The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-02-18

almost anything else that could be
named. The popular impression is that
Our Mary" came out of society one day
and succeeded as Juliet" the next
night, to go from year to year TO the
The fact is, Mary Anderson was not
even saved from the harshest criticism
by her ineffable beauty during those
first years when she was a conspicuous
crudity. And another fact is that she
was constantly trained and coached by
expert teachers, even in the very height
of her histrionic fame. And still another
fact Is that no woman on the Ameri-
can stage ever worked harder and more
increasingly from start to finish than
did she.
1t is true she doesn't like to talk
about this now, but she was not asham-
ed of 1t then She came to New York a
poor girl. attended by her stepfather,
Mr.. Griffin, and sought the assistance
of Nanderhoff, an expert Her claim
lay largely in her beauty, already APP
parent, and it went great way in those
days. Still, he didn't want to touch
her, and to get rid of her said he'd
charge her 500. She was stiff and
awkward and he didn't think her worth
while.
But they went away, and Griffin came
back with the money. Then Wander
hoff went to work on her with ten les
sons, in which time he began to have
a more favorable impression. From the
time she went on she courted the
friendly advice of critics and silenced
them by trying to profit by it. Eight
years later she saw Georgia Cayvan,
and say in her one of the best classic
actresses. She ascertained that Sargent
had handled Cayvan, and Mary sent for
Sargent. At her request he saw her in
Pygmaion and Galatea, and criticised
her privately. She was offended, be-
cause she was the pet of the public
But she was woman of judgment and
determination, and never allowed any
thing to stand between her and the per-
fection of heart She retained Sargent
and received daily lessons of half a doz-
en- a day the year round.
He afterward, during the off season,
| worked with her some three months at
| Long Branch. He went over every piece
| in her repertoire, and put her through
every character in which she appeared.
| When the season opened he went on
| the road with her, working every day.
| He even went over her costumes to
correct solecisms of dress here and
| there. For such work as was on his
| own account she paid him from $40 to
| SIS per hour, though for a greater part
| of the service she paid the Madison
| Square Theater, he being in its employ.
| This was in the supposed height of
| her fame in 1888 1t was this sort of
| genius that made Mary Anderson a
| great actress, the genius of hard work.
MRS. POTTER.
Mrs. Potter was as conspicuous an in
| stance of financial actress making as is
Mrs. Carter, though no legal scandal
| grew out of it. She was refused by Sar-
| gent-as was Mrs. Carter-and turned
| over to Belasco. who had for six years
| been a noted teacher in the Academy
of Dramatic Art. Belasco put in $4,000
or $4,000 worth of time on her. And, ac-
| cording to her friends the time and
money was we'll spent.
There is not a single actress or actor
| of note but has spent thousands upon
| dramatic education, either in money di-
| rect or in weeks and months and years
| of persistent and intelligent abor. 1t is
| a grievous mistake to suppose that all
this money and even all of this hard
| work will make either an actor or an
actress. All the coaching and all the
work that might be squeezed into a
hundred years will not put an atom of
brains into any head that did not have
them in the beginning. 1t can only i'm
prove and develop the stock on hand.
So far as filling some subordinate
niche in a play is concerned, almost
anybody not a downright idiot may be
| made competent, but as for becoming
real actor or actress, there must be
| both brains and a special aptitude at
| bottom.
This is the most difficult matter tC
| impress upon aSOirants for the stage
| They are so saturated with the con-
| Viction of their own capabilities that
| no amount of advice or counsel from
| the expert will serve to turn them aside
| from their ambition. Most of them eX-
| pect to become stars at once. With
| purblind and logged stupidity they in
sist on going through the preliminary
stops as if acquiring the last touch which
is to make them great. OF course, botl
time and money are wasted.
The methods of Belasco set the lay.
man world laughing. But they have
been the methods, in a way, of the eX
| pert and the non-eXpert stage manager
for years. 1t is both the theory and the
| practice that women should be trained
like animals of the fourfooted variety
with whip. There are exceptions il
this of women of rare intellectual at
tainments and acute sensiblities, bu
the rule is, metaphOrically, to reduce
them with club. 1t is the only way o
getting them out of their self conscious
ness, Of subduing their pigheaded self
esteem, of subordinating insufferabl,
vanity to a smoothly working intellec
tual and physical machine. Every eX
pert stage director applies this theory
and the best have practiced it success
fully in beating the crude material int
dramatic shape.
When Balesco was a dramatic teach
er in the academy he followed the sam,
methods observed While training Mrs
| Carter-methods of the whip and clul
and alternate praise and comfOrt-jus
as the sportsman trains a setter dog; a
the Snowman trains trick mule, per
forming horse, or elephant. Max Free
man, Ben Teal, and all the rest follow
the same method, substantially, though
their labor is mostly of the mouth. Thi
is especially the case in the training o
women for the stage, the latter bein!
more susceptible to fear, and provin,
more tractable under the lash
ONE ON BELiSCO.
They tell good many amusing stor
les about the Belasco days at the acad
emy. one afternoon young woman
came in to see Mr.. Sargent to get ex
cused from an evening rehearsal. Sh