SUNDAY,
MAY 3, 1325
-1
TI 117, NUC'I IIGAN DAILY
PAGE THIRTEEN
SUNDAY, MAY 3, 1925 T IL M!('1 jIGAN DAILY PAGE ThIRTEEN
aS
4,
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Jiusic and Drama
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SThe Theatre In Ferment - Germany
(Continued on Page Thirteen) the battlefield, or the ride of the sol- churchyard. As the curtaini
light, the other characters being pre- [dBiers packed in the freight car. Most the mother, her youngest son
«. ntedI as several visions hoveringp
about him like shadows, and the of these scenes are dream pictures, daughter are seen burying an
scene changes as the spot follows the indistinct, unreal, ghost-like, momen- son who had just met an heroic
hero from one set to another-naybe tary, and they flit by before us like in battle. The two captains lea
herofro' ae st toanohermaye Ithe eldest and the cowardly son
just a window seat, a doorway, a few the scenes of a movie film. The play;chain them to costs, and then
lines in black and white or a blotch is divided into six stations and twelve the youngest son away to battle.
of color-the rest of the stage re- pictures, the pictures alternating reg- drama is in the dialogue of the n
.malning totally dark. This made it ularly from the real to the dreamlike er and her children. The eldest
possible to have the stage at once for and visionary, like those of "The is one in whom war has loosedE
six or seven scenes, so that the action Man and the Masses." The play ends wild, reckless impulse, every ins
might be rapid and dynamic. The with the leading character exhorting of lust and murder. He is as fea
basic problems rest entirely in the the masses to rebellion and revolu- and defiant as the cowardly s
mind of the hero, his struggles to as- tion in the name of humanity and a weak and cringing. Both are c
sert and express himself, his quarrels saner world order. "Man and the ed by the forces of law and o
with his parents-usually his father Masses" is a play of -social revolution, And the mother in her agony,
--who represent the old order of and the protagonist, a woman, Sonia the mother in hlauptmann's "I
things. The language changes from Irene L.. dies rather than resort to val" (1913) whose son has been
prose to verse,, depending entirely up- the old means of force, war and a sacrifice to the greed of Napc
on the rhythm of the piece, the ecs- 'bloodshed. Toiler's dramas make use grows to super-human proportion
tacy and abandon of the hero. In of all the appliances of the modern becomes a symbol of the et
theme and technique Lawson's "Rog- I stage. As in Sorge's "Beggar" the mother of man as she hurls he
er Bloomer" has much in common leading character stands in tho spot- fiance at man's social organiz
With Sorge's "Beggar." light, the rest of the stage dark or law and order supported by;
Sorge's drama is typical of a good dimly lighted, and the other char- and calls upon all mothers e
deal of what German expressionists; actors sketched and grouped fantas- where to arise and to proclaima
The Silence of T1
rise:.,
and __
~other
deth 1(Editor's Note: The following re-
doath + view of "The Last Laugh" by Robert
d on (Littell reprinted in part from the Feb-
take ruary 25, 1925. issue of The New Re-
The public is of special interest due to the
moth- >resentation of this film Tuesday and
amoh Wednesday nights in 1ill auditorium.)
Ssn* * *
every ..
stinct An old hotel porter loses his job.
arless A beautiful maiden kisses her
!on mother goodby, and falls among
hain- thieves, dope-fields or Chinamen. She
order. remains innocent, or, still innocently,
like she is about to have a child, but a
Festi- hero, handsome, whbalthy, or both,
slain I strangles the unscrupulous district
leon, attorney, or knocks out the silk-
hatted Lothario, or kills the inter-
sens national gambler, or does not kill
r ae- him, but races madly against time,
aton d-pace or cruel cunning, by automobile,
faton, airplane, mule, milkwagon or Alaskan,
force, dog team and gets to the railroad-
every- crossing or death cell or the cabaret
a now or the altar just in time to save herj
the parade overcoat is
man is an overcoat.
