The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-12-12
HAS COME TO STAY.
Joseph Hart Says That Vaudeville
viii Be Permanent.
Many Of the Old Favodtss Nov Appear In
That Form Of Entertainment.

rtHldineu away from MS luncn tniS
morning after rehearsal long enough to
chat very interestingly about the past,
present and future OF vaudeville. He
was born to the stage and bred on 1t.
and no one in the vaudeville ranks to-
day is more competent. either. by rea-
son of experience or because of intelli-
gent study of the popular taste I'm the
atricals, to discuss the subject.
Just think OF IT," he said. suppose
i or any one else ten years ago had
said that Rose Coghlan would have
played in vaudeville theatre. Why
does she do IL? Because there's more
money i'm IL and less work and worry.
"And look at the money in vaudeville
No one would have believed 10 years
ago that variety performers would
ever get such salaries as vaudeville ar
lists get now. Then team which could
get 5000 "a week were nabobs. Why,
when / was getting 800 week in
variety and my name was on the pos
ters in letters a foot high, L used to
walk blocks out of my way to pass the
billboards and look at II. / was "a
prince. i was rolling i'm wealth. Now,
any one who is at all clever in vaude-
vile can get 5000 a week and steady
work.
"The changes have been wonderful.
] used to go to see and hear Clara Nor
ris: and l have sat i'm the theatre and
shed tears with the rest OF the audience
at her remarkable acting in Article
Al Then the people were in raptures
about her. They came i'm their car
riages and waited patiently while she
rested a half hour between acts. And
not so long ago Clara Morris did
vaudeville turn on the game stage and
In the same performance with me.
Nearly all the old favorites are in
vaudeville now. There are j. III. Stod-
dart, Felix Morris, Kate Claxton, Chas.
Bowser. Hilda Thomas. Maurice Bar
rymore. Robert Mantell. Robert Down
ing, and q score OF Others all doing
turns i'm vaudeville. Imagine Shake
speare IL he could go to vaudeville
theatre now and see Portia at the bar
exclaiming: The quality of mercy Is
not strained i'm a Commute act on the
same stage with song and dance mono
logue, ventriloquist, musical and other
artists
Vaudeville has come to stay. 1t is
the logical. the reasonable theatrical
performance. I've given il close study
and know what I'm talking about.
Vaudeville will be more popular in the
future than in the past If the people in
il now keep on producing new material
and the managers keep securing the
world 10 give the people new acts. The
vaudeville actor must not repeat his act
season after season just because it
caught on at first"
Twenty years ago there was no such
thing as a vaudeville theatre or vaude-
vile acts or actors. The nearest thing
to il was called variety then. The bet
ter class of theatre-goers would not go
TO a variety theatre, because people
sat there in their shirt sleeves and the
work done on the stage was a good
deal of il 'on the rough and the jokes
were COARSE but among the variety
actors of 20 years ago were some re-
markably clever people. and some OF
these are in high-class vaudeville today
and drawing big salaries.
1T was the rage for farce-comedy. 10
years ago, which first made openings
for the best variety actors to become
stars. The farce-comedy was nothing
in the world but a light sketch. with a
great deal of variety in 1t. Farce
comedy actors were cheap In those
days. Why. / remember 10 years ago
the Hallen e. Hart company included
i'm its cast John II. Kelly, Bernard Dill
lon, Annie Lewis, Mollie Fuller, Jose
phine Hall and others, all from the
variety stage. and none of them got
more than $50 a week. Think of what
III WOulu Cost to carry a HOW
with those people in 1t!
"The farce-comedies played in the
best houses to the best people; and
these people discovered that il was the
sort of amusement that they wanted. Ii
was the old variety turns strung along
through the farce-comedy that pleased
the people; and once they had a taste
OF il they wanted more. That led to
the establishment OF the strictly vau-
n
B. +. Keith, about nine years ago,
which was patronized by the very best
people. The rough songs and dances
and knockabout business of the 'varie-
ty' theatre would not do for the audi
ences Of ladies and children who go to
the vaudeville theatres today; and the
refined vaudeville sketch of today
would not have been popular in the
variety theatre of years ago.
What do i seek after most In writ
ing a vaudeville act?'
"To create laughter. The predomi-
mating feature OF vaudeville must be
comedy. People wish to laugh. They
go to the theatre to be be amused; and
a vaudeville sketch should be as full of
comedy, as possible. 1t should have in
il. too. music and catchy melodies and
a bit or two of clever dancing; and all
OF this should be built upon plot, be
IL ever so slight a thread. The most
successful vaudeville sketch tells lit
tie story. This makes the Commute
sketch a condensed play and IL takes.
How do / like Providence? Well.
there you've Mt me in tender spot.
Never mind the reason why: but, for
some reason or other. this city has al
ways given me the biggest kind of sup
port. and l always look forward to my
Providence engagements with excep-
tional satisfaction and pleasure. In all
my experience / never played to even
a light house in Providence: and you
know anybody can do himself better
Justice before a crowded house than
when he looks out on empty chairs.
Somehow or other. a Providence audi
ence always seems to warm up to me
from the very start; and every effort
make to entertain or amuse seems to
catch on instantly and to elicit the
readiest and most encouraging response.
OF course, l like Providence. l couldn't
help it,"
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