ROXY

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 896, 13 February 1930, Page 16

ROXY

“THE TRESPASSER” “The Trespasser,” now at the Roxy Theatre, is a play of modern life constructed to meet the requirements of the new screen medium, rather than a story designed for the silent screen, into which dialogue has been placed. The vocal numbers are also the more highly appreciated, because the theme songs really interpret the mood of the story and sustain its tempo, instead of disrupting its trend of thought. The setting of the drama is Chicago, its environment the “smart set.” Through its intimate study of a, girl who becomes a trespasser in this restricted social sphere and in the lives of • its people, the story develops into vital affairs of life. Gloria Swanson has one of the most suitable roles of her screen career as Marion Donnell, the stenographer of Hector a wealthy Chicago corporation lawyer. She elopes with Jack Merrick, a millionaire’s son, but on the third day of the honeymoon the father convinces Jack that he should obtain a quiet annulment, and arrange a dignified wedding at a later date. His real motive, however, is to get rid of Marion and to have his son marry a girl c»f his own class. A year and a-half later, Marion, with her young son. is forced to return to her former employment. Ferguson takes more than a passing interest in the girl, and when he suddenly dies some time later he bequeaths her a large part of his fortune. She renounces this, however, fearing it will cause a scandal reacting on the child. Young Merrick and Marion meet again in New York, and the girl forces him to acknowledge his love for her. Miss Swanson is supported by established players of both stage and screen. The leading man is Robert Ames, who has been extremely popular on the New York stage, and roles' are also assigned to Purnell Pratt and Henry B. Walthall. A new selection of supporting items is also being presented.