The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-09-04
MAYO AT REHEARSAL
HOW The FAMOUS ACTOR TRAINED
THE MEMBERS or HIS COMPANY.


His Fondness For "Pudd'nhead wilson,
Ambitious Attempts As a Manager which
Failed Hi. Besetting Penchant For Ar
guing Was His Worst Fault.
The late Frank Mayo. whose sudden
death on a train near Omaha was such
painful shock TO the whole dramatic
profession, was one of the most severe
and at the same time most just man
ayers that il has ever been my pleasure
to act under" said Henry Davenport,
son Of +. l.. Davenport, the tragedian,
and one of the managers Of the Girard
Avenue theator of this city. "He knew
how n part should be played and in
sisted on the actor playing it in that
way if il took 30 rehcarsals TO perfect
the role according TO Mr.. Mayo's ideas.
Mr. Davenport created the role Of
Judge Driscoll in ''Pudd 'nhead Will
son." Mayo's last success, and played it
during the New York run of the pro.
duction. During the rehearsals previ-
GUS to the first production of 'Pudd'n-
head Wilson, continued Mr.. Daven-
port, "Mr. Mayo acted every role in the
play for the purpose of showing the
members Of the company how he wanted
it played. He took infinite pains TO
see that every line was perfectly read.
every accent properly placed and every
bit Of business brought out clearly, eff
fectivcly and naturally. | would not
have it understood that in this matter
Mr. Mayo was IA martinez or one who
assumed to know it all. No one admired
originality more than he. He liked to
see an actor give his own conception of
part but when this was done he de.
manded reason for everything.
This was one of his peculiar traits
If member of the company made "a
gesture OF pause or emphasized a
word in IA new OF original manner, Mr..
Mayo would say, Now, why do you do
thatT He would get to the bottom of
the idea. and, if good reason was adj
vanced for it. il found ready acceptance.
He was this way III everything. l re-
member that he taught me fencing
when was a mere boy, and in return
| taught him what / knew about box
| ing. l usually boxed about one minute
and explained 10. | would make "a lead
OF "a counter or guard, and Mr. Mayo
would say: Stop, now. Why do you do
thatY And when he was teaching me
| fencing he would make a thrust or "A
parry and then stop to say. Now. you
see, do this because, etc.
But to come back to 'Pudd 'nhead
Wilson. Mr.. Mayo loved that play as
he loved his children. l remember some
time before the play was produced he
became convinced that il needed prun-
ing. Something had to be cut ont, but
he hadn't the heart to do ii. So he
went to my brOtherin- law and said 4:
Here is this play Of mine. | know it
needs cutting down, but | can't do IT.
1t is almost as much To me rs one of
my children ! have gone over line aft
er line aud said: L can't cut this out,
nor this, nor this. | can't cut anything
out. So want some disintercstcd per
SON to do it for me And when the play
was produced, Though he alonc was re
sponsible for the dr.unatization, hc gave
all the credit for the success to Mark
Twain in an address lac made before the
curtain the first night That WAS his
nature
Its great success WAS very CRAFTY
/ ing to Mr. Mayo, and lie deserved II.
He wasted several fortunes III the effort
to give the public first class pruduc
tons of the classical drama, which they
would not receive. Mayo's famous
Forty was one of the best equipped
companies for the production Of Shakes
peare and other standard plays that
ever left New York. We carried every
thing, even suppers. but the people
would have none of us. The same treat
ment was accorded Mr.. Mayo's Nor
deck, his adaptation of The Three
Guardsmen' and several other classical
efforts. But he rose superior to all these
setbacks. 1t was hard that his life
should end just as he was once moro on
the road to fortune.
"Mr. Mayo's county seat at Canton,
Pa. adjoined that of my father. 1t
was at his home that the noble man was
seen at his best--and his worst. His
worst consisted Of n penchant for argu-
ing Mr.. Mayo loved to argue, and he
would never let up until you acknowl-
edged yourself convinced or fell into ST.
lence in admiration of his earnestness,
his sincerity and his marvellous COM
mand of language and voice. Mr.. Mayo
had on the grounds of his estate little
French chalet, which he bought at the
Centennial exposition in this city. He
used it for study, and there he would
sit until o'clock at night, when he
would suddenly remember that he ought
to have supper and proceed slowly to
the house. Most always he would find
Mrs Mayo, my mother. his daughte
now Mrs Elvcrson. and myself ongck '
in game of whist. Mr.. Mayo"ithou
enter the room slowly and taxi ssuiteu
ton behind his daughter chas man u
ly she would make "a play y ne , 80 80,
| father didn't think was &C. rn,fa :,
would break in with, M abdom,
why did you play that card en-. strange
would end SOON after thatsmer bystan
would insist upon argu' the cue
with Nellie and kill tn, die Of
game at once. Az nisi
MIR. Mayo once t5as sso was =
discovered the secret ood hsns "u
You must omph Ruch dash.
which couldho recently came Coz