Three New English Plays

Radio Record, Volume VIII, Issue 28, 18 January 1935, Page 17

Three New English Plays

Heinemann. Publishes Some Recent London Stage’ Successes | Below are reviews of three new plays which have had considerable success on the stage in London, and which have been recently received in New Zealand from Messrs. Heinemann, the London publishers. These reviews have been specially written for the "Radio Record" by. Victor S. Lloyd, the well- known Wellington producer.

"MOONLIGHT IS SILVER." A play. in three acts by Clemence Dane (Heinemann). This fine play received its premiere at the Queen’s Theatr, z0ndon, on September 19 last year, and although it was written specially for Miss Gertrude Lawrence and Dougls Fairbanks jnr., is has merits beyond that of providing opportunities for the exploitation of Miss Lawrence’s intriguing personality. The story of the play concerns a young married couple; the wife, a creature of many moods, vivacious, intensely in love with her husband and a little in awe of his reintions; the husband,-a brilliant cousulting engineer absent from his home for long stretches, in love with his wife hut extremely jealous. The play was originally entitled "Here Lies Truth" reflecting the wife’s discovery that the truth is not always believed, but a lie told in desperation mzy be accepted by a husband whose vision is temporari!y warped by jealousy. The play requires three rather elaborate settings and would, therefore, be difficult for amateurs to stage when it becomes avail!able for production, but the brilliance of its dialogue and its dramatic emotionai scenes should inake it an exceilent reading. There are four fema'e and four male characters. "HE SHINING HOUR": A play by Keith Winter (Heinemann). Keith Winter came to the fore with his un-~ usual and excellently written play "The Rats of Norway." "The Shining Hour" bids fair to equal its forerunner’s success. It was originally produced on Hebruary 13, 1984, in New York with the English cast (including Gladys Cooper and Raymond Massey) which is interpreting the play in London at the moment. The plot is reminiscent of the Jate Ronald Mackenzie’s "Musical Chairs" with, however, an indivicual twist all its own. The scene, which . is the same. throughout the play, is set in the living room of an Blizabethan farmhouse in Yorkshire. ‘he period Is the present fday.. The elder brother of the Linden family brings home his newly married wife to meet his family. She quite unwittingly has a disturbing influence upon the rather stolid farming household, and the various relationships shatter and reform under the impact of a tragedy that occurs when one of the barns is burned down. Apart from the delightful -difficulty of re creating the Elizabethan farmhouse, ‘the play should present amateurs with few difficulties of staging. Keith Winter’s erisp and telling dialogue js ar important feature of this play and will no doubt ensure its providing an excellent reading. ‘There are only six characters-three females (aged 4h 80 and 22) and three males (aged 48, 25 and 20). . .

"T*DEN END," a play in three acts by J. B. Priestley (Heinemann). This is Mr. Priestley’s fourth play-a beautiful and moving play-and is a complete justification of his recent decision to devote most of his time in future to dramatic work. The play was first produced on September 138 last at the Duchess Theatre, London, and is still running, and likely to run for a long time. The outstanding feature of "Eden Bnd" is its really remarkable sincerity. very character breathes and lives and has the imprint of reality. Tne plot is simple but convincingly developed to a moving and satisfying climax. Stella Kirby, the elder of two daughters, returns home after having run away to go on the stage. Her father and younger brother treat her ‘as a famous actress. Actually she has not been very successful, and in her wanderings has married and parted from a charming, amusing, but completely irresponsile actor. Her family know nothing of this and a childhood sweetheart whe, until Stella’s arrival, had been mildly interested in Lilian, her younger sister, now falls violently in love with Stella. Her husband unexpectedly turus up and complications ensue. The play ends with the patching up of the differences between Stella and her husand and. after her renunciation of her childhood lover, their departure to start life afresh, A delightful play with only one setting-the sitting room of Dr. Kirby’s house in the North of England in the period of 1912. There are only seven characters :. three females (Stella, aged about 30 odd; Lilian, about 26, and Sarah, the housekeeper, about.70), and four males (Dr. Kirby, 60. Geoffery, 35, Charles, 40, and Wilfred, 24).