OUTWARD BOUND by SUtton Vane

A Production Thesis Presented for the Degree of Master of Arts

by .(11 Harold BXbee,

I

J

f THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY 1946 II 1 I I !

Approved by:

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{.. c c ~ c c t:: (_ '• '"' -- c,, ct,cc;: '- c ,~ · G C C '- C C l ~ - L cc c c c ( '- :_ :_' This Production ~~esis Consists of the Following: 1. Discussion of the Production (filed with Graduate School and the Department of Speech) 2. Public Performance of the Play (produced in Drama Studio, Derby Hall) 3. Stage Model (on exhibition in the Department of Speech) 4. Production Book (filed with the Department of Speech) CONTENTS SECTION I Production Technicalities Photograph of Set (Plate I) Set Design (Plate II) Painter's Elevation (Plate III) Floor Plan (Plate IV) Carpenter's Drawings (Plates V-XII) Light Plot (Plates XIII-XIV) Light CUe Sheet Costume Designs and Descriptions Make-up Stage Manager's Instructions Production Crew Organization 11..~usic cue Sheet Sound Effects CUe Sheet curtain Calls Rehearsal Schedule Call Sheet Budget SECTION II Publicity Try-outs Production Program Performance SECTION ITT Historical Research , Section I -- Production in England Section II -- Production in the United States Section ITT -- Production in France Discussion of the Production Section IV -- Critical Comment Section V -- Analysis of the Play Section VI -- Type of play Section VIT -- Symbolism Section VIII -- Characters Section IX -- Voice and Diction Section X -- The Script Section XI -- Style of Direction Section XII -- Composition Sect.ion XITI -- Picturization Section XIV -- Movement Section ){!.! -- Rhythm Section XVI -- Pantomimic Dramatization SECTION IV Bibliography SECTION V Director's Script Annotated

I The September 6, 1923 issue of The Times (London) car­ ried a brief statement announcing the imminent premiere on September 17, at the suburban :Everyman Theatre, of a play by SUtton Vane entitled Outward Bound. The scant state­ aent gave no suggestion of the "smash hit" which this play was to become or the controversy it was to cause on two continents and the British Isles. Its author, born in England in 1888, was in his early thirties, the son of a prolific writer of melodrama. The father, Sutton Vane, had christened the son Vane Sutton­ Vane, which led the public, when this play appeared, to be­ lieve that it had been written by the elder dramatist. Af­ ter a few years of acting and writing SUtton-Vane enlisted in the British Army of the first world war and served in France and elsewhere until hospitalized for malaria and shell shock in 1917. He was soon given a convalescent dis­ charge and rested by taking a small part in Thirteenth Chair during nine months of London air raids and half' rations. One biographer even says he returned to France, to play for months close behind the front lines. He ap­ peared as an actor f'rom 1912 until 1926 and was known pro­ fessionally as an intelligent young chap. From 1911 to the early 1930 1 8 he wrote eleven plays, only one of which was particularly success:f'ul -- Outward Bound. He used as his pen name that of his father -- Sutton Vane.1 lFor biographical sketches see Who's Who in the Theatre, edited by John Parker, Eighth Ed.ition, sir Isaac Pitman and Sona Ltd., London, 1936, p.1382; Twentieth centm AUthors, edited by stanley J. K'Unitz and Howard Haycrof't, The H.w. Wilson Co., Wew York, 1942, p.1446; "Who is SUtton Vane", an article by Sewell Collins, in Jfew York Times, January 13, 1924, Section VII, p.l, col.4-6.

JUst where Vane got his idea for Outward Bound no one knows. His f'riend Sewell Collinsl heard him tell so many stories as to the source, each of which was different f'rom the rest, that Collins tried to discover it by point.­ blank questioning. Collins fared like the rest and states that he believes it came gradually and unconsciously with­ out its author, even, knowing the sources. The theme was not a new one, heaven, hell and eternity having held even the dramatic stage for centuries, but the treatment was so unusual no coDDDercial manager in London would take it.2

2ifew York Post, I>ecember 17, 1938, p.8, col.6

Since Vane had a thousand dollars in the bank and a desire to see his wife, Diana Hamilton, in one of the roles, he rented the :Everyman Theatre in Hampstead, on the edge of London, for a two week period.2 He painted flats found in the theatre, tacked up curtains taken f'rom his own home and gave the first performance in that cheap little house at a cost of only six hundred dollars for the two weeks, since he had hired a cast which was willing to work co-op- eratively. The Times reviewer3 called the play a fantasy

3The Times (London) September 18, 1923, p.10, col.4 with admirable wit and an idea, one which was diwlged in Acts I and II but which was not carried through to an ima­ ginative conclusion. He felt the Examiner, the Reverend Thomson, was a weak substitute for God Almignty. He lists

the cast as fol~ows: Scrubby -- Stanley Lathbury Ann -- Diana Hamilton Henry -- Wil~iam stack lfr. Prior -- Frederick Coo~er Mrs. Cliveden-Banks -- Gladys Ffolliott Rev. Dlke -- Frederick Leister Mrs. Midget -- Clare Greet Mr. Lingley -- Arthur Page Rev. Thomson -- Roy Byford Two days later a short note appeared in tne theatre page of' The Times4 saying that the concensus of opinion on open-

4The Times (London) September 20, 1923, p.8, col.3

ing night had been that the play was too long. Therefore, the author had cut its playing length by one-half hour.s

5'!'he play now runs to approximately two and one-half hours.

Also note was taken of the fact that already Vane had of­ fers from two sources for the American rights. Two weeks at the Everyman was enough to sell Outward 4

Bound to the public and to The Theatre Guild (London) Inc•, which'sponsored the production and put it in the Garrick Theatre. The play opened October 15, 1923 with Leslie Faber, one of' its actors, as producer.6 Sam Harris, Jr.

6The Times, (London) October 8, 1923, p.10, col.l and October 15, 1923, p.10, col.3. of' New York had already acquired the rights f'or production in America. The cast f'or the 1Vest End premiere was some­ what changed. Leslie Faber replaced Frederick Cooper as Prior, John Howell took the part of' Dake instead of Fred­ erick Leister and Roy Byford wa_s replaced as the Examiner (Rev. Thomson) by E. Lyall SWete. The Times reporter? was

?The Times (London) October 16, 1923, p.10, col.2 more approving this time than he was when reviewing the first night performance at the Everyman. He would not con­ cede it to be an exceptionally fine play but admitted it to be a thoughtful one. The subject was believed to be a bit broad (heaven, hell and eternity in less than three hours) • .Again the Examiner came in for a slam. The reviewer said he wa_s a let down, a ridiculous climax. However, The Times did admit that the acting was excellent. On December 3, 1923 the production left the Garrick for the Royalty Theatre8 where it played until January 26, 5

