"THE WIND AND THE RAIN"

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21416, 7 March 1935, Page 19

"THE WIND AND THE RAIN"

+ PLEASANT COMEDY A NEW ZEALANDER'S PLAY Few comedies give so many moments of easy delight as "The Wind and the Rain," by Dr. Merton Hodge, a New Zealander, which began its season at the Theatre Royal last evening. Its eager vitality and youthful lun explain its long-continued success in London. "Truth to life" has so often been abused as a term of praise for a play or a novel, and it has so frequently meant no more than an appalling and dull literalness, that it is only reluctantly applied to "The Wind and the Rain." Yet it is by this quality above all—a selection of incidents, mainly humorous, that appeal by their vital reality—that the play endears itself. Every man who has ever lived as a student in lodgings will recognise himself and his friends in the young men of the play. The living room they share, the odd collection of furniture, the upholstery, the faded and stained table cover—in fact, all the surroundings—are the type of things found in lodgings the world over. The garrulous, prying, and caustic tongued but really kindly Mrs McFie who presides over the establishment has sisters in evry university town. The young men themselves are well selected and contrasted types: there is the older j man who has finished his course, but who comes 1 back to do more work, though he knows he will never do it; the empty-headed but occasionally likeable fellow who never allows work to steal time from the important business of beer and girls and parties; the solider, slightly duller man who pegs away and finds his relaxation in sport, and the younger one whose life has been sheltered, and who from a sense j of responsibility and because of greater abilities goes through his course brilj liantly. The way they rub along to- ! gether, the occasional spontaneous bursts of fun, b.v-play over beer and girls, and books —these are all transscriptions from reality, and they make good comedy. The play, of course, has a love story. It is possibly intended as a problem and to be weighed seriously, but it is less convincingly worked out than some of the other , material. Nevertheless, it, too, has a ring of truth in its tale of the young man who cannot relate his life in Edinburgh with his home ties in London, and who is so confused between his loyalty to his mother and his love for "a girl (incidentally a New Zealander) in Edinburgh, that his behaviour is rather callow. However, all works out well in the end.

The whole performance was smoothly done, and the acting was in an appropriate easy style—not remarkably brilliant, but thorough and pleasing. Miss Jocelyn Howarth was charming as Ann, the New Zealand girl, best perhaps in the more emotional scenes, for there was a "little stiffness at first. A delight of another kind was aroused by Miss Nan Taylor, as Mrs McFie, the landlady. Hers was a really brilliant piece of character acting in voice, gesture, and movement, and she gave a startling life to the really good lines the author had provided her. Miss Gwen ■ Mannering, with less to do as Jill, the family friend from London, was admirable in the awkward surprise party scene. Mr George Thirlwell showed considerable ability as the chief character, Charles Tritton. He made himself the type of the really likeable and hardworking young man, pleasant of voice and earnest of manner. He handled awkward situations in just the way expected of him, and though he was not always convincing as a lover, this may have arisen from his desire tu maintain the touch of rawness essential to the part. Mr Tommy Jay was

a delight as the pleasure-loving Gilbert Raymond. His spontaneous lightheadedness and fooling as he dressed or drank beer or toyed with a ukulele never failed to make his appearance a sign for mirth. Mr Arundel Nixon gave a convincingly smooth interpretation of the character of the philosophic Frenchman, Mr R. L. Atholwood was a good solid friend, Mr Richard Fair was just right as the rather empty dancing partner, and Mr Ronald Roberts was amusingly awkward as the youth just up to begin his course. The play will be produced for the rest of the week.