Show x 1 a gh Astonishing Fate That Overtook atone Rambeau's Play After the Playwright Got Gotty dw f p 3 E h f ty t i n arC byr Her All Upset by r K Changing err t tK y s sf su u 1 r y x x r rA A f r Lk Kd f fx fJ v C Ca a J 1 Lines and the tp xi 1 i g ly y Y 9 l r T a T r 7 F v x Dose of CX rd dM i t v rf 1 t i iS S Something l lY V c Y 1 r o r f- f 0 d q Fp FpS z a s q i S r FI Key ra t r es s j 7 Ai y S So o v k 9 9 tyr a 3 d ro roW rog W g y ru y q Mw r i Up rr o 14 f 1 e y r 7 y o e 0 fr v va a ie Mr Her y s a k t rr r Nerves M r e ae r oa i irr y it y 7 J t 1 aZ e pa N M Z The actress and her lead lead- leading ing man in ina in a r scene from w the play which Broadway saw for or one v night only r ARJORIE RAMBEAU the popular popular MARJORIE lar actress has astonished the theatrical world and establIshed a record that seems unlikely to be equaled for a long time tune by appearing in a play that went broke broe in in one night The first fast performance of The Road Together er in lD which she took the leading part Was was ras its last It began and ended Its Broadway run with startling and mysterious suddenness in a single eve eve- evening eve evening ning Early the next morning it was an announced pounced that the play had bad been with withdrawn drawn The money that had been paId for tickets several weeks m in advance was refunded The actors and actresses who ho had appeared with Miss Rambeau were told they must look for other jobs lobs Now it is by no means an unheard unheard-of unheard thing for a Broadway show chow to give gwo up the ghost after a single performance but whenever this has happened be before foro it has been the amateurish play of some unknown author author-a author a play badly written badly acted and badly staged by same inexperienced producer And nono none of these conditions prevailed in 10 the case of The Road Together The author George Middleton is ono one of Americas America's mo most moat t capable playwrIghts lIe has one successful play running on Broadway and has had others there be- be before before be before fore Miss Rambeau as everybody knows IS ISone isone isone one of the reigning queens of the stage Some critics think her the finest actress America has produced in recent years For a leading man she had A E r An- An eon An-eon sop sou a real artist with a long record of success in important roles The rest of the cast as as just lust as well chosen The manager was no novice nonce in ID the theatrical game but the astute and ex- ex ex experienced A A II H Woods Probably no other producer has been associated with Ith fewer fe failures than Mr lir Woods and never before has he backed with ius iia money and judgment a play that went vent broke in ID one night Mr Woods had given the production of of The Road Together his personal Jt- Jt attention at attention He lie had spared no expense in selecting the cast or m in providing the attractive at- at attractIve at attractive costumes and an stage settings which such players and sucha such a play would seem to deserve So the critics and fashionable first first- first who gathered at the Frazee Theater had ever reason to believe that this plays play's title would be shining lD an Broadways Broadway's electric signs for a long longtime longtime time If the play itself was not a II phe phe- phenomenal phenomenal success they felt that MIss Rambeau's genius gemus and popularity and her ber capable support could hardly tail fall to keep it running for at least two or three months All this seemed doubly certain since It was known that the play had had II a six v weeks try tryout in a stock company In California and that Miss Rambeau j 1 Wt KW C may Miss Rambeau in m the attitude which persons usually take tae when saying saying Never again agam and the cast who were wore to open In New NewYork NewYork NewYork York had appeared in m it with apparent success for a week in Buffalo and three nights in Stamford Conn Then why did The Road Together come to such a sudden and inglorious end That is the mystery mystery-a mystery a mystery which is puzzling New Yorks York's Broadway more than anything else has for a good tong long while Before the play had gone very far the audience realized that there was some some- something thing radically wrong If It The Road Together was to enjoy a long run mn It could hardly be in the extraordinary form in III which it was being presented The trouble was not so much with the play itself Although many thought it hardly up to Mr Middletons Middleton's previous efforts efforts still it had many merits Nor was as there any criticism of the work cf of Mr