Plays in Verse
SIR,—In your last issue your dramatic critic observes: 'It is so long since we heard a great play in modern verse on the stage that we have quite forgotten what it feels like, or rather never knew, since, what- ever one may think of the verse they are couched in, the plays of Eliot, Auden, Fry—come to that of Tennyson, Shelley, Keats, perhaps even Dryden— can scarcely be called great.' This kind of un- supported generality, one presumes, must now pass as 'instant criticism.' Mrs. Spurling indeed assumes too much. There are many of us, less articulate, perhaps, than she, who do think that' Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral, Sweeney and The Cocktail Party can be called 'great.' I believe that Curtmantle has these qualities too. A critic, even in a weekly, should learn to state his criteria before making these vague gestures of judgment. And when, may I ask, was Dryden given anything like a fair showing in this country? Or has Mrs. Spurling judged the dramatic effect of his plays from a page?
Welcombe, Nr. Bideford. Devon
RONALD DUNCAN
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