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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 20, 1904)
h' Nu i&k 2&:rsi lMoa-. ---m 1 S twrgr of Q. Sonve of IK 3Koru? m . I vs ... , i i i- 'i ii ; . V V I !' As Thlt artklt glrtt In brttl tht rtatona lor and agarnsf tht atrlcal lilt lor children (bf out who It mtll qualilltd bf aipa rltnct lo fudgt) and afia rfrawi a plcturt ol tht lilt of ttagt thlldrtn a tl It llttd today, rttoanllng mttnwhllt tht wtf la which ant lltllt child tnltrtd Ihott rttlmt that tare lor agt$ beta a latclnallng and tantalizing tlslon lor bundrtdt ol fnon tanda ol "atagt (frock " glrla. BY ELSIE ST. CLAIR. WANT to be an actress I want to go on tha stage!" I wai the speaker, a delicate child of 11 or 12. watching with wide eyed Interest the unfolding of the drama of " Dick Whtttlng ton "my flnt pantomime. The next time I entered theater after that memorable occasion waa by the ataae door and my wlah had become an accomplished fact " I want to be an actreaa. O. I will be an actreaa!" many a child haa cried on witnessing a first play, but with moat children the desire la transitory, with me It waa enduring. I thought of nothing else during the following months. I planned for nothing else. The stage! 1 must conquer It! I read with avidity everything connected with It. The beet actors and actressea of both America and England became personalities In my mind, not mere names. I atudted every play I could find until I waa letter perfect In many parts, for I learnt easily. Actor and Prompter. The desire to act grew atronger. I formed the neighbor ing children Into banda and drilled them, often taking twa parta myself (for our number was limited) and combining the duties of stage manager and prompter. It la scarcely necessary to say that this meant serious work. A real manager has the power of the dollar behind him. lie can fine or dismiss recalcitrant members. I had nothing but my tongue to aid me and my companion children actora were as Jealous aa the personnel of any 111 disciplined the r.trlcal troupe. To add to my difficulties the parents would oc casionally take fright when their children displayed acuta vvmptoma of " stage fever," and order a audden withdrawal. The threatened disappearance of, say, two-thirds of my com pany three daya before the opening night waa a catastrophe In my eyes. Frantto with anxiety, I would visit the relatives and beseech with tears for the return of at least my " lead ing lady," only to be met with aevere questionings and an avalanche of heart breaking pamphlets about the awful fata of the atage struck child, whose soul was In dire peril and who waa usually doomed to an early and painful death. Gladly I would promise to read and Inwardly digest Eager ly would I enact the whole of the play In my own proper per son before a aternly critical audience of mothers, aunts, and grandmothers. In order to convince them that thla particu lar play waa entirely moral, finally having wrung a reluctant consent, I would carry off my overjoyed company In triumph to Conduct our laat rehearsal aa far from their homes aa possible. At length It waa decided by the powers of my home, act ing under advice from my actor master, that I ahould -ro upon the real atage. I naturally wished to Join a good the ater, yet had little money and less Influence, ao waa advised to take what came, to atand about In a crowd, to dance, to alng, to do anything ao that I might meaaure myself with others. In order that, when the time came for me to occupy the ataga alone, I should not be seised with dread, but be aa much at eaae upon the boards aa In the prlvecy of my own home. Meanwhile I waa to study all children's parta and appear at suburban theaters In them during the progress of rehearsal In the city. It waa learning In a practical school, and I think tha plan waa good. At the Stage Door. One morning I found myself entering by the ataga door tha realm that had fired my Imagination when viewed from the stalls some months before on that memorable, solitary, Instance, when I had aeen a play. i We were a motley crowd. Some children were accom panied by their mothera; they were decked in valveta and alike and wore plumed hats; others scorned them, they nad never been "on" before. Little sisters came hand In hand, friends and neighbors hung together. Some came alone, and I waa ona of theea last I viewed tha silk frock ed mitea with reverence, thinking they were famoua rhlld actressea. I looked with wonder on tha untidy imps of the streets with their hair twlated in curl rlfipera in preparation, as I after wards knew, for the evening performance at another theater; these had dropped In aura of obtaining an engagement because they had been there before. To ma the whole per formance waa a play, the great empty atage with a piano standing like a solitary sentinel near the footlights, tha aocaslonal showers of tnlnute fragmenta of go Id leaf flutter ing down from tha atudtoa of tha scenic artist a, who were already at work on the transformation scene. Wa were sorted out Into rows, according to slse, I believe, nd one after another of thoae Interested took their choice of tha moat promising material. Experience, I found, waa In this, as In all other things, greatly to be desired. However, 1 waa ona of the number finally engaged (I think trmlnty on account of my long, fair curls) and for the next few weeks I worked valiantly, for I waa In almost every act. Sometime h reheareale wre set for 0 or 10 o'clock and wa