The Jewish Monitor (Fort Worth-Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 10, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, November 5, 1920 Page: 3 of 16
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Friday November 5 1920.
JEWISH PLAYS ON THE AMERI.
CAN STAGE.
ByS. Dingol.
(Copyright 1920 by I. J. P. B.)
In theatrical seasons of recent years
there never was such abundance ot
Jewish plays on the non-Jewish stage
as during the present season. As these
f lines are written not less than thrse
Jewish plays maintain a run on the
New York stage David Pinski's
"Treasure" at the Garrick Theatre
"Welcome Strangers" at Cohan &
Harris' and "The Unwritten Chapter"
at the Astor.
Whence this sudden prediliction for
Jewish plays has come upon the stage
iy is well known in theatrical icrcles. In
the portfolios of American theatrical
managers there can always be found
some 'Jewish" plays that is plays
with Jewish characters. Very few the-
atrical managers dare to produce such
. plays as they fear criticism by their
Gentile audiences who might charge
that such plays suggest the smell of
"geflllte fish." Last year however
something occurred that changed the
situation in turn of an eyebrow.
While many theatres in the larger cit-
ies suffered from financial reverses a
"Jewish" play "Welcome Strangers"
was produced in Chicago to capacity
audiences a whole season. The mana-
gers came to realize that most of the
theatregoers in the larger cities were
Jews and that a Jewish play was by
no means an impediment to business.
. They therefore transplanted the same
Oplay "Welcome Strangers" from
Chicago to New York where its sue
eess was duplicated and where it has
been staged before full houses ever
Based on the success of "Welcome
Strangers' two other plays previous-
ly mentioned found their place on the
American stage. But theatrical man-
agers have made a mistake this time.
The success of "Welcome Strangers"
was not due to the fact that it was a
Jewish play or that it flattered the
Jew even though such may account
partially for its success but it was
. successful because it happens to be
1 even without its Jewish content a re-
markably well done comedy light
amusing and in accordance with the
tastes of the average theartegoer and
then its chief character the Jewish
star George Sydney is so wonderful
In the part he is acting that it Is a real
pleasure to see him or watch his per-
formance. Such cannot however be said of the
other two plays. As a work of art
Pinski'a "Treasure" is undoubtedly
greater than the other two plays but
it is a satire rather than a comedy or
drama and it is an almost impossible
task to make a satire successful on the
stage. Of all modern dramatists only
one Bernard Shaw managed to ac-
complish it but even his success is
only partial.
"The Unwritten Chapter" does not
possess even such quality. The play
makes the impression of having been
written with the predestined idea that
Jews are patriots and they they are
connected with American history al-
. most from the first day Columbus sat
4'ji foot in the New World. But the
play ia long drawn out and monoton-
ous and does not provoke any enthus-
iasm or any sincere laughs from the
audience.
It will therefore surprise nobody
that the two last-named play cannot
produce the result expected by their
managers and it will be a logical
thing by the time these lines reach the
THE JEWISH MONITOR
reading public that the American
tage will have lost two plays of its
"Jewish" production.
Let us admit that no one will re-
gret the "untimely 'death of the two
plays. Our Jewish dramatists have
simply been found unequal to the task
of presenting the best of their work
to the American public. Jewish life
of yesterday and today is full of dra-
matic material which merely awaits
the ignition of a spark to blow off. A
great author full of national con-
sciousness like David Pinski is un-
doubtedly able to instill into it his
great artistic soul. Nevertheless he
could find nothing better for the Eng-
lish speaking stage than his "Treas-
ure" a half-comical half-mystical
episode of a small Jewish town where
the grave digger's son buried his pet
dog and found in the grave a few gold
coins which caused the town to pro-
claim it a treasure and go on a hunt
for money under the guidance of a
feeble-minded boy.
While the sophisticated theatregoer
may see in the play the symbol of con-
stant search for gold and its riducul-
ous outcome an undiscovered treasure
the American theatregoer is usually
far removed from such a point of
view. He will leave the theatre with
the conclusion that all Jews have an
only aim in life to hunt for treasures
and the play will confirm his settled
prejudice against the Jewish chase for
money.
"The Unwritten Chapter'' is even
worse in that the play does not pre.
tend to be symbolical and leaves a bad
taste in the mouths of the audience.
Jewish heroism in the American Rev-
olution consisted again in money.
Hayyim Solomon aided Washington's
army with money and also dragged
money from other Jews for the pur-
pose. Thus this Jew otherwise very
sympathetic historical personage and
whose part is played by that able Jew-
ish actor Louis Mann becomes to tho
average audience a sort of half-spy
half-banker for the Revolutionary ar-
my and I am sure the American
theatregoer will leave the perform-
ance forgetting the noble Jewish bank-
er Hayyim Solomon and retaining in
his memory the figure of a "Jewish
trickster" Hayyim Solomon.
Is Jewish life really founded on era-
ty notions or chase after money?
Such an accusation almost sounds
like a Polish "bilfuL"
We have just witnessed the per
formance of a play written by a Gen.
tile "Disreali" the story of the great
Jewish Prime Minister of England.
Every Jew may look with pride upon
the play and every non-Jew will leave
the theatre full of respect for the
great English statesman and the race
to which he belonged. But the Jewish
Hayyim Solomon cannot accord us re-
spect even though the play was writ-
ten by a Jew.
OUR CABLES RE-CABLED TO
WARSAW.
Warsaw; (Special Cable to I. J. P.
B.) The American correspondent of
the newspaper "Narod" published
here evidently re-cabling to Warsaw
our cable dispatch concerning General
Balachovitch's occupation of Minsk
states that there is great commotion
among American Jews regarding the
anti-Semitic course pursued by Gen-
eral Balachovitch and urges the Po-
lish government to desist from lend-
ing further support to the general
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Page Three
MR. SOL SISKIN
4
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Fox, George. The Jewish Monitor (Fort Worth-Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 10, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, November 5, 1920, newspaper, November 5, 1920; Fort Worth, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth296785/m1/3/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .