The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-10-27
THE WICKED FLEA.
His Appearance on the Theatrical Boards
and the Trouble Imminent.


and the Trouble Imminent
Baltimore Sun.
A recent discovery in connection with
theaters of the cities is most aughable and
Will result In much fun to audiences in the
future unless some action is taken at once
on the part of managers. 1t seems that
many of the best theaters of the cities have
become infested with fleas 1t is believed
the feas have been brought to the theaters
on the pet dogs of actresses and by the dogs
used in plays, and they have multiplied and
replenished the places of amusement until
they are formidable army. 1t is said that
when a theater has not had performance
for several days the fleas become hungry,
and when the next company arrives upon
the stage the feas take possession of the
members too quick. Some aver that the f1eas
are divided off into squads, each squad with
leader, and each squad is assigned to one
particular actor O.. actress, as the case may
be. Fleas are no fools, ana it would not be
strange If they had a choice as to which
member OF company should be assigned to
them. OF course, it is possible that the boss
heaS shake dice to decide which shall have
first choice for his squad, and yet it may be
that tieas know nothing of dice and go upon
the principle of first come first served.
While flea is not human we must give the
insect credit for knowing the difference be-
tween the taste of young and beautiful
actress and an old man or woman. The flea
is no fool, whatever else may be said of him,
and any person with any heart at all will
feel for the tender young actress whose part
compels her TO go upon the stage of flea
infested theater with a low-necked dress,
bare arms or stockings that are perforated
by fashion on the instep, or which have not
attained their growth as to height Such
person has got much beside her art to attend
to, and her mind must be constantly occu-
pied in devising means to mash fleas and not
give it away to the audience.
An actress can, if she feels flea grazing
around, suddenly place her hand on her
heart, and while the audience is looking at
the expression of pain on her face, she can
let one or two fingers wander down where
the flea is and paralyze him, and the audi
ence will think that it is a gesture that is in
the play. Rut there are places on every
person where flea might walk arm in arm
with another fea slipping the life blood and
becoming intoxicated, where no gesture laid
down in play, will hit.
Suppose Mary Anderson, while trying to
haul Romeo up to the balcony so she can see
II he has been chewing cloves, feels flea
crawling down her back. She can clasp her
hand behind her back, and, while saying,
Wherefore art thou Romeo" she can ever
lastingly dig her nails into the opening in
| the corset and kill her flea. and the audi
ence would be none the wiser while if she
backed up against the railing and scratched
her back on a scene it would be noticed
and commented on to her discredit as
an artist and besides she might push down
the scenery. Again, if a flea should appear
TO be exploring the vicinity OF her waist,
while it would not be admissible for her to
create gesture that would fit the case she
could, by the poetic license that is granted
all great geniuses, lean against the railing on
the point where the flea was and while giving
taffy to Romeo, she could make the flea think
he had got in the wrong pew. And yet in
that scene, if few fleas should get among
her stockings, as is almost certain to be the
case, Mary would not have any excuse by
any act or gesture in the play, to pay any at
tention to the flea, and she would have to go
on with the play and die game.
In opera it is different. The costumes ave
such that the hunting of feas is mere pas
time. Especially is this the case in the onera
of LA Sonnambula," where the sleep-walker
is attired with a candle and garment that
has always been highly recommended as the
proper costume for the pursuit OF fieas.
1t is supposed that actors are impervious
to the influence OF heas, but such is not the
case. Booth, Barrett, Jefferson and McCul-
Tough are nervous as women, and we may
expect any evening to see Booth as Hamlet
drop his sword and roll down his black
tights, while the ghost is telling him the old
story, and catch flea and crush it between
his two thumbnals, pull up his stocking
and tell the ghost that he will go home and
! uncle who poured melted sealing-wax in the
| ghosts ear In the play of Francesca da
| Rimini," when Lawrence Barrett starts
| home from the army to kill his brother and
his wife for being too numerous, and he is
all excitement, it would look strange to see
him sit down on stump and go to catching
heas before an audience, and yet this
is what the stage is coming to if
heas and dogs are not ouaran tined. 1t
would look queer 70 see Jefferson, when he
rises up on the stage after the twenty years
Sleep go to hunting around his decayed and
widowed leggngs Tor heaS, and to see Nc
Cullough as Othello stop on the way to MUIR
der Desdemona and search for Aeas. This
would be going from the sublime to the ridic-
uloIS. and the Sun mentions these possibli-
ties that managers may see what is liable to
happen unless they cause insect powder to be
freely used on the stage, and cause all dogs
brought by actresses to bring certificates
from an NJ. D. that they are free from heas.
1t takes a manager with nerve to stand up be-
fore an actress who has gall enough to carry
dog or one who has married a husband Tor
the purpose of carrying her dog, and COM
| plain that the dog or the husband is full of
| feas and must be quarantined-but it has
got to be done Let the heas and dogs go.