children would arrive punotually only to find that the principals had arranged to have their call transferred to that hour. Wa were then left to our own devices, yet expected to bold our selves tn readtneae to spring to the stag at any moment Cries tor Ballet Shoes. Wa learnt to bring our toya. dolls and even cradles and play quietly, lost among tha piles of aceoery the older ones occupied themselves- with fancy work, Mothera would some time bring the little children to keep them out of mischief. At first, until I understood that the prefix "Mrs. la no advantage la atage life. It used to pusale me to hear several bildrea hall aa " mother " a " etiorou lady " who was known a all aa " Mtsa So and Bo," while aha habitually moved (out of sight of the managers) with a tiny mite clinging to her ahtrta. too young to be on the ataga, yet longing to follow la the footstep of ita sisters, whose perpetual cry was "Ma-ma-cne want ballet ahoea! Plf m ballet shoes, ma-ma!" It waa during those busy weeks of my first rehearsals that I learnt the lives of the children among whom I had corns as a stranger. " What do you want to be?" I asked one with a waving taass of golden hair and wonderful basal eyes. She thought moment, then answered: A muaio teacher!" What do you want to be?" I asked another with rough, Irish locks and great dark eyes. " A dressmaker. aha an wared Instantly. "And jrou?" I questioned of a third. " A govern," oasaa tha prompt reply. And my first illualoa waa shattered. Did they not feel the glamour of the theater? Dad ahey not want to take a well earned place among tha greatest favorites of the atage? Then why are you here?" 1 asked ampulafrery, seeking to hlda aay dismay. HI mm m a i aa t . jnasi 0 -:V9 -VX?,"' w i VVv- 'Yt V VI is; Hill - j ' . I X I , The fair haired child of IS laughed. " For money, of course!" she answered. " Why else ahould w come?" " Do you not love the stager I asked of a tiny mite of 8. Bbe snook her bead mournfully. " I want my mother!" aha whispered. Years Without Seeing Parents. And In after years I understood, for I met children who bad never aeen thetir parents for twelve yeara or even mora. It is often impossible for sn actress to obtain an engagement tn a traveling company if her child U with her, hence the little ones are placed In schools, or more often bound over for a certain number of years to a manager who undertakes. In return for their services, to bring them out on the stage and car for them in the interim. When this is ths ease It frequently happens that mother and child are never In the asms atate or even country again until the little one baa quite grown up. At last the dress fittings were over, the shoes were ready, the wlgmaker had delivered his wares, the songs were per fect, the dancing atepa learnt, and the night of ths drea rehearsal had arrived. Consumed with excitement I went early to tha theater, where to my eyes everythlncaeemed In disorder and coofustoav Men were running in ail 'directions, the right scenery, never before aeen la Ita entirety, was la place, the property man " held possession of tha atage, reading from hi list. The footlights were ablaaa and la tha dim vtirta of the balconies tha dark figure of ona man could be aeen while there were perhaps a doaea people in tb stalls. The were tha Judge, the verdict on our performance would be delivered by them, we wera to act as we would on tha morrow, but without the stimulant of a packed bouse, of applause, of flowers, and laughter of the atmosphere and paraphernalia that go to the making of the glamour of the ataga, life Put Into Their Acting. To me tbe change In the manner of the prlnclpala was startling. During tha previous weeks the word " business " interjected suddenly, or the brief sentence. " Exit left cen ter," hsd taken the place of action, no one had acted with enthusiasm. Now all was changed, the songs were really sung to those dim forms In front, the graceful dances wera given with verve and energy. The black coated atage man ager walking among the performers seemed strangely out of plaos amid ths gorgeous costume of the players. Tha hours went on. midnight came and passed, every one'a nerves grew overstretched and taut. Let the littlest child be the fraction of a second behind her companions In her exit, Irt tb leader hesitate, confused by the difference In the arrange ment of the scenery after the makeahlft of the ordinary re hearsals, and tbe Inexorable voice of the Judge In the dis tance would make Itself heard and tbe scene would be re peated. Sleepy children In tinsel and gauae waited by, the flying apparatus for the moment when tbey should ascend Into the air. while tha prima donna contested for the last time that tna entrance of the next group really hurried her too much. Ooblina. fatrlea. angels, and kings were massed In appar- sally Inextricable confusion for the last concluding scene. but somehow tha maater hand straightened out tha tangled straoda and the great velvet curtains descended on the finale aa tha voice rose In grand unison, then died suddenly away, while king and queens rushed to their dressing rooms tear ing off their gowns ss they ran. ancela fled, aneddiig their wings, and tha abort aklrta of tha ballet dancers disappeared aTTTBf-i at awe Ihiiuss 1 13tuq,s Life Yburd o-iir?l up the narrow staircases In company with the birds of the air and beasts of the field! Royal robes and paste Jewels were quickly In Id aside In exchange for short frocks, and the tired children hurried home to