8The Times (London) 1'ovember 26, 1923, p.12, col.2

1924,9 'followed by one week, January 28 to February 2, 1924,

9The Times (London) January 24, 1924, p.8, col.2 and January 28, 1924, p.8, col.3 at Golders Green Hippodrome. February 4 saw a cast, whose personnel was changing a bit from time to time, open at the Adelphi Theatre.9 A month later they transferred to still another. This time it went to the Criterion on March 6.10

lOThe Times (London) IPebrua.ry 28, 1924, p.10, col.5

Despite two noticesll that outward Bound would close its

11..rtie Times (London) February 28, 1924, p.10, col.5 run momentarily, the play stayed on by popular demand until April 12.12 Then it closed until the latter part of May

12 The Times (London) April 7 1 1924, p.10, col.2

when it played 'for a one week stand at the Comedy Theatre before being taken on an extended tour.13 This was the

13The Times (London) :May 28, 1924, p.8, col.6 and Kay 31, 1924, p.12, col.4 6 cast's sixth home in the west End. The advertisements la­ beled the show "an enormous success" an.d the extended run certified the popular appeal, despite the cool reception given it by The Times reviewer. II Under the management of Sam Harris, Jr., Outward Bound appeared in the United States while it was still popular in England. From a paragraph in the New York Times of December 30, 192314 comes the information that the

14-ew York Times, December 30, 1923, Section VII, p.21, col.4, "GOssip of' the Rialto" play had its American premiere on the 24th of December in Atlantic City. The holiday crowd, according to this brief statement, hissed at the close of the play, a fact which the writer of that column believed only proved that the play was "thoughtful and provocative. The audience was stirred -- they had sat through too many merely bad plays to begin hissing them at this late date." A week later, the theatre column "Mail Bag" contained two letters from members of the Atlantic City audience who denied the ~ York Times o:tatement that the play bad been biss•d down, and contended that the performance had been so tense and moving that the audience bad been unable to applaud wildly. The suspended interest of each curtain had been so great that the mind of the audience was too occupied for applause.15 7

15ifew York Times, January 6, 1924, Section VII, p.2, col. S. Two letters in the "Mail Bag" signed by A.T. Hallock and M.L. Sheffield.

The controversy seems to have been an interesting one be­ cause the following week brought still another letter.16

16irew York Times, January 13, 1924, Section VII, p.l, col.l. A letter in the "Mail Bag" signed by A. Brooke.

This man verified the "hissing" at the f'inal curtain. How­ ever, he laid it to the unappropriateness of such a play for the tastes of Atlantic City on a Christmas Eve. He said, "Their method of showing displeasure did not reflect on the performance but upon their own intelligence." He thought the play unusually well performed and in many ways a dra- matic sensation. After this rather dubious beginning at Atlantic City's Apollo Theatre, the same cast opened in Wew York on January 7, 1924 at the Ritz on west 48th Street. John Corbinl?

l?wew York Times, January 8, 1924, p.26, col.l, review by John Corbin. wrote a most complimentary review in which he said the per­ formance had "caught the attention of a !few York audience, enlisted its sympathy, amused it genuinely and genially, and ended by stirring it to very considerable depths of 8 human pity and mortal terror." He thought the Examiner's scene a bit disappointing in its reality and lack of imagi­ nation, but particularly praised Scene 2 of Act 111,18 and

lBsee pp.157-171 of the play script the scene between Prior, Mrs. Midget and the Examiner,19

19see pp.150-157 of the play script as scenes of tragic suffering and spiritual exhaustion. A week later he wrote again20 that although the play is no

2?few York Times, January 13, 1924, Section VII, p.l, col.l. "The Spook Drama" by John Corbin. spiritual revelation and most of the audience knew before they went to the theatre, the outcome and surprises, yet this play, dealing with the "inward problems of the heart and mind of the here and hereafter, rises above such con­ siderations and the audience sat breathless, thrilled and fascinated to the last curtain." Burns Mantle21 called

21The Best Plays of 1923-4 edited by Burns Mantle, Small, Jlaynard, and co., Boston, 1924, p.105. the play the most "provocative" of the year and said the first night in Wew York left the audience "too moved for 9 utterance". People, he claimed either liked it immensely or loathed it with passion. Kenneth Jlilcgowan22 was not so

22'1'heatre Arts Monthly, March, 1924, "A Vystical Month on Broad.Way" by Kenneth Macgowan, VIII, 154-6. complimentary. He felt the fine mood established by Act I was broken by their setting sail for a SUnday school heaven and hell and a British vicar for an Examiner. If it were not that Macgowan felt the final scene of Act III between Henry and Ann.23 was so effective, he would have

23see p.151 of the play script agreed with the reviewer of the Everyman premiere, that the play fell apart once the Examiner arrived on the scene. While he believed the characLerization and dialogue were conventional, he thought that the mood was odd and arrest­ ing, and that the author had a rare intuition about states of mind on the border of consciousness. The run in Hew York was 144 performances24 with the following cast:

24rurns Mantle, Ibid" p.446

Scrubby -- J.M. Kerrigan Ann -- Margalo Gillmore Henry -- Leslie Howard Mr. Prior -- Alfred Lunt Mrs. Cliveden-Banks -- Charlotte Granville Rev. D.lke -- Lyonel Watts Mrs. Midget -- Beryl Mercer 10

Mr. Lingley -- El.lgene Powers Rev. Tomson -- nidley Digges Under stage direction of Robert Milton Scenery by Livingston Platt III Paul Verola translated OUtward Bound into French where it was known by the title, Au Grand Large, and was present­ ed to the public in Paris late in December, 1926, under the direction of Louis Jouvet. The translation adds the criti­ cal notes of several newspapermen and Robert de Beauplan25

25Au Grand Large, by SUtton Vane, translated by Paul Verola, La Petite Illustration, Paris, 1927, p.31. whose comments are most interesting. The French saw in it a comedy dealing ligntly with the religious ideas. One reviewer wrote that the play was "a compromise between fairyland and Protestantism", and de Beauplan added tnat "the anguish disappears as in the softened Presby"terian sermon". They indicated widespread approval of the French theatre goers who great!~ enjoyed the humor of t.ne author as he dealt with a serious subject. This banality t.uey declared typical of Eng.lishmen and Americans to -r..ue extent that, in .America, Outward Bound wouid be thougnt provoking, while in France only amusing. One of tne reviewers wrote that each character becowes tne drama and comedy of all time. Anotne. .. aid Vane realized the tneatre was not here to answer questions bit to raise them. Each reviewer liked the play, and thought it well written if not profound. De Beauplan claimed that by the date of his writing, April, 1927, the play had been performed in Canada, Germany, Norway, 11

Sweden, Spain, Holland, SWitzerland, Austria, Monte Carlo, the United States, France and Great Britain. Four years of life and outward Bound was half way around the world. The story of this play could not be completed without mention of an important.revival in the United States during the 1938-1939 season on Broadway. John Mason Brown.26 la-

26Jiew York Post, December 23, 1938, p.8, col.l, "Two on the Aisle" by John Mason Brown.

