Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1880-11-13
Sarah Bernhardt.


The New York correspondent of the PhtladsI-
phla Press says OF the Bernhardt season. Il
have before amin ldverted on the bundering
blocking and crushing OF the first night. Loud
complaint Is frequent against the manager OF
the theater On account Of the exaSperatingly
stupid way In which the tickets nave peen sold.
l say 'exaSperatingly stupid TO avoid the use OF
harsher words. In the sale OF tickets for the
entire season there was gross stupidity, II no.
th1l g worse. In the sale OF single tickets there
is gross insolence. 1t seems as though the pro-
bable success of the Bernhardt speculation
turned the heads Of those connected With the
til eater and made them forgetfuf OF their duty
toward the public and even OF common polite
ness. ] know one lady who was treated with eX-
treme dtscourtesy. She went to the tneater aud
bought two seats In tie family circle for the
nrst performance at dollar and half each,
having been sold. After she mad gone half
block on her way home she remembered
fr1ends desire to be present on the first night,
and she returned to the theater. Handing her
tickets back to the salesman she asked for a
third seat, alongside those she had purchased.
These seats are two dollars each" said the
two at dollar and a-haf." explained the lady.
81 don't care" said the clerk, 'tney are two dol
lars" The lady then remarked that had she been
might not have paid it. no matter What YOU YOU
might have DONE" said the surly salesman
g The seats are two dollars each, and J-ol can
not have these tickets back until you lavc paid
the difference" A tlmid WON an is Away al
the mercy OF Jack-in- office, aud so tne money
was paid. This is brutal r1deness, which will
be remembered to the diScredit or the manager
when the Bernhardt engagement Is over But
worse than this rudeneSS was The stupidity
which governed the sale Of the season tickets.
1t was announced, with a great flourish OF
trumpets, that arrangements had been made
TO prevent the Spectators from having AL tue
best seats. The method adopted TO prevent
this was so stmpie-in the early sense of The
word simple" which made it equivalent 10
''s1liy'-that the spectators have taken al
most every choice seat In the house. Tickets
for the entire season were sold first at two dol
lars and half performance, and no one was
allowed to take more than ten. No plan could
have been devised better for the Spectators.
obviously very few play-goers cared TO see Mile.
Bernhardt twenty-fOur times In four weeks. SO
The general public paid but little attention to
this sale OF season tickets Not so the wary spec
uiators. Th1rty-siX hours before the sale began
long line formed before the boX-oftice. The
first twenty men OF this line, and l am told the
first twenty-eight. were hired by one Spectator
When the sale opened the speculator stood at
the window with certified checks for SIX hun
dred dollars. He gave one to each employee as he
came TO the window and the employees handed
IL to the ticket seller and picked out ten seats
the tickets for which he passed at once to the
chief Spectator. have taken the trouble to find
out what this tcket-peddler charges for seats
and have made a calculation that at the low.
est estimate ne mas made i've thousand dollars.
In all probability his profits will be twice this
sum- There are one hundred and eighty seats
In the parquet OF Booths Theater. Allowing
that the manager reserved thirty for the press
and for his friends, there are one hundred and
1fty seats left, all of which were taken by the
1lrSt fifteen employees OF the Spectator, TO the
exclusion OF the general public. At least a
hundred OF the remaining select seats were also
secured by this one speculatOr. 1t is peril
nent query, which have heard more than once
here OF late: Has the manager had any share
in the SPECTATORS inordinate prOtits?r and to
This have not YET heard satisfactory answer.