The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1886-09-04
A CHAT WITH AN ACTOR.
HOW FRENCH AND GERMAN PLAY
HOUSES TURN OUT PLAYERS.

Methods Adopted by the Head of For
.ipu Compnny-Rough on Young Ac-
tor with Delicate TcciinG,-Stn"y "i Au-
| di,nccs-I,esuIt of Varying Conditions
When the curtain falls on the last act oi
'Plnce Karl the comedy, MI h''H"'
Mansfield skip; Llithrly 10 his dressing room,
throws his stage costume TO ms VaIru anu ~
five minutes is dining Mt the carleton '1"',
Usually he is surrounded there by SINAI.
circle of friends to whom his "reminiscences ~
his unique career and terse comments on lHo
stage, intcrspcrsed with anecdotes ana MINI
icries, are an unfailing source OF entertain
ment.
"If some Of our ambitious young American
motors could takoa short course q training OH
thc German or French stage" he was SAYING
the other evening, they would beapt 10 hlouly
their IDEAS about their art very niatcrlhiiy'
Hero, if n manager or the head OF company
COMPLAINS about the way utility man realS
n line or does a bit Of business he IS lmmedi-
otoIy denounced either rs an Ignorant crank
who knows nothing about dramatic effects
or m oycrbaaring, insolcnt, ntoIoiab!e ego
list. Over there the young actor has 10 'h-
durc n great many worse things than r"'cr-
ing mild suggestions about his work. re Is
pr.tty liable TO get torrent OF abuse aI
every rehearsal very like the floods OF billings
cate TINT n western steamboat mate pours out
IN u NEGRO dncEhanH Likely enough he VIII
Il,,yc IA ..r.at one line ffty tmcs, while nc
every repetition the STAGE manager or au'hor
informs him in the most vigorous language
that he il Il drjyolmg i'ivt and ought To he at
work on the streets. lave seen oven us on
? man rs Couuclin OF Htrdou put an actor
through one piece of business for an hour oil
the time stamping up and down the stage ana
turning the air blur with French profanity
and abuse OF course, that sort OF thlhg Is
pretty rough on a young man WIN dellcatc
| feelings. but he gets used 20 1t after awhile, or
dirs, or gives up the stage, That i the way they
make great ac'ors-ay patient, persistent,
| labori0us training in the minutcst details, I'M
Ill the dramatic picture is rs perfectly ana
delicatclv wrought out in every light and
shadow asa Mcissuucr And 1t Is the lack
of that sort of nccsSant and painstakng pol
ishing that aiIlctS the American stage with
Young persons with good natural ability who
are not capable actors.
"The Germans and the French have the best
|
the French in comedy The Germans, as a
rule, are not particularly successful rs come
dians and the French are woeful in tragedy.
This is the result of the respective cIarac-
terstics Of the nations The French sing
tragedy through the nose, as the English dis
covered to their disgust when they heard
Nine. Bornhardt in Macbeth, III their own
field however, they are exemplars. The Eng
! lish stage, too is filled with people who have
gone through just the kind OF rigorous tram
| ing spoke of a moment ago, and are compe-
| tent actors None Of these countries Is any
better supplied with dramatic ability in the
crude than we are But their acting, as
rule, Is superior to anything we possess.
There is very great difference in
the audience, too. American audiences
are quicker to appreciate good points,
particularly in comedy, but the English au-
dienccs are more loyal and faithful to their
favoritcS. Here the people have so many
other thing, to think Of that they forget Inc
actor who has pleased them ten minute, after
they have left the theatre. There they never
forget him. | have seen half dozen sue
Ccssys on the stage in this country that were
the rage Of the moment and quickly passed
! into oblivion Any one Of them would have
made its creator II permanently great man on
the English stage.
at is "A curious thing-thiS study of audi
cnces. There is almost as much difference
! between your hearers in the same house one
night and the next as there would be if one
were composed of college professors and the
other of EsquimauX. One night your audi
cnce is duh, languid, slow to notice good
| i'm %
can do. The next night 1t is eager, attentive,
/ quick to notice everything, ready and appre-
| ciativc Every experienced actor has noticed
this again and again believe that the at
mosphcI'ic condition is accountable for these
! things. On n cool night, with fine bracing
air, You can do almost anything with your
audience. Another thing, perhaps, is to get
n wave of magnetism and good feeling started
MS the play begins | know that the differ
cnce cannot he in the different conditions Of
the actors themselves.
| "What is the secret of success on the stage'
Magnetism magnetism and hard work. OF
course, n man mustn't be n fool That being
| granted the other things are bound to bring
! him some measure OF success in time.
"Ol course the secret of the Success of the
! great creation Of the stage is their nearncSs
TO human nature and their appeal to human
interest. Consequently, when an ambitious
and thoughtful actor gets part to create. he
Immediately thinks over the mental photo
! graphs which he has of all tho types of men
he has ever known. When he finds one that
will fit the case no makes his stage creation
close copy in every detail of the living ideal
| When played the Old Baron IN the Paris
| ian Romance had constantly in mind my
old grandfather. When play Prince Karl
have before me the image of a student friend
of mine in Germany. Every part l have
over played with any success has been
nodded after some one have seen or known,
or u combination, perhaps, of two persons,
That sort Of thing is not mere mimicry,
either. 1t is the truost kind of holding up to
nature her own image
An Ideal Summer Hotel.