The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-05-12
DRAMATIC SKETCHES. NO. 3.
The Property Man .

when he made that little speech what task he had
before him. Pgramus and Thfsbe for a play OF
It's length, has goodly share OF properties, and
Master Quince must have had his hands full.
The Property Man is one OF the first grand essen
tals OF the theatre. The success OF every piece
matter how slight, depends in a great measure on
him. Everything on the stage, except the scenery,
are properties. The word is oftenest applied to
small articles used by the performers, but these are
part only OF the great mass of such material. Fur
niture Of every sort are properties. These large
pieces are termed "stage props in opposition
to "hand props" The best "stage props
-parlor sets. etc.-are sometimes very handsome
and are used very carefully. In modern society
pieces 1t quite the custom to hire furniture OF
dealer for the run of piece. Property men in the
country as theatrical stands outside of the larger
towns are termed) are often sorly perpexed in this
respect. They have in such cases nearly always
to hire, and 1t often happens that furnl-
ture linen a narrow minded set OF heathens
FOR whom the drama has aesthetic attractions
whatever. The strangest things have been done
under these circumstances the curtain must 20
up-so much is sure; and that great
results can be accomplished under
the stress OF "must' more important affairs than
things theatrical have proved. We heard OF sharp
fellow once who, being with travelling company.
struck towA whose shopkeepers all Of the
very strictest sort. He had to have sofa and some
other furniture for piece to be played, and he could
neither hire borrow, buy, nor steal It.. They would
1t go inside OF theatre. Our man,
not discouraged however, set his wits
to work. He got another person to purchase the
required goods, and to have them sent with the bill
to hotel where they should be paid for on deliv-
cry The car driver was in the trick, and the furni-
ture was swiftly driven to the theatre 1t was only
required in the first piece and by O'Clock it was
back in the owners store (uOt whit worse than an
hour and half before, except that few profane
stage-payers had touched iD, with the message
that it did not exactly suit the intended
purchaser. This clever trick was played in
Poughkeepse, and the daring wretch who devised
1t yet lives to boast of his exploit. Sometimes how
ever, you can't have. The old song says,
potatoes they grow SMALL" and then adds,
$50 We eats em tops and ALL" and
that is q rule that holds good OF other things
than potatoes. The writer has seen that most ex-
acting of plays, If properly perormed-Adrienne
LecouUreuset with nothing better in the matter of
furniture than some old packing cases covered with
colored muslin. But when the "Abhe" in the piece
walked on in the simple dignity Of pantaloons
and nthe general dress OF the present PERIOD except
that his hair was dashed with -four and Tied up in a
ribbon-when that happened, one forgot the fur
nture.
Bona-fde stage furniture is easily distinguished
from the kindthstpeople in real fe In it's orna-
mentation 1t is especially rich and rare. The idea in
manufacturing this species OF goods is to avoid
conflict with any given age time, and in this it s
successful for 1t is unlike anything that is or ever
has been. Wonder has often been expressed con-
cerning the makers of this furniture. It is
the joint handiwork of the Property Man
and the stage carpenter; and when it is remem-
bered chat otener than not these worthless know as
much about cabinet-maklDg as they do about the
economy of the steam engine, the wonder really
should be that the furniture is good it is But
tnere Is this pecularty about Property Ma1, that
there is nothing he can not make-after some fash,
ion. In the Adyienne case above mentioned the man
had not time, or he would have manufactured a set
OF "Louis Quatorze" furniture calculated to make
that monarch turn in his grave. There would have
been plenty OF paint and Dutch metal upon 1t, and
great many people would have thought 1t deal
finer than the real thing.
1t is hard to say what class Of work gives the Pro-
perty Man the most trouble When burlesque or
show piece is produced there quantity OF special
preparation to be made which at first sight would
be the most troublesome Of his labors. Take such
piece as the Maid Queen. All the Masks the
marine productions of every Sort are furnished by
the Property Man. or course they have to be
made, for no shop in ChTstendom deals in such
wares Such things often quite elegant in design,
and show the Property Man to be something of an
artist just he is at other times carpenter machi
nist and chemist. To no man can the legend, "Jack
of all trades and master Of none, be applied with
much propriety as to him.
We have left ourselves little room to speak of the
"hand props" They are literally almost infinite.
Whatever is used In life is needed to show the
''very body Of the age" upon the mimic scene.
The depository Of these cheap wonders is
always on the prompt side, and near the first
entrance possible. 1t is called the property-room,
and while in it the subject of our sketch owes no
allegiance, or at least pays none, to the stage mana
ger himself. There are other rooms for the storage
OF larger articles, and such things as not
continually in demand Unless the Pro-
perty Man Is person OF great method,
the 'props are apt to become scattered all over the
theatre. There are such numsers OF them, and
almost every fresh piece adds to the numbers,
that unless they ruthlessy weeded out at short
intervals, they fill every available OF stage
room. Some property men are like certain house.
keepers-they hate to destroy anything, thinking
that some time it may turn to be of use. In that
case the man keeps on filling up the
place until he can't find anything or can't
turn around. He then leaves In disgust,
and another Official coming in has a grand house.
cleaning. AS regards "hand. props" our man has
nightly list OF articles, on what scene they are to
be used, and by whom. The call-boy furnishes these
articles to the proper parties, and collects them
afterwards and returns them TO the property-room.
The rule is that calls shall be made in the green
room, and that the boy shall hand the ''props" re-
quired to the individual at the time of calling him.
In fact, however, the actor prefers to personally
look up his props, so as to have little more margin
of time than the call would give him. But green
room matters, although important, scarcely belong
to the subject under consideration.
The Property Man has always been in some sort
the black sheep OF the theatrical mock. The ques-
ton, has there ever been an honest property man
has even been mooted. We find this appreciation
OF his labors to result chiefly from the irregular
manner that the master ofpropertes has OF keeping
his accounts. AS general thing, indeed he does not
keep any at all, or II he does 1t is by a system
OF bookkeeping so very double that no one