The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1897-09-01
PLAYING TWO PARTS.
INSTANCES IN WHICH AN ACTOR HAS
BEEN TWO MENAT ONCE.

ers" and the Lyons Mail" Are Plays II
Which 1t Is Necessary For the Star T.
Make These Quick Changes.
70 be able to play two parts in tn
same piece-tO portray, perhaps tw
/ characters of totally different caliber-
is not an undertaking which many &C
tors care to attempt. 1t is only the ex
perienced artist who may attempt tn
feat with IMMUNITY and even then
though he may appear to the audienc
to achieve his end without an effort
there are many more difficulties in hi
path than meet the eye of the habitua
thcater goer.
Not only must the actor be possessed
of 10 small amount Of histrionic talent
but he must often call i'll the aid of al
undeIstudy, whose duty it is to gull tn,
onlooker into the belief that their favor
ito is performing the impossible feat o
being in two places at one and the samt
time. For in nearly every play Of such 1
character it is well nigh impossible fol
the author so to arrange his piece tina
the actor may never be called upon t.
be On the stage with his double.
Any ono who has been to see 9TH,
Prisoner of Zcnda" performed at the St
James theater, must have marveled al
the lightning celebrity with which Mr.
| George Alexander, n moment before the
drunken king of Ruritania, suddenly,
as by some act of witcheraft. reappeared
as Rudolf Rassendyll clad in the ordi
nary costume of the English tourist.
Then. to every ones surprise. the supine
body Of the king was carried in so that
to all appearances Mr.. Alexander was
gazing upon his own person. In reality,
| of course, il was merely lightning
change, and the understudy had to be
requisitioned to supply the person of the
king.
A more famous case of double imper-
sonation, however, is that of 1.-THE Cor
sican Brothers,, the first play perhaps
in which Sir Henry Irving gave us Il
taste Of his wonderful talent.
In the first act-to give "A slight re
sumo Of the play-the ghost of Louis,
killed in duel by certain Chateau
Renaud in the forest of Fontainebeau,
appears to Fabien, his brother The sec
ond act takes US to Paris, and through
varied incident to the death of Louis
Here Irving was Louis.
III the third act, however it Is Fabien
who is once more before u.s. who has
constituted himself the avenger of his
brothers. death He meets Chateau
Renaud and demands satisfaction. Re
maud is orstcd and falls to the ground
Then suddenly the ghost of Louis APP
pears, and, TO ptrsongtc the spirit of
the dead Ms.a, Irving had had to fly to
the wings. u.ake his way below the
stage ard talo his stand upen the trap
which Conveyed him upward to the
gaze Ct q tni!ifd spectators
How w. II doho; The audience was
amazed fet the explanation is com
paraliyely simple: living stepped be
hind II "laGF@.Fa tee lis double"
instantly fl Eis place, taking good
care not taJn the audience when it
was nee say ior him to confront the
ghost. Hence the Lightning change from
mortal to spirit and the resultant be-
wilderment Of tie beholders
Neither il the "Corsiean Brothers"
the only play in which Irving has con
trived to take II double part and yet
nonplus the audience by the adroitness
of his mctamorphosis.
Those who arc familiar with the
Lyons Mail" will doubtless remem-
Der the most telling scene in tho play
Here Dulosc, the murderer, is in an
attic, gazing down upon the prepara
tons being made for the execution of
the innocent Lusurques-wh likeness
to the real murderer has brought him
to such a terrible pass-an expression
of horrible gleo upon his face, clapping
his hands as he sees the apparently
doomed man step forward to his death.
But his cXultation is premature Lo-
surques Is rcpIieved, and tho crowd
suddenly catches sight of the villainous
face of the real murderer Mt the attic
window The door of the room is bat
tered in. behind it stands Dubosc The
wretch il dragged from his refuge, and
as they do so Irving Lesurques coolly
walks i'll upon the scene of turmoil.
The door of the attic is made to open
inward, thus shutting Irving Dubosc
from view of the auditorium. In a mo-
ment he slips through trap. His
double takes his place, to be hustled
unceremoniously by tho crowd of "su.
pers, j" whose duty it is also to conceal
the man Is face in case the fraud should
DO discovered Irving Lesurques can
hen como on i'll his new role
But an actor has been known to play
two parts without the assistance of n
dummy.
In certain play it was the duty of
the hero To leap out of the window of
his room and to enter from door on the
opposite side of the stage clad in differ.
ent clothes. though otherwise the same
This, however, was Juggling pure
and simple. The actor dropped into his
second dress in much the same way as
an American fireman is reputed to
jump into his uniform The costume
consisted of but one piece with patent
fastening down the back, and rs he
leaped through the window frame he
leaped into his clothes, which, so to
speak, shut behind him and left him re-
habilitated
Neither is the part of the understudy
one to be given to any ordinary super"
from the mass of warriors, countrymen
and the like that so TO make up stage
crowd. He must be possessed of no
slight amount of adaptability and smart
ness to enable his principal to so through
HE arHnnns tncls without a hitch
Pearson $ Weekly
Everybody Says So.
Cascarets Candy Cathartc, the most won.
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.ol.A 10