Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-09-05


Or less than floating theater, ,or in
other words, a big steamboat, with an
interior modelled like that of the
alter. The theater-boat can steam from
town to town with the company, seen
cry and orchestra ON board: give a
performance one night and be at the
next town by the following morning.
Ladies and gentlemen of the sta sc
who have been stranded in backwoods
communities, look with favor upon
the new order Of things. They argue
that concern rich enough to support
such a theater will surely have money
enough to buy fuel to send the
large enough to be stranded in. in
safety.
In fact. all the Thespians assert
that it will be a gold mine for the
proprietOrS Of the show. as they will
have no theater rent to meet: no
transportation for the company and
scenery or hotel bills to pay. The
novelty of seeing a fine show On ship
board, it is claimed, Will be just the
thing to boom theater- going in small
places, particularly as the mama gers
can afford to make the prices very
low. 1t is asserted that syndicate
has already been formed to build the
theater-boat and send it ON it's journey
through canal and river to all parts
of the country, we'll equipped with a
good company, fine scenery and an at
tractive show. 1t is doubtful if the
matter has progressed that far, but
there seems to be a few rea sons why
the SCENE could not be conducted on
paying basis.
The idea is not original with the
people here. To the Russians is due
the credit of thinking up the plan and
carrying it to a successful issue. ST.
Petersburg syndicate has had great
steamboat built, some 400 feet i'm
length and 40 feet in width. The
steamer lis just about to start out on
a tour of the Volga, stopping at the
principal towns ON the way. The Rus
sian authorities usually opposed, to all
innovations, has sanctioned the scheme
and as many of the VOlga cities and
the towns of it's navigable tributaries
are without theaters, it us believed
that the venture will prove a verita BILE
gold mine to it's projectors.
The Russian floating playhouse is
so constructed that an audience of
1000 can be comfortably seated. A
large mass of scenery is carried for
of
tOire of Russian comedies and dramas
and French OperettaS. The manager
of the show is Russian named
Strafanoff, and to him was entrusted
the work Of mapping all the number
less ingenious details, incident to a
venture of the kind.
The QUARTERS of the actors, actresses,
supernumaries, stage-hands, orches-
ira, and all the crew are i'm the ex-
treme bow of the vessel. The eX-
treme stern is taken up with the ma
| chinery which is of the Hghtest pos
sible kind, so that it's weight will not
throw the bow into the air. All the
fuel is carried under the body of the
| theater. which occupies four-fifths of
the entire length of the boat and all
of its width.
From the lowest point Of the orches-
| ira to the roof is fifty feet. The stage
| is a trife less than thirty feet in
width and all the scenery lis let down
| from the flies. The wings are just
! wide enough to admit of the entrance
and exit Of the players. Of course,
the scenic effects are limited by the
lack of room, but a much smoother
! performance can be given than in The
eagerly equipped theater of the
small town. The players are not
tagged out by a tiresome journey OF
made unfit for fi1lst-class work by the
fare of indifferently conducted hotels
If such a boat were built by d syn,
| dictate here its construction would
necessarily be based upon the require
ments of the large canals. Using the
stern paddle wheel it would be pos
sible ito construct boat of great beam
and length, and yet one which would
draw compare lively little water.
Such a boat could make a tour OF
hundreds of towns and at the enc
Of the season would not have visited
half the places made possible by the
great rivers and canals and lakes OF
the country. The field would almos
be as broad as that open to companies
which travel from place to place by
rail- All the best playing towns from
a theatrical standpoint, are Those
which have a Waterfront, as the Wis
iting and money spending population
of such a place lis always greater thai
in the strictly inland towns. With {
flrst-class company, such a boat could
it is argued, be kept busy from on
years end to the other, and by a ju
diciOus change of productions keep OF
making the rounds of the country II
am intending flow of box Office re
ceipts
Starting from New York such
vessel could make trip up along tn
north shore of Long Island sound
stopping at the towns on the Con
necticut and Rhode Island coast
Without piercing the New Englan,
country, the boat could steam bac
, to New York and after doing Newar
/ and nearby New Jersey towns coul
steam UP the Hudson, stopping at tn
various places up to Albany and Troy
From Albany to Buffalo the Erie cana
can be used and once in the lakes
would take a month ito make all tn
, stopping places before Chicago coul