The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-02-09

give reasonably truthful idea of what
the play will be like. 1t is needless to
say that in doing this ne keeps in mind
the tastes of the audience to which each
particular play will appeal, whether ia be
the Bowery or Broadway. In these, so 10
speak, antio9patory posters, there is sell
dom any attempt at more than the most
general likenesses of the actors and act
tresses who are to appear. Only the
star is likely 90 be photographed in cos
tune ahead of time, so that his or her
portrait las So and So" may be among
the first posters put up.
If the play Is already on the stage the
designers frst proceeding is to go and
see it. Then he can note down the
strong" situations, and, after the per-
Torrance is over the company may re-
peat them before a camera and a flash
light. The pictures taken in this way. IL
copied just as they are, would seldom
make good posters, but they are invalua-
bic as guides in designing.
IL might be taken for granted that the
use of photographs would always pro-
duce better results than free-hand draw
ing but this is far from being the case
There is apt to be more life In an Ideal
sketch than in a photograph. An actor
who is stopped in the middle of a certain
speech and told 40 "hold that position" IS
nor always able to take a natural DOS
ture However graceful he may be. there
is likely to be something stereotyped
ABOUT the expression and attitude, put on
az WORD or command, and not led up to
naturally by the movement of the play.
whether it be drawn from the magma
ton or copied from a photograph, the
nrst Draft of a poster is almost always a
WASH drawing in black and white, per-
maps a foot in hight. From ii a tintype
Is made (or, in case only a single face
or ngure is to be copied, the photograph
cah be, used direcD. Over this is placed
sheet of gelatine and a tracing is made
oy scratching on its surface with a fine
steer point The tracing, although very
small, includes all the important lines
OF the original. With sort of stereopti-
con the tracing is projected full size on
large sheets of paper and the lines are
gone over with crayon. This fuIl-sized
outline goes to the man who is to make
the drawing on the photographic stone
Athough his work is not in any sense
creative this man is very much of an art
list On him depends the correctness OF
the likeness of every portrait, though he
begins his work with only the barest de-
tails of the picture before him.
mus is made the stone for the black
Impression. After the drawing is finished
Inc designer takes proof and colors H.
winch finishes his work. It remains only
TO take three offsets" from the first
stone in dry color which can be busted
on. and to finish the stones which are to
print the red, yellow and blue.
1t takes about four weeks to finish and
print set of posters. 1t is usual to
strike off at once all the copies that are
ordered for use in the current season.
This, in itself, it not an inconsidera ole
JOB. There are companies which spend
as much as $4,000 a year for printing
alone
The disposition made of unused posters
is various. If they are portraits or repre-
sent scores from some play that is we'll
known or has a peculiar atmosphere of
It's own, they are a dead loss. In case,
however, they were made for military
dramas, or rural dramas, or a certain sort
of society dramas, and might possibly be
adapted to the use of other plays of the
same general classes, they sometimes
serve other ends. If a company disbands.
for instance, its manager is likely to sell
its posters for what they will bring A
loW-price travelling company, playing one
night stands in country towns, is per-
haps the purchaser. 1t is an easy mat
ter to cover up a name; and pictures made
to show forth the glories of Lady Dali
zells Secret& may be forced to do duty
a month or a year later with "A Hoop
of Gold prices 10, 20 and 80 cents. At
the Town Hail.
For the use of Shows" that cannot af-
ford to have special designs made every
lithographing house keeps an assortment
of stock posters, available on a very
short notice, and for almost any pur-
pose.