The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1903-11-13
STAGE DISCIPLINE.
= Discourse by Horace Wyndham. 81.
y James Theater. Londo,

~ ''o'dce st,
james Theater, london.
from the Sketch: 1t may possibly
,, o.se az news 10 those who only VIII
n1ss a-.neatrlca performance from the
arSaroa I'm 70 learn that discipline is
silioicea almost as strictly on thesstapa
as Y is IN a government deparement
every big London theater has a God
81 rules n regulations under which
=. IS conducted, n rigid adherence ~
ltnls ls insisted Upon from every ma.
eoncerned-principal to call bow allie
opeaking generally, the regulations arn
aooue twenