MOST POPULAR PLAYS

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXV, Issue 148, 8 June 1935, Page 14

MOST POPULAR PLAYS

U.S. and English Opinions NEGLECT OF THE CLASSICS An American newspaper has just concluded an inquiry into the relative popularity of famous plays. It did not consult its general mass of readers, but sent its questionnaire to “three hundred celebrities in different profes-

At the head of the final list, taken on votes, was the classic choice of “Hamlet.” Apropos this selection, one would have liked a little clearer definition of what was implied by the words “favourite play”—which was the question that the celebrities were asked to decide on (says a writer in the “New Zealand Herald”). Does it mean the play considered to be the “greatest” play in the world? Or the play that the celebrity most readily goes to see in the theatre? Or, finally, is it the play which, .for very shame’s sake, many celebrities feel compelled to put at the top of their lists? One only suggests this last doubt for the reason that the next plays on the list, the runners-up, show a quite remarkable falling-off in the bright standard of literary purity. They are, in order of choice, “Rain,” “What Price Glory,” “Cyrano de Bergerac,” and “Peter Pan.” The position given to “Rain” must obviously be largely accounted for by the late Jean Eagles, a young actress of dramatic genius, who gave the play a prodigious run in New York. But when it comes to ranking the play, as a play, next to “Hamlet” . ... 1 It is founded on a short story of Mr Maugham’s that is admittedly a masterpiece. But the stage adaptation, which was not made by Mr Maugham, does not even carry out Mr Maugham’s intention to the-end; after dealing very faithfully with the main body of the story, it introduces the absurdity of a happy ending for the girl.

“What Price Glory,” an anti-war play, was a fine and moving piece of work. But “Cyrano,” even to those familiar with it in Rostand’s own soaring and rocketing Alexandrines, comes as a surprise when placed among world masterpieces; and “Peter Pan,” enchanting as it is, has evidently scored one more victory over the critical judgment.

In contrast to this list, built out of aggregate votes, there is a list made by a young and brilliant Englishman of the theatre, Mr Ben Levy, the playwright, who happened to be in New York at the time. As Mr Levy has written several admirable comedies himself, his list is interesting. It begins with four Shaw plays, “Major Barbara,” “Heartbreak House,” “Saint Joan,” and “Man and Superman.” These are followed by “Of Thee I Sing,” a satirical New York revue, by George Kaufman; “Ghosts” GranvilleBarker’s “The Madras House,” Strindberg’s “The Father,” O’Casey’s “Juno and the Paycoek,” and (partly, I gather, popped in as a tribute to the conventions) “The School for Scandal.”

At a recent London party where Mr Levy mentioned this list, another young English playwright said, “Wait a minute; I’ll write my list before I’ve seen yours, and we can then compare them.” His list was similar in many respects. It contained “The Father,” “Juno and the Paycock,” “Man and Superman,” “Back to Methuselah,” Maugham’s “Our Betters,” three Chekhov plays—“ The Three Sisters,” “The Seagull,’ and “The Cherry Orchard” —modern dress “Hamlet,” and “any Guitry play, for preference ‘L’lllusioniste’ or the ‘Veilleur de Nuit.’ ”

The similarity of the two lists, apart from the plays that they had actually in common, was in the almost total neglect of the classics. In the discussion that followed an explanation was given of this. Both had sufficient literary sense to recognise that, for instance, “King Lear” and “Antony and Cleopatra” were immortal masterpieces. But both argued that, as they had never seen and never imagined that they would see, even Gjiarmian and Enobarus — let alone -/'the principal figures—played as they should be played, it would have been a piece of hypocrisy to have referred to “Lear” and “Cleopatra” as being among their “favourite plays.” Both being practical men of the theatre, they confined themselves to plays that had actually given them the maximum intensity of excitement and pleasure in the theatre. Three other plays were then added as “possibles,” but that had been overlooked in the heat of the moment—- “ The Wild Duck,” O’Neill’s “Strange Interlude,” and Maugham’s “The Circle’— again all comparatively modern.

In contrast, again, with these lists, both made by men of the theatre, is a further list made by a young man of letters. The list was as follows:—

“King Lear,” “The Changeling,” (Middleton), “The Weavers” (Hauptmann), “The Trojan Women,” “The School for Scandal,” “The Importance of Being Earnest,” “Everyman,” “The Duchess of Malfit,” “Heartbreak House,” “The Cherry Orchard.” It is interesting, in that it is a

“literary” list rather than a theatre list. A couple at least of the plays have never been seen by the compiler on any stage. He has chosen the plays which should, in ideal conditions, be the greatest, those who live in the theatre are aware that ideal conditions are hard to come by.

It is reported that Jan Kiopura and Marta Eggerth were secretly married, and their trip to Hollywood is to be in the nature of a honeymoon.