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TITB OMAHA SUNDAY BF.E: REFTEMREtt 27, 190S.
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A. I. Root, Incorporated 1210-1212 Howard Street, Omaha
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Coronation Ball the Culmination of Carnival Brilliance and Gaiety
AT THE close of the carnival season, as a culmination of all
the festivities that have prevailed In Qulvera's capital for a
fortnight, comes that splendid function to which all the
' rest have been but preliminary the coronation of the
king and of the queen and the brilliant ball that attends
the ceremony. Since the house of Ak-SarrBen has reigned over the
land thirteen monarchs have been crowned and thirteen of the fair
est daughters have been led to the throne amid the plaudits of thou
sands of loyal subjects. It Is a ceremony of surpassing brilliancy
ani from every quarter of the kingdom the knights and their ladles
come to do homage to the newly crowned king and queen and to par
ticipate in the revelry. '
The grim old Den, the Mecca of thousands of knights who each
year pledge their allegiance to the king, and that has been the scene
of untenable tests of courage and endurance, Is transformed into a
veritable fairyland where thousands of lights, red, yellow, green and
white, "combine with trailing vines, flowers, bunting and splashing
fountains, music and a handsomely costumed throng In a scene of
surpassing brilliancy never to be forgotten by those who have been
privileged to look upon It, and that each year takes on some fresh
beauty. The great rafters and beams overhead that, unadorned,
seem impossible obstacles to anything pertaining to the ornate, are
made the supports for arches of brilliant lights below which myriads
of bulbs glowing with the tri-color of the king subdue their brilliancy
and shed a soft light over the multitude below.
At the north end of the great arena Is raised the royal throne,
approached by a flight of broad steps carpeted with crimson velvet.
At either side of this approach, well above the heads of the assem
blage; but still below the throne, is reserved a place for the ladles
in waiting to the queen and the ladles of the court, while at the south
end rises the platform where the king's musicians contribute their
share to the occasion. And all about the sides of the great building
the galleries extend from the floor to the very base of the brilliantly
illuminated arches overhead. Amid such a setting the coronation
and the ball take place.
To be called to share the throne with King Ak-8ar-Ben is the
greatest honor that can come to a daughter of Qulvera, so coveted
Is the honor, in fact, that every year it is whispered daughters of the
moBt noble families of the realm wait with fluttering hearts for the
possible summons from Samson, chamberlain to the king, until the
time Is past for such bidding. Then they can only wait on until the
king in hi own good time shall make known the identity of his
choice, for it Is the pleasure of the king to guard this secret so jeal
ously that even tho fortunate one herself dare not tell upon whom
has fallen his royal favor. It is also the pleasure of the king to
choose his consort from among the younger maidens, those who have
known nothing of the world outside their father's homes and the
schcol room. This has not always been so, but it has been most fre
quently so, those who dare to speculate have come to cast their eyes
among the debutantes, or, rather, those maidens who will be debu
tantes, for out of deference to his majesty formal presentation of
these daughters Is always deferred until after the coronation.
Next to the honor of being chosen queen is the prtvtlege of serv
ing as a "special maid" to her majesty, and with these honors Sam
son is wont to console and to delight eight young women. As the
Identity of the queen is never made known until she ascends the
steps of the throne, where the multitude may see her face for them
selves, it is the custom to appoint nine young women to serve as
"special maids" to the queen, and one of these nine no one may
guess which one is the queen. This leaves an even number of
special attendants, and to contribute one of the most effective
features to the coronation ceremony. The summons that Samson
issues to these fortunate ones Is ever prised as a souvenir and, be
sides this, when the ceremony is over, each young woman is pre
sented another valuable souvenir.
And then there are the other maidens and the ladles in waiting,
and the ladles of the court, who are bidden from every quarter of
the realm. These, too, are among the especially honored, for they
are feted and dined by the good knights and ladles of the capital
city daring their entire stay and are privileged to occupy places of
honor during the coronation ceremony.
Finally the night of the great function arrives and when all have
assembled In the brilliantly lighted Den, "at the stroke of nine," a
peal of trumpets and a burst of music announces that the king has
arrived. First comes the grand march of the knights in their spec
tacular costume and then the faithful board of governors, and Anally
a second peal of trumpets tells that the king and bis queen are at
the door.
As his majesty passes the length of the great hall and ascends
the throne steps, the old castle shakes with applauses as the people
recognizes which of the sons of the house of Ak-Sar-Ben Is to serve
them as ruler. Then comes the first ceremony, and when this has
been finished, seated upon his throne, he awaits the coming of his
queen. Again the royal trumpets ring out and once more the people
hold their breath with expectancy as the eight special maids pass
with measured step out onto the floor of the great hall. All are
gowned alike and from such a distance It is difficult at first to make
out Just which Is which and which one is missing. But scarcely
before this can be determined the queen, herself, makes her appear
ance and puts an end to the weeks of suspense. As the people recog
nize her another mighty cheer and clapping of hands make the old
Den shake, drowning out the music of the royal march and continu
ing until she has ascended the steps of the throne and stands before
her king.
