Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-08-13
ENGAGING TALENT
How Managers, Agents and Actors
Come to Terms.
HOT DAYS SPENT IN HARD WORK
Leading Man and Lady Must Dive
and Dance as Well as Act.
G HOST W ALKS AT LAST

Copyright, 1898, by the international Literary and
| News Serviee.)
| Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.
| NEW YORK, August II, 1895
Up to some twenty-five years ago the lie
| of a theatrical company was as permanent
| as that of a military regiment individuals
| dropped out, others filed their places: there
! was always a nucleus of older members to
perpetuate the organization The Coincide
Franchise of today has thus lived from
| centuries up to the present time, and so
| have the companies of the court theaters
| in Berlin and Vienna. But the stock COM
| pany system is becoming obsolete
Formerly the play was selected to fit the
| players; now, the reverse is the case, and
! of last years green room companions no
two may ever again share the varying for
| tunes of the road under the same manage
| ment.
when a manager purposes producing a
! play he seeks the assistance of his theat-
| rical agent in the selection of company
| There are many of them in New York in
| the Rialto district, on and just off Broad
| way, between 23d street and AID. a few OF
| the older agencies still cling to the old
| stamping ground of the profession, near
| the corner of 4th avenue and 14th street
AT some appointed hour the manager
| meets the agent at the latter's office, and
IN order that they may not be disturbed
the players who call on their daily rounds
| at the agencies are told that Mr. Urgent is
very busy and must not be DISTURBED
some one rouchsafes the information that
Mr.. Briskiy, the weil-known theatrical pro-
| moter, is with him, whereupon everybody
! IS very much interested, and all sorts of
SufiniSes are fndulged in as to the play he
| would produce for the coming season. The
| news presages the possibility of an engage
| ment FOR some people, and all tip-toe out
fhl nj DC; T,E..-
essential to the success of the negotiations
| in the sanctum.
| In there Mr.. Urgent, taking occasional
notes upon a pad lying before him on the
! desk, is intently listening TO the wants of
| Mr.. Briskly.
Whom can l get to play the hero, an
| American soldier, begins Mr.. Briskly.
| He ought to be light-haired, and soldierly-
vim in him.
How would NJ do%'
Il don't care for him for that part He
| is all right in society work, but | doubt
whether he could do Justice to this role
and by the way, If you can get me lead
| SO much the better"
Acrobat and Actor
To the layman the combination of leading
man and acrobat seems absurd; Mr.. Urgent
merely asks, How much of an acrobat?"
We'll, he must dive from the Spanish
tort INTO Guantanamo bay, actual dis
lance of twenty feet. to rescue the little
niger boy, and, let me tell you right here,
that the soubrette who wants to play that
part must know how to pick a banjo, and
must do g. dancing speciality in the second
act: But let us return to the leading man"
Mr.. Urgent opens a cabinet standing on
the top of his desk, and, taking a package
OF o. PHOTOGRAPHS from pigeon hole. marked
IL, selects therefrom a picture of a man
dressed in the costume of Hamlet He
hands it to Mr., Briskly, who adjusts his
eyeglasses and looks at 1t critically for a
Few minutes: then he wants to know how
tall the original is
Not. very tall; about five feet six
inches"
That won't do. I want a big bra u,,y
fellow, and If | can get the right sort of a
man L wouldn't mind engaging somebody
else to double the leading man and do the
jump for him.
Il will see what I can do for you, Mr..
Briskiy; now, what about the leading
Say, Urgent, Miss T.. who was with me
last year, can act all around ANYBODY /
ever took on the road, but her face queers
her. must have somebody who will get
the sympathy of the audience and be-
tween you and me, I don't care so much
whether she can act or not, so long as she
is good looking and dresses the part WE'LL
MI. Urgent smiles the cynical smile of
one who knows how little of mimic art a
personally attractive person needs to plea So
on or off the stage.
"rr fix you up all right on that. You
S"6S IS SoHiSul6n.
senorita and soubre}te.
"An ingenue and a soubrette The SOU
brette Will do the nigger-boy and the in
gcnue is to play the part of senorita
Both will have to do dance together at /!
the end Of the second. as said before. / |
also need tall, thin Characterization to |
play Cuban patriot If you can send me |
some one that can play a musical instru-
ment he might do something IN the Camp |
scene. Mrs. Briskly will play the adven- |
turess. Candidly speaking, / would prefer |
to have her remain in New York but she /
just won't do 1t. She isn't happy away |
from the footlights. There is one more /
part that l am particular about and for |
which / would like to have some we'll |
known character. 1t is a Bowery boy who
has enlisted in the same regiment with the |
hero"
II have just the man for you" says Mr. |
Urgent. as he opens drawer OF his desk
which is crowded with letters. Most of i
them are on paper with iashy letter-heads
which pictures the speciality Of the writer
thereof or which appears his or her
portrait in various costumes. After some
rummaging he hands the manager piece
Of yellow paper on which this is written In
pencil:
New York q
well say eddie supos you tink got gall
to scratch to you but you no ed old boy |
you treted me all write but you no ed
diden do the sam with you but you no
thare come tim Say ed is thar any ting
up thar for ator well IL thar Is ed just |
put me mex you no that mistr Stew on
broadway Is going wit some show call |
mite In china town well II he gose out wit
a show like that i'm here to meat all corners
for I'm the mayor and maine gy of the
reservation and mistr hrody win have to
get q permit of me the MAYOR of china |