Interesting Ghat and Stage Gossip for PlaygoersRupert HughesHas His SayAbout Pictures

He Also Says a Thing orTVo About Those CriticsWho Know What Art IsBy Harriette Underhill

Rupert Hughes, the inimltable titlewriter and other things, arrived lnNew York ono day last week, and ther.ext day Sam Goldwyn invlted ua allto a luncheon at Keene's Chop Honseto meet Mr. Hughes. I was seated be¬tween Irvin Cobb and Roy McCardell.Mr. Hughes was Just once removed,being at the right hand of Mr. Cobb;and ar.y one who aaya that funny menare never funny when they talk do:.ot know T^hat they aro talking about.1 have collected enough bon mots tolast me for the rest of my conversa-; .onal life.

Mr. Cobb introduced Mr. Hughes.who had cor.scntcd to make a speech.ar.d Mr. McCardell referred to thisprologue as the "comic relief"; alsowhen Mr. Hughes started out by say¬ing that there was continual warfare'uctwee:i author and director so thathc had decided to direct his own pic¬tures, Mr. McCardell reminded him7hat t'-.3s made hi::3 his own worstenemy. After that Mr. Hughes gotaway to ."i good *art. He said, amongther things:"Thc best definition of a gentleman

that i have ever ;cen was BeerbohmTrec's: 'A gentleman is a man whodocsn't care a danin whether he is a

gentl 11 ..-. or not.' fi d, I think. thalthis .' true of a true artist, since he*o interested in oxprcssing wh.-ii

¦; heart that he docsn't carewhether he is an artist or not.Xo I'iffrrrnce WhatOnp < alls Pictures"Th moi ion piel should not bc

fright' ed or hum i: .:.' .; hy those crit¬ics who saj tha I: otioi pictures

-. art. One fanal c recently wrotca ferociou :.*..-,¦ ii which .. made3 hc *' announcemenl that he mot !>3

pietui re ai indu ry nnd not an.'¦". E* rn !r he had known the differ-ener or 1 ad b en quali ied to d 'cide justwhat .¦ arl what rliiYi rence doea it

ai e whether you cal] motion pictureaart. an ii dustry or 3111 amusement?¦¦¦¦.. ing is 1 hai Ihey fascinatc

.'..-.-: evcrybody. There are twochools of critics: one that think? a

thing a grcal art because it appeal:lo very few people: another that artgreatest when il .-.;:¦ |:,..,, thcion i" '¦(¦>."What difference does it all make?

AV i,r;i ShakCLpcarc was writing hisplays there were nunibcrlesa criticawho bewailcd thr fact that thc Englishdrama va. limited in merit and thatihrrr were .10 tirsl rlass English poets.An English critic has recently declaredthat 'Romeo and .Tuljct' is pure movieBtuff. 'Hamlet' is also' a blood-curdling melodrama, and many ofShakespeare's edmedies are pure Polly-anna stuff. Three centurics from nowa certain kind of critic will l>e roast-ing the life out of the motion pictureproducers of his time and rcferring toto-day as the golden ne;c of motionpictures. when people devoted them¬selves to high art of principles andwTote thc great successes of thescreen.

"I think that the motion pictures are

doing marvelous things; that there arercat geniuses at work producing, writ¬ing and acting magnificcnt pictures."The tidc is about to turn.is al¬

ready turning. A number of criticswho a lew vears ago used the name ofCharlie Chapiin as a byword of con¬

tempt are r.ow speaking of him withrevcrer.ee k.s the greatest artist of histime.

Critics Will Laugh AtSculptor and Novclist

"I predict that in a few yeara there"will be critics think.ng themselves themost artistic of tho artistie, who willmake fun 03' novels and plays, poems-and essays, sculptures and paintings as.cheap ar.d clumsy devices in compari¬son with the magniJicent charms of themotion picture. They will laugh at thesculptor who pounds away at a bloekof marble trying to chop out a beauti¬fui image; and they will point to thomotion picture director who can selectfrom thousands of beautifui womenand reveal them in motion; posingthem and lighting them at his divinepleasure; grouping them ln friezes andgiving them all the magicoflife. Therewill bc critics who will laugh at thenovelist who ransacks his thesaurusand his dictionary hunting for unusualadjectives, and pitifully trying to ex-