beled it, "One of the most absorbing fantasies of the mo­ dern theatre", full of humor, character delineation and warmth. The ca.st was as follows:

Scrubby -- !~organ Farley Ann -- Helen Chandler Henry -- Alexander Kirkland Mr. Prior -- Bramwell Fletcher Mrs. Cliveden-Banks -- Florence Reed Rev. Dlke -- Vincent Price 'Mr"s. Midget -- Laurette Taylor Mr. Lingley -- Louis Hector Rev. Thomson -- Thomas Chalmers Staged by Otto Preminger settings by w·atson Barratt Mr. Brown felt that Scene 2 of Act IIr27 is anti-climactic,

27see p.157 of the play script

and too long, an exactly opposite reaction to that of Kenneth Macgowan22 who reviewed the premiere on Broadway in 1923. Laurette Taylor's performance in the revival was so well done she was given the award28 "for the outstanding 12

28ifew York Times, May 9, 1939, p.27, col.6. Article about Mrs. Roosevelt and Miss Taylor, "First Lady Called a Force in t,he Theatre". performance given by an .American actor during the 1938- 1939 Wew York season." Brooks Atkinson,29 in his review,

29ifew York Times, January 1, 1939, Section XI, p.l, col. 1. Review bY Brooks Atkinson. recalled Burns Mantle's statement in 1923 about people either liking the play immensely or loathing it with pas­ sion and said "Alas, nothing in the theatre is ever unani­ mous. But the evil that men speak of a good play is usual­ ly interred with their bones, and after 15 years we are per­ mitted to forget that there were ever any dissenters. In memory we fondly imagine that everyone saw the original pro­ duction in a state of elation." He liked the simplicity of thought and structure, the playable characters and real­ istic plausi.bility in each one together with the pithy and drily humorous dialogue. This revival was intended to be one of many of William A. Brady's Playhouse Company that season but Outward Bound ran f'rom December 22, 1938 on in­ to J\lly and closed on the 22nd with 255 performances.31

3l'I'he Best Plays of 1939-40, edited by Burns Mantle, Dodd, Mead and co., Wew York, 1940, p.476. 13

Rosamond Gilder32 described the play as a "simple fable"

32Thee_tre Arts, February, 1939, DCIII, 97. intended to touch the heart rather than the mind. Magazines of the theatre, ever since 1923, have list­ ed outward Bound as a favorite of the tributary theatre and the straw hat circuit. Cissie Loftus played Mrs. Midget in the stage League presentation in San Francisco and Los Angeles during the summer of 1939, and the Millbrook Sum­ mer Theatre and the Vagabond Theatre of New York state, have both given performances typical of the others. '

Discussion of the Production 14 rv In a compilation of British p1ays33 J.w. Marriott writes the t'ollowing: No good play arrives "out of the blue", and back, farther back even than the ghost of Hamlet's fa- ther and the general Elizabethan drama· of appa­ ritions, are to be found the dramatic origins of outward Bound. The miracle plays were much con­ cerned with heaven and hell, but their writers were sure of their theological t'acts, nor did the audience of, for example, the Wakefield Pageant entertain doubts about the conditions shown in The Harrowing of Hell. In a sense Outward Bound is a throwback to the miracle play. The difference is that the miracle plays belong to the age of faith, when hell was hell and flames really burned. Mean­ times, of course, the drama of apparitions had developed on other lines. There may have been stage ghosts wistfully comic, like the one in Wilde's story of The Canterville Ghost; and the Hebridean legend dramatized in Mar{E:Rose associates itself with the thought of e wist­ fully tender ghost; but common practice in the use of apparitions on the stage has followed the examples of Marlowe and Shakespeare. such episodes as the vision of Richard on the eve of Bosworth Field, or of Brutus before Philippi indicate the normal dramatic uses of ghosts -­ to excite terror and remorse. The modern dream­ play, which may have no terror in it but may merely be a device for contrasting the manners and costumes of two periods, is an obvious derivation :from the Elizabetnan apparit1on.

outward Bound besides accomp~isning in its triumphant first act one of tne most splendid surprises of the theatre, is distinguished f'rom any predecessors in ~he uncanny oy giving dra­ matic expression ~u "'nat widespread specuiation about. "'11e afterlife which the insane massacres of the War so generally provoked. "Where are the dead ?" was the question, ~c which ~ne traditional theolOgJ.cal answer was found to be no 1011e;er sa.t1sfying. It is certain.Ly u.ot ~o be pretended that a prot'ound reply is made by OUtward Bound. The question, in the spirit of the age, is raised, and a remarkable play re­ sults. That is all, except that here again, the modern theatre is perceived to be modernly 15

aware of modern views and that the theatre, like the times, r~3her raises than finds answers to questions."

33Great Modern British Plays edited by J.w. Marriott, G.G. Harrop and Co., London, 1934, pp.1015-6.

This description of the origins of Outward Bound points up much that has been said by the various reviewers, the dis­ cussion of the religious elements and the question as to whether the play tries to answer any questions or only to raise them. It is the belief of the writer of this paper that many play goers who got a let down feeling, when a realis­ tic Bishop-like Examiner arrived on the scene to dispose of the passengers of the ship, did so only because of one thing. They were too anxiously trying to find, in the climax of the play, the answer to the questions which Vane had raisat, particularly those of heaven, hell, the judg­ ment, and eternity. The author of the play was not trying to offer a solution to the problems or he would have cre­ ated such a figure as "De Lawd" in Green Pastures to domi­ nate the judgment scene. The playwright seems only to be trying to point out general ideas, not to indicate speci­ fic details or methods. Morally it seems that Vane was saying that everyone will someday leave this earth for the judgment. All the characters of the play did this. This examination, the author says, will come unannounced -- the people of this play all died suddenly. lfone had had any 16 sickness. The whole situation, Vane continues, will be be­ yond human control, as Lingley finds out when his careful planning at the board meeting in Act III is to no avail. Vane says that life is full of humor and satisfaction if it is faced squarely. He shows Rev. Duke and Mrs. Midget as having enjoyed satisfying lives. Also Henry and Ann have apparently been happy until the suicide took place and they stopped trying to face life honestly. Prior has found plenty of humor in the foibles of others, as evidenced by his needling of Lingley in the board meeting scene. No one on earth knows what to expect of heaven or hell. It could be anything. The thing to do, says Vane in this play, is to be ready. The judgment was far from what anyone on the ship had expected. Vane seems to think his audience may someday have the same experience. Mankind's foibles are sometimes deeply selfish and actually hurt others, suggests the author. Lingley's competitors and Mrs. Cliveden-Banks' husband are examples. Also these foibles may be ludicrous, as Mrs. Clive­ den-Banks and Lingley's superficial peculiarities often were. Sutton Vane wrote this play shortly after the war, a war wherein he saw many die and in which he himself came close to death. It seems unlikely that his only purpose was to amuse. He must have been genuinely concerned over what might happen to his own soul and to others. That is his theme, the theme of the play. He was not trying to be profoundly religious or to give the theologians a substi­ tute for heaven and hell. He was attempting to answer 17 no questions. Rather he was trying to awaken humanity to its own weaknesses and attempted to do so in a man- ner which would seem more like entertainment than a sermon. If this is indeed Vane's purpose, then in no sense is the entrance of the Examiner a let down. This clergyman is intended only to carry out justice, not to personify God. The heaven and hell he depicts is a cre­ ation for dramatic purposes only, not a heaven and hell to replace the ones suggested by the Bible. v Another frequently mentioned criticism of the play is that the second scene of Act III is falling action. Such criticism seems likely to be based on a lack of under­ standing of the cycles of action of the play. They can most easily be delineated in the outline below. First Gycle - !Act I) Exposition34 - The audience is introduced in Act I to all the characters except the Examiner.

