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Brief Moment: Belasco Theatre,
November 9, 1931
New York Times, November 10, 1931
The Play: Woolcott and
Contemporaries.
By J. BROOKS ATKINSON
S. N. Behrman is discussing his contemporaries in
"Brief Moment," which was acted at the Belasco last
evening, and Alexander Woollcott is one of them.
When the curtain rises Mr. Woollcott's rotund figure
is discovered billowing over the furniture.
Whereupon. Mr. Woollcott, disguised by the removal
of his spectacles, begins to act. For Mr. Woollcott
professional acting consists in speaking rather more
deliberately than he does in the aisles and lobbies,
for the stage is invariably a trifle more sluggish
than life. Otherwise, Mr. Woollcott is himself
again. Cast in the play as an obese sybarite, with a
passion for reclining on couches and the gift of a
flowing literary style, he makes amusing
observations on the contemporary scene with a kind
of resigned cynicism. It is good talk, both merry
and malicious, which is a strange combination; and
Mr. Woollcott tosses it across the footlights with a
relish that the audience shares. If he enjoyed
himself as much as the audience last night enjoyed
him, he must have been having a very good time.
Mr. Woollcott not only dislocates the couch on which
he sprawls but, at least to those who know him, he
dislocates the play a little. Mr. Behrman, who wrote
"The Second Man" and "Meteor," is among his
contemporaries again, analyzing them with rare
understanding and writing a light dialogue that is a
joy to hear. It is the story, suggested by a recent
episode in New York life, of a wealthy banker's son
who marries a night club singer. To Mr. Behrman this
is no occasion for random theatricals. He is
interested in his characters, and he is willing to
let them discover their own salvation. As a play
"Brief Moment" is limp and for half its length
apparently aimless. If you are looking for
rapid-fire patter you will be disappointed. What
distinguishes it is the flavor of the dialogue and
the thoroughness of its characterizations.
The two chief characters are honest young people. As
the son of a wealthy banker, Roderick Dean is
painfully aware of his personal deficiencies. He is
constantly reaching after the attainable. Nor is
Abby Fane a treacherous siren. When Dean proposes to
her she confesses that she does not love him, but
that she is fond of him and much excited by the
prospect of being a rich woman. Within eighteen
months the expected has happened. She is a
celebrity-hunter. He suspects her of commonness and
infidelity. After a quarrel they part and he means
to divorce her. But she is the stronger of the two.
She understands how much finer they can be together
than either one of them can be alone. Mr. Behrman
has written a searching study of character. To him a
night club singer and a rich man's son are real
people. He has paid them the respect of
understanding them.
In addition to Mr. Woollcott there are two or three
excellent actors in the play. As the night-club
singer, Francine Larrimore gives a beautiful
performance, catching the sincerity and rightness of
instinct beneath the froth of the part. Robert
Douglas has not only a winning personality but a
clarity of outline in his acting as Roderick Dean.
Louis Calhern is tall and handsome as an amorous
polo player, and Paul Harvey is delightfully blunt
and broad-shouldered as a monarch of modish
racketeering. As the scene-designer Jo Mielziner has
created one of those quietly charming modern living
rooms in his best style. As the director Mr.
McClintic has been workmanlike and unobtrusive.
"Brief Moment" is tepid and discursive as a play. As
a study of modern characters, it has the sort of
fineness Mr. Behrman can impart to his work. With
Mr. Woollcott prattling from among the cushions on
the sofa it has also streaks of brilliance, for our
shouter and murmurer know how to give all the pat
answers. Like newspaper work, "Brief Moment"
introduces you to interesting people.
Brief Moment: Belasco Theatre,
November 9, 1931 |
