The times., 1898-06-19
THE PASSING SHOW.

THE PASSING SHOW.
When a man gets hold a hobby he is
not infrequentIy inclined to ride the beast
to death This is even more the case
when, instead OF being in the hands of an
individual, the animal is taken up by
newspapers and large number of their
adherents. Under such stimulus it is only
rarely that more than one side of the
question in point is argued and shortly the
very friends of the theory md that they
have been carried beyond their depth
while those who have gone with them
learn too late that there Is always an
other argument for any problem.
Some time ago enterprising managers
discovered that there were people who
enjoyed the theater in hot weather and
that the number Of these was sufficient 70
make an experiment pay. Towns that
were really feasible for the project We're
so erratically located that a travelling or
ganiZation would have been dsadyanta-
geous even had not its cost made il also
dangerous. Railroads will not reduce
their charges in the warm months 20 cor
respond with the lowered rate in salaries.
Accordingly a temporary return to the
and was tried with excellent results
Slight competition, a general disposition
in that direction and the face that at such
period nothing better onered save to
make most Of the combines thus formed
successful in a marked degree.
So rem lucrative We're the organiza-
tions indeed, that some of the hackers
determined to try what cut expenses
could do toward continuing profitably all
the year around. People of little reputa-
tion We're ordinarily engaged and the
performances given were complete or the
opposite, according TO the support receiv-
ed and 10 the size of the cities played.
In both the very large and the very
small towns money was made greatly in
excess of expectations. The latter class
had never seen anything much better
than what they were offered and, there
fore. Were only too ready to snap at the
bait. An example of the truthfulness of
this that Washington Will easily under
stand is 10 be found in the enormous hit
made by the Cummings Stock Company
in Canada The combination has been
tried here before its migration and had
missed it's mark utterly. While inclusive
of much meritorious talent IL was not up
to the standard set by other organizations
and its failure was complete and unqual-
ified. In the colonial cities. however the
relative estimate placed upon the aggre-
=
financially a great success.
The one thing that allowed the stock
system TO obtain a hold in the great busi-
ness centers of our own country was the
hard times then and now prevailing. With
the panic came a cry for low rates to the
theaters, that class of amusement having
graduated from pure luxury TO the rank
OF an absolute necessity. Ii is quite i'm
possible for a high-class road company to
play at prices below those existing here
and hence home organization was found
to be the one way out of the difficulty In
the large cities these have been made of
considerable merit and in some few cases
may be compared with travelling combina-
tions. Returns were immediate Boston
particularly having afforded support to
two companies with such generosity that
1t became hard for a visitor to do any
business unless his local popularity was
sufficient TO tide him over the changed
condition.
This state of affairs has led many of
the nations critics into the belief that
the stock system of the ''palmy days"
has come back to stay and most of them
have gone into delirium of joy over
the matter. There has not been a single
dissenting voice and, while the benefits Of
the plan have been repeated until one
has grown weary of them, nothing has
been said of the many evils to be thus
brought about.
OF course. the system is by no means
without its advantages. Not the least
of these is the reduction in rates men,
toned above. A road company must pay
a high salary list, big advertising bills
railroad and other travelling expenses.
transient hotel charges and other costly
details too numerous for mention All
of these are either greatly reduced or do
not exist at all in a stock combination.
Salaries are lower as result of the peo-
pie employed and their regard for the
comforts of home" while the money put
out on local notoriety amounts only to
the sum of newspaper bills.
Dead walls are seldom brought into
requisition, and when such is the case
the Autographs used are what is known
as stock paper" and, therefore, COM
paratiVely inexpensive. OF course there
are no railway bills to be met and the
permanence of the organization permits
of its members living in flats and board
ing houses. Further than this. while a
star must pay big price for the play
he uses, those presented by home compa-
MES are generally either old pieces, the
royalties on which are very trifing, or
comedies published in book form and sold
rights and all, for 10 cents
The natural result of all this is a big
cut in the price of seats, which is GER
tainly Of use TO the theatergoer. Thus
- piAt btAtlft AcIlNctl, especially Tor lnOSe
people who. prefer poor goods at a small
cost to better ones at a higher rate
As a school of acting the stock COM
pany is unequaled. 1t affords training and
work for the aspirant for stage honors
that he could get nowhere else. He gen.
orally learns a new role every week and
the constant study this necessitates can
produce none other than good effects. He
has the result of dozen years experience
in one and acquires facility and case
worth fortune to him in his career. At
no time since have there existed so
many favorite actors as in the days of
the old system.
Another thing to be considered in this
light is the chance for versatility given
a player. AS things are at present a man
who has made a hit in some particular
line has little chance Of ever getting out
of il. Managers can see him in nothing
else and as result he is doomed 10
constant labor of class for which he
may have no sympathy and than which
he can do much better. A leading essen
tial of a stock actor is his varied ability
and continual probing is pretty sure of
finally bringing ont ali there is in him.
But. as a matter of fact, the plan has
disadvantages even greater than its