34see pp.16-50 in the play script

Rising Action35 - Tom and Ulke try to figure it all out. The audience senses the coming conflict rut is not yet sure what it will be.

35see pp.51-54 in the play script 18

Obligatory Scene36 - Henry and Ann give evidence that these people are in some unusual situation, the audience knows not what. Henry and Ann have a secret, they say. Obviously it is important.

36see pp.55-62 in the play script c1fma.x37 - Scrubby admits to Prior that all on the boat are dead and that the ship is sailing for both hea­ ven and hell.

37eee pp.63-64 in the play script

Second eycle - (Act II) Exposition38 - General conversation between passengers, up to Prior's entrance.

38see pp.67-75 in the play script

Rising Action39 - Prior enters and tells everyone that they are trapped, that there is no crew aboard, and reminds them that no one knows where he is to land. He requests anyone to check his statement about the crew. D.lke agrees, but returns to say everything is t a1f ight. Nerves become frayed. 19

39see pp.75-79 in the play script

Obligatory Scene40 - After the women leave, Duke admits to the men that there is no crew. Scrubby verifies their status and tells of the examination to come. Lingley is the first to break down.

40see pp.89-99 in the play script

c1i.Jna.X4l - Henry and Ann's secret is out -- everyone on board ship is dead and they are afraid its revelation will cause them to be separated.

4lsee PP• 99-100 in the play script

Third cycle - (Act III) Exposition42 - Very short. Ends with beginning, officially, of tne board meeting.

42see pp.103-110 in the play script

Rising Action43.- The board meeting

43see pp.110-127 in tne pla.y script .....

20

Obligatory Scene44 - The ~iner has arrivea and talks witn 1.llke. The hour has come at last.

44see pp.127-133 in the play script

Clfma.x45 - F~ch person gets his just deserts, first n.tke, then Lingley, Cliveden-Banks, Prior and Mrs. Midget; but, for some reason the judgment is not to be visited on Henry and Alm, yet. In Scene 2 we soon find out about half-ways but there is a struggle going on between life and death and the just deserts for Henry and Ann come with their being sent back to earth to face their problems.

45see pp.133-171 in the play script

This second scene of Act III confuses critics because they do not recognize that the final disposition of Henry and Ann is part of the same cycle that contains the dis­ position of the others. The critics may argue that the lovers were slated to sail as half-ways, and that was dis­ position enough. However, throughout the whole play the author has kept them aloof from the others physically and psychologically. They were constantly in fear of being separated. They were not like the others because they were half-ways and as half-ways had the privilege of alter- 21 natives which the rest did not have. The author could not handle them justifiably by leaving them to sail with Scrub­ by. The audience would have felt they were f'rustrated in their search for happiness. After all, death, or near death, had not "brought them closer". That was what they were trying to accomplish when they committed suicide. Their disposition was merely a continuation of the cycle. Another reason why they could not be dispatched as were the others, is that their status as half-ways put them in a special category. Rea.l people are either dead or alive. These two lovers were neither, and therefore needed to have an unreal solution to their struggles. This suggests the problem of the real and the unreal in this script.

VI One of the first things a director must determine when studying this type of play, which, for want of a better term, we shall call a "fantasy" as to treatment and a "fable" as to subject matter, is the degree of un­ reality which is inherent in the script. The second thing to decide is just how much more unreality can be added to that of the script, through the director's treatment of the play, and still remain within the realm of theatrical effectiveness. Third, the director must de­ cide just how far he will actually go in this particular production in establishing the real and the unreal. All of these decisions must be based on discovering whether the entire script has an unreal quality or whether this 22 quality is to be found only in certain elements. In this particular play it is the opinion of the writer of this paper that, with the exception of Scrubby and the two lovers, Henry and Ann, all the characters are consistent­ ly real in their dialogue, action, and movement. These three could be made very unreal and could set the tone for the whole play, pushing the degree of unreality to its fullest possibilities. Actually, with the exception of Scene 2 in Act III, Scrubby's lines do not require other than realistic treatment. At the same time, they permit a great deal of unrealism if that is desired. In this production the direc­ tor wanted as nruch unrealism as the auaience could be expec­ ted to accept. Scrubby was constantly coming and going throughout all seen.es so bis presence, if unreal, would constantly keep the general mood of the play away from the na.turalistic. Henry and Ann began and ended the play as well as ending Act II so their appearances would also be well timed to emphasize the psychological mood of a fantasy • .Another method used to emphasize the lack of realism, in the treatment, was the design of the setting. It sug­ gested rather than denoted the lounge of a ship. The vertical and horizontal lines of the walls, the shape of the playing area and the platforms were not conventional (see technical sketches). The highly selective nature of the furniture and "dress" of the setting, almost t.o the point of nakedness, pointed up the few essentials of mass, mood and rhythm essential for such a production. 23