prc-ss with t-tupid words the beauty ofa youth ul face; the pity of a lip thattrembies «with grief; the ache in a

heavy heart; when the motion picturegeniuses can make all of these emo-

tions live and breathe with a vividnessthat brings forth real tears, reallaughter and real sobs, and presentthem to thc public wilh a vividnessthat cannot be renisted. These criticswill laugh at the poor little autlior-dramaiist who makes n few actors par-rot the same lines night after night inthe same narrow quarters. with theearftc cheap makeshifts of scenery."My main feeling is. in short, that

we moT.;c people should not he afraidof what people will say of our work.We ehould not allow a word or a

thcorjr to drive us into anything or

away from anything without some;strong inner reason. Most of all. we

ahould r.ot be afraid of popu'.arity nndof financial success. To have pleasedrnillions of people with comedy, pathosor a well constructed story is to havedone a glorious thing. You can call itart, merchandise. trash or wooden nut-

megs, but you cannot rob it of its nobiemission.to east light into dark places."

m

ay-Y ¦

. ?Cjj'&ejrz v<JjraJz

ty3(tor.llnued from page one)

of the Globe, lectures before lhe NewYork Drama League on "The Buildingof a Playhousc- Its Development andIta Influence Upon the Play," at theKlaw Theater thjs afternoon at 3:30o'clock. . . . "Thc Law Brcakcr,"Jules Eckert Goodmnn's play of crime,is being sent through the sticks byWilliam A. Brady, preparatory to anearly Xew- York premicro. As AliceBrady has a defmite contract for mo-tion picture work which will take herto California in the near future, Good-man's play may follow "Drifting" atthe Playhouse. . . . "Little MissRaffles," the musical comedy by GuyBolton, Clifford Grey and the late IvanCaryll, with Vivienne Segal featured,has closed its tour and has laid up forrepairs. It will be recast.Burlesque men sing the praises ofUtica as a theatrical town and in thesame breath speak most disparagingly,to say the least, of the drawing quali-ties of Syracuse. . . . Fay Bainterdid tremendous business in "East IsWest" in Kansas City and is now re-peating her success in St. Louis. Hertour will continue through thespring. . . The Loew vaudevillecircuit has sccured Mabel Taliaferronnd she will open in Loew's State,Newark, on January 23. . . . "TheCircle" packs up to-morrow night andmoves up town from the Sehvyn to theFulton Theater, where it begins theseventeenth week of its run. . . .

Elsie Mockaye joins the east of "AliasJimmy Yalentine" at the Gaiety to-morrow night, replacing Margalo Gill-niore in the part of Rose Lane..Miss Gillmore will he seen in "He WhoGets Slappcd," which the TheaterGuild will present at the Garrick to¬-morrow evening. ... George Arlissstarts his fifty-second week in Wil¬liam Archer's "The Green Goddoss" atthe Booth to-morrow night. while "Th*Bat" across the street at the Moroscobegins jts seventy-fifth week. . .

These productions know no such thingas a theatrical depression.Frank Craven, in "Thc First Year" attbe 1 ittlc Theater, has passed the con¬secutive performance record of "TheMusic Master'' with 542 times and isi ow going after the following marksa."Adonis," 604; "Peg o' My Heart,"605, ati(! the l'ormer world's record of"A Trip to Chinatown," 058. which"Lightnin"' broke on March 17, 1920,

Lce S'terrett, and IsnbelleO'Madigan, who are in "Just Married"at the Nor.H Bayes Theater, are plan-ning to appear in Shubert vaudeville inn playlet of advanced married life byWillard Robertson, who is piaying in"Thc Squaw Man" at the Astor. . . .

