a 1a1L l TI LILY i ~ --%............,.. T,, L. VA.LA ; IL , __ 7 EGO Scogan And for the evening I was lucky enough to get a single for Walter Hampden's Cyrano de Bergerac.1 CONCERNING HOW TO GET THERE Those who, a couple of weeks ago, read my first impressions of Trinity Church and the Woolworth Building will know that I had checked myr bag and was making my headquarters at the Commodore Hotel. From 1 there it is not far to the National Theater, so I took the opportunity and walked. "I walked down Fifth and came up-" Broadway to Times Square.! CONCERNING NECKWEAR This had been my first opportunity to walk down Fifth avenue-it being the first time that I had found it-so, now that the shops were closed, I enjoyed myself to- the limit. It was here that I saw the first necktiesj of the day which the average man at Michigan would wear,. It had really been a keen disappointment to me that I had not even seen anyone with distinctive neckwear. I had appeased my own mind, however, by the supposition that this morbid display was the havoc caused by Christmas. But here in the windows of Peck there were ne:ktie. CONCERNING LEADING LADIES But I can restrain myself no longer. Those of you who have seen Walter Hampden's productions in Ann Arbor know only the ability of that man, himself, as an actor and interpreter; for of necessity the' repertoire_ productions were not of the calibre that he has given to his Cyrano de Bergerac. And you will regretfully. remember his leading lady and her "weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth." You remember her-that wailing Desdemonia and that simpering Ophelia? Well-rejoice with me as I did when in that opening pre-concert scene of Cyrano I recognized that sob-choked nasal crying out: "Oranges, milk, rapsberry syrup, lemon- ade". Reduced to the ranks of Orange Girl, a super! What justice this seemed to be, that she was humbly about with shorn epaulets; such is her due for so harrowing her performance of Shakespeare. And so Carroll McComas takes Mabel Moore's place as Hampden's leading lady. In an announcement of future productions I find, in Romeo and Juliet he will have a new Juliet, in Hamlet a new Qphelia and in The Merchant of Venice a new Portia. Hoggishly I wish that he would give this new lead his Desdemona. CONCERNING CYRANO DE BERGERAC This particular evening for which I happened to be lucky enough to get a single for Walter Hampden's Cyrano de Bergerac, was the 26th anniversary of the play. For it was on December 28th, 1897, that Paris first saw Coquelin in this, Rostand's greatest play. Robert Mansfield played it in this country, a couple of years later. And that is the last that it has been seen here._ But now Hampden has produced this new Brian Hooker translation; and he has done it with such skill and adeptness that even George Jean1 Nathan, avowedly prejudiced against Hampden productions, has ranked this as far superior to the. Mansfield Cyrano. It is a tale of those grand old days of 1640, when a delectable old bruiser like Cyrano could forbid the appearance on the stage of an over- done actor-even though he was a favorite-and get away with it. In fact, it is in the little business of enforcing his demands that Montfieury retire, that we first meet Cyrano. And the first thing that we notice is his nose. It is upon this-the nose-that the whole story is based; and to that state- ment he would.have taken exception, and I would have been picked up in pieces, for he was very sensitive about his nose. I will not tell you the story, however, for those of you who do not know it, there awaits this beautiful Brian Hooker translation, which has been published by the Henry Holt & Company. It is a man's love story -a soldier and a poet, he loves Roxanne-it is a tragedy. And what a delectable old bruiser he is. He would fight at the drop of a hat; and the next night make words like these: "And what is a kiss when all is done?_ A promise given under seal-a vow Taken before the shrine of memory- A signature acknowledged-a rosy dot Over the i of Loving-a secret whispered To listening lips apart-a moment made Immortal, with a rush of wings unseen- A sacrement of blossoms, a new song Sung by two hearts to an old simple tune- The ring of one horizon around two souls- Together all alone!" (Understand, this was in 1644!) And he again draws such a figure as F, L. Tilden...........Editor Donald E. L. Snyder......Books Normand Lockwood......Music Robert Bartron Henderson... ......... Drama Gordon Wier....... ....Art Lisle Rose, Halsey Davidson, Newell Bebout, Samuel Moore, .Tr., Maxwell Nowles, Philip Wag- ner, Dorothy Sanders. The Sunday Magazine solicits manuscripts from all persons af- filiated with the University. Man- uscripts must be typewritten, triple spaced and written on one side only. * * * * The Sunday Magazine acknowl edges The American Secular Un- ion review service for "The Un- official Observer" department. * I,! .,.. . . 3 ' . . -ja :. _ r I. V e This Coupon Z 1 } l ##i f J! t i f HE successful man or woman recognizes the importance of Punctuality. When you wear a BULOVA Wrist Watch you en- joy the satisfaction of knowing that it tells time-ON TIME. It will help you to be punctual. v 0% e l i lIiH11 lItJ v =-'-"" r 9.:'s Lj,