Finally, the use o:f unconventional lighting, in such a wsy as to reinforce the action o:f the play, by dimming areas not involved and by giving the sky cyclorama the necessary color against which the lines and :form of the set could stand out, gave this production another medium through which to work in establishing the degree of unrealism the director desired, and which the script permitted. Area lighting helps the audience :focus on essential.a since only major areas of action are well lighted. When, for example, it is important that an idea get across to the audience (and the scene permits such a treatment) only a single small area may be lighted. The rest of the stage is in darkness. Since there is so little on the stage to watch, this results in an emphasis o:f everything said and done in that small pool of light. It permits the use of i~endoes,. o:f voice and body which could not otherwise be used. Ligh~ing of this kind can be very effectively used in a play dealing with :fantasy, not to mention its use in other types of drama. VII In a play with the general tone away :from naturalism, the director is guided by the artistic principle of selecti­ vity. This is particularly evidenced in set~ing, in light­ ing, in composition and in movement. The greater the de­ gree of selectivity the more symbolic es.ch element of pro­ duction becomes. The grey ship's lounge surrounded by a sky of blue was symbolic of all ocean liners and served to 24 suggest through the circular form the complete encirclement and heavenly suspension in space which should properly be­ long to a liner bound for the Great Examiner. The elevated playing areas used by Scrubby, Henry and Ann, were identi­ ried entirely with tnem since no one else appeared on the platforms tnroughout the play and, thus, the scenes played there became symbolic of the unreaiism whicn ~he characters represented and served to reinforce this idea as the play progressed. The whiskey bottle and shot glass, tne con­ stant companions of Prior, became as symbolic of his life as tue brie1· case was of Lingley 1 s ana tne ptnce nez were of Cliveden-Banks. The soft diffused iignLing was sugges­ tive of tne etnereal quality of the play and tne constant elimination, ~hrough dimwing oI .LJ.gut.s, of unused por~ions of the St.ege, placed the focus of attention on c..ne action or dialogue of the moment. This sharp visual focus on certain areas is similar to the focus of attention which Vane placed on clear-cut "type" characters throughout the play. Again the movement of the actors was symbolic of their types. Scrubby was always slow, even and eternal, Lingley heavy and 4essive. Mrs. Cliveden-Banks was sweeping, regal and sophisticated, sharp, like her tongue and Mrs. Midget, short, quick and light, befitting a hurrying motherly person. The others were also typical, symbolic of the types they represented. VTII The passengers on board ship in this play are all dis- 25 tinct types, in many cases sharpened a bit, as in carica­ ture, so that their qualities stand out in bold relief. They may be classed generally into two groups. Soft Characters: Mrs. Midget, typical unselfish mother who is willing' to sacrifice all for her family. Henry, typical young lover, rebellious over con­ ventions of society, immaturely ecstatic in his love. Ann, usual clinging vine type, who naively wor­ ships the man she loves. Mr. Prior, weak-spined but likable, wastrel who faces all life's problems with another drink. Mr. Dlke, typical earnest and unselfish young clergyman. Harsh Characters: Mr. Lingley, usual hard, selfish, officious business man. Mrs. Cliveden-Banks, typical superficial, sel- fish, sophisticated society woman. The other two characters of the play, people who are not passengers, are Scrubby, a philosophical, omnipotent sym­ bol of eternity and the jovial, honest Examiner, Rev. Thom­ son, a man who stands for no foolishness but is kindly and anxious to serve his fellow beings. The typed characters are constantly played against one another to bring out their qualities. This is definitely 26 in the script but can be heightened by the director in en­ coura.ging the players to "play up" and to "punch" the lines which express these qualities most forcefully. IX The contrast between characters was :further heightened by differences in diction and voice. Scrubby, modulated, smooth, limited inflection, ethereal, unemotional .Ann, earnest, intense, child-like, soft Henry, soft, weary, loving, intense Mr. Prior, irregular, quick, emotional Mrs. Cliveden-Banks, exaggerated inflection, cold, silly, affected Rev. Dlke, soft, sincere, quiet Mrs. Midget, suggestive of cockney, quick Mr. Lingley, loud, blustery, dominant Rev. Thomson, jovial, business-like, sincere In musical terms Lingley could be described as the blasting trombone of an orchestra. Mrs. Cliveden-Banks would be the sharp-toned clarinet. Rev. nike might be com­ pared to a quiet melophone while his colleague, Rev. Thomson, would be best described as a dominating baritone. A spright­ ly viola would suggest Mrs. Midget while her son, Prior, would be a moody violin. The quality of voice in Scrubby suggests the exacting tones of the French horn. For Ann and Henry, perhaps the best comparison would be to the emo­ tional tones of the cello and viola. JUst as in an orches- 27 tral arrangement where instruments are at times contrasting and again blending, so the characters of this play are some­ times made to stand out from one another through emphasis on their differences and a.gain are made to blend together in one tonal effect, this time by emphasis on their similarities. Which method is to be used depends on whether mood is more important than character or whether the latter should domi- nate. The only real problems w1 th voices were the unreal qual­ ity, rhythm and inflection required of Scrubby if he was to be convincing as an unreal character. This was accomplished mainly by very limited inflection. The other problem was )!rs. Midget's dialect. No attempt was made to arrive at com­ plete authenticity since such dialect would be generally not understandable on the stage. Crocker, Fields and Broomall's book:46 was found to be the most helpful in deciding what as-

· 46Taking the stffe' Crocker, Fields, Broom.all, Pitman Publishing Corpora~on, New York, 1939.(additional refer­ ences used will be found in the bibliography.)

pects of the cockney to use. A faithful reproduction of the pitch pattern, three frequently used vowels and three common consonants sounds, together with a slightly harsh voice suggestive of the nazality of cockney, were decided sufficient to carry enough of the desired quality for theatrical effectiveness. Particular attention was paid to the words Which reoccurred frequently in Mrs. Midget's speech, in an attempt to pronounce them the same every time. 28

A recording of cockney speech47 was listened to many times,

47cockney, No. BA, a recording by George Cross, The Bri­ tish Drama League Dialect Records, Columbia Graphaphone co., Ltd., London particularly in reference to the inflectional pattern. x One of the most satisfying things about producing Qy!­ ward Bound is the script itself. It is the kind often de­ scribed as "fool proof" •. Having been written by an actor it is not strange that there are no "bit" parts, that each charac~er is extremely playable, and the lines easy to me­ morize. The exposition is not long and dry as is so fre­ quently true. It starts off with a slight misty quality in the Henry and Ann scene. This serves to emphasize the realistic, dissipated character of Prior who is the next person the author introduces. Prior immediately amuses the audience as does Mrs. Cliveden-Banks in all of her super­ ficiality. Next comes the contrasting personality of Rev. Dlke. The audience is immediately ·interested in each character and forgets· that the scenes are really only ex­ pository. Before the curtain has been open fifteen minutes over half the cast has been introduced in a lively fashion something not common in the exposition in most plays. Another good quality of the script is the closing cur­ tain scene of ea.ch act. None of these scenes are weak. It is here that the audience discovers in Act I that everyone 29 on board ship is dead and that the destination is both heaven and hell. There is nothing dull about that scene. Act II closes with Henry and Ann still uncertain of their future and a strong atmosphere of' forboding. The sense of impending events is so prominent that interest in the last act is strongly increased. The final curtain is no less effective. Henry has come to take his Ann back to life as a climax to her long tense struggle to return to her lover. This final scene is built up by the curtain lines48 at the

48see p.156 in the play script

end of the first scene of Act III where, a:rter all the other passengers have been disposed of' by the Examiner, he looks at them and says, "Not yet, my children", thereby carrying interest over into the final scene to see just what will finally result. The dialogue is a1ways interesting. Most speeches are short, which is good in a "ta1k;.Y" play. They are clever, frequently drily humorous and quite often very funny. The dia1ogue is usua1ly logical, a natura.1 out­ growth of events, thereby as has been stated previously making it easy for the actors to memorize the lines. In Scene 2 of Act III the speeches of Scrubby are as near to poetry as prose ever gets. They add immeasurably to the beauty and soft diffusion of that scene. In this play the cycles of action concur exactly with the act division which helps to give the production co- 30 hesion and make it easier to direct. The script probably has no great literary value, as such, tut is one which actors as well as directors like.

