"THE MARRIAGE CLAUSE."

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18899, 14 January 1927, Page 11

"THE MARRIAGE CLAUSE."

A DRAMA TO THINK ABOUT. Perhaps there 15 no subject -under the sun more diseased, both verbally and in print, than matrimony, or , to delve deeper, than marriage. Without getting embroiled in mndameaulfi, one can but state that the reason U a i mp i 6 and o ' OV ; OUS) a reMon tfaat in the Harden of Eden and has continued down to this year of grace. It is but banal to dub marriage dramatic, but it ':. i U . IS co -«a'ly so to say that ono can a viiat amount of humour out 0; it,, out one can; it j s brutal and unkind ?JJ ,c . r that marriage, alter a low months, sneds its garments 01 romance, and assumes tuo piosaio garb of reality, but it docs. The average man shies clear of drama, the average woman embraces it, but that is not to say that tho average man shies clear of matrimony. Yet there are some, who, desirous of avoiding its eternal paradoxes, still c-ing to romance, and when that ie ao events of rnomentoj s interest oo:ur. Such a 6ituat lo n is, to bo perfectly candid, found more frequently between the pagc3 of the dramatist's manuscript than between the pages of Life, but in the hands of competent artists, skilful authors, and sympathetic directors, a wonderfully 'convincing play can be evolved from the theme. Such a play is "The Marriage Clause," the Universal production, which hae been secured for presentation at the. Liberty Theatre next week, and if the Universal Corporation never made another film, they would "be remembered lor "The Marriage. Clause" just as long as the industry survived. In this age of competition, of .otril'e, of tho theory of the survival of the fittest carried into all arenas, the plot 0! this picture might not be encountered very frequently, but a generation ba;k it was a dramatic commonplace, in which shattered romance and broken dreams were, tho predominant factors. It is a- bold, sincere, effective story, essentially serious drama, to which is imparted tho balance of light and delicnte humour, the colour of romance, the always attractive combination of tragedy and triumph struggling for tho honours. it is & story of the theatre, tho lives of a company of artists being traced with a ruthless hand, lives that flow new serenely, now lurbule.ntly, a theatrical play which is vivid and descriptive with all the glamour of tho footlights, and all the atark realism of backstage. Playing tho leading rolo i 3 Miss Billio Dove, who has deserted tho mediocre roles so long offered her in tho past, and blossomed forth as a dramatic actres3 with fc distinctive flair for tho emotional. She is both e,trong "and artistic, and is an active factor in the buccesa of the picture. She is supported by an excellent cast, in which Warner Oland, in a typical role, is, perhaps, the most notable. The box plans are now open at Tho Bristol Piano Company, where scats may be reserved.