Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1895-11-22
THE GALLERY GODS.
OUTSPOKEN CRITICS WHO SIT IN THE
CHEAP SEATS NEAR THE CEILING.

| their dramatic opinions made to order.
Attractions before reaching here have been
| tried by the fire of eastern criticism. The
| local theater gOer, a most indolGnt appre-
| Ciator, accepts the dicta of others rather
| than energizo sufficiently to formulate an
| opinion of his own. In this atmosphere of
Philistinism the gallery is stiflcd. Indeed
| on the rare occasions on which it has at
tempted to assert its Independence, phys
| ical force has been employed to cOerce it
into uniformity with the pit.
\ case in point occurred some years ago,
when Mary Anderson brought here her all
| English production of "a Winters Tale"
Mary was bad enough, but her troop of
transforming cocknoys were too much for
the gallery. The pit and boxes were filled
with the elite of the city, and they were in
ecstasy over production that had visibly
charmed the Prince of Wales. But the
gods could not understand the thick
speech of the Englishmon nor appreciate
their stilted action. Undauntcd by the
display Of fashion, they boldly guycd the
performance. Four ushers were pretty
badly beaten for attempting to restore or
der and II relay of scene shutters was final
ly necessary to bring about quiet. There
were Il dozen broken heads as the result of
the evening" and there has not been noisy
gallery in either the Grand or Olympic
since.
One of the marked characteristics of the
gallery boy-there are others-is his fond
ness for particular actors or actresses. The
late Lawrence Barrett was a redhot favor
itc with the gallery boys from ono end of
the country to the other This may have
been due to the widely circulated story
that in early life he was a newsboy, and
his name was Larry Brannigan. There
was food for hope in this for every stage
struck yOungster in the land. a long way
off and in another direction is Sadie Has
son, who wears II trapper's outfit and
shoots Indians with marvellous indiscrim-
nation She is the ideal woman to more
than half the factory boys in the big cities
of the country, and her youthful admirers
lie awake at night dreaming of her mimic
prowGss and wondering why their own
mothers and sisters cannot be nodded
along such heroic lines
The persistent fad with the gallery boys
is the modern mClodrama, with its superb
scenic accessories and climaXes by mcchan-
ical device. He wants action for his ad-
mission, and play like "Rebollious Su-
san" would not interest him ten minutes.
1t is the show that can produce the great
est number of happenings to an act that
gets his coin the oftenest. Those are the
kind of shows they put on at Havlin's,
clean, wholesome shows, apt to give boy
exaggerated ideas of life, it is true, but not
calculated to warp his moral fiber.
One night during the week Il Republic
reporter climbed to the gallery Of Havins.
1t was packed to the roof, and us bathing
is not part of the daily curriculum of the
habitucs it was trillo trying. The gods
did not seem to mind it. They were
packed in sweltering rows from the railing
TO the seats at the top, in which, when one
is seated, he must bend forward lest his
head strike the ceiling. Nearly all had re-
moved their coats and loosened their shirt
fronts. Some chewed tobacco, others ate
fruit or munched peanuts. All were in II
happy frame of mind. There was Ger
man Knockout comedian holding the stage
while the sensational climax was being
set. All his jokes were given in personal
turn and hurled back and forth among ac-
quaintances. The raillery was keen and
intensely personal, but seemed to arouse
no ill feeling. suddenly the actor began
guying al imaginary person in the gallery.
Quick as flash the crowd had picked ona
real victim in the shape of IA sleepy look
ing youth in u row far down the front. |
Seven hundred pairs of eyes turned on the |
poor fellow, and rs many tongues shot |
pointed remarks ut him. 1t was the cruel |
wit of thoughtless youth.
Then the scene changed and every one |
out and leaned forward, for |
the climax of the play was about to come.
The villain rushed on and climbed up "a |
telegraph pole and tapped wire only to |
learn that the police were after him and |
had been notified by his rival The mere !
tapping incident was heartily appreciated |
Then the hero comes on. "Why have you !
pursued and betrayed me?" asks the vii !
lain amid impressive solemnity. Slowly |
comes back the answer, because you
have come between me and the woman l |
love-" Like a sharp crack of thunder
comes roar of glad appreciation from the
gallery. Then the pair clinch. In an in
slant the whole gallery is in an uprOar.
Every one is on his feet.
xiii him!"
"Grab him by the neck!"
bite himn'
Thus comes the chorus of yells from the |
excited spectators. The hero is overpow-
cred amid groans from the gallery and
thrust into an clubhouse; the girl comes on
and meets similar fate. The villain then
sets fire to the barn in which his rival is
locked. The flames lap out. Not a sound
is heard in the gallery. Then the girl APP
pears. She has climbed out on the roof
and is making her way through network
of telegraph wires to the burning shed.
The faintest suspicion of a cheer rolls
across the gallery at her appearance, but
it quickly dies, so mighty is the suspense.
Step by step the girl draws near the end of
her journey. Inch by inch the gallery has
risen to its feet. Not a word is spoken,
hardly breath is drawn. The girl reaches
the opposite pole, climbs down and with
an AK chops her way into the burning
building and drags her lover out. Not UNI
til the heroine has reached the center Of
the stage does the gallery let CO. and then
q mighty cheer breaks loose. After the
first shock of the collapse it comes again.
The yelling is kept up until all the pent
up energy accumulated during the prog
ress of the climax is worn off.
A moment later they are all in the
street, reveling in breath Of fresh air,
and everybody discussing the tremendous
advantage of wire walking sweetheart.
st. Louis Republic.