The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-03-29
DUTlESOF EXTRA LADIES"
sOMETIME s 7HEY'RE FACES AND
TBES 1HEY'RE Court LADIES.
Several Hundred women In New York and
BrookIyn Who Are Glad 60 GO on the
stage ut 81 81 Performance. Either tor
the Fnn OF the Thing or the Money.

the Fun OF the Thing or the Money.
Extra ladies' is the name that dlgnincs
them. They are the several hundred young
girls and women In this city and Brooklyn
who perform the most tritiing duties on the
stage for the fun that there is In II or because
necessity drives them to II. They scan the
amusement columns In the daily papers with
more eagerness thnn the average country bride
and bridegroom who come here To pass the
honeymoon, and. not content with this. they
read the theatrical criticisms to see IL they
Can get an inkling of n change NJ bill In any
of the playhOuses. II Is the custom for man
ayers to make such changes ON Monday night.
Wherever ono Is to he made. Monday morning
usually finds a long line Of extra ladies waiting
to see II there is anything that they can get
to do In the new play, and II the manager
shakes his head and says, mo extras needed In
this piece Off they scurry TO another theatre
where a change Of bill is advertised.
The duties Of this branch Of the profession
are varied but light, and this adjective also
describes the pay that the extra ladies receive.
One week II woman may lie Il mngnifcently
attired court lady, while the next will find
her n simple peasant girl and the third sees
her II page ~ one of Slakcspcare's kings. In
each instance the salary is the same 81 n
performance.
Many extra ladies are employed in offices
and shops during the day and cannot get Off
to present themselves where a bill IL to be
changed, and these, with many others. de.
pend upon men who make IA specially of sup.
plying extras to the theatres to find them
places. Edwin A. Pratt has been in this bust
ness for ten years. When asked to tell some
thing about these people, he said
II don't bother with furnishing men any
more, but devote II great part uf my time to
securing good looking. refined women for plays
'"heiei" eA"" i"''eS = heeucu' anu l no"
have on my waiting list over 100 girls, from
III in III yrnrs of % whom ,an con,n,nj ~,
orr ,in,o Th,,, ara an ,.aI ,.a, ., 80
any u'nle. Ihey are al well Dreu' ana most
of them live with their parents or husbands.
'.Obseryuut neonl, often ramarL ,hot ,ho
extro lafies ~. IN n,rfnrnonnas ,a',a.ns
extra laules seen III performances nowadays
are such fresh looking, well built women. rha,
is easily explained. Managers don't want tho
~, -. -. -. ,.
lie, and they won't have them. The last time
Mrs. Janytrv was here sh, emma IN ma nor
son,lly and said. "' per-
Now, mind you. | want real elegant look
ing extra ladies. who know how 70 wear yood
c'othes ana 10 enter Il room and sit down
gracefully
pNnei u " ''o"i III ! "s l 'n'"eh'
would please her. and ut the end of the engage
ment she congratulated me on securing a set
NJ woman wifi srch fro e,,ros md nra.o,oa
IA" 49, " nav "h'iI, u" p'esence.
I've been told that the extra ladies' who worked
with Duse in 'Cavalleria Rusticana" and with
AR Re,Iow and Nrs po,,,r +, .ponon,ni T.,
w.. wv : ~ /" H. 1" q
liet,' were very fine looking and had excellent
stage manners. and I'm sure that both of these
,l,;n,s , ho s.i,, . ,h, . a ...,
,h'hss can De sa,u Oh 'he women VINO acted with
Min In his Shakespearcan plays, though ii was
q first experience with several of them.
~ hove monumental. onniiao,inrs
and written, from three classes of women in
Al of the leading cities of the country. First.
supplement measre salaries earned in other
ways; next there are the young. unmarried
women who = Oh, haze We comfortahle homes. but wish
last. we have the girls who are stage.struck.
who imagine that they have talent. and wish
to 90 on that thev may learn how to present
themselves on the stage and become familiar
with stage, life.
ing extra ladies to go ON in a plnS. For Instance,
short, stout, rOlliCking girls wouldn't do to put
on as court ladies. and the tall, elegant look
ing women, such as come from the ranks Of
cloak models and there are n great many OF
them would, look ludicrous skipning round in
"A peasants dance on n green. When a woman
makes personal application to 80 on as an extra
lady, the super captain, manager, or whoever
iglre first, and then her intelligence and train.
ing in society ways. Presence goes n great
these girls often raise very serious objections
to, their going on the stage, but the girls them.
never keep anything from those who come to me
to he put OF my list, hut tell them of all the
temptations OF stage life. and advise them
against making promiscuous acGuaintanCes,
They generally come and 60 By twos or thrccs.
and. as a rule. are "A quiet, well.behaved lot OF
women, though very Jolly and good lumor.d
with each other, which Is natural. rs they have
little responsibility.
MANY who go on with the idea TINT they ore
embryo buses or Bcrahardts chang" their
n I'd, after two or three months, and decide
that instead of having talent and ability which
will advance them as actresses. il is only ambi.
tion that they possess. They soon iron nut
discouraged. ON the other hand n fair nronor.
tion of Young ladies', who work as cytrI lobins
merely for The money that is in II. show t"ient
and devotion quite rapidly: few rise ~ he Load.
ing ladies. but very frequently they rrt narts
that nav from So5 to $40 n week HInnsiny
Rowan. the leading lad in the Eruwlcy stn"E
romnany. which Is The ,rincipni Owe in San
ErnnCisGo started ON ms an .ytro lady" 81
belongs to n fine family and had n GOOD incorn"
but was stage struck. Her tirs, ev neriencn a.
an extra was with Mrs cslir CorIrr WIN 81.
niayed Miss Helyett.' and now She is nrting in
Shnkosnnrean nlnys "'
Often. when business is dull in the profcs.
sion II il very dihicult for "a ,vn,nan mn ~
been surcessful on the STAGE for n nunIcr :" ~
~ r. get n mart and man sncL ~ ,,,o.,
onnnyh m ,n IN os cytra Iadi,.s M IS N ,ro,I
Ipharhhs,ms tbev ,yon't rnrnain an " vooL 800,
~ ~ AihNN H'AA 'h I" ~ lN'l