Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1888-07-11
Halter and Furnisher. s +. Main.
FALLING ON THE STAGE.
an Actress Tells How It Il Done-Danerz
of Getting Hurt.


of Getting Hurt.
.swant to know how we fall?" said the
beautiful. graceful woman "Why, see,
this way. First your knee, and then your
hip, and then your shoulder, and YOU are
down" and the graceful figure was prone
ON the carpet with outstretched arms.
Every fold of her lace drapery in the pret-
test possible place, not an inch of her
ankle or CLEAN of the snowy skirts was
visible, and the falling has been rs noise
less and graceful as u butterfiy's dip and
swoop down TO the heart of a rose. Then,
with O supple grace and quick, agile
spring, she was ON her feet in second.
In this way--sideways, you see," and
with dip ard curve and sweep of the
lace draperies, down she foated as swift
and noiseless Ms a swallows downward
sweep. and she lay apparently lifeless.
with her face hidden. Another little
spring and she fioated backward into q
chair SO limp and faint that even the
smile on her lips hardly reassured you
that it wasn't an actual sudden faintness.
we are taught in the schools, and
practice on rug at home first, you know;
and of course we get many bruises while
learning. We fall first to the knee and
then to the hip. the shoulder, and down
OF course we do this very slowly at first
snd awkwardly, but we do it over and
over again until one fall blends into the
other so completely that you cannot dis
tinguish 1t. Oh, yes, It is hard at first.
but all there is 70 it is to take all the
viii out Of your body and collapse. Make
your muscles involuntary and inspired
with the part you are playing, so that at
the proper time you viii fall almost un-
consciously, and then you won't be hurt.
Our prompter tainted the other night,
and fell and hurt himself very badly.
Now, could fall in faint hundred
times and not be hurt-you see my fall is
an unconsciously mechanical action You
60 into familiar room In the dark and
your body will unconsciously take the
right direction to avoid coming in con-
tact with the objects in the room, so my
body takes the mechanical curve and
poise requisite to avoid hurt without
my thinking anything about it If make
perfectly inert-give myself ell
up, you know.
have been hurt several times. Those
old fashioned sloping stages were treach.
erous affairs, and very often when play
ing ON an unfamiliar stage we were hurt. /
remember going down bang on my nose
once-almost broke 1t. Everything was
dark for q minute, and then there flashed
out all the considerations known to man,
and several more that haven't been dis
covered, but i went ON with my part and
no one knew. Then had another fall
that made my hip black all over-thought
that would never get well, for had to
fail on it every night, no matter how it
hurt.
Are we afraid of being hurt2 Oh, no.
We are constantly in danger. Great heavy
things are hanging over our heads that.
II some stage carpenter shall blunder or
some piece of machinery break, would
come down and make short work of u.s.
had a heavy iron bar fall not four inches
from my face once, and q man cut my
forehead with dagger, and other people
have accidents, but we don't think any
thing about them after it is over. Like
nervous people on shipboard fancy before
they sail that they are going to think of
their danger all the time, but two DAYS
out they will forget all their fear ana feel
as safe as ON land So we throw our
selves down on the boards and roll of
sofas and down terraces and out of chairs. |
knowing we might break our bones, but |
never thinking of it. No one ever did
such a fearfully dangerous. thing as that |
Miss Fetter, though. 1t seemed strange
the papers didn't speak of it before, for it |
just seemed cruel for her to endanger her |
her health and even her life just to make
one more funny point in the play.
Men say sometimes that women fall
more easily and lightly than they them
selves. This may be true, for women are |
supple. 1.-THE and elastic and not so tall,
for the fall is just as mechanical People |
only 9T watch = the pretty curves s and grace
not see tho mechanical studied action |
underneath. We float down very grace
fully, but the floating is done as accu-
rately Us q problem in geometry."-Ne
York Sun