Advertisement

CRIMSON PLAYGOER

Exotic Mae Murray Glitters at the Met--Latent Charm Discernible Under Artificial Operatic Poise

Gorgeous, golden, exotic Mae Murray is the cynosure of all eyes at the Metropolitan this week. It would be otiose not to sing her praises, because some of her charm and personality manages to transcend the tawdry banality of the Revue in which she appears, the ornate ensembles in which she is dressed, and the characterless puppets who support her. On the screen she had as distinct an individuality as Theda Bara ever had, but on the Metropolitan stage she was unable to glitter as in "Fascination" or "Peacock Alley". The romance of the Merry Widow waltz left the "Publix" patrons cold, whereas less black velvet and fluffy chiffon and more red hot syncopation a la her Ziegfield "Follies" days would have attracted the thunderous applause with which the "Publix" audience greets atrocious slapstick. Miss Murray must be admired, most of all, because she refused to descend to the level of her audience. For the theatregoer who storms the box office to see his or her cinematic god or goddess in person, however, the notions that the movie star should play the sedulous ape on the stage and chameleon-like run through their past repertory of screen characterization, is one of the pseudodoxia epidemica which die hard.

"Wild Geese", the current photoplay, is a realistic screening of the Ostenso novel, marked by the distinguished acting of Belle Bennet and Eve Sothern.

Advertisement
Advertisement