Plays for Little Theatres

By STEPHEN ALLARD

IN THE many recently published lists of plays suitable for production in little theatres, or in other non-commercial playhouses, one finds a total lack of data about the types of play described, and one is seldom informed about the ownership of producing rights. The following list, which will be continued serially in THEATRE ARTS MAGAZINE, is designed to tell in a few words the character of each play, and to indicate where texts and acting rights may be obtained.

Lists obtained from little theatre directors have proved to be so contradictory, in their indications of what is in keeping with little theatre ideals, that it seems wiser not to publish them verbatim, as originally planned, but rather to submit them to judgment by one mind and one standard. No play will be added until after a personal reading by the present writer, and, if possible, not until after seeing a production. In general, the standard adopted is this: The play must have more than mere amusement value, in the direction of poetry, or emotional force, or thoughtprovoking ideas; it must be fitted for production on small or at least medium-sized stages; and it must have something of that indefinable quality, literary or artistic, which lifts a play above the level of vaudeville and "amateur pieces" toward the level of art theatre material.

There has been so much pirating of plays by amateurs that special trouble has been taken to make the list authoritative in its references to ownership of acting rights. To produce a play without permission, and without paying the royalty demanded, is no less than stealing another man's property. By providing the addresses of the owners of acting rights, we hope to make that sort of larceny less prevalent.

The present installment includes a group of one-act plays which have already proved successful in American little theatres.

1. The Lost Silk Hat by Lord Dunsany. This is perhaps the best oneact piece in the whole group of English light comedies. It has enough literary merit to lift it far above the average play of its type. It demands subtle acting, and lends itself well to stylistic staging. The text is published in Five Plays by Lord Dunsany (Boston: Little, Brown). The acting rights are still owned by Lord Dunsany, to whom application should be made in care of the publishers, or at Castle Dunsany, County Meath, Ireland.

2. Trifles by Susan Glaspell. A tense, gripping little play, dealing with the barren life of a New England farm woman. While the theme is tragic, the action avoids all violence. It is one of the best one-act character-dramas

yet written by an American playwright. Published by Frank Shay, New York. For production rights and terms the author should be addressed at I Milligan Place, New York City.

3. The Maker of Dreams by Oliphant Down. This favorite little fantasy is one of the prettiest of Pierrot plays. It is very slight in story, and somewhat sugary; but it has a lyric quality and a tenderness of feeling that make it charming when sympathetically played. It has the additional advantage of a small cast, only three characters being called for. Published by Gowans and Gray, London. Rights can be obtained from Samuel French, 28 West 38th Street, New York City.

4. Lithuania by Rupert Brooke. An unpleasant play of the very realistic sort, but marked by a certain literary value and by smashing dramatic effect. It is one of the best examples of a brutally truthful sort of drama-but not for those who shrink from shocking the sensibilities of their audiences. Printed text and acting rights can be obtained from the Chicago Little Theatre, Monadnock Building, Chicago.

5. The Rising of the Moon by Lady Gregory. Long a favorite with amateur producing groups, this excellent little play also lends itself well to professional production. It combines a serious incident with more or less humor, its one difficulty lying in the Irish dialect. Published in Seven Short Plays by Lady Gregory (New York: Putnam's). For rights of production address Samuel French, 28 West 38th Street, New York City.

6. The Constant Lover by St. John Hankin. A duologue of the most artificial type, but when subtly played one of the brightest of light comedies. It affords the scene-designer a chance to create an equally artificial and conventionalized setting. Published in The Dramatic Works of St. John Hankin (New York: Kennerley). Production rights can be secured from Miss Alice Kauser, 1402 Broadway, New York.

7. The Bank Account by Howard Brock. A serious drama in which three characters work out a near-tragedy in an interesting way. While it has little literary merit, its dramatic effectiveness and character drawing make it worthy of production. It has the added value of not having been produced extensively. For manuscript and acting rights the author should be addressed in care of The Boston Post.

8. Riders to the Sea by J. M. Synge. This is one of the most poignant tragedies in the language, and is deservedly a favorite in the little theatres. The Irish accent may present difficulties, but in proper presentation the work is a masterpiece. Published by J. M. Luce & Company, Boston. Acting rights can be obtained from Samuel French, 28 West 38th Street, New York City.

9. Suppressed Desires by George Cram Cook and Susan Glaspell. The purely farcical elements of this satire on Freudian theories almost rob it of a place in any list of plays for serious theatres. But the fun is so genuine, and the satire so pointed, that it rises above the class of empty farce. Certainly no little theatre can make a mistake in producing it to balance an otherwise heavy bill. Published in Provincetown Plays: Second Series (New York: Frank Shay). For acting rights the authors should be addressed at I Milligan Place, New York City.