a man, but the grey small restless crowds, he
marches to his work, to the Atlantic
'he Last Laugh"
t
is emphatically the best movie it has 't
ever been my luck to see. A German
importation (now at the Cameo) di-z
rected by W. F. Murnau, with Emil
Jannings already known to us as the d
star, with no love interest, with a1
story which would strike Hollywood i
as well below zero, and without a
single caption. i
The film opens upon the lobby of a
huge modern hotel, supposedly in Ber-
lin. Bellboys dash about, travelers
come in and out through revolving
doors. Outside the doors black glis-
tening sheets of rain pour down on
umbrellas, dimmed lights, dripping
motorcars and a city gloomily drown-
ed. Through the doors squeezes a
huge figure in a shining raincoat. He
squeezes back again, beckoning for
taxis, holding a vast umbrella, sa-
luting, piloting the hotel guests, salut-
ing, blowing a whistle, blowing a
1 whistle, saluting, always saluting,
1with a cordial pompous military ele-
gance. Now we see him without his
raincoat, revealed in the dazzling
glory of braid and buttons from head
to ankles, hugely tall and spare fill-
ing, with something of the obese
majesty of Russian generals in fiction.
The old face that is revealed to us,
heavily whiskered after the manner of
Emperor Franz Josef, royal, kindly,
Falstaffian, stupid. In all his braided
glory he beckons, pilots, whistles,
salutes, a portly god in uniform over
travellers and taxi drivers. Beneathl
Now he goes home, a tower of im-
portance and pride, moving through
he insignificant hurry of civilians,
whom he at times salutes... .Up
many flights of dingy stairs his daugh-
er is getting ready cake for her
wedding......Next we see the tene-
ments astir with morning life. His
daughter briefly appears on a bal-
cony, brushing the splendid overcoat.
He emerges, greeting the hags beat-
ng rugs on the landing with no incon-
siderate salute. Among children go-
ng to school, among working people,
hotel, to the great wide space before
revolving doors where taxis can be
imperially whistled for and travellers
sped on their way with the generous
wide motion of heavy hand to braided
cap. He approaches through the doors,
but as he goes in, another goes out,
straight and young, in cap and glit-
tering overcoat just like his own. He
has been replaced. Ile is in the mana-
ger's office, all glass and clean effici-
ency, bowed a ilttle, cap in hand. A
letter, a light pat on the shoulder
(Continued on Page Fourteen)
Granger's
at the Lake House Pavilion
Whitmore Lake
The success of Granger's new enterprisc
was distinctly proven by the comfortably large
crowds of dancers present on both Friday, and
Saturday night of the past two weeks. The
Wednesday night dances have also proven very
popular. The exceptionally fine floor and the
excellent music, together with the pleasing en-
vironment which the dancer finds at the Lake
House Pavilion, are bound to insure the ever
increasing popularity of Granger's at Whit-
mnore Lake.
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have done. Their favorite theme tically. Some of the characters, as order, where love, the life-giving and
takes the form of the individual's for example, groups of bankers or life-sustaining creative force rule
progress through life-a "Transform- soldiers, are dressed alike and wear supreme. It is this message which1
ation", as they choose to call it, similar masks and move in unison as the youngest son, just returning'
each scene representing a "station" one person. Some of the lines are from victory on the battlefield, hears
in this progress. The leading char- chanted weirdly off stage and come and proclaims as he is carried down
asters are usually young men or wo- nut o fthe darkness as from another to the city--"Plaz"-upon the should-
men, dreamers and idealists, who world. Shafts of color flit through ers of the rebellious soldiers. "Ein
are rebelling against the social, the darkness and pick out a face, an Geschlecht" is elemental and statu-1
moral, political world of their fath- arm a body here and there. One esque. There is no change of scene.
