R. H. F.

A production entitled "Sweetheart Time" could hardly be a startlingly original offering. The title conjures up all that is trite and inconsequential in musical comedy and leads us to expect sickly sentimentality decked in shimmering summer dresses, roses, and orange blossoms--an unseasonable dish, certainly, for a long winter evening. And true enough, the sentimentality, the summer dresses, the roses, and the orange blossoms are all present. Even so "Sweetheart Time" makes easy escape from the anticipated slough of hum-drum mediocrity.

There are several saving graces. Saving grace number one is an irresponsible comedian, Mr. Eddie Buzzell, who could bring freshness and spontaneity to jokes of doddering senility. Fortunately, however, he is blessed with an unusual number of strictly fresh wise cracks, which brings us to saving grace number two--Mr. Harry B. Smith has provided an excellent book, one that successfully defies the tradition that musical comedy plots shall be unimportant.

The third saving grace is Mr. Nick Lucas, the so-called crooning troubadour, who appears much too briefly with his guitar and all but stops the show. The music otherwise is tuneful, if not epochal. The song "A Girl in Your Arms is Worth Two in Your Dreams" is good musically, although its philosophy is open to serious question. Mr. Buzzell offers a pleasing rapid-fire patter song called "Rue de la Paix", the words of which we planned to remember to tell our roommates, but which, unfortunately, we have already forgotten.

Not the least important item in favor of "Sweetheart Time" is the dancing of the entire cast, principals and chorus. The chorus, far more pulchritudinous than the average, is one of the all-star variety, the individuals of which are always surprising us by stepping to the fore to do tricks, and very good tricks they are too.