The Author of "Candida" Declares
With Emphasis That Charity Actors
Make Themselves Ridiculous.
Bernard Shaw recently contributed to the London _Tribune_ a characteristic
bit of criticism. It seems that he has been much annoyed by requests for
permission to give amateur performances of his plays in behalf of charity.
Mr. Shaw has a small opinion of amateur actors, as may be gathered from
the following:
Almost all amateurs desire to imitate the theater rather
than to act a play.
Reach-me-down dresses, reach-me-down scenery, reach-me-down
equipments are considered good enough for dramatic
masterpieces--are positively preferred to decent and
beautiful things because they are so much more theatrical.
As to plays, they, too, must be second-hand reach-me-downs.
Your amateurs don't want to bring plays to a correct and
moving representation for the sake of the life they
represent; they want to do Hawtrey's part in this or Ellen
Terry's part in that, or Cyril Maude's part in the other.
The enormous and overwhelming advantage possessed by
amateurs--the advantage of being free from commercial
pressure and having unlimited time for rehearsal--is the
last one they think of using.
The commercial plays, which are the despair of actors, but
which they must produce or starve, are the favorites of our
amateurs. They do out of sheer folly and vulgarity what our
real dramatic artists do of necessity and give some saving
grace and charm to in the doing.