Mr. Robertson was co-author with Kil-bourn Gordon, of "Big Game," whichwas seen at the Fulton two seasons ago.. . . There is still a tax on theatertickets, but the tax on free admissionshas been oliminated. . . . Bert Ly«tcil and Yiola Dana are coming to NewYork for a series of personal appear-ances' in the Loew theaters.Daniel Frohman has chosen Friday,January 20, for the annual matineeof the Actors' Fund, which will beheld at the Century Theater. Threenew plays, several burlesques and skits,in which local actors will appear, anda musical number cailed "Sports of theWorld," which enlists the services ofthirty debutantes, make up the pro¬gram. . . . Donald Brian and TessaKosta will be presented by the Shu-

Wv^Ti* J" ¦*. C/O / O

berts next season in a crycle of Strauaoperettas. . John Cort hasfoundit-necessary to restore the Wednesdavmatinee of "The Wild Cat" at the Parkand, starting Wednesday matinees willagain be given. . . . ^narlcs L.Wagner, producer of Clare Kummcr's"The Mountain Man" at Maxino Elli-ott's Theater, has formed a music pub-lishing firm lo pul lish Miss Kummcr's"Cut. Down the Tree" nnd "ThroughAll the World," which Sidney Blackmersmgs in the play. Miss Kummer is theauthor of "Egypt," "Dearie" an.l "TheGarden of Dreams," all well knownsongs. . .

"The Voice From the Minaret," bvRobert Hitchens, will open at theGlobe Theater, Atlantic Citv, Jamtarv25, with Marie Lohr in the leadingrole. A. H. Woods has added threewell known English actors to the east.Edmund Gwenn, C. M. Hallard andVane Featherston. Miss Lohr's reper-tory includes "Fedora," "The Marion-cttes" and "Her Destiny." EugcneWalter will leave for Europe about1-ebruary 1 to scout for piavs for A HWoods. While in England he will aidin the production of "The Wolf," oneot his earhest successes, and "TheMan's Name," which plavcd here re¬cently 1. Lo-.don he wiil pl,t on forDilhngharn "The Butterfly Man," pro¬duced here as "SHppy McGce."Since the opening of his "LawfulLarceny Samuel Shipman, whoseT"°l .8m,!'A Triay n Da-V'" has com-pleted* "The Hunted Ladv," written amusical comedy and linished with acollaborator a play based on the lifeof Ldgar Allan Poe. . . . Having seenthe suecessful launching of his "Cap¬tain Applejack," Walter Hackett willsail at an early date for EnglandAudrey Hart, of Toronto, niece of Be'r-trani Harrison, stage director forttpods has made a hit in the leadingrole of Tilly in "Happy-Oo-Luckv" inthe boston engagement of that piece.' ' i .?!ter.H.ast' Producer of "Scandal"and Martimqtie," has returned froma visst to England.

Basil Rathbone, v.'ho will have theprincipal man's part in support of DorisKeane in "The Czarina," bv MeichiorLengyel and Lajos Biro, is making his3n-st visit to America. Ile was theIago in the London production of"Othello" in which Gcoffrey Tearlcplayed the jealous Moor and MadgeTitheradge appeared as Desdemona. Healso appeared in London as Peter Ib¬betson, as Alfred de Muspet in Mrs.Patrick Campbell's production of''Madamc Sand" and as Prince Hcnryin Shakespeare's "Henry IV, i>art \\»Mr. Rathbone entored the Br'itish army3n 1915, joining tho ranks of the Lon¬don Scottish. He Went to France thefollowing year with the Liverpool Scot¬tish. In 1938 he received the militarycross.

The fiftieth anniversary of the or¬ganization of the Holy Sodety will bccelebrated at the Hippodrome thisafternoon. Archbishop Hayes will pre-side. Sidney Blackmer, who is appear-mg in Clare Kummer's "The MountainMan" at Maxine Elltett's Theater, willmake his first appearance in a singingrole exclusively and Miss Kummer willbe at the piano, making her first ap-pearance in public as an accompanistMr. Blackmer will sing "Cut Down theTree" and "Through All the World,"which he sings in the play.

\

MaJL- »'¦^ee

Defends the Recessional"The Varying Shore"

Of the four plays done by Zoe Akinsthis scrn^p two are yet to be pro¬duced here."St. Ursula," a st:ir playfor Emily Stevens, written in collabo-ratiov with Edward Shcldon, and"Greatness," with a stellar role createdfor Jobyna Howland. Roth of these arereasonably futurablc for Broadway, be¬ing in the hands of S.-im II. Harris, whobrought out Miss Akips's latest work."The Varying Shore," in which ElsieFerguson is starring at the HudsonTheater.When the story of'the present season

is written Miss Akins and six playswill probably be set down as domi-nating the somewhat arbitrary periodknown ar, the theater year.

"

Besidesthc three already named, there an"Daddy's Gone A-Hunting,'.' which m,-*;i.critics agreed on as one uf the ten bestplays up to date; "Declassee," withEthel Barrymore on tour, and still an¬other new play j. process, "Rings andChalns," designed for a male .star. Atany r;ite this jri an impressivc recordfor a discriminating playwright Involume it almost oquala the output ofthc opportunists whose plots are trm-gered to the front page news stories.Whatever the merits of her url MissAkins has certainly provided discussionAbout the time she wa, writing "The\arying Shore," that interesting ex-ample of inversion in dramatic narra¬tive, Miss Akins said: "Playwritingis a form of personal vanity, I suppose.Its a form of egotism.the showing 0,"ones box of tricks. Well, grantingthat i. true, there are certain tricks

I am anxious to show. That's diffl-cult to talk about, though; my playswill have to speak for themselves."

Perhnps the amazing recessional of"The Varying Shore" was in this boxof tricks. At any rate, Miss Akins hasmore confidenco now m talking about it.

"I did not intend to invent a newtechnique," she says laughingly, count-up tho ballots for and against "TheVarying Shore." "This is not put for-vvard as new art or a next step to¬ward the radical in tho theater. Itmight bc considered as a matter ofrange. Thc piece is opcratic in qual-'¦'¦¦'¦ IL '3 an experiment. 'Daddy'aGone A-Hunting' waa its opposite inmanner, in treatment, in everything,and that play, the critics said, was oneof thc ten best; yet to hear some ofthc sccessionists you'd never think it

1. who wrote Miss Rambeau's play."Anyhow, it's not likely that "TheVarying Shore" will be rewritten.That isn't Miss Akins's way. Someyears ago she wrote a play called "ThcLearned Lady," which May Robson ac¬cepted. When rehearsals began shewas asked to make some changes andBho made them. Then it was an actthat required fewriting. And she rc-wrotc it. Another rehcarsal and shewaa told another act ought to bc doneover. "I took the manuscript homewith me, tore it up, threw it into thefire and mailed Miss Robson a cheekfor thc advance royalty I had received "

says thu playwright. "And then 'lswore a littlo oath to myself that I'dnever rewrite another play," And shehaa stuck to it. ^ p

Circus FurniskesSettings for the

Guild's New PlayIn "He Who Gets Slapped," the

Andreyev play which is to be presentedat the Garrick Theater this week, the'Thcnter Guild has gone as far afieldfrom thc usual walks of life for itsscenes and characters as it did in"Liliom." Where "Lilibm" dealt withthe activities and people of an amusc-ment park, the Russian play goes to a

circus for its scenes and people. Other-wise the plays are in no way similar.Tho Andreyev play is in four acts,

all laid in a large. rchearsal room ad-joining the circus ring, from which canbe heard the sounds of music ar.d theridcrs in the ring. With the execp-tion of three characters, all of thc longeast are performers in the circus.There are lion tamers, barcback rid¬crs, acrobats, trapeze performers ndclowns.The play was written in 1916, and

although Andreyev lived three yearsafter it was finished he never wroteanother play. He had the good fortuneto know that it was generally hailed ashis masterpicce. It has been one ofthe greatest favorites in tho leadingtheaters in Russia, and has also beena great success in Germany, France nndSwitzerland. Although it is full of ac¬tion, humor and color, it has a philo-sophieal theme underlying it and is thchappy combination of being a good"show" for those who ask noftiing elseand a play which has depths for thosewho care to go beyond thc story to lindthem. l

Al the ColumbiaMollic Williams, thc only female star

in burlesque, will be seen at this thea¬ter next week in "Mollic Williams'sComedies of 1922." The performanceis made up of short comedy bits withmusical numbers and vaudeville spc-cialties introduced at appropriato in-tervals. Miss Williams, will also ap¬pear in a dramatic playlet cailed "TheSignal." The balance of the companyincludes Cy Plunkett, John Philliber,Edward Kirby, Jerry Ross, SalvatoreZito, Phiny Rutledge, Jean Stcele, Iso-bel Blackburne and Vivian West.