Anson and the rest of tho supporting cast They were filling their roles very capably indeed It was as the the star star the great MarJorie Rambeau herself herself herself-at at whom everybody veT ever body was as ft as looking and to whom they listened in III blank amazement Nobody had ever er e seen her hr give such a 8 surprising per per- performance performance performance as this tl What on earth ailed charming MIss Rambeau Could it be she had suddenly lost the talent that had made her shine so bright bright- brightly brightly brightly ly in III the theatrical firmament Her lIer clear enunciation was one of the qualities that had always distinguished her as an actress actress Yet to-night to she was mumbling many of her lines so that they that they were almost unintelligible Not Not NotI I only that that she was actually mispronouncing ing mg many familiar words in the most childish manner Her tongue stumbled badly over the word thermometer and when she final final- finally finally finally ly managed to get t the s syllables out they sounded like She had al- al al almost most 1 as serious senous difficulty with sl still sIm- sIm sImpler simpler sim simpler words Besides ml mispronouncing words she often used the wrong ones Se Several eral times tunc the pronouns me him and her became sadly mixed Every now and then she would twist the clauses IQ in ina ina a sentence around so 80 that the sense was all but bat lost Several in m the audience thought that Miss MIs Rambeau's manner of speech was much like what it might have been if the role she was playing was that ofa of a woman in a rather advanced stage of c s p alcoholic intoxication intoxication intoxication cation But this m was not the caseM casei case i M Mr Mr r MIddle MIddle- MIddleton's Middleton's tons Middle i tons ton's hero r 1 me n e ewas ewas was only by love and ire f nobody has ever found t this his to produce a thi k Y stumbling speech a Besides the un- un unsteadiness y un-y MIss steadiness of her tongue Rambeau's knees seemed very and her ber feet to be behaving ing mg not at all as good feet should At times she seemed really to feel the need of support and would prop her beautiful form against a piece of furniture in ID a away away away way that never was called for by th the action of the play The audience was full of the kindliest sympathy for the star and ea eager r to find some legitimate excuse for her strange performance Some thought she was the vIctim of the pen per which even an actress of her experience often oHen feels on ona ona ona a first night Others were sure she must have been suddenly stricken with some serious illness But if she really was ill why did she endanger her ber reputation and strain the audIences audIence's patience by continuing in thIs fashIOn If It she would not have the cur cur- cur curtain tam tain rung down and the performance postponed it seemed as if she might havo some somo one explain the tho handicap under which she was laboring and as ask the in- in indulgence in indulgence of the audience As the play continued the stage fright or illness or whatever it was that was vas raising such hob bob with Miss Rambeau's acting grew worse instead of better At last things reached a point v where here most of the audience had to forget for a nun nun- nun ute uto their admiration and sympathy for forthe forthe forthe the star and give way to smiles sUllIes and tit tit- titters titters tit titters The first outburst of merriment came at a climax of the drama that was never intended to inspire laughter Miss boss Ram Ram- Rambeau beau was supporting herself by ding cling clinging ing quite ing quite desperately many thought thought- thought to the back ofa of a chair Nothing could have bave been more incongruous than thIS weal weak rather helpless attitude ie and the brave words the playwright had bad put m in her mouth I can stand on my own feet A little later right in lD the midst of what the playwright intended to be the heroines herome's most poignant speech MIss Rambeau got the names of Important characters twisted She called her husband hus- hus husband hus husband band by her lovers lover's name As a titter ran through the audience she tried to rectify the error by repeat repeat- repeating repeating ing mg the and line line aad got into new difficulties that made the situation still more absurd But the worst of the breaks that were turning solemn drama into something very like lIe slapstick comedy was yet to come In one scene the action calls for the heroine herome to wrap her opera oper-d cloak about her lovely shoulders and walk wall from the stage in lD