XI The question of style is one of the most important for a director to consider when making his initial study of a play. Style in direction is, primarily, the "degree of realism". It is only indirectly related to content since it is often possible to take the same script and give it two or three different style treatments. The question of reality has already been discussed in this paper. 49 It is

49see Section TV of this discussion now necessary to point out the kind of style employed in directing a fantasy. Style in direction will be discussed in detail in separate sections of this paper, ander the names of composition, picturization, movement, rhythm and pantomimic dramatization. To use an arbitrary classification we can say that the most realistic of modern plays is termed naturalism. Others follow in order of their departure from realism as follows: Naturalism Realism Selective Realism Impressionism Expressionism 31 Fantasy may be directed as either selective realism or as impressionism. It bas already been stated that for this production it was decided to press the degree of unreality as far as possible. So, the style, actually used, may be labeled primarily as impressionism. It should also be pointed out that it is rare when a rnodern production can ever be labeled as having entirely £.!!!!. style. There is usually a mixture of styles, although one can definitely be said to predominate. In this case the characters of Scrubby, Henry and Ann were non-realistic while the others were more natural. The result, then, was that in scenes when one or more of the three dominated, the style was impressionism. When one or more of the other characters dominated, the style of selective realism was employed. These two styles, then, can be said to be the ones employed in this productions selective realism and impressionism. It should also be pointed out that a particular scene may be basically one type, but may have elements of another mixed in at the same time. Just as a whole play may be a mixture, so may a scene suggest more than one style. Take for example Act II when Prior enters to say that the group is trapped, that there is no crew on board and the running lights of the ship are not lighted.50 All of the

50see P• 76 of the play script characters are realistic types. Types are established through the principle of selectivity not through photographic realism. Therefore, the characters, action and dialogue may be termed selective realism in style. However, in reinforc- ing this tense scene, the lights are dimmed down so that only the areas occupied by the players are brightly lighted.

The lighting then is so highly selective that we may call _!!. impressionistic. We always have the impressionistic setting as a background for all this scene. It is obvious then that although the characters, action and dialogue are selective realism the lighting. and setting are impressionistic. The result is a scene with a mixture of the two but with the one related to the characters as predominant. To repeat, no play is entirely one style and no scene is completely one type, although in both cases one does predominate. Between selective realism and impressionism there is, at least theoretically, a very fine line. But they are so closely related in actual practice that they really overlap. Impressionism was the dominant style of this produc- tion of Outward Bound. To further define the term it can be said tluit in addition to the employment of selectivity in design, in dialogue, in composition, in movement and gestures and in lighting, there was a constant emphasis, also, on the subjective and on emotional reaction. Sub- tle innuend~s• were carefully worked out. They would pass unnoticed if the entire focus of attention was not cen- tered on them. The last scene of Act III was a particu- larly good example of this technique. 33

XII Composition on the stage is concerned with the arrange­ ment of actors in a setting so that the meaning of a scene is made clearer. A good example of careful composition in this production was the entrance in Act III of the Examiner.51

5lsee p.127 in the play script

All actors were moved from in front of the doorway up cen­ ter before he came in thus making it possible for the entire audience to see the Examiner the moment he arrived. They

~ormed two diagonal lines, asymmetrically arranged so as to point toward the door and using four playing areas. The Examiner, when he appeared, became the most emphatic person on the stage because of position, because all eyes of the cast were upon him, because the eyes of the audience were funneled toward him by the arrangement and body positions of the actors. In other words, line, mass and form were all directed toward his entrance. The picture was balanced, his entrance was emphatic, and the mood was heightened thereby. This was a scene employing selective realism in its treatment • .An example of composition in a strictly impressionistic scene may be found in Act III52 when Scrubby is on the bar

52see p.162 of the play script 34 platform up right and Ann stands on the platform in the opposite area up left. Henry, meanwhile, has thought he heard their dog barking (a sign that Henry was returning to life) and is on the regular stage level between them. Scrubby end Ann from their higher level and status of un­ earthliness talk back and forth over Henry's head as he stands below, slightly down stage from them, struggling for life again. Their eyes are upon him. The two platforms belp to establish the difference between their spiritual levels. The arrangement is symmetrical and places Henry in the most emphatic position. Line, mass and form point up the emotional vslues of this struggle. To reinforce the compositional qualities, the lights in down stage areas were dimmed nearly to blackness. Only the up stage areas in use were well lighted. This helped . the audience to elimate,. extraneous details. The principle A of artistic selection was here at work, adding much to the effectiveness of the scene. XIII Picturization is closely related to composition but instead of being concerned with !!!.22I! in its general terms of line, mass and form, picturization refers more to !!!!!!!­ !!Jg, end deals more with details. This "story telling" value in a stage picture shows vividly the mental and emotional attitudes each character has for the others. Take, for example, the realistic scene in Act II of outward Bound, 53 when the passengers are discussing the ab- 35

53see pp.87-88 in the play script sence of running lights on the ship and Dlke has refused to verify Prior's statements. Prior grasps Dlke by the throat and calls him a liar. Lingley grabs Prior to keep him away from Dlke. At this point, without the use of dialogue or movement, any person just entering the theatre auditorium could see that a disagreement which had led to physical contact had been going on between these two men and that a third had stepped in to separate them. The fact that Prior wes the one being held would show that he had been the antagonist. The fact that the third person was not standing between them would indicate that both were not anxious for violence. Lingley•s stopping the fight would point out that he was either in agreement with Dlke or at least not anxious for violence. Here is a story­ telling picture, emphasizing, through playing in one area, the idea of physical contact. The action takes place in an up stage plane to soften the effect of violence for the au­ dience. The mental and emotional attitudes are very clear. To illustrate picturization in an impressionistic scene the attention of the reader is called to ~ne end of Act I in the scene between Scrubby and Prior.54 Tne latter

54 . see pp.63-64 in the play script asks Scrubby where the ship is sailing to and Scrubby re­ plies that it is bound for heaven and hell. Here the use of levels, Scrubby being on a platform behind the bar and Prior on stage level, effectively suggests the difference in men­ tal and spiritual status of the two men. Scrubby, who has found his niche in eternity and knows all the answers, looks

~on Prior. The latter, who is new in this world beyond, looks 1!E. to Scrubby for the answer to his question. The steward is relaxed and calm as the person is who is complete­ ly confident of his position and knowledge. His questioner, on the other hand, is very tense, indicating clearly his lack of self assurance and understanding. Two levels are used here to emphasize the difference between the two men and an up right area to keep the scene sufficiently remote for the atmosphere of impressionism. No movement or dialogue is necessary to convey the idea of assurance on the part of one and of confusion in the case of the other. The slightest innuendo of voice or body is obvious and significant since the stage is completely dark except for this one small area. Thus the emotional values are increased as they should be in impressionism. XIV In a stylized play numerous controls are applied so that only ideas of significance are allowed to come to the attention of the audience. Control of movement is then of great importance since it is more obvious than speech. Its effectiveness can be observed in dramatic ballet where all attention is focused upon the graceful moving of the dancers 3'7 as they tell their story without words. Mrs. Cliveden-Banks probably required more obvious movement than anyone else in the cast. Since she was an affected person her movements had to be affected. The fact that they were much broader than were Scrubby's does not in­ dicate they were any the less controlled. Each one helped to convey the idea of her social position, economic level, shallow mind and selfish spirit. Take, for instance, her exit in the third act shortly after the arrival of the Examiner.55 She makes a diagonal cross from stage left to