With his own hands he places the crown upon her head and as
he raises her to "her feet again the special maids, ladies and knights
of the court hurry up to offer their congratulation, while the multi
tude once more makes the castle ring with Its applause. As the
noise subsides the king's musicians take up their program and down
on the floor there is a hurrying to and fro among the guests assem
bled. The congratulations and filling of the programs requires half
an hour or so, and then both king and queen lay aside the coronation
robes and descend to the dancing floor and the great ball Is begun.
From then on it is not unlike other brilliant functions of its kind
except that it is. the premier social event of the whole year in
Qulvera.
But the story of the Ak-Sar-Ben ball is not new to the people.
They all know the order of the ceremony and about what the evening
will bring. However, there is a charm about the great gathering
that all seem powerless to resist. Year after year the first and the
best of the land go to the ball always to find some new attraction
and some fresh reason for being proud to have a part in the success
of such a function. It Is the occasion above all others to which
women of fashion can be induced to wear their most elaborate cos
tumes and their finest jewels, and to which men go willingly. It is,
in fact, the premier social event of the year.
Cinderella Ball Gives Children of King-dom Their Chance for Pleasure
THE children of the kingdom of Qulvera have always been
dear to the heart of his Imperial majesty, the king, but
never before this year have such extensive and elaborate
preparations been made for their entertainment and
amusement. The future citizens of Ak-Sar-Ben are to
have their first glimpse of the king's magnificence and splendor, and
their first realization of his generous interest in their pleasure so
early in life that they will grow up in an atmosphere of respect for
their rightful sovereign. It was a wise and well considered policy
which impelled his majesty to decide that the day after the grand
coronation ball, when all his subjects should have paid their homage
to his newly announced queen and to his own regal self, the children
should have a ball of their own. No event since the birth of most of
the children who are participating In it has brought them into a
common enterprise with so many of their own kind. The Cinderella
ball will be a glimpse of fairyland such as few children ever get to
see, and over 600 of Omaha's little ones will have the still greater
Joy of taking an active part In the production.
During the rehearsals on hot summer days, which have been
necessary in the preparations for this great performance, the children
have made things easy for themselves by their unceasing enthusiasm
and abandon. The whole affair is a great game to most of them.
They are so interested in the figures of the dance, the skill which
the more gifted of their number display and the fun of playing at
being fairies, that they have no time to be tired. It is this quality
in the work of the children which has made it possible for W. E.
Chambers, the dancing master in charge, to bring them to so high a
standard of training in so short a time. Mr. Chambers, who has
been giving his time to this affair as a favor to the advisers of the
king, has spared neither his ability or his labors to make it a thor
oughly artistic and beautifully planned entertainment, and the chil
dren have been by his careful teaching Impressed with his own sense
of what an airy frolic dance in honor of the king should be.
The representative of his majesty's board of governors who has
charge of the Cinderella ball is Mr. Joseph M. Cudahy, who, with
Mrs. Clement Chase and others, originated the idea, but he has
since turned the management of the work over to Mrs. Chase and
her committee, Mrs. F. P. Kirkendall and Mrs. J. It. Scobie. . These
three women have taken upon themselves the task of providing cos
tumes for all the children, while Mr. Chambers was giving them his
training in the dances. To properly dress a company of 500 small
people to represent fairies, elves and courtiers of a fairy palace is a
big undertaking, and in this case it was made still more difficult by
the fact that Mrs. Chase has insisted that the costumes be not only
beautiful, but as historically correct as it may be possible to make
gowns of fairy creatures. No unscholarly incongruities have been
allowed to creep into the dresses and a definite color scheme has
been carried out. The 600 costumes could not be obtained at any
local costumers, however. 8uch an order would swamp the ordinary
man of wigs and tinsel armor for the rest of his natual life. It was
for the resourcefulness of the woman's committee to establish a cos
tumer's business of their own. Dressmakers, tailors, designers and
fitters, a regular staff of them, were hired and set to work, and there
will not be a single forlorn fairy or a disappointed hobgoblin left
without clothes to make Bother (loose seem as natural as a news
paper. A new feature of the fcall of the Den where the Cinderella ball
will be held Saturday afternoon, October 4, is the four floodlights
now being placed in position and equipped to spread such a radiance
over the dancing floor, with charging colors and kaleidescopic flashes
that the spectators will be bewildered by the magic of the fairies'
power.
Who Is to be the Prince? and who Is to be Cinderella? are two
questions fraught with much meaning and Interest to the children.
