"SO THIS IS LONDON."

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19032, 1 June 1925, Page 11

"SO THIS IS LONDON."

| A COMEDY OF CONTRASTS. A crowded house at His Majesty's Theatre had much to entertain it on Saturday evening, when the American actor, Thurston Hall, introduced" himself and his com- . pany in a new comedy, "So This Is Lon- • don." It is a mild satire on the peculiarities and weaknesses of the two great branches of the Anglo-Saxon race, and the author, Arthur Goodrich, has achieved through a sense of humour and honesty of purpose, what might easily have proved a difficult thing to do—make the Englishman and the American laugh heartily with each other. Perhaps the New Zealander would laugh best, as he is far removed from either of the two types ridiculed, but there were both Englishmen and Americans in the audience on Saturday night and they laughed as genuinely as the rest. It is quite likely, too, that they did not always know why j they were amused. According to the author, Americans dining in London re- [ mark knowingly to themselves, "So this ris London," and then laugh. And the audience laughs at the mere thought of it. It laughs, too, when Americans are spoken of as "speaking furiously through their noses." There might have been something pitiable in the intolerance shown by the English, Beauchamp family for the Americans and by the American Draper family for tho English, but their mutual aloofness is rendered really humorous when it becomes known that the American family has never been in England before and the English family has never seen America. It seems delightfully natural, too, that the son and daughter of these two families should fall in love with each other and never cease from shouting their admiration for each other's countrymen from the housetops. It is, of course, tremendously disconcerting to the Beauchamp and Draper families, but that only adds to the amusement of the audience. Through the almost continuous vein of comedy runs a didactic purpose which no effort is made to conceal. It is given expression through the medium, of Lady Duckworth, an American-born woman, whose acquaintance with both sides of tho Atlantic has bred the spirit of goodwill and friendship and an earnest endeavour to overcome prejudice. She moves through the play like an international harbinger of peace, and by her innate tact and resourcefulness helps to dissipate some of those "silly old notions that' should have died with their great-grandfathers." Her plea for Anglo-American understanding, however, might have been substantially strengthened by the omission of certain exaggerations that widened rather than lessened the breach. It may be taken for granted, for instance, that the Sir Percy Beauchamp type of Englishman died with the war, as did the equally imaginary butler. Moreover, the American abroad is usually as concerned about appearances as an Englishman, and can comport himself with a good deal more composure than "Joes Hiram Draper. Mr. Thurston Hall's first appearance was decidedly a success and his Hiram Draper was a fine piece of acting, Ha revealed himself an adept at light comedy, using a rich voice, jovial laugh and sunny disposition to present an entirely attractive personality. Hiram Draper was just a bluff, good-natured American, a sound business man and a good father, blessed with the self-assurance of his race and a developed sense of humour. The English contrast was best seen in the work of Mr. Pieginald Carrington, as Sir Percy Beauchamp. He was wonderfully effective as the self-centred, conservative, dignified English knight, who stiffened like a startled hare at the very word "American." He was at his best in the scene in which his daughter announced her engagement to the American boy, and there was a world of agony in his soul as he sank into the chair and muttered, "To think that I should live to hear a child of mine say she loved an American!" The two lovers were played by Miss Helenor Bevan and Mr. Leslie Bariie, two likeable young people who brought youth and talent to their performances. * Miss Madge North, as Lady Duckworth; Miss Joan Crossley, as Lady Beauchamp; Miss Gladys Webster, as Mrs. Draper; and Mr. Kenneth Brampton, as Alfred Honeycntt, filled other important roles. The play will be repeated each evening until replaced by the final production, ilThe Broken Wing."