual insight in the author's work that make a direct appeal to the cultured. * * *
_The Dial_:
One play from his (Strindberg's) third, or symbolistic period stands almost alone. This is "Easter." There is a sweet, sane, life-giving spirit about it.
_Photogravure frontispiece of Strindberg etched by Zorn. Also, a reproduction of Velma Swanston Howard's authorization._
_Handsomely bound. Gilt top Net, $1.75_
* * * * *
_The Hamlet Problem and Its Solution_
By EMERSON VENABLE
_The tragedy of Hamlet has never been adequately interpreted. Two hundred years of critical discussion has not sufficed to reconcile conflicting impressions regarding the scope of Shakespeare's design in this, the first of his great philosophic tragedies. We believe that all those students who are interested in the study of Shakespeare will find this volume of great value._
_The Louisville Courier-Journal_:
"Mr. Venable's Hamlet is a 'protagonist of a drama of triumphant moral achievement.' He rises through the play from an elected agent of vengeance to a man gravely impressed with 'an imperative sense of moral obligation, tragic in its depth, felt toward the world.'"
E. H. Sothern:
"Your ideas of Hamlet so entirely agree with my own that the book has been a real delight to me. I have always had exactly this feeling about the character of Hamlet. I think you have wiped away a great many cobwebs, and I believe your book will prove to be most convincing to many people who may yet be a trifle in the dark."
_The Book News Monthly_:
"Mr. Venable is the latest critic to apply himself to the 'Hamlet' problem, and he offers a solution in an admirably written little book which is sure to attract readers. Undeterred by the formidable names of Goethe and Coleridge, Mr. Venable pronounces untenable the theories which those great authors propounded to account for the extraordinary figure of the Prince of Denmark. * * * Mr. Venable looks in another direction for the solution of the problem. * * * The solution offered by the author is just the reverse of that proposed by Goethe. * * * From Mr. Venable's viewpoint the key to 'Hamlet' is found in the famous soliloquies, and his book is based upon a close study of those utterances which bring us within the portals of the soul of the real Hamlet. The reader with an open mind will find in Mr. Venable a writer whose breadth of view and searching thought gives weight to this competent study of the most interesting of Shakespearean problems."
_16mo. Silk cloth Net, $1.00_
* * * * *
_Portmanteau Plays_
BY STUART WALKER
Edited and with an Introduction by
EDWARD HALE BIERSTADT
This volume contains four One Act Plays by the inventor and director of the Portmanteau Theater. They are all included in the regular repertory of the Theater and the four contained in this volume comprise in themselves an evening's bill.
There is also an Introduction by Edward Hale Bierstadt on the Portmanteau Theater in theory and practice.
The book is illustrated by pictures taken from actual presentations of the plays.
The first play, the "_Trimplet_," deals with the search for a certain magic thing called a trimplet which can cure all the ills of whoever finds it. The search and the finding constitute the action of the piece.
Second play, "_Six who Pass While the Lentils Boil_" is perhaps the most popular in Mr. Walker's repertory. The story is of a Queen who, having stepped on the ring-toe of the King's great-aunt, is condemned to die before the clock strikes twelve. The Six who pass the pot in which boil the lentils are on their way to the execution.
Next comes "_Nevertheless_," which tells of a burglar who oddly enough reaches regeneration through two children and a dictionary.
And last of all is the "_Medicine-Show_," which is a character study situated on the banks of the Mississippi. One does not see either the Show or the Mississippi, but the characters are so all sufficient that one does not miss the others.
All of these plays are fanciful--symbolic if you like--but all of them have a very distinct raison d'être in themselves, quite apart from any ulterior meaning.
With Mr. Walker it is always "the story first," and herein he is at one with Lord Dunsany and others of his ilk. The plays have body, force, and beauty always; and if the reader desires to read in anything else surely that is his privilege.
Each play, and even the Theater itself has a prologue, and with the help of these one is enabled to pass from one charming tale to the next without a break in the continuity.
_With five full-page illustrations on cameo paper._
_12mo. Silk cloth $1.75_
* * * * *
_The Truth About The Theater_
_Anonymous_
Precisely what the title indicates--facts as they are, plain and unmistakable without veneer of any sort. It goes directly to the heart of the whole matter. Behind the writer of it--who is one of the best known theatrical men in New York--are long years of experience. He recites what he knows, what he has seen, and his quiet, calm, authoritative account of conditions as they are is without adornment, excuse or exaggeration. It is intended to be helpful to those who want the facts, and for them it will prove of immeasurable value.
"The Truth About the Theater," in brief, lifts the curtain on the American stage. It leaves no phase of the subject untouched. To those who are ambitious to serve the theater, either as players or as playwrights, or, again, in some managerial capacity, the book is invaluable. To those, too, who would know more about the theater that they may come to some fair estimate of the worth of the innumerable theories nowadays advanced, the book will again prove its value.
_Net $1.00_