The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1886-03-04
SOME STAGE KISSES.


The stage kiss is poser. 1t has at times
an effect that is occult, inscrutable and
deep. No man can tell what its impress
sion on an audience will be, and the
shrewdest of theatrical judges turn diff.
fdent when asked about it. -
.s,e. Ihe last time that the beautiful Ade.
laide Nelson played Juliet in New York
she hade Romeo lingering farewell,
and was turning away from the balcony
when sudden whim seemed to seize her.
and, wheeling about swiftly, she caught
his face in both her hands, and, leaning
forward, gazed into his eyes. The house
was still as death. The audience, already
seriously wrought upon, and feeling
parched, arid and uncouth, leaned for
ward nervously. Two thousand ewes
were riveted upon the actress. There
was long wait; then she slowly pressed
her lips to Roneo'o and seemed lost to
everything around her. The people sat
like stones. A programme floated down
from above and fell athwart woman's
bonnet and she did not raise her hand to
remove it. A spinister coughed. Juliet
raised her head slowly and gided away,
looking back over her shoulder as she
disappeared with an expression that no
man who saw it will ever forget. There
was long silence and then the play went
on. But no one paid the slightest at
tentlon to 1t. One by one the people re-
laxed their strained am intent attitudes
and leaned back in their chairs. There
was no rustic or noise The woman did
not notice the programme on her bonnet
until the curtain fell.
Miss Anderson PLAYED Juliet here when
she returned from London recently, and
in the fourth act she kissed Romeo. As
she approached the event the bald-headcd
man In the orchestra who habitually
dawdles with the base viol rose from his
seat and looked over the footlights.
Everybody knew the kiss was coming,
and when the actress leaned forward
frigidly and resoIuteIy placed her face in
the immediate proximity of Romeo's the
house was all attention. She leaned
back again. The deed had been done.
The bald-headed man in the orchestra
sank back In his chair, shivered bit and
turned up his collar The lights fickered
An usher sneezed, and, tiptoeing softly
to the door, he put his hand across the
crack to see if he could find out where
the chilling draught came from. Then a
hcwling swell rose from his seat, blew
upon his fingers, pulling on a fur over
coat, went out into Thirteenth street and
wished audiblv that he was dead.
Selma Dolaro once employed the kiss
in very effective way. The play dealt
with quarrel between lovers, and at the
very height Of the excitement the actress
threw herself into a corner of sofa with
her head resting on the back and her face
upturned. The lover suddenly stumbled
across a letter on the table which ex-
planned the difference all away. He read
it silently, pressed it to his lips, and looked
toward the files with an expression of de-
vout thanksgiving. For long while he
did not say word, but stood gazing, af-
ter the manner of leading men, at the mo-
tionless figure and upturned face of the
actress. The audience, which usually
scents trouble from afar, glared at the
stage. Then the actor moved slowly for
ward, and, leaning over Nine. Dolaro, ST.
lently pressed his lips to hers just as the
curtain fell. Not word was spoken.
There was terrific outburst of applause,
and the audience insisted upon having
the curtain raised again, evidently anx-
ious to see whether he was still there
He wasn't and the applause died out in
stantly.
The awful osculation of Emma Abbott
did more to make her famous than her
voice. She had a shrewd and talky
young Irish advance agent who went
about the country and gushed and wrote
of the Abbott kiss until million or two
people became actively interested in it.
Theatre-goers in the west were amused
by this novel form of advertising, and the
newspapers doomed the scheme The
kiss was lingering and vulgar one and
it was very sharply commented on else
where. Still it made great deal OF
money for Miss Abbott, and established
the advance agent on a sure financial foot
ing as manager.
The vagarfes of actors in dealing with
the stage kiss are infinite. Henry Irving
usually kisses the actresses of his com
pany on the forehead in cold, dropping,
duck-like fashion. In his most heart
rending moments with his wife, when he
plays Charles I, he does little more than
look at Miss Terry piteously, reach for
her potently, and occasionally press a
correct, severe, proper English kiss upon
her classic brow. Mr.. Irving also dis.
tinguished himself by the manner in which
he threw kiss, or rather didn't throw it.
1t was his custom to raise his hand slowly
and Imply to his lips and plant small,
rigidly disciplined and chastened kiss
upon his finger tips and look soulfully at
the actress toward whom the kiss was
supposed to travel. Having done this he
would feebly drop the hand, as though it
were strange and useless thing, and
stamp twice upon the stage very loudly
with his off foot, whereat the actress
looked extremely glad.
Mr.. John A. Mackay's plaintive and
touching dilemma when he attempts to
kiss an actress and finds that his nose is
in the way csuses the comedian to exhibit
symptoms Of poignant grief and chagrin
His struggle to avoid humping noses
turns Q face that was at first radiant
with Joyous anticipations fearful and woe
berone a. time wears on and he still fails
to reach the climax. Eventually black
despair seizes him, and he drops nervous
" into chair. Then the spectators sud
denly discover that they bave been sit
ting on the edge of their seats gigglina
and grinning reckleaslY. Mr.. Mackay
also introduced the sneeze ~ . prelimi
nary 10 the kiss, and Il was by al oddi
,,,. ~ thn c1avaraak hika of e0fnedv play