The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-06-22
TAKEN IN HER GRAY TIaHTs.
a Stolen View OF Marion Manola by
Flash Light.
From the Neio York Sun


with Marion Manola, the prima donna Of his
company. She said she wouldn't be photo
graphed in tights He said she would. She
has been. II was done last night by flash
light during the performance Of Castles in
the Air and it was the only part of the
entertainment that the audience Missed.
Miss Manola, in Castles in the Air.
wears gray silk tights. The rest of the cos
tune is gray-striped trunks, a gray bodice
and loose gray cavaliers cloak fastened
to the shoulder. The grays are all of one
shade except the dark stripe in the trunks
and the lining of the cloak. When Miss
Manola IN the duet in the second act stands
at the front with her cloak falling loosely
behind her, the light lining Of the cloak
forms background against which are out
lined beautifully the not too slender, not
too plump, graceful and shapely contents of
| the darker gray tights.
Usually In this duet Miss Menola stands
most of the time with her heels together,
her legs straight aud firm, her hands on
her hips, aud her arms a-kimbo, WHILE
| with her bosom swelling and her head aud
body swaying gently like tree in a gentle
wind, she pours forth the song. The specta-
Gle, against tho lighter gray lining of
the cloak, is very beautiful Last
night she was different, aud she
held the edge of the cloak daintily In her
with it. Sometimes she pulled it around
until 1t draped her right side 60 the ankle
| then she flung il back loosely and turned to
| the left hand boxes and sung, and when she
| thought the part of the audience on the left
hand had got the worth of their money she
turned toward the boxes on the right, and,
sweeping the cloak around before her, made
ducks and bows which seemed specially
directed to the rear upper boxes on that
| side. Manager Stevens, watching her from
the front, bit his lips and murmured:
"Shes onto IL.
He referred to a camera concealed behind
the heavy plush curtains of the particular
box TO which Miss Manola sang, and there
was reason for his bitterness. In spite of
all Manager Stevens pains to keep 1t secret
the singer had learned, by an anonymous
note sent to her dressing room just before
the performance, that an attempts was TO be
made to photograph her tights by flash
light Only the three or four persons in the
audience who were in the secret noticed it,
but never during the singing Of that duet
did Miss Manola exhibit toward the right
side of the theater more than q feeting
glimpse of her beautiful gray legs, while she
drove the photographer nearly wild by the
freedom and grace with which she danced
whenever her back was toward him. Never
was a Spanish woman's fan manipulated
with greater dexterity than was the singers
long gray cloak In disappointing the glass
eye of the camera.
1t was decided to make another attempt
when later In the same act, Miss Manola
has to come to the front aud sing fe W
lines alone. When, as "Bul Bull" sue said,
80, | can sing SO well that if l had cared
anything for position l would have gone on
the stage" Mr.. Seabrooke, as "Cabalas-
! tro," walked up to her, and in stage
VIII sper, interpolated:
| Don't yer do 1t; don't you go on the
stage; you might be photographed In
| tightsn
The audience, which had evidently read
the story of the refusal of Miss Manola to
DO put on exhibition pictorially in that
costume, laughed, although they had no
idea of the imminent appositeness of the
| joke. Miss Manola herself was broken up
| by the unexpected gag, and IL the audience
had not laughed long enough TO give her a
| chance 20 recover there would have been
an awkward break in the performance.
She had wit enough in a moment to make
| a retort to the effect that she thought she
| could avoid the danger.
"Well, you'll have TO be pretty quick
about it," exclaimed Seabrooke, and the
audience laughed again, this time, too,
without appreciating the full significance
| of the joke Miss Manola was sharper
| witted, and at Seabrooke's remark, which
| she suspected rightly to be signal to the
| photographer, she SHE'D like q frightened
| colt and swept her cloak around her In
| time.
A consultation between the manager and
| the photographer resulted in desperate de-
| termination to risk all on one moment. when
| the singer would probably be off her guard.
| The time chosen was near the end OF the
| act, when Miss Manoia has to run on the
! stage from a door at the side directly facing
| the box where the camera was concealed.
| She comes on like a flash and runs into the
| arms Of Hopper, who stands not over ten
| feet from the door. She had TO be caught
| on the instant in which she was covering
| that distance. The photographer sat
| with one hand on the bulb of the camera,
and held the curtain In the other
hand An assistant slipped into the
next box and had the fiash-light ready.
Both stood ready when they heard
| the bars Of the music preliminary to Miss
Manola's appearance. The door opened
and vision Of gray tights, extended arms,
and floating cloak appeared, darting toward
| Hopper. At the same instant there was q
| flash and cloud of smoke from the upper
box. Miss Manola's long cloak flashed
about her figure and she gave scream and
dashed off the stage. The audience was
startled for moment, but quickly under
stood what had been done. Many Kissed,
| none applauded. De Wolf Hopper, left
alone on the stage, was embarrassed for a
moment and called after Miss Manola to
come back; that it was all right. He re-
covered his head in m )ment and avoided
q bad break in the performance by laugh
ing and speaking impromptu lines until Miss
Manola came back. She was breathless
and evidently very much excited, but she
went on with her part.
Manager Stevens went behind the scenes
as soon as she left the stage again. He got
l II Had f.fst, "a