The Washington times., 1901-07-07
THE THEATRICAL SUPER.
He Often Has n Specially and Is n
Man of Importance.

New York claims to have the only
''supers' agency in this Countrywide
only theatrical agency that books the
extras of the stage and makes engage
ments for them. In other cities the ''su-
per- is a hanger-on of the theatre who
has an hours rehearsal of his role on the
day the play arrives in town; here he is a
member of the profession" who re-
hearses at least a week with the COM
pany, knows how to handle his grease
paint and discusses affairs of tine theatre
like member of the Players Club.
This difference has teen wrought by a
theatrical agent who confesses that TWEEN
ty years ago he was a super with an
ambition to become a star in tragedy
When he finally decided that he would
never shine as an actor he began in his
present line Of business, and developed II
SO successfully that now he practically
supplies all the New York theatres with
supernumeFaries whom he and his agents
train, superintend and pay. He draws
them from all classes but chiefly from
the ranks of the unemployed, and he
reaches these by advertisements in the
want columns of the daily papers
IAN supers,'' he says, may be divided
into four classes. First, there's the
young man or the young girl who's stage
struck. If he has a couple of Aundred
dollars to spend he pays it over to dra-
matte school If he hasn't he comes 10
us Maybe he's been looking at himself
in the glass, and wants to get out on
the boards and pose; or maybe he thinks
he's another Booth. Anyway, he's crazy
to get on the stage, and we start him at
s.. 50 or 81 a week, and he tries to work
his way up. Sometimes he does it-gets
70 n a
ing, anyway-but L don't believe there's
any profession where he'd have TO serve
a longer apprenticeship than he does in
this Sometimes he leaves the ranks to
be a stage hand, but more often he gets
cured of the stage fever and goes to work
at something else.
''Then there's the young fellow who
comes to town looking for work ana sees
one of the advertisements we put In the
papers when we have a call for lot or
extras for a big production. de puts IN
his evenings with us behind the lights and
hunts about for work all day. You De
surprised TO know how many boys go on
The stage for a few weeks that way. The
pay isn't much, but II helps TO meet thelI
board bills and they're the sort or men
we want-sober, quiet, decent looking EEL I
lows-and we do the best we can for
them And sometimes they get a chance |
to go on the road, and just naturally
drift into theatrical work and get along |
I'VE don't ask any questions. but
YOU can tell college men when you |
see them, and when We're rehearsine IN
September we get flood of them tnaL We |
been up against Il here all summer. It's
a profession that opens up to brains all |
riei I, and I guess there's a lot OF those |
boys stick in it.
work they still stay with us-some or |
them They lose an afternoons pay on |
Wednesday to go on for the inaJlnees' |
but they add 81 a week TO their salaries, |
and it's lust money found for them. Be
sides ii keeps them off the streets at |
night and If they re alone IN town IL
makes them acquainted with lot or |
boys ana its fun for them, after |
days work in an ofhce, TO put on lheIr
war paint and get in front OF the cal |
wen. the last sort is the old-time
super-the street loafer, the city tramp. |
We have to have him for plays Where |
the manager wants a husky lot Tor the
mob You see the actor can make up
for his part but the super can [. He has
TO be born to fit it. Take the wal plays
now We have to have fifty men. say,
that can go on and look as II they Just
heen through a hard campaign. We just
pick up hfty rough ones ana ten them not
to clean up, nor shave at all, and then
we put muskets in their hands, ana they
troop across the stage like regiment
that's Just been through the Wilderness
and hasn't seen soap or shoe
polish since the war broke out.
have about a thousand men on our books, |
and sometimes we have as many as that
al work in different theatres in the city. |
we have to know all these men, and the
sort of work they can do. because the
super who shoulders the musket isn't the
same one who goes into dress suit. You
have TO have man for that who VIII |
ook like gentleman, and we have scores
IF them III the time. We have couple |
IF dozen men, too, that went through the
cuban war and know the manual, ana
we need them all the time. It's quite a
rick keeping trace of all our men, but
we manage to do 1t, and we believe that
he New York stage has better line OF
supers now than any other city IN the
world"
The agency has latterly established
branches in Boston and other cities and
3 making an attempt to improve the
service of the extras who act with the
.oad companies. These have always been
/ cause Of complaint with the audiences
# such towns. II is impossible TO say,
IS vet. whether the attempt will be sue
York COmmercial-Adyer-