The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-07-06
FALLING ON THE STAGE.
An Actress Tells How II Is Done-DangeT
of Getting Hurt

Want 10 know how we fall; said the
beautiful. graceful woman Why 500,
this way. First your knee, and then your
hin. 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 draPcry III the pref
test possible place, not an men 81 hcr
mike or CLEAN Of the snowy skirts was
visible. and the falling has been as noise.
less and graceful as Il buttcrtlys dip ana
swoop down to the hear, OF Il rose. Then.
with supple grace and quick. agile
spring. she was on her feet in Il second.
lin this way-sidcways. You see, and
with dip and curve and sweep OF the
lace drapcries down She iloatcd as SWIM
and noiaclcss rs swallow downward
sweep and she lay apparently hiciess'
with her face hidden. Another httlc
sprinp and she hoated backward INTO o
chair 80 limp and faint that even the
smile on her lip, hardly treasured you
that it wasn't an actual sudden faininess
I'VE are taught in the schools, and
practice on rug at home first, you know
and of course We get many bruises whllc
learning We fall first 10 the Knee ana
then to the hip the shoulder. and down.
OF course We do this very slowl y at first
and awkwardiy. bat we do II over and
over again until one fall blends into the
other so completely that You cannot dis
tiuguish it, Oh. yes. 1t is hard at first,
but all there is to il is to take all the
will out of your body and collapse Make
your muscles involuntary and inspired
with the part YOU are playing, 30 that al
II . k.rtH f.1 .In4nSf n
consciously, and then yOu wont b. hurt
Our prompter tainted the other night,
and fell and hurt himself very badly.
Now. / could fall in Il faint II hundred
times and not be hurt-yOu see my fall Is
an unconsciously mechanical action. You
20 into q familiar room in the dark and
yonr body will mconsciOusly take the
right direction TO avoid coming in con
tact with the objects i'm the room. so my
body takes the mechanical curve and
poise requisite TO avoid hurt without
my thinking anything about it if make
myself perfectly inert-give myself ali
up you know.
II have been hurt several times. Those
old fashioned sloping stages were treach-
Nns affairs, and very often when play
| remember going down bang on my nose
once-almost broke it Everything wa
dark for minute. and then there flashed
out all the constitutions Known 10 man.
and several more that haven't been dis.
covered but went OH with my part anC
no one knew Then lad another fal
that made my hip black all oyer-thOughi
that would never get we'll, for had e
fall on it every night, no matter how /;
hurt.
Are we afraid of being hurt Oh, no
We are constantly in danger. Great heavy
things are hanging over our heads that
if some stage carpenter shall blunder o.
some piece of machinery break wOulC
come down aud make short work of us. J
had heavy iron bar fall not four inches
from my lace once and mail cut my
forehead with a 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 beior,
they sail that they are gong TO think Of
their danger all the time, but two day
out they viii forget all their fear and Zee.
a. safe a. 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 die
such fcarfully dangerous thing as that
Miss Fetter, though II seemed strange
the papers didn't speak of il before for II
Just seemed cruel for her 10 cndancer hen
her health and even her life just to make
one more funny point III the play
Men Sqy sometimes that women fall
more easily and lightly tl,an they them
selves This may bc true. for women are
supple, 1.-the ana elastic and not 50 tall,
for the fall is just As mechanical. People
only watch the pretty curves and grace.
ful sweep of II woman's drapery and do
not see the mechanical studied action
underneath We float down very grace
fully. but the floating is done AZ accu.
rately as problem in geometry New
York Sun.