Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 31 December 1940 — Page 4

Somebody’s always taking the joy ou

First Ifs K.P. and Then It's Fighting

‘RX

Prem lisence

t of life, think “Big Boy” Williams and Alan Hale, as they do kitchen police under the amused eyes of

Ronald Reagan and Errol Flynn in “Santa Fe Trail.” Opposite is a more dramatic scene from the same picture, which opens at the Indiana today. Raymond Massey is shown as John Brown who, with his Abolitionist cohorts, is standing off the Government troops in “bloody Kansas.”

Silver Cup Goes To Martha Scott

HOLLYWOOD, Dec. 31 (U. P.).—

Martha Scott, a 25-year-old Mis-|

souri girl who a year ago would have exchanged her chances in the movies for a one-day ticket back to Broadway, has received one of the film industry’s most coveted awards. > It« is Redbook Magazine's silver cup presented annually for the “most distinguished contribution to the art of the motion picture.” The recognition Jas Shared by roducer Sol : - Lesser, Director Biss Some Sam Wood and members of the cast of “Our Town.” Miss Scott came to Hollywood by

way of Broadway from Jamesport, |:

Mo., to take a screen test for the part of Melanie in “Gone With the Wind.” But her face was “all wrong’ and she was not “photogenic.” Producers cast her aside in favor of Olivia de Havilland. Mr. Lesser looked at the test when he started making “Our Town” and shuddered. Every trick in the makeup department had been employed to make over Miss Scott's already pretty face. Mr. Lesser was desperate, with almost the entire cast drawing pay and no picture in production. A photographer suggested photographing Miss Scott as nature intended she be, and she was given the role.

CALLS MOVIE MUSIC 'SHOCKING NOISE

LONDON, Dec. 31 (U. P.).—Sir Thomas Beecham, conductor of the London Philharmonic . Orchestra, believes movie music is so much “shocking noise.” “No one with the slightest artistic refinement can listen to it for a single minute without experiencing the utmost pain,” he said. “It is just that good music cannot be reproduced mechanically. Trying to put it through that little mechanical instrument destroys all its values.”

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Symphony's 'Faust' Gives City Hope

For More Operatic Performances Here

By JAMES THRASHER

FOR THE SECOND time in as many seasons, Fabien Sevitzky and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra gave the city a taste of

opera last evening. thanks are due all concerned.

And since even a nibble is rare in these parts,

The occasion was a concert version of Gounod’s “Faust” in English, and was the opening attraction in a special “short series”

of five concerts which the orchestra is presenting this season. The performance enlisted the services of the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir and the following soloists: Ernest McChesney in the name

part; Gean Greenwell as Mephistopheles; Zina Lisichkina as Marguerite; Hertha Glaz, who sang the parts of Siebel and Martha; Thomas L. Thomas, who was the Valentin, and Edward LaShelle, the Wagner. Last evening’s presentation was yet another indication that we may look more and more to our symphony orchestras for operatic productions. After all, only New York and Chicago have any considerable season of this expensive pastime, while perhaps a half-dozen other cities enjoy brief samples when the Metropolitan goes on tour, For the rest of the country, there are occasional and inadequate performances, radio broadcasts or nothing, except in those centers where the orchestras have come to the fore.

® 8 2

SOME CITIES, notably Cincinnati and Cleveland, have given - full-fledged productions under their orchestras’ auspices. And it may be predicted confidently that in the happier time when our own symphonic organization has more money, we shall see the same thing done here. In the meantime concert performances are decidedly better than nothing. ; : Perhaps “Faust” is not the ideal musical drama to present in a static form. But it is certainly more suited to it than last year’s “Cavalleria Rusticana,” with its sanguine plot which cries out for blood and action. Doubtless these two works have heen chosen by Mr. Sevitzky to warm his audiences up for bigger and better things, since “Cavalleria” is short, and “Faust” a concatenation of ultra-familiar music. A word should be said, too, for the presentation in English—a very creditable one by a translator unidentified on the program. Enough, heaven knows, has been said in favor of opera in the vernacular without achieving many results. ‘But last night's performance was just another demonstration of the efficacy of our native tongue in dispelling the white-tie-and-stuffed-shirt stigma surrounding opera in the public mind. Musically speaking—which is about all there is to speak of in a concert performance — last night’s “Faust” was certainly not a memorable one, but neither was

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- it anything to be ashamed of.

