The Cold Wind and the Warm: Morosco Theatre, December 8, 1958

New York Times, December 9, 1958

Theatre: 'Cold Wind and the Warm'
S. N. Behrman Play Opens at Morosco

By BROOKS ATKINSON

If S. N. Behrman had hot written a number of excellent plays, it would be easy to describe "The Cold Wind and the Warm" as his finest. That may be too broad an assertion on short notice. But as acted at the Morosco last evening, it is certainly the one closest to his own character.

For the Congreve of American letters has broken discipline for the moment and written an amusing, tender and, in the last scene, touching portrait of some middle-class folk in Worcester, Mass. "The Cold Wind and the Warm" is his dramatization of his "The Worcester Account"—a book of essays about his youth and his friends.

Nothing of epochal importance happens until that last scene. Most of the play is concerned with familiar things in a Jewish neighborhood—the naive wondering and dreaming of a youth, the benevolence and wisdom of a pious father, Aunt Ida, who is an implacable matchmaker, Willie's infatuation for an empty-headed girl who is vain and selfish, rich Mr. Mandel who expects to be treated with deference. Writing very artfully and scrupulously, Mr. Behrman has managed to knit these details into a fragile and leisurely play.

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If he were not a literary stylist, the first two-thirds of the play might look like a cartoon of Jewish life. But he writes with taste, warmth and dexterity—amused by the simplicities but loyal to them, as if he were under bond to bestow on them his most disciplined gifts as a writer.

And presently it develops that he has a serious story to tell in honor of an older person who was his adviser and friend. Willie is a generous young man and a good counsellor. He also lives a diffuse personal life. Tiring quickly of the things he is fanatical about, he transfers his fanaticism to other things. He also wastes his devotion on a useless young lady who loves only herself. He sacrifices not only himself but also others who love him to her fancies and caprices.

Ultimately, these blind impulses lead "The Cold Wind and the Warm" away from Jewish portraiture into an anxious situation and a melancholy climax. You are caught up in something that is shattering at the moment when you think you are being entertained. For the Congreve of the American theatre writes with a suppleness and ease that give distinction to things that are ordinary and that can shift the mood without changing the pace.

Under the sensitive direction of Harold Clurman, the play is lightly expressed in its own terms without effort or contriving. Faced with the problem of multiple scenes, Boris Aronson has solved it by an ingenious set with indoors and outdoors balconies, porches, an American-Gothic canopy and no crowding anywhere.

The acting is relaxed, amusing and, when the occasion rises, affectionate and moving. As the match-making aunt, a bully, a complainer and a woman with a big heart—Maureen Stapleton; as Willie, easy, casual, ingenuous, cheerful—Eli Wallach. They are the stars, for excellent services rendered.

But something appreciative must be said for Timmy Everett's lovely performance as the boy. Without sentimentalizing it, Mr. Everett keeps it modest and sweet. There are excellent performances also by Morris Carnovsky as the religious father, Carol Grace as the coquette, Suzanne Pleshette as a young woman of quiet responsibility, Sig Arno as a professional matchmaker and Sanford Meisner as the pompously rich neighbor.

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If there were a little more time at the moment, it would be possible to express gratitude to all the actors and everyone else concerned. They deserve it. For "The Cold Wind and the Warm," is a cameo carefully designed and executed by expert craftsmen. After dazzling the customers with witty dialogue in comedies of manners for thirty-five years, Mr. Behrman has drawn up a personal account. It is delightful, not only because of the material, but also because of the shyness, delicacy, humor and respect of his writing.

The Cold Wind and the Warm: Morosco Theatre, December 8, 1958