55see p.132 in the play script right and speaks to the Examiner as she pauses in the center of the stage. This has been a sweeping, curved line movement from a weaker to a stronger position on stage. Rev. Thomson, the E:xaminer, openly snubs her and she, in righteous indig­ nation over such an insult to a woman of her position, stalks out in the grand manner. All is suggestive of her character. It is not hard for the audience to understand the type of character she is if attention is given to her movement. Artificiality, sophistication and temperament are obvious. She is one of the more realistic characters, yet everything she has done is selective. Ann's movement in Scene 2 of Act III is particularly interesting.SS This is an impressionistic scene starting

55see pp.169-170 in play script 38 on the platform up left, moving diagonally to center stage and then down stage toward the audience. The movement is again in a curved line as are all crosses in this produc­ tion. The curved motif is thus carried out in set design, f"urniture, pools of light, and all movement. Only very short crosses are permitted to be straight. curved lines add to the grace and beauty requisite in a play of pre­ dominantly impressionistic style. In the scene referred to Ann leaves the platform when she subconsciously begins her struggle to return to life and Henry. Ea.ch new declaration on her part that she will follow Henry brings her a step or two down stage. As she continues the struggle and gradually comes closer to life again, she gets farther and farther awa:y from the elevation which has symbolized the remoteness of unreality and comes slowly down stage center toward a stronger and more realis­ tic position. By the time she is on the verge of real life, at the climax of her struggle, she is at the curtain line. Here Henry finds Ann as he comes to take her back to earth. Slowly she turns, as in spiritual ecstasy, and moves up to Henry's outstretched hands. He tells her they must go quickly because there is so much to do. So, in contrast to the slow movements of the struggle, they quickly and realistically move off stage through the up center door to return to a real existence a.gain. Her movements in this scene have been f'rom weak to strong in a consistent build, all carefully motivated and highly selective.

These crosses, strong.Ly supported by area lighting, have added a great deal to i:.ne picturization and the dialogue in creating 1,,ne mood desired. xv "Rhythm", writes Alexander Dean,56 "is primarily the

56Fundamentals of Play Directii.t' Alexander Dean, Farrar and Rinehart, Inc., New Yor, 1941, p.286. factor that gives life to a play; that ties it together into a unified whole, co-ordinating action, actors, dia­ logue; creating an illusion; and carrying the audience along through the action of the play." This is well stated. No group can do ensemble acting without individual and group sensitiveness to this principle. Rhythm is composed of pulsations, variable through decisiveness and regularity and the tempo is commonly called timing. A predominant rhythm must be maintained throughout a play although there must be contrasting variations dependent on characters, mood, action and locale. F.a.ch a,ctor has a rhythm of his own. Mrs. Midget's was best established in the rhythm of the cockney dialect com­ bined with the emotional emphasis appropriate to her charac­ ter. It was quick and light, occasionally flaring but predominantly steady and subdued as befitting a person of low sta,tion in life. 'Mrs. Cliveden-Banks has a slower, sharper but more soaring rhythm, usually regular also, since this character has insufficient depth of mind and character to slow down 40 or speed up very nruch for any situation. Lingley is an example of a heavy, decisive and ponderous beat, steady but extremely irregular when confronted with situations he re­ alizes he does not understand. These are all realistic rhythms. Scrubby's style is definitely impressionistic, there­ fore highly selective. To make him convincing as an un­ real character his rhythm was caref'ully controlled so that his performance would be as steady and regular as possible with very little variation. Most of his speeches were short, so the lack of variation within a speech is not un­ pleasant. His movement was a glide rather than a walk. At all times he presented a striking contrast to the realistic rhythm of the majority of the characters. This all helped este.blish him as a person aloof from the rest and gave him an "eternal" quality necessary to the style of this production. The rhythm of all the characters must of course fit that of a given scene. Lingley's planned speech at the board meeting in Act IJI57 indicated the irregular rhythm expressive of the

57see pp.110-112 of the play script

conf'used sta.te of mind of its pe.rticipants. Lingley's style we.s strong a.nd aggressive but gradually faltering as those on each side constantly interrupted. It was made more irregular by the quick, needling speeches of 41

Prior f'rom the other side of the stage. Now consider the rhythm of that scene as it continues through the remainder of the act. These irregular pulsations of the initial situation were gradually quieted and smoothed out as the group be- came more and more serious, with Rev. D.lke's quiet voice and mien predominating. Bit by bit, then, it began to speed up and intensify, with a nervous flare here and there as emotions spilled over. By the time the :Examiner arrived the rhythm was beating rapidly and emotionally, then seemed to pa.use on a high plane just before Rev. Thomson made his entrance. Gradually then the beat slowed down and became more erratic as the characters relaxed and began to show their petty qualities. Through the examinations the Exami­ ner dominated the rhythm, keeping it steady with his own calnmess and self assurance. This impression lasted until the end of Scene 1 in Act ITI. The final speeches, however, gave the rhythm a slight upward swing as the uncertainty of what would become of Ann and Henry became evident. Scene 2 of Act III started quietly but above the casual level of intensity, and gradually increased until the final exit of Ann and Henry, just before the curtain. The characters,

what w~s happening to them, the intagibility of real charac­ ters in an unreal situation, all blended together into an artistic whole leaving the audience with a sense of complete­ ness essential to effective production. As has been sa5d, these were, for the most part, real char<"cters in an unreal situation. Normally that defines 42 farce. Only the expressionistic mood supported by the appropriate rhythm of this performance prevented it from becoming just that, an amusing farce. The tremendous im­ portance of' rhythm, in theatrical expression, dare not be overlooked.

XVI Another element of style is the use of' pantomimic dra­ matization. It serves to support picturization particularly and is closely connected with rhy~nm. Poor pantomime can completely disrupt both. In a stylized play pantomime is subjected, as is everything else, to the laws of selectivi­ ty. Only those bits of' pantomime which are particularly symbolic or purposeful can be used.