majestic silence It was planned to be 00 a moment tense with the conflIct of deep human emotions As played by Miss Rambeau it was tense only wIth the sort of humor you expect in ID a bur bur- burlesque burlesque lesque show She wrapped her cloak about her but she she put it on bottom side up WIth the collar trailing the floor and the hem around her shapely neck where the collar w 5 jf y t fa a faa a s f q r d da dL de w a i e ea a da L a e r 0 1 i iz s z az f N Mi Miss Misa u y 1 r t R 1 Marjorie iIii r R Rambeau b t am eau who a 5 r who 15 is believed i J l to have smashed N T 1 fY i all records for the S shortness ofa of a famous liars w Wt stars star's run at a Broad way Broad fi way theater should have been her exit could not be even dignified much less majestic And the audience shook its sides in m a way that in vaudeville v would be described as stopping the show Before the performance was fairly over all Broadway was buzzing with speculations as a to the true explanation of Miss Rambeau's extraordinary per per- performance per performance Some of those wise in the ways of the theatrical world recalled that many stars admIt resorting to a little alcoholic stun stun- stimulation to key their nerves up for the strain of an opening nl night night ht Quite possibly they suggested MI Miss s Rambeau had done this very thing Per Per- Perhaps haps lisps she had used too large a glass poured too large or too frequent doses of the supposed aid to a successful debut As likely as not in these bootlegging days the stimulant she may have resort resort- resorted resorted resorted ed to was of dubious quality All AU these arc only some of the theories that are arc heard along Jlong Broadway and nobody is able to say VI whether there IS ISa isa a basis of truth for any of them Next morning the management an- an an announced that the play had been with WIth- WIthdrawn withdrawn withdrawn drawn because the author was dissatisfied fied fled with the opening performance Mr Middleton packed his trunks and sailed for Bermuda by the first rust steamer he could catch lie He said he was suffering from extreme fatigue When asked why Miss Rambeau's performance had bad hadnot hadnot not been successful he said The rea rea- reason reason reason son is perfectly ob obvious ious From rom Miss bliss Rambeau's home came the announcement tUat that she was vas suffering from a complete nervous breakdown the result of overwork Later her physician de described her ailment as enteritis gastro-enteritis gastro gastro The night of her New York opening she was as su suffering agonizing pain from an acute attack of this he be said Within a few hours hoUTs MIss Mis Rambeau had recovered sufficiently to issue a lengthy statement in which she laid the blame for lor the plays play's going broke about equally on her poor physical condition Mr Middletons Middleton's maddening methods and aromatic spirits of ammonia The rhe play was too long she hc said but L h 4 S Sy Sa Ky y a 11 Iu As MIss Ram Ram- 1 Ja g v y stir j J J I Ja a recent re- re revival Sy re-Sy e viva vival of As You Like It w which hie h also I couldn't was not very v get Mr sue success c e s a- a aMid f M Mid i d fill ful but man man- manit to keepIn cut It it aged to keep In Buffalo go going in g for he kept mal mak- more t h ha a n is x n 1 g h t I y t just owe one per per- pert t r 8 n II I 0 s i- i A tiona of lines He had us aU all aJ upset 7 e f E Even v e n in j 11 Stamford he v f v continued trans trans- transposing 3 4 g posing lines The curtain s speech pee e h hof of the tho thIrd act was m mild a d e therY the rY closing speech of the second It was mad mad fit rr I I eO I was not ell ell and asked hIm to post post- postpone postpone pone the New York opening He wouldn't do it It v I was VIas nervous an unstrung the opening night In my dressing room I took a bl dose c aromatic spirits before the play he- he hegan be began gan gao I thought this would key ley me up but my doctor tells tell teU me it had bad the op- op opposIte opposite op opposite effect and depressed me I dont don't know how I got through the perform perform- performance performance ance The leading man A E Anson lays the blame to the fact that the play r t r fJ fJone f a goodone good one and was not y helped any by Mr td m Middletons Middleton's confusing habit of shifting the lines That's all aU the evidence In n the case And now Miss Rambeau's admirers decide for may themselves whether disease or a playwrights playwright's temperament or aro aromatic matic spirits or something different entirely dif dlf ferent was the of cause the plays play's rum i JI |