THEATRICAL CONDITIONS IN AMERICA PITIFUL

"The theatrical condition of America today is almost pitiful", said Mr. Walter Prichard Eaton '00 in an address at the Harvard Club of Boston yesterday evening, deploring the lack of interest in the drama that exists throughout the country at the present time.

Mr. Eaton assigned three reasons for this prevalent state of affairs. One of these causes is the abnormal increase in railroad fares, which makes the transportation of companies both difficult and expensive. The second reason may be found in the uniformly bad conditions in modern play-houses--meagre facilities for work, poor housing arrangements, and unhealthy atmosphere. The last, and, according to Mr. Eaton, the basic cause of the flagging interest in dramatics, both professional and amateur, lies in the present ascendency of the emotion picture as a national pastime.

One solution was offered by Mr. Eaton as a remedy, namely the greater stimulation of dramatics in the various colleges. "There is no use in looking for relief to the professional theatre", he declared. "Entertainment must come through an appeal to the intelligence of the audience, such as can never be found in the movies; and the best vehicle for the expression of this appeal is the spoken drama as presented by earnest amateurs. If is the promoting of theatricals throughout our institutions of learning in which lies the future of our American drama."