slee'p, or else" crept unper celved into the stage boxes to rest happily until morning. J J Kept Apart from Elders. Then followed weeks of acting varied only by occasional rehearsals when custom had made us careless. We children worked and played apart from our elders. A great dressing room had been built for us and a corps of dressers pro vided. One side of tWs dressing room was formed by the painted facade of a palace, the other of a roughly white washed brick wall. One end was a portion of a forest scene, the other the Interior of a cottage. Here we acted among ourselves the whole of the play In which we were engaged, all details, even the mannerisms of the principals, were copied accurately, for children are keen observers and fre quently good Imitators. Sometimes half of us would form the audience and half the performers, and we would dance and alng for the benefit of our companions. One night, during the run of this piece, we had a grand supper given to us by the leading lady. A quaint sight we must have made sitting at the table In our various costumes, for there were children wearing painted, elongated eyebrows and Chinese pigtails nnrong us. as well as masked goblins, royalties, and dainty fairies. Our call would Inevitably come Just at the most im portant part of our own proceedings, the sentence of the reci tation would be left unfinished, the song half sung, the dance unduly ended, and we would run to our allotted posts, then back, to make the necessary quick changes for the next scene. Once we left behind us In the dressing room a crushed little fairy, lying, with burled face. In a great bas ket of clothes: her mother had died an hour before, and a neighbor had brought her the news; she would not leave the theater for fear of losing her nlght'a wage; yet could not force herself upon the stage. Alter the Season's End. The end of the play came and we scattered, some to other states, some to other theaters. I was to act, with two or three other, In the piece after the next, so our rehearsals started again almost Immediately. In the In terim I played, under the guidance of my master, at various suburban theaters, usually taking the leading child's part. It was during one of these performances that I learned Jto the full the vastness of the stage. The opening scene dis covered me seated alone by the roadside. On this dreadful night the curtain went up as usual but my cue did not come! The moments of sllerrce seemed agonizingly long, the sea of faces would not retreat Into their proper per spective as they had always done before. I could think of no applicable sentence, for my first remark ought to have been made In reply to a shout and that shout did not come.' In desperation I hurled the atlck I carried off the stage at, (If )Q))' b J l : - j ; fit - l $ ; -3 evasn . Two Aspiranta . an Imaged milestone, it attracted the attention I had- hoped; some one spoke, and I was free to continue while the absent actor came running. That scene gave me the nearest ap proach to sUge fright I ever suffered. After that dread experience I learned to take the stage, and all pertaining to It, with equanimity, and the houses reduced themselves to their right proportions, but even when It had become no novelty to see my stage name In large type on the programs, or even to come upon It standing out from a poster, the out bursts of applause always gave me the same thrill, whether I was comparatively alone, or was sharing It with many. Lessons Learned on the Stage. A bad life for a child, you aay? Why? On the stage she will be taught prompt obedience and quickness oC under Handing. If she be one of a dancing corps she. will have plenty of trained exercise, and will learn either to be. or to appear to be, absolutely unconscious; never r.-galn will she ear to move because the cynosure of all eyen. If she really Las dramatic talent, and still wants to be an actress when she has outgrown her childhood, she wir, know what It means, and win not be attracted by the glitter and show. She will realize that ultimate success means work, work, and yet again work; that the road la uphUlJ- girl without influence, despite the (ew marveloualy 'sudden rises that come within her knowledge. She must never make an enemy, yet must know how to exact chivalrous treatment ,from men of all ages and rank. To a little child the stage will do no harm. To a girl Ignorant of the world and its ways, who stands unarmed on the brink of womanhood, it might do much. The child will hear bad language, aay some. I say all men will be the more careful because a clear eyed chite Stands near. It Interferes with the natural rest, aay othera. Are all children so normal and well controlled that they fall asleep at certain hours? Ceaseless Work. Year In, Year Out. Of course, ceaseless work, year In. year out, ia bal. The child actress who works seven nlghta in the week and travels and rehearses during the small hours and the days, ii too often a nervous wreck before her teens are over, but rtage life, taken in moderation, can be good for the child who will learn to value the atage at lta true worth. I think, if stage experience were not generally debarred, as It I.' at present, there would be fewer achoolglrla found writing ailly letters or sending gifts to their matinee Idols. They would understand more, both about the art of acUna and the actor. So, mothera and fathers, do not fear when your Utile child aaya, " I want to be an actress!" 71 III . , 4 StCIair. SSSBW-....3,.... V L' fi