Prior•s handling of' the whiskey g~ass in ~ne last act,58

58see p.154 of' the play scrip~

when he says it will be difficult ~o give up nis liquor, is an example of' dialogue made more effective througn pantomime used in connection with a property. Mrs. Cliveden-Banks uses her pince-nez to support her characterization, while Lingley's "business" in hitting the small bell on the table at the beginning of the board meeting in Act III59 is sig-

59see p.110 in the play script nif'icant in helping establish the mood in the beginning of that scene. This is selective realism. 43

Pantomimic dramatization is, however, not always asso­ ciated with properties. Realistic pantomime was exhibited in most of Lingley' s scenes. He frequently added to his pompous characterization by drawing up to full height and seeming to swell like a bull frog getting ready to give the frog's characteristic croak. An.other instance of panto­ mime without properties was Prior•s gestures in a scene in Act I.60 Prior said Lingley might be forced to walk a plank

60see p.47 in the play script at the sports, as punishment for some offences he had com­ mitted. To accompany this speech Prior moved his fingers in a satiric manner to suggest Lingley•s walk down the plank. Prior added a sudden dive to the walking gesture, to suggest the fall into the water at the end of the plank. This pantomime was very effective in reinforcing the dia­ logue and received a good laugh from the audience. The spontaneous reaction from the audience proved the value of the little additional dramatization. Again, this was re­ alistic "business". pnpressionistic pantomime is not a great deal differ­ ent than that employed rea.listically. However, it is em­ ployed less often. In realism much pantomime is used to build up a characterization or to produce a laugh. In impressionism some bit of business may be done in the same way but it will be one that is highly symbolic of the character or the mood. Henry and An.n's frequent embraces 44 were very effective in telling the audience the relation­ ship existing between the two. Whenever Ann reached a minor climax, such as at the curtain speech in Act II, she invariably turned to the arms of Henry for protection and sympathy. No dialogue was necessary to tell the story to the audience. At the beginning of Scene 2, Act III Scrubby performs the longest stretch of pantomime without dialogue in the en­ tire play. A moment before, the curtain has gone down on the examination scenes, leaving Henry and Ann's disposition uncertain. The curtain rises now to complete this final cycle of action. Symbolic from the beginning, of the eter­ nal nature of life on this ship, is Scrubby who comes in now to rearrange the furniture in the lounge. He carefully places chairs in convenient positions and clears the table of the water pitcher and glasses left from the board meeting. Then he exits behind the bar. No one else is to be seen. This takes better than a minute to accomplish. '!'he audience realizes that Scrubby and the ship still go on as ever. '!'he • absence of anyone else suggests the passengers have all been taken away. Then Ann appears in the door followed by Henry. The audience senses that they alone are left to sail back with Scrubby, just as the Examiner has said. Scrubby has set the mood for the beginning of the second scene of the act and told his audience several things they wanted to know. From here the scene builds up to its climax and the end of the play. Actually the stage manager could have done between 45 scenes what Scrubby did. As a matter of fact the script calls for that. However the pantomime, carefully selected to produce the right mood, was instrumental in assisting the audience to ma.ke the transition from the last scene and important in establishing the tone of a very difficult finale. Once again it must be stated, a comic move and the audience could have laughed heartily at a humorous Scrubby. Since every particle of pantomime was carefully worked out he set their emotions for what was to come and there was no laugh. Truism though it may be, the following statement must be made. Style in direction can make or break a play! It can make a melodrama a serious play or even a satiric comedy out of the very same script. This is an element of' direction which should always receive careful scrutiny and meticulous planning. 46

WORKS CITED Atkinson, Brooks, review of Outward Bound, New York Times, January 1, 1939, Section XI, p.l, col.I. Brown, John Mason, Two on the Aisle, New York Post, December 23, 1938, p.8, col.I. Collins, Sewell, Who is SUt'ton Vane, New York Times, January 13, 1924, Section VII, p.1, col.4-6. Corbin, John, review of Outward Bound, New York Times, January 8, 1924, p.26, coi.1. Corbin, John, The Spook Drama, New York Times, January 13, 1924, Section VII, p.l, col.l. Crocker, Fields, Broomall, Taking the Stage, Pitman Publishing Corporation, New York, 1939. Cross, George, Cockney, a recording /fflA, The British Dr'ama Lea.gue Dialect Records, Columbia Graphopnone Co., Ltd., London. Dean, Alexander, FUndamentals of Play Directing, Farrar and Rinehart, Inc., New York, 1945. Kunitz, Stanley J. and Raycroft, Howard, ed., Twen"tieth Century Authors, The H.w. Wilson co., New York, 1942. Macgowan, Kenneth, A Mystical Mont.n on Broadway, Theatre Arts Monthly, March, .1924. Mantle, Burns, ed., The Best Plays of 1923-24, Small Maynard, and co., Boston, 1924. Mantle, Burns, ed., 'l'he Best Plays of 1938-39, Dodd, Mead and co., New York, l939. Mantle, Burns, ed., 'l'he Best .Plays of 1939-40, Dodd, Mead and co., New York, 1940. Marriot"t, J.w., ed., Great Modern British Plays, G.s. Harrop and co., London, i9;_j4,, pp.1615-6. New York Post, December .17, 1938, p.8, col.6. New York Times, "Gussip of tne Rialto", December 30, 1923, Section VII, p.l, col.4. Two letl..ers in t.ne "Mail Bag" signeu oy A.T. Hallock and M.L. Sheffiela, January o, .1924, Sec'tion VII, p.2, co.1.3. Let.1...er in "tne "Vail Bag" signed by A. Brooks, January 13, 1924, Sect.ion VII, p.l, col.l. 47

"First Lady Cs.lled a Force in the Theatre", May 9, 1939, p.27, col.6. Parker, John, ed., Who's Who in the Theatre, Eighth Edition, Sir Isaac Pitman and Sons, Ltd., London, 1936. Theatre Arts, February, 1939, Vol. XXIII, No.2, p.97. The Times (London) September 18, 1923, p.10, col.4. September 20, 1923, p.8, col.3. October 8, 1923, p.10, col.1. October 15, 1923, p.10, col.3. October 16, 1923, p.10, col.3. November 26, 1923, p.12, col.2. January 24, 1924, p.8, col.2. January 28, 1924, p.8, col.3. February 28, 1924, p.10, col.5. March 13, 1924, p.12, col.3. March 24, 1924, p.10, col.3. April 7, 1924, p.10, col.2. May 28, 1924, p.8, col.6. May 31, 1924, p.12, col.4.

Vane, Sutton, Au Grand Lar~e, tr. by Paul Verela, La Petite Illustration, Paris, 192 • Vane, SUtton, Qutward Bound, Liveright Publishing Corporation, New York, 1924. 48

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

On Dialect

~ow, .Anne, Phonetic Studies in Folk speech and Broken ;mnp;lish, Expression Co., Boston, 1937

Herman, Lewis and Marguerite, Manual of Fore~ Dialects for RadiobfiStage, and Screen., Ziff Davis !ishing Company, icago, 1943 Mathews, William M., Cockney Past and Present, E.P. D.Jtton and Company, New York, l938

On Technical Production

Burris-Meyer and Cole, Scenery for the Theatre, Little, Brown, and Company, Boston, 1938 Mccandless, Stanley, A Method of Lighting the Stage, Theatre Arts, Inc., New York, 1939