ers. This received its most vivid must remember that the expressionist The mother writhes in her agony in
treatment in Walter Hasenclever's is not aiming at individual character- the spotlight on a raised platform asE
famous play, "The Son" (1914). The j ization but at presenting vividly cer- it were; all else is in darkness, ex-a
expressionists preach the doctrine of tain ideas or emotions. cept as the ray of color is shot now
brotherly love, of rumility, of self- Fritz von Unruh is more of a poet here, now there to heighten the ef-
sacrifice. Most of them have suffered than Toiler. le has a better cui- ''ect. She addresses the audience di-
bitterly, served in the army and tural background. He comes of an rectly as if it were participating in
learned to hate war and to detest the [old aristocratic Prussian family and the action, for this is no longer the
civilization which permitted the !reminds one in many ways of the drama of realism, where the audience
world to slip into such an orgy of IGerman dramatist Heinrich von is merely a spectator, about whom1
bloodshed. Sorge was killed in serv- Kleist. Hle wrote two dramas T: hich the actors seem utterly unconcerned t
ice. Tollers, Unruh, Hasenclever are were well received before the war, Although the expressionists havet
avowed pacifists. "Officers" (1912) and "Prince Louis succeeded in making much fire andi
The best known of the expression- Ferdinand" (1914) but the experi~ thunder in the last ten years in Ger-
ists, though he really belongs to an ences of the war, in which he served many, they are already losing
earlier generation, is George Kaiser. as an officer, moulded him anew. strength and the older and more tra-
He has written many plays, but only Though he was brought up for a mil- ditional forms of the drama are be-t
a few of them are at all noteworthy. itary life, the war has made out of I ginning to reassert themselves. Whatt
They are distinguished by rapidity of him a leading pacifist and republi- the movement has brought that willv
action and the force of their ideas. can. His war impressions, "Opfer- be a lasting value is the new meansc
Kaiser is a cold, calculating intellec- gang" (1919) rank with Barbusse's of stage presentation, lighting effects
tual. He lacks emotional depth and "Le feu" as a terrible and vivid pic- and stage machinery, which make itc
power. In the "Corahl" "Gas 1 and", ture of life on the battlefield. In possible to present the old drama-d
"From Morn till Midnight," "The 1915-16 while in service he wrote his Shakespeare, for example, with new
Burghers of Calais" he reaches aston-- greatest work so far, the drama "Ein force and vigor. Probably the ex-a
ishing effects by clever use of stage Geschlecht," probably the greatest pressionistc drama owes much of itse
and sets, symbols and dialogue. His single work of the whole expression- fire to these new stage technicalities. i
characters are in flight, hunted by istic movement. This short drama is It has learned and taken over muchh
,life, by one idea, or fleeing from the first part of a trilogy, as origi- from the technique of the movie. In
themselves like O'Neill's "Emperor nally planned, the second part of fact, some of Hasenclever's plays are;
Jones". Life is a mad rush to sue- which, "Platz", has already been pub- very much like movies and he has
ceed in something, to gain power, I fished, and the last part of which, called one of them a Film". Jessner
money, social position. Kaiser has "Dietrich", has been announced and has produced "Othello", "Richard
succeeded well in presenting the is eagerly being awaited. in this tri- II",. with telling effect in the expres-
rapid helter-skelter. He has been logy Unruh aims to "express" the sionistic manner, seeking to "ex-
called, perhaps rightly, the dynamic' war and the social revolution whicb press" tihe inner meaning of time
dramaticist. Of all of his plays thoso ' followed and to point out the way for plays and characters by clever use of
*mentioned above are the most sign:- the realization of a more humani- colors in scene and costume.
a, and "Frm Morn ideal.b "Em Oeshlecht" i I Shakespeare's histories and much of
nightl" is best known in Ammerica. noteworthy because of its almost the older drama with its swiftj
This drama presents in seven discon- classic simplicity and directness. It change of scene lend themselves
tinuous episodes of "stations" the is in blank verse and is boundly no readily to the spotlight technique. In
mad flight through life of the bank particular time or place. The char- this regard expressionism is largely
cashier, who dazed by the beauty of acters are seven in number, of heroic technique, and the young enthusiasts
woman, of "furs, silks, and per-. build, and are symbolic of mankind. have been going through drama of
,fumes", steals a sum of money and ,hey are the mother and her chil- the past to pick out examples of ex-
rushes forth to attain, he hopes, en- dren, the eldest son, the cowardly i pressionism among the classics, as
trance into the world of power and son the youngest son (Deitrich), the painters have resurrected Mathias
beauty, of all that he lacked as a and the daughter. In addition there Gruenwald and many much earlier
hank cashier. But money leads him are two captains and soldiers. The and more primitive types of art.
on a mad chase to death. scene is on a hill, in and before aI But one must add that so far the
Carl Sternheim in his two best
plays "Burgher Schippel" (1912) and
"The Snob" (1913) caricatures life in
a small town. He scores the social
climber and the Philistine, the Cer-
man Babbits and Main Streets with:Look
biting satire. He is a follower of
Wedekind, but lacks entirely the lat-
ter's strength and depth.ft rfora
Frank Werfel stands forth pre-
eminently as a lyric poet, though he l,
has written several dramas, a syn-1,
bolic piece entitled "Mirror Man" !
