St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-02-12
GOSSIP OF THE STAGE.
Strength OF the 0ld-Ttme Stock Com
panies.
SOME HOME CHARACTERS.
Sketches of a Trio of Theatrical Mel
Woven Into a Dramatic
Article.

The men who supply their fellow be-
lngS with amusement are, as a rule, the
most noticed and criticized. The mod
ern stage offers one greater induee1
mentS to become rich and famous, prob
ably, than any other class of employ
ment, because 1T does not require skilled
labor in the sense we speak of a me-
chanic, nor course of study in mathe-.
mates, history or finance. 1t asks
for people of natural genius,l
who have been gifted with
extraordinary discriminating powers,
who can correctly portray all the vary
give the proper illustrations of deep
feeling, various passions and COM
plicated portrayals of different char
acterS. 1t is something more than the
mere speaking of lines with due en-
phaSiS whether part should be acted
as brutal, coarse and vulgar, or smooth,
refined and eloquent, naughty and
proud or meek and humble, together
with thousand and one gest-
ureS which show pride or humility.
The main trouble with the stage is it
places too high an estimate on its own
worth. An actor or actress may slave
along year after year and hardly re-
ceive recognition, until something Oc-
ours accidentally OF through the scheme
of some ShreWd manager that at once and
forever brings him into popularity, al
though he may be the same person from
an artistic point of view as before
the incidents happened. 1t is
known in the profession that the largest
receipts Kate ClaXtOn ever played to
was after the burning of the Brooklyn
theater, on the night of which she APP
peared as Louise, the blind girl, in the
1.-TWO Orphans" 1t took even without
genius at first, but few reports he +
aided by a sharp manager to say that
Lille Langtry was much admired and
favored by the Prince OF Wales and a
few articles published about her Fred
dy's eccentricities, etc, to make her ia
nous. The starting of the wonderful sue
cess of Jenny Lind in this country was
the statements made by the veteran Bar
mum that he paid his star 81 900 per night.
Bernhart needed but a little spice of
scandal added to her name to obtain for
her fabulous salary in America. And
it was this same fabulous salary claimed
to have been paid Patti that had ten
dency to throw around her that half fas-
cinatiOn, half curiosity that packed any
place in which the ''diva" appeared.
even if it be an old rink where prize
fighters were in the habit of weekly
giving exhibitions of 1.-THE manly art of
self-defense," such as she APP
peared in in this city a little
less than year ago. But these fake
their just death as was illustrated at the
Casino theater. New York. last spring,
when Viola Cameron made complete
failure, Notwithstanding the scandal
claimed by her lord and husband, and
all their English estates. The theatre
cal business is peculiar one at it's best,
and while ''many flower is born to
blush unSeen," too, Ion account of these
fake advertising lodges, more through
this medium have been ''seenn
too much without even ''blush.p
The most noteworthy places In this
country, where true dramatic prOduc-
tons can be seen, are in the stock
theaterS that have been permitted to
live through the past few years elamor
of such and such a person ''being re-
ceived by royalty; Scandals" etc.
Where can you see. more thoroughly
finished and artistic production of the
drama than at Wallack' S, Daly's, the
Madison Square and few ether theateEs
that employ stock companies? Flashy
bills with one artist surrounded
by lot of "stickS" have seen
their day. Patrons of theaters
have been educated up. in theatrical
matters to know when they are receiving
s'their moneys worth" Minneapolis
may congratulate herself that she has
in her midst theater with first-claSS
stock company such as would do credit
to any city. The. Peoples theater places
upon it's stage. each week in the best
manner, with special scenery, standard
dramas of the highest moral character.
The mechanical effects usually seen at
this theater, which are something much
above the average, add much to
the general beauties of the pro-
auctions and greatly increase enjoy
ment where the drama is produced
the leading man at the Peoples, whose
likeness is seen above, is one of the
Youngest leading men in the United
States, being but thirty years of age.
He began his career as a manager when
but nineteen years of age, and has since
been connected with many of the best
companies and theaters in the country,
either as manager or actor, and was at
one time prominent about the Union