ADULT DRAMA ON BROADWAY-

'Devil's Advocate' Restores Critic's Faith

By HOWARD TAUBMAN

search for himself and God. It clues and examination of eviThen there is Dr. Aldo New York Times Service is exciting to encounter a dence assumé a significance beMeyer, a Jewish physician who NEW YORK Dore Schary drama that deals with grown-yond the purpose for which has found refuge in Calabria has made a powerful, absorb-ups as adults both on the they were begun. They become and has come to love its hard, ing drama out of Morris L. stage and in the audience. the means of revealing the proud, superstitious people. A

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West's novel, "The Devil's AdIn terms of fundamental form minds and emotions of an unscientist and humanist, he is vocate." The play bearing the "The Devil's Advocate" is a de-commonly arresting group of skeptical enough to doubt and same name, which opened last tective story, and good ones, people. wise enough not to disbelieve

night at the Billy Rose Theatre, which it is, always hold the atThe only villain, who is charentirely. He is played by Sam restores one's belief in the potention. But detection is merely acterized in unrelieved blacks, Levene with warmth and intentialities of the Broadway a story-telling device employed is the Communist partisan who tegrity.

theater.

by West and Schary to probe kills a man of faith because he A key figure is Nina SanAfter a long spell of frip-the ways of man and to justify will not join the revolutionary duzzi (played with dignity and peries and inanities, it is heart-the ways of man to God. For side. passion by Tresa Hughes), who ening to have again a work that this reason it transcends the As interesting as any figure was Nerone's lover. The presconfronts large issues of man's narrow fascinations of who-dunin the story is the devil's advo-ent fate of her boy, now 16, its and enlists the mind and cate himself. In the Roman whose father was Nerone, beCatholic Church the devil's adcomes a strand in the drama Indeed, the investigation of vocate is a priest whose duty as important as Nerone's right. it is to serve as the prosecutor to beatification.

heart.

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in studying a candidate for The English-born Countess beatification. Monsignor Blaise de Sanctis, played with intenMeredith receives this assign-sity by Olive Deering, contends ment in the case of Giacomo for the boy in the end with a Nerone, who is said to have per-homosexual painter, Nicholas formed miracles in a remote Black. area of Calabria.

Mulhare Uses Restraint

Msgr. Meredith conies to this task in the waning days! Not least among the characof his life. His body is wracked ters is the bishop of Valenta, by cancer. He rediscovers the a liberal minded prelate who simplicity and goodness in oth-seeks to bring progressive ideas er and finds unexpected fervor into Calabria and who is played in himself. Leo Genn plays the with spirit and humility by part with compelling force and Eduardo Ciannelli. humanity.

Nerone himself appears in flashbacks which re-enact recollections of him by Nina and Dr. Meyer. Is he a saint, sinner or just a man? The monsignor's judgment is that he lost and recevored his faith and became a man of moral sanctity. Edward Mulhare plays him with touching restraint,

Schary has directed his play with a sense of reserve that allows the momentum to mount gradually and that gives the strong scenes a feeling of being in high relief.