There was some confusion of approath, but there was also a good bit of excellent singing and playing. 5 f J » 2 MME. LISICHKINA disclosed a | well placed and well handled voice. Her style was intimate. In fact it was the sort of singing one hears more often from an interpreter of lieder than from a prima donna. The result, however, was splendid evenness of scale and an" extraordinary delicacy and finish of phrasing. Her singing throughout proclaimed a sound musicianship, and - her over-zealous devotion to the score obviously arose from her unfamiliarity with the language, not the music. Mr. McChesney’s Faust was undramatic to the point of being sleepy. On one or two occasions he came forth with a ringing phrase. But for the most part he sang “gently as any sucking dove,” with bitterness, passion and remorse left largely to the listener’s imagination. Miss Glaz was most attractive, enthusiastic and accomplished in her dual role, And Mr. Greenwell was a stalwart and serviceable Mephistopheles, suggesting the histrionics with a nice modulation and keeping them in key with his surroundings. But the vocal honors went to Mr. Thomas, as they did in last year’s “Cavalleria.” Once he disclosed an exceptional voice, backed by sound intelligence and communicative emotion, and he left us wondering again why the Metropolitan can’t find a better and more frequent use for his talents. 8 8 8

THERE WAS nothing static about Mr. Sevitzky’'s part of the performance; even though dramatic action was absent. The music under his capable hands sounded fresh and spirited. Color and suppleness and vitality abounded in his handling of the orchestra; the .moments of uneven ensemble were few and soon forgotten, and the chorus and Mr. LaShelle contributed: to the general effect in commendable fashion. In the second act Mr. Sevitzky became suddenly indisposed, as happened at an earlier concert this season, and was forced to leave the stage for several minutes. Happily he was able to resume with no visible ill effects, although there was an unfortunate and unavoidable fracture of mood and continuity. : The house was only about hal filled. and there was a considerable confusion arising from late-comers and an unpredicted sequence of long and short intermissions. The prevailing: impression, however, was one of enjoyment.

LEGION OF DECENCY REVIVED IN OMAHA

Opening Today

Indiana “SANTA FE TRAIL”—With Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Raymond Massey, Ronald Reagan, Alan Hale, Directed by Michael Curtiz; original screen play by Robert Buckner. Latest entry in Warner Bros.’ American cavalcade, this one begins at West Point and continues on to Ft. Leavenworth, Kas., and out along the

Santa Fe Trail.

Historical personages represented include Gens. Jeb

Stuart, George Custer, Robert E. Lee, Phil Sheridan, James Longstreet and John Hood, Col. George Pickett, John Brown and Jefferson Davis.

MARCH OF TIME—“Arms and the Men—U, S. A.” Loew's

“COMRADE X”—With Clark Gable, Hedy Lamarr, Oscar Homolka, Felix Bressart. Directed by King Vidor; screen play by Ben Hecht and

Charles Lederer.

Mr. Gable falls in love with a young woman who runs a streetcar in Moscow, almost gets shot as a spy and eventually makes his escape with

the bride-to-be.

hy “THE GOLDEN FLEECING”—With Lew Ayres, Rita Johnson, Lloyd

Nolan.

Mr. Ayres does NOT play Dr. Kildare in this one about the timid insurance clerk who signs a racketeer to a big policy by mistake, then has

to find the mobster to hold. his job.

'GWTW'Due Back Jan. 24

Second Showing at Loew's To Be Half Price.

“Gone With the Wind” will return to Indianapolis on Jan. 24, the first anniversary of its opening here for a second engagement at Loew's, The film will be shown on a con-

tinuous-performance policy, Man- |.

ager Ward Farrar said today, and the admission price will be approximately half what it was during the first engagement. In other words, tickets will be only slightly above

the standard “popular price” level. |.

Margaret Mitchell's Civil War epic, one of the most eagerly awaited pictures in film history, had a gala opening at Loew's on Jan. 24, 1940. It remained for five week and was seen at that time by more than 100,000 persons.

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“THEY CUT A TRAIL THROUGH THE HEART OF THE

From “Bloody Kansas” to wicked Santa Fe... they were the law! Battling. with sword and fist and gun, they

tuled “The Trail”. ..in glory

OMAHA, Nec, Dec. 31 (U. P)—| Boycott of actors who live immoral |

lives, as well as the banning of immoral plays, was urged by the Rt. Rev. Msgr. E. J. Hunkeler, pastor of St. Cecilia's Cathedral, at a ceremony reinstating the Legion of Decency here. “Recent events,” Msgr. Hunkeler said, “have demonstrated that the motion picture industry has not

| fully learned its lesson. Therefore

it is necessary to continue the good |.

work of the Legion of Decency. “TI believe we should go farther than merely boycotting salacious plays. I think we should also refuse to patronize plays in which actors who have gained reputations for immorality are featured as stars.” The Legion of Decency, formed by

Catholic leaders several years ago,

has been inactive here for several ‘months. hw .

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