Alice Bradv Makess"Driitiug%' Worth

All the TroubleAlice Brady gives notice that to¬

day, not to-morrow, is the time to see

"Drifting," tho qplorful melodrama ofChina. coast towns ar.d plateaus ofTartary, in which she has the mostspirited part she has ever played. *Forthe run of thc play is contingent uponthe plot which a motion picture con¬cern has laid to snatch Miss Bradyfrom the stage for at least three years.She is in the toils of a contract, andthat- day whereon the picture studioopens will bc her last on the legitimateboards fuc the term of thc contract.

It is a tritc principle of stage lawthat thc contract gocs to whoever gctspossession of thc papers, and isi de¬fault of that it operates in favor ofthe nearest villain. But the picturepeople have provided against aii that,taking a tlp from "Priiting."

It is just sucji a chase for an elusivescrap of paper that provides thc actionfor four of the rather vocifero* half-dozen incidents of .'Drifting." Firstyou 5ce Miss Brady as Cassie Cook run¬ning away frqm schooi days and theparental slipper in Waltham, Mass.Five years later she is a dubious char¬acter in a Shanghai resoi-t where vil-lains plot in a loud tone of voice. Cas¬sie now has an alias, Cassie Cook ofthe Yellow Sea, Queen of Sheba. She andBad Land McKinney get on the trailof the paper which binds the Bolshe-viki of Siberiu to the Chinesc reVolu-tionists in an uprising against tlie for¬eigners in the Far Fast. The document,of course, is captured in thc last scene.

It is Miss Brady's talent, aided bythat of Robert Warwick, thu makesyou forget ever;thing but her art whenshe is on the stage.

"I love the character of Cassie Cook,"she says,. "though I have to workharder than ever 1 worked in my life.There are two powerful scenes that Ilike "very much- the second, in thehouse in Shanghai, and the fifth. inthc coast town inn, where Cassie Cook*>and Bad Lands McKinney have themask torn from their 'respectability'and are disclosed in their true identity."As these two scenes are the princi¬pal ones, we considered at one time theadvisability of rewriting the piece.laying thc entire action in Shanghai.But it seemed that some really epicadventurc of common danger and sac¬rifice was necessary to tie Cassie andBad Lands McKinney together. So itstood as written."

At lhe HippodromcAutomobile Show visitora are mak¬ing large demands on the Hippodromebox oftice for seats to "Get Together,"which begins its nineteenth week to-morrow and will reach its 2l*5th per¬formance on Thursday evening. TheFokino ballct "The Thunder Bird" andthc ice ballet, "The Red Shoes," fromthe Admiral's Ico Palace, Berlin, areamong the features at the big play-house. "A Trip to Toyland," arrangedespecially for the children, continuesas part of the entertainment.

Invite UrbanTo Show His

Picture SetsArtists Designs for ^Ti,

Bride's Play" Will Befehibited at the Metropolj.tan .Museum of ^Joseph Urban, designer of g«Ht

for Cosmopolitari screen prodoet^and Btage settings for the Mctropo]i.tan Opera House, has bee/i reowtfejt.o exhibit photographic r'-pr.>duc*i0of his motion picture ettingj »? «,

Metropolitan Museum of Art. Th»vitation c-±me through the Archit.tural League of America. The ].*.».con3idercd Urban's settings for "j;:',r:'!e'-, Play," Marion Dav <->'. «._"'m play, such work--. of art that Hfficers desired the repr ductloni yo settings for its annual exhibition* the Metropolitan Muse .--. of ArtM on t h s .-*. - re d e vot<-1 to rfrsee*-.

vork ander the direction ofMr.jjjifor data regarding life IrehBfjg..g the twelfth century. ^ ij in th»elfth century that the m**.*^ory in "The Bri le's Play Ufotafrat,

;''¦ LTrban, rcalizing th- Bignttetta>f the old legend woven to themj.rn story, gave the closest attentfoatitail of < period. Evc ry kn«.¦"" of info rn ati m -.va', otadied-

" library at Columbia Cnivtajbthc Mctrop. tan Museum, catalom

the Briti Museum and the %oi al Mu leu in Dublin.The legend underlying "1 - Hrid**!

