THE CENSORED PLAY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 93, 13 January 1908, Page 11

THE CENSORED PLAY.

... . Mr. Granville Barker's four-act tragedy,. "Waste,"- which wa3 refused a 'license by the Censor of Plays, was 'act&l privately rreently at the Imperial. .Theatre,., under the auspices of the Stage Society (says the "Daily .Express"). ■ Lot it' bo, at ohco stated that "Waste" is emphatically neither licentious nW indecent either in ; inteiition ■or achievement. ' Aiitl yet;lt>lß perfectly easy to understand, why theVMnsor rofusecl to pass it. Thero are situations which aro, not tolerable on the stage. ( . . \ . t Waste.' is-indeed a work of extraordinary ability; It evidences wide and acute khowlwlgo of life, It is convincing in its humanity: Arid dt the same time it is mormd,- discursivo,, and-intolerably long, .. Hero is the story, as far as it can bo told in thecolumns .of a daily neivspaper. Henry Trebeir is a successful lawyer who in. early .middlo life has taken to politics. He haia .greatrsfcheme for the disestablishment of thp Church.-'and:for tho tisc-s-of its monoy for the purposes of education. He has persuaded the leader of the Tory party to adopt his schomo, and ho is promised n place,in. tho Tory Government-.that is just ..coming into power. ■ lh<Jn; hi the.midst of his political work, he has an intrigue—an ordinary vulgar, loveless intrigue—with an empty-headed, eniptvheartjxli $6ciety '.woman.-. is,overjoyed when ho learns that there is-to, be a c !" ld > bllfc tl)0 woman Jiirks m6fcherhooa and loses hor life in trying to avoid it. & There is a half-hushed-up scandal, the Conservative, leader withdraws his offer of Cahinot, and Trobell blows hi6:bram»ii3ut, IT is life and his work havo wasted for th£ snk6 of a meaningless Jovo.affair with a worthless woman. Tho fitting i 5;, told with an embroidery of subtly political talk, as clover and as bewil(lef"jng as a spcech by Mr. Haldane, and will morcv subtle' diSnuisitions on tho rays* •eries.of lifo and death. It is "all amazingly clever, and it is just 88 truly'entirely uhsuited for. tho theatre. V* r» thoatro was tho worst medium for Mr. Barker.,. Had ho written • a ;book ho could havo skated over one or two crude incidents_ iihd .rnaclu plain one or- 'two inconsistencies.-. -For.all its cleverness . and all its high aim, "Wast©" is a'failure," and it is a failurfe bccauso'it is a play. .-It muat bo 'said, and it is said .'here with tho fullest acknowledgment of Mr. Barker's greit 'ability and fine intention, that Mr. Bedford'was absolutely justified 111 his refusal to licenso tho play. , Let it bo added that the acting was quite superb. Mr., Barker himself. Miss Aimeo do Burgh, Mr. Dennis Eadie, Mr. ' Fisher Whjfce, Miss Henrietta Watson, and all their.; associates acted magnifioently. Ono can use no other word.