(1921) being the most significant. ry Amateur
Werfel's novel "Verdi" now one ofy
the best sellers in Germany presents
the same message as this drama, that -
a man must learn by experience that; right
the true profits of life lie in a moral
victory over oneself-in a submerg
ing of the uin the Thou, a message
that rings out in many of the expres-
sionistic dramas and novels.
The two most significant and prom- Kodak. Look over
ising figures among the expressionis-
tic dramatists so far known are
Ernst Teller and Fritz von Unruh. t es©: a
Most of Toiler's works were written
while he was serving a prison term Lyndon & Co.I
for his activities in the socialist re-
bellion in Munich. His work is a di-
rect reaction from the war. His fourI
famous dramas are "Transformation"
(191F), "Man and the Masses" (1920).
"The Machine Stormers"-a sort of
expressionistic "Weavers" built up
about the Luddite rebellion in Eng-
land-and "Hinkemann" (1924), the:
drama of a war-derelict in which IICAHERAS CAMERA $UPP LIES FILMS
Toller returns somewhat to the older I
traditional technique.
from worse than movies. Glycerin.
Fadeout among Roses. Next Week:
Passionate Sinners.
An old hotel porter loses his job.
and the gold-braided overcoat is taken
away from him.
Now guess which one of these is the
raw material for about the best mov-
ing picture ever.
To anyone not a member of the as-
sociation of wholesale and reta-l deal-
ers in superlatives, it does not come
easily to say so, but The Last Laugh
movement has succeeded in produc- (1922) (after Caleron) is typical off
ing no ine great Ouit tanding figure 1 the expressionistic manner. Eugene
in the drama with the possible ex- O'Neill's "Hairy Ape" and "Emperor
ception of Inru,. The natural stic ;Jones" have been performed in er-
movement !roduced Iaulnptmainn, al- Jln in German, and plays by Shaw
through much like GCet he in his at- and Wilde are produced regularly.
titude toward the young romanticists 1However, the expressionists have pro-
he has stood aloof from the expies- duced so far no single outstanding
sionistic movement, gturg his own drama that can be compared in
way, taking hu ts from it, it is true, depth or beauty with the dramas of
and influenctipgi 1in turn for more Hauptmann, Wedekind, Schnitzler,
than the yenuigfr grow ar, willing aInd the movement is, one is led to
to grant. Hauntmann's "Weavers" conclude, largely a passing phase, a
and "Florian Geyer" as well as many transitional moment of storm and
of his romantic and legendary plays stress, groping, seeking, testing new
have been performed with great sue- values and new ways of expressing
cess in the new manner, and his later them, reaching out toward a new
dramas, the "WVinterballad," the spiritual reality from a world that
"White Saviour", and "Indipohidi," seemed to be crashing down into
are not without expressionistic touch- chaos.
es. Hofmannsthal too has not been * * *
ndifferent to the new movement, for Next week: "The French Theatre"
his "Salzbruger great world theatre" by Prof. Marcel Clavel.
Dancing Every
Wedesnday
Friday
Saturday
8- 11
9 -12
9 -12
Music by Bill Watkins and his Granger
Eight.
Granger's
highway upon
is the second pavilion on the
reaching the'Lake.
GRAGEI AAE MY
El~~ m~. Fbx
(Baritonie)
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Some of the World 's
Noted Artists with
TH AY MNMMM
HILL AUDITORIUM
Mew 20-23
In
(Conitralto)
U
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FRANCES PERALTA
(Soprano)
U
U
U
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U
Osslp (iABRIsWITSC
(<anis)
U
U
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U
U
U
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HENRI SCOTT
(Bass)
ConcertsA
S Days4
)l ARIO ('IA X LEE
(rTenor),
U
COURSE TICKETS
On Sale up to,May 11th
$5, $5.50, $6, $7
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