Los Angeles herald., 1890-11-03
THE BUSKINED STAGE
The Still Alarm at the Grand
Tonight.
Points on Plays and Players
From Many Lands.
Cost of Conducting the Romance and
Reality of Theater.
Girls Studying for the Ballet and Others
Ambitious to Be Stars on the
Stage.

These are the days of realism on the
stage and few things have caught the
popular fancy so strongly as the play,
The Still Alarm. The sensational epi-
sode of the steam ire engine and the
real horses is OF course prominent feat
ure of the performance. The plot OF
Mr.. Joseph Arthur's drama has the
merit of novelty and character. OF the
many American plays that have been
sent across the water, none have
achieved the success Of The Still Alarm,
and it is as popular in England as
America. Although called on the bills
a comedy-drama, it is really of the
melo-dramatic school. Two nations have
applauded The Still Alarm, and have
nightly gone wild in enthusiasm over
the thrilling scenes and dramatic Incl
dents in real life.
Public attention is nearly always
fixed upon the stage and the entertain
ment given upon it in every theatre,
and few people ever stop to enquire to
whom they are really indebted for the
amusement afforded. This is due to the
skill of those who furnish the pleasure
and whose chief aim it is to attract the
poplaur eye to the show, rather than
to themselves; although do know per-
sons in this part of the business who be-
lieve that there is potency in their
Autographs and cognomens, and:there-
fore bill themselves" as strongly as the
play or star.
The Front of the House is contra dis
tinguished from the stage directors and
staffs by business qualifications and
commercial ins tincts altogether alien to
acting and actors. In the we'll regulated
and positively successful Front of the
House are employed men who have lit
tie sympathy with professionals, but
who have hard-headed common sense
and thorough knowledge of the public.
and know how to wheedle dollars out of
its pockets by iudicious advertising and
the methods calculated to win its favor.
On the stage and about its environs
romance is monarch, ideal and illus
i've. Its prime minister is reality, pro-
sale and practical, and the twain make
combination which, at the present
moment, controls the minds and purses
of many millions of hard-hearted and
sore-headed people.
No matter how strong or interesting a
play may be. or how charming and
picturesque the star, neither can COM
mand its due share of popular approval
without the aid of the Front of the
House.
In fact, the best pieces and best play
ers in the world have failed at times for
want of proper management, and this
management belongs entirely to the
Front of the House where all the wires
are pulled, and all the preliminaries of
success are prearranged.
The artistic side of the theater loftily
looks down upon the "front of the
house," and exhausts in quiet sneers its
disdain for that commerce without
which even art would not expand and
progress in this very material and sordid
world.
And now we come to the organization
of the "front of the house"-the reality
which keeps romancei alive. This
pedestal of theatrical art is peculiarly
made up. 1t is generally guided and
constructed by some one man, whose in
clinations and intuitions are curiously
blended with art and commerce. He
must be a prime business man to sue
ceed as theatrical manager, and he
must also be man of taste, culture, ex-
pert knowledge of the drama, first-rate
judge of the public vacillations, and
above all he should be man of patience,
forbearance and self-abnegation, allied
with commendable and timely decision.
The cost of running the front of the
house" is usually far greater than the
cost of the production and the stage.
Out of the "front of the house" must
come the money for rent, orchestra, ad-
vertising and the rest. In 'combina-
tion house," that is to say theater in
which combinations or travelling COM
panies play in tl4is city, the expenses of
the establishment are nearly always far
greater than the expenses of the COM
bination. 1t takes much more money to
run the Fifth Avenue theater, New
York. than it takes to run any company
that may play there during the season.
AT the Grand opera house, New York.
nearly every organization had to give
up the first $1,000 taken in to T. III.
him 80 per cent. out of the rest of each
weeks receipts. But what was the
manager to do? At one time the rent
of the Grand opera house was said to be
$42, 900 wear. And Mr.. French was
fortunate when he could keep the house
open for forty-two weeks Of the year.
So you see that it takes lot of money
to run the "fpont of the house, in any
theater in this city. Dockstader's old
house, small as it was, cost over $4,000
year rent. Add to this the gas bills,
ushers, treasurers, ticket takers, stage
hands, newspaper advertisements, which
were cheap at $3.50 a week, and you
would be able to form some idea of the
expenses of the front of the house" in
any New York theater.
1t is said that Palmer's theater and
the Broadway cost both managements
as much money as would run the gov
ernment Of a western city of 100, 900 in
habitants.
Here is picture of company of girls
learning to be ballet dancers:
There are about seven in ala slender
French girl in pink; tall girl, whose
long, thick hair hung in one heavy braid
far below her belt; plump girl, who is