They discuss possibilities with bated breath and are alert for some
betrayal of tho secret from those few powers who know. Even the
royal persons themselves, who are to be presented to their subjects
that Saturday afternoon, after the romantic ceremony of the little
slipper, are not as yet aware of their identity. They will not know
until the last moment, when there Is barely time to give thein a hur
ried rehearsal to fit them for their great honor. The committee
feared that if the young royalty was made aware of Its own impor
tance too Ions before the great day accumulated pride and Impor
tance might break through the bonds of princely reserve and the
recret would be out. Who could possibly expect a 10-year-old girl to
keep secret from her best chum for weeks the fact that she was going
to be the Cinderella princess at the great Ak-8ar-Ben IfallT It would
be too much to ask. So the chosen pair are Ignorant of their ap
proaching exaltation which will lift them to as proud and happy an
eminence, probably, as they can ever hope to occupy If all the king
doms of the world are awaiting them. To be prince at the Cinder
ella ball is enough honor to last most boys all the rest of a natural
life. The children regard It in this light, for even the privilege ot
wearing a badge signifying membership In tho chorus is glory which
the youngster thoroughly appreciates.
The honor of taking part In the ball, however, is by no means
confined to those who have been trained as parts In the ballet and
chorus. Any child between the ages of 4 and 14 who presents him
self or herself to Mr. Chambers on the afternoon of the ball with a
ticket from the box office may be considered an active member of the
company, and the long program of dances which will begin after the
performance of the pantomime will be open to all of them. Chil
dren who live out of town are especially invited to come to the ball
and Join the dancing on the floor after the prince and princess are
happily united.
As it Is being rehearsed the Cinderella ball will be a pantomime
with ballet of many figures. The ensemble is to be a picturesque
ecene, taken from fairyland and including all of the chorus of 500
children. There will be the prince's courtiers, with their stately
manners and elegant fashions; dainty fairies will disport themselves
upon the green and strange little mannlklns of all shapes and ap
pearances will mingle with them. They will frolic about until the
trumpets announce that his royal highness, Prlnoe Charming, is ap
proaching. Before their beloved sovereign the elves and fairies will
bow in homage and the courtiers will dance a solemn minuet for his
delectation.
Then the rumble of another coach entering the palace gates will
be heard and Cinderella in bor pumpkin carriage, guarded by her
fairy godmother, will enter the hall. The coach which she will ride
is a marvelous creation ot Chief Property Man Rente's skill, and no
Cinderella in these days or of, old ever rode In a. finer one. Eight
brownies will drag the vehicle and there will be a coachman in
cocked hat and white wig and two tiny footmen up behind. When
Cinderella enters the hall at first she will be but the unknown
maiden, but her identity will be disclosed by the trying on ot the
little slipper and she will be taken by Prince Charming Into his royal
arms.
When she is crowned princess, to reign forever beside her hand
some husband, one would think that her happiness would bo quite
complete, and no doubt it will be. The Interested spectators, how
ever, will not ho denied one glimpse of the delights which the prince
provides for the amusement of his bride and the royal dancers, gifted
with all the graces and beauties of magic and romance, will appear
before the happy pair.
Five little maidens in SpanUh costume will begin tho ballet with
a figure called "La Clcola." It is a dashing Spanish skirt dance
which the children execute with most astounding skill and finish.
These Spanish girls will retire to their corner beneath the Spanish
flag and the Dutch girls will come on. There will be four of these
and their dance Is one of gaiety and fun. . They, too, will retire to a
flag ot their country. When the Dutch Jig Is over four Highland
lassies with plaid and kilts will give a vigorous and enthusiastic
Highland fling. The rousing abandon of this dance loses nothing
in the hearty rendition which the children give it and their number
is bound to please the Scots who may happen to be present.
Another Spanish dance and then a tamborlne figure, both of
which are similar to the "La Clcola," will come next and stand beside
the prince's throne to make way for the "Garland," a very elaborate
figure In which a aumber of children will take part. When the gar
lands are finally unwound Miss Marie Snowden will be disclosed and
will dance alone. "The Bursting ot the Rose," a second elaborate
and beautiful number, will then follow, and the solo dance will be
given by Gretchen Langdon, a diminutive miss who dances difficult
and intricate steps with a delightful skill. Then the court dancers
will once more move in their slow, graceful steps and the ballet will
come to an end with a grand finale called "America."
An American flag will be carried out across the floor toward tha
throne by six little girls, who will jig as they go to the tune of
"Dixie." The energetic freedom with which the children dance this
Jig denotes a very enthusiastic patriotism, and when it is over tha
whole crowd of elves, fairies, brownies and the dancers will rush to
tha center of the floor with a grand hurrah and a final cheer. Than
tha floor will be given over tor the regular program la walc& all
children ara to take part as ordinary mortals. - - .
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