Our Stage and Its Critics | Page 3

to render the most critical Englishman proud of his country's
drama.
E.F.S.
_October 1910_
The thanks of the author are due to the Proprietors and the Editor of
The Westminster Gazette for kindly consenting to the republication of
articles which have already appeared in that journal.

CONTENTS
PAGE
CHAPTER I
THE DRAMATIC CRITIC
His Qualifications--His Knowledge of Fashionable Society--His Duties
and Difficulties--His Stock Phrases--The Circumstances under which
he writes--His Fear of Libel Actions 1

CHAPTER II
THE DRAMATIC CRITIC
His Duty to be tolerant--His Sympathies when young--The Jaded
Critic--His Unpaid Labours and his Letter Bag 28

CHAPTER III
THE DRAMATIC CRITIC
An Attack upon him--Why he is disliked--His Honesty--His
Abolition--The Threatened Theatrical Trust 49

CHAPTER IV
PLAYS OF PARTICULAR TYPES
The Pseudo-Historical--The Horrible in Drama--The Immorality
Play--Scripture Plays--Anecdotal Plays--The Supernatural 72

CHAPTER V
PLAYS OF PARTICULAR TYPES
Unsentimental Drama--The Second-hand Drama--Plays with a
Purpose--Drama and Social Reform 99

CHAPTER VI

THE PHENOMENA OF THE STAGE
The Optics--Make-up--Gesture--Scenery at the French Plays--Stage
Costumes--Colour--Stage Meals 118

CHAPTER VII
THE MORALITY OF OUR DRAMA
Mr Harry Lauder on the Morals of Our Drama--Double Entente--Moral
Effect on Audience--An Advantage of French Dramatists 149

CHAPTER VIII
CASUAL NOTES ON ACTING
Mr H.B. Irving on his Art--Mr Bourchier and "Max" on English
Acting--The Sicilian Players--Alleged Dearth of Great
Actresses--Character Actresses--Stage Misfits--Stars 167

CHAPTER IX
STAGE DANCING
The Skirts of the Drama--Isadora Duncan 195

CHAPTER X
THINGS IN THE THEATRE

A Defence of the Matinée Hat--A Justification of certain
Deadheads--Theatrical Advertisements--Music 205

CHAPTER XI
IN THE PLAYHOUSE
Laughter--Smoking in the Auditorium--Conduct of the
Audience--Concerning the Pit--Why do we go to the Theatre? 229

CHAPTER XII
MISCELLANEOUS
Signor Borsa on the English Theatre--G.B.S. and the Amateurs--Cant
about Shakespeare--Yvette Guilbert on Dramatists 252

CHAPTER XIII
MISCELLANEOUS
Finance in Plays--Some Unsuccessful Dramatists--The Ending of the
Play--Preposterous Stage Types--The Professions of the Dramatis
Personae 271

CHAPTER I
THE DRAMATIC CRITIC
His Qualifications

The production of a play in the Russian tongue renders topical a phrase
once used, not unhappily, by Mr Cecil Raleigh concerning the
qualifications of the dramatic critic. After listening to a somewhat
extravagant speech about the duties of the critic, he said that the
dramatic critic ought, apparently, to be a "polyglot archangel." During
the last few years we have had plays in Russian, Japanese, Bavarian
patois, Dutch, German, French and Italian, to say nothing of East End
performances in Hebrew and Yiddish, which we neglect. Latin drama
we hear at Westminster; a Greek company came to the Court but did
not act. A Chinese has been promised, and a Turkish drama threatened;
Danish has been given; there are awful hopes of Gaelic and Erse; and
goodness knows why we have escaped Echegaray, Lope di Vega and
Calderon in the original. A Mezzofanti would be at a premium in the
craft if knowledge of languages alone were sufficient; but one may
know many tongues and possess no judgment.
We have to accept great responsibilities. Some people measure the
greatness of the responsibilities by the amount of money involved in
theatrical enterprises; it is hardly necessary to discuss seriously this
point of view. Nevertheless the fact remains that the voice of the critics
has some effect upon the fortunes of ventures involving large sums of
money and the employment of many people. It is rather curious to see
how lightly as a rule the influence of the critics is regarded; for instance,
from some remarks uttered by Sir John Hare it appears that he thinks
they are not influential. Here are his words taken from an interview
published in a newspaper.
_The Interviewer_: "How is public taste formed? Do newspaper
criticisms affect it?"
_Mr Hare_: "Very little."
This view is rarely pressed upon a jury by the plaintiff in a libel action,
and it may be remarked that although, when a play is running well,
some managers almost ignore us, as soon as business drops they
become delightfully amiable and long for our presence. Moreover, at
considerable expense, they quote our opinions if favourable--even with
judicious modifications when unfavourable.

Perhaps the matter of languages is not of very great importance, seeing
that most of the critic's work concerns English Drama, or drama in
what is supposed to be English, which, too often, is quite a different
thing. What, then, are the necessary qualifications of the critic who
takes his work and himself seriously?
He should have some knowledge of music--enough, at least, to know
whether incidental or "melodrama" music is congruous with the time,
place and occasion of the play, and to be able to identify well-known
works. At a time when money is spent very lavishly upon scenery and
costumes, he ought to possess some theories, or at least ideas,
concerning pictorial art, the history of modern painting and the