10. Duty by Seumas O'Brien. An Irish dialect comedy that borders on the farcical at times, and again on the tragic. For those who can preserve the raciness of the speech and the humor of the Irish characterization, the play is well worth producing. Published by Little, Brown & Company of Boston, from whom the acting rights can be secured.

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11. The Will by J. M. Barrie. This somewhat unpleasant character-study demands unusual acting ability, and perhaps for that reason has seldom been seen in the little theatres. For the advanced groups it offers unusual dramatic possibilities. Published in Half Hours, J. M. Barrie (New York: Scribner's). Production rights can be obtained from Charles Frohman, Inc., Empire Theatre, New York.

12. Joint Owners in Spain by Alice Brown. This slight comedy, in which two quarrelsome inmates of an old ladies' home settle their troubles in amusing fashion, has been popular with the little theatres. There is very little plot-interest, but the character studies and the incidental humor make the piece “cary” well. The printed text and acting rights can be obtained from the Chicago Little Theatre, Monadnock Building, Chicago.

13. The Clod by Lewis Beach. This Civil War play is one of the most effective bits of realism yet written by an American playwright. It lacks literary value, and borders on melodrama; but in the list of "thrillers" that rise above the average, it takes high place. The text appears in Washington Square Plays, published by Doubleday, Page & Company. Acting rights can be obtained through the Washington Square Players, Comedy Theatre, New York. (To be continued.)

Oriental and Western Acting

"INDIAN acting and dancing is a deliberate art. Nothing is left to chance; the actor no more yields to the impulse of the moment in gesture than in the spoken word. When the curtain rises, indeed, it is too late to begin the making of a new work of art.

"There is no reason why an accepted gesture-language should be varied with a view to set off advantageously the actor's personality. It is the action, not the actor, which is essential to dramatic art. . . . The actor who merely exhibits himself is eliminated altogether. .

"The behavior of the artist must of necessity be studied, and not impulsive; for the human actor, who seeks to depict the drama of heaven, is not himself a god, and only attains to perfect art through conscious discipline. . . . The more deeply we penetrate the technique of any typical Oriental art, the more we find that what appears to be individual, impulsive and 'natural,' is actually long-inherited, well-considered and well-bred. der these conditions life itself becomes a ritual. . . .

"The secret of all art is self-forgetfulness.

Un

"Indian acting is a poetic art, an interpretation of life, while modern European acting, apart from any question of the words, is prose, or imitation."—ANANDA COOMARASWAMY in the Introduction of The Mirror of Gesture.

The Moscow Art Theatre: A Model

By N. OSTROVSKY

THE MOSCOW Art Theatre, sometimes known as "The Sea-Gull Theatre," is probably the most important center of dramatic art in Europe. It is not a theatre in the American sense. That is, it is not merely a building to which travelling companies come. Nor is it like your stock companies, which are based on purely commercial standards, and in which the actors have no more interest than that of making a living and playing up their personal acting. The Moscow Art Theatre is more like an art institution, or a craftsmen's cooperative society. It is hardly too much to say that it is the one art institution in Russia that is best known to the world.

He was a

The history of the theatre began with the revolt of a forwardseeing playwright, Nemirovitch-Danchenko, against the stupid conservatism of the established Russian theatres. dramatic teacher as well as a writer-the sort of man whom the American theatre merchants would call a theorist and an outsider. He met in 1897 the since-famous Konstantin Stanislavsky, who at that time had become known only for his connection with an amateur dramatic society. The two formed a partnership and determined to start a new kind of theatre.

The first company was made up chiefly of amateurs. Rehearsals were started in a barn in the suburbs of Moscow-just as humbly as many of your American little theatres are starting. The first productions, which were given in the unsympathetic atmosphere of a variety theatre, were treated to a storm of abuse from the critics and the men of the older theatres. But a few people saw a new something in the company's work, and the founders persisted in their venture.

In the early years of the project the company was hampered by lack of money, and like many other worthy art ventures, this one contracted a large debt during its first year. But it found means to continue, and later became an exceedingly profitable enterprise. At the end of its worst season, a wealthy amateur of Moscow became interested, and secured the present home of the theatre, building for it one of the most modern stages in Europe.

The productions at the theatre are generally divided into three groups. First, there was a realistic phase, when the founders emulated the famous Théâtre Libre of Antoine in Paris.