Play," which i used by D Byr>in his story of tl e s>am< ame, te&

an an< icnt a| 7 <0;'¦ ng a ma; ria< ;» i.M,',

idc o her usband ai ^^k3 ca.:'in turn v, hcl h» is the one sl

loves bi '. and each a.rs "ro" :.reply. Then ie returns 1 her buband and asks hin the jn, Ureply being to enfold her a*-T.

But, :- the 1. :'- > ¦¦. EuH" " '" thc - Kcmntna iked thi handso "'-.--. .¦' Muckross whether a-. %\loved thc best hc rep;:'- j - anj j|,whispercd to hi to tak away a*e carried h tr off.The Bride WasV Modern Girl

In the me icrn ¦. iry thc br icgrooa.Sir Fergus, .-. di cendai t ot the Eaiof Kcnmare, revived thc old custom.iitho terror the superstitious pcatair?, w ho kni v that *' * bri ie had be«in love v ith a philandering poet,Mea&vho had Icfl the pretty girl for otk:conquesl ar. 1 had returned *.o tfcwedding to stand in the rir.g cf a*.

to bn questioned. But the bride nta modcrii girl, and paid off her seo:?before the astounded guestr. In tiipicture at the Rialto Theater *'. is wwi.Marion Davies play.- the bride in bflCthc medieval aml modern stories..

Many ancient Irish cu-t-ms in

shown in "The Bride's Play." One tithem is the breaking of an oaten caiiover the heatl of the bride a.- an augur?of plenty. In the photoplay the caksis carried or. a large tray by vtn

pages, who hold it over the bridt'shead as her mother-in-law breaks thicake. The tray is a copy of the lo?of the outer c:.se ef the fhrine »:'Domnach Airgfd, one cf the treasureof the Royal lr:sh Academy collectioiin the Natioi al Museum at Dubii:.The top is enriched with three bosai,ornamented with grotesque a*iiaa!figures, blue enamel and se'tinjs *'uncut crystals filling the soares. Sttwecn the bosscs are figures o'.'.whorsemen.

Another rare work of art reprodiwiin "The Bride's Play" is :i:e cross cai-ricd in the wedding processioc. Thuwas copied iron; the Cross ef Cecgand was made about 1123 fox TurloghO'Conor, King o: Connaught and I»

'land. The cross. which is now ic &Royal Irish Academy collectioSi **s

I made to e-hshrine rar: t the trueerswpresented by the Pope. Tae cr«i«carried by thc prelate in the laediewiwedd:3ig scene is a : epro ductidn of «»<

crosier of Clonmacnois, the raost co»-

pleto relic of its k in the Roy*Irish Academy collectioiRevive Custom ofFlower BombardmentAnother custom of the old day* u

the festival bonnet carried by P***'during affairs of importsnee. T"knight casquo is suraiounted by *

figure of an animal.an eagle f°r *

martial knight and a lamb forthenobl*whose family was noted for P!e$'Still another custom revived is that**the bombardment of flowers. Orfi'nariiy used in the Middle Agesfor**purpeses the ancient lead thrJ*1*were turned inward upon the casti**1flowers were used as ammunition.The costume worn by Miss Davi*'111

the legendary story is a reproducti*- of the wedding gown worn by Je*"1*Queen of Navarte, to Phiilip V, &"*of Franc* Five skilled embroidere^worked two aiul a half months on f

train alone, and $75,000 worth of j"*were worked into the costume.

In roproducing thc arehitecture *

the period, Urban went to every »oa**of authentic design of the period «*¦

built scenes that are rich in the stranT[decoration of the tune. Every d«»in stone, stained glass. furnishings*lighting, was carefully worked »ut

^the spirit of the twelfth century1'Ireland.a style of art widely diffef*from that in other parts of the «* '

A wonderful wishing well, a m*\i,icent cathedral interior, and a P*'*eastle, are some of the elaborate »t*

tectural arts reproduccd by ^rb*"['vy"The Britie's Play" was dir«i»^

George W. Terwilliger and ad»Pte<'e

the screen by Mildred Considine.principal players in the medieval .

are Miss Dsivies, Jack 0'Bri«» "^

Frank Shannon.