The Washington times., 1901-10-27
THE PASSING SHOW.

! Amelia Bingham is something of a
! climber herself. For the past five or six
years she has been mounting step after
| step of the theatrical ladder, until now
| she is secure on almost the topmost
rung.
| 1t was at the Bowery Theatre. New
| York in which she made her initial met
ropolitan appearance. The play was a
melodrama called The Struggle for Life, -
and even at this early period Of her dra-
matte career Miss Bingham showed a
fondness for the style Of roles in which
! she afterward made her greatest sue
/ cesses. New Workers again heard of her
in THE Power of Gold,' at Niblo's. Then
commenced the move uptown, with
Broadway as the objective point.
The Village Postmaster" at the Four
teenth Street Theatre. next engaged the
services Of the actress, and after brief
season at the American Theatre, in Cap
tain Impudence" she attracted the at
tention of Charles Frohmsp, who placed
her in THE White Heather at the
Academy of Music.
broadway now wasn't SO very far off; f;
it was within sight. and after spell in
The Proper Caper," at the Madison
Square Theatre, the coveted Broadway
appearance came, when Mr.. Frohman
put on THE Cuckoo" at Wallack s. The
Empire Theatre had never been quite ase-
rlously considered by Miss Bingham be
cause the leading women Of the stock
organization were not for giving a strang-
er chance to demonstrate her worth,
but Il night when Jessie Millward was
too III to appear in His Excellency the
Governor Miss Bingham was sent fer
in haste 10 hll the vacancy.
She was q success at once, and then
fpI ed SO I he
Tavern" and in the big melodrama,
Hearts Are Trumps, the English piece
that Mr.. Frohman brought over to this
country, and which Washlngtonians
fused to like a few seasons ago.
Miss Bingham was actually forced into
her present position by Charles Frohman.
When she returned from abroad a year
ago she was told that there WAS no part
in any of the various plays to be staged
by the Napoleon of the drama suit
able for her. The idea of spending
idle season did not appeal with much
force to this woman of ambition and
energy, and the outcome was that she
decided that as no place was open for
her she would create position for her
self.
The knowledge that most of the pro-
ductiuns OF society plays were made
on q scale of anything but magnihcence
had given Miss Bingham the idea that If
such play were properly presented and
with company of unusual excellence,
there would be plenty of theatregOeTS in
New YORK VINO Noull paIIOItlZe lne ven
ture. The securing OF suitable play was
the next difficulty to be overcome. As
Miss Bingham related her experience to
a Times interviewer the other day:
Miss Marbury, who conducts the larg-
est play agency in the world discussed
with me my plan for a stock company.
We read play after play. but there was
always something wrong one day, clyde
Fitch said he had the very thing | want
ed / made an appointment TO hear the
wonderful piece reads But II was the old,
old story; it was play for a star and
/ was on the hunt for a product that
would do for "A stock company. When !
explained to Mr. Fitch exactly what !
wanted he said he had in his trunk a
play that he had written for "A stock
gaEiZation, but IL would not do for me, he
was sure. as it had been refused by both
of the Frohmans and about every other
manager in New York. He told me the
story of the niece and the next day when
he read H. / wrote him check for adj
vance ROYALTIES when he had finished the
second act
When The Climbers WAS produced az
the Riiou ThoatT" / made up my mind
that the people who came to see 1t should
he given the fun worth Of their money.
So far as stage settings Were concerned.
anyway ana by the timo I got through
robbiug my own nom" Of itS paintings
md vases and bits Of briC-a-brac il looked
..s if II had been gone through hy a lot cf
energetic burglnrs. me people who saw
..Tb. climbers in New York were given 81
,rn,iueti1u that tIs Est since I..r.l
rai1aI.d and ono that las Ri,,a oh
rlaragt-s Of stf-!.
troubIc. as. naturally, they have h,on
,s,f,Ii. ll.ti l1 su, I'd mort mon. 5 Ihlu had
b,rI their wont. for after - cling ,he al
maepific,ncc of The Climbers the people