The herald., 1895-09-22
Moments in Which They
Completely Lose Their
Self=POSSeSSiOn
ASSUMES DIFFERENT FORMS
And the BoIdest and Wisest Cannot
Guard Against It.-.Stories Of
Noted People Who Have
Suffered From II


TWO professions that know each other so
we'll, the subject OF stage fright came up.
a subject on which most actors can tell
tales. but for which no one has ever vet
found remedy, and tor which it IS ofte n
difficult to find cause. No real actor
has ever wholly escaped from stage
fright. although it is of many kinds, and
many actors have never had that worst
sort, q mere sudden. unexpected, mex
plcable consciousness of self which chills
one to the marrow. throws the words Of
a part into space and entirely upsets a
scene.
Perhaps no one ever gave a better de-
scri ption of a genuine stage fright than
Ellen Terry, who owns to have had many
an attack. "You are standing appar-
emily quite we'll, and in your right
mind" says Miss Terry, when suddenly
you feel as if your tongue had become
dislocated and was lying powerless in
your mouth. Cold shivers begin to creep
downward from the nape Of your neck
and all up you at the same time, until
they seem to meet IN the small of your
back. About this time you feel as if
cen iped. all of whose feet had been care
fully iced. had begun to run about in the
roots Of your hair. Your Eext agreeable
sensation is the breaking out of cold
preparation all oevr you. Then you feel
as though someone had cut the back
muscles Of your knees, your mouth begins
to slowly open without giving utterance
to a single sound. and yonr eyes seem
inclined to jump out of your head over
the footlights. At this period it is well
to get off the stage as quickly as posi-
bls--you are far beyond the hope of any
hum an help and that is exactly what
Miss Terry has usually done when she
had such an attack. One of the most in
explica BILE she ever had was when she was
playing The Governors Wife. and she
had barely strength to stagger to tn Q
wings, get book and compose herself
for moment when she was able to return
to the stage and conclude her scene.
While the very worst stage rights are
those that seem inexplicable. some OF the
causes that result IN condition similar
are set down variously by actors. Some
novices have stage fright on facing audi
ences for the first time. and some actors
never get through first performance with
out similar sensation which acts very
d .fferently on different people.
For example, Julia Arthur, is. to all
appearance, q very good first night act
ress. yet her high strung nature makes
her suffer terribly the entire day before
all important first performance. She is
unable to eat. and often an hour before
the performance appears so weak that it
would seem impossible for her to 60 on
at all, since her stomach begins to refuse
to retain any fool. In the wings waiting
her cue, she is limp as a wet rag, yet a
moment on the stage and she is all right.
This is a case where the fright precedes
the ordeal of facing the audience, and
l1yh o lid ftctn {rio
ust the same.
There IS New York actor-who might
not like this fact about him known, since
he is very cbary of speaking of it. So
never mind his name-who suffers from
stage fright in his dreams. always, before
new part, but rarely suffers from it on
the stage. The dreams are always night.
mare. and their variety is something
most interesting. making one wonder
how long the vagaries of the brain can
work changes on one idea, always pro-
ducing such unexpected combinations of
fright" and first night"
For instance the actor has dreamed that
the first night came and that he was on
the stage. all right. when suddenly he
seemed to know nothing of the play even.
let alone his lines, and tlou dered hope
lessly about, unable even to get off, while
actors frowned and the audience Kissed.
Another time he dreamed that he was
dressing, when suddenly his entire ward
robe was missing He distinctly heard the
half hour" and the ''quarter" called,
heard the overture rung in, and was
still hunting for those indispensable gar
ments his trousers. He heard the curtain
bell, his own call, and yet he could not
go. Then there was the confused rush
ing about OF every one, demands Cor his
presence any way, protestations that he
must come. and finally the command to
wrap himself in anything and go on,
no ruhh had ha Cho<f @t,n
hung over the pegs for his garments,
wrapped it toga fashion about him, and
made his entrance. No one laughed.
Indeed. every one seemed tn think it was
all right. and he began his part with
great spirit when suddenly the sheet
snrank to the size of a napkin-but that
is a dream. which, with some variation,
almost every one has had. And the are
but two OF long list which seem to have
become habit with this actor.
OF course, the more common form is
that of the actor who gets on the stage
and cannot speak. That kind of stage
fright marked the debut, for examp pie, OF
Eddie Sothern.
Every one knows that his father would
not believe that he was an actor. 1t was
but repeating history, for the father had
great difficulty when he came to Boston
to convince anyone that he could act. at
oil events the elder Sothern was at last
indnced to give Eddie small part. This
was in 1879, when they came back from
Europe. and Sothern was playing Sam
at Abbey's theatei, which was then at
abe corner OF Twenty second street and
Broadway. Young Sothern played cab
man, and had but one speech to say:
ALT crown yer 'oner. l think you
won hobject." But that one line was
too much for him, and he made such a
hopeless mess of it, advancing into the
center of the stage and opening and shut
ting his mouth as if he were q noiseless
a,utomaton, that his father commanded
MIN off of the stage in soto vOce that
the poor fellow fanc,ed was audible all
over the house.
To this day Sothern is nervous first
nlghter and in that he has many a tried
actor with Thin. for W. III. Crane is nota-
BILE for being poor first nighter, and as
experienced an actress as Annie
CLARKE will tell yon that the waiting for
TIE nrst entrance on first night is moth
ing short of agony, with cold chills going
down her back and the world turning
around too rapidly.
charles Barron told an amusing Incl
dent the other day. II happened when
ne was supporting Z. L. Davenport, and
they were playing In the south. Balti-
more, II Il remember. DavenporG came
to him one day and told HIM that he had
engaged ms brother to play Lucullus.
'What brother?'' said barron.
why, your brother" was Davenport
emphatic reply.
Well, what for?"
why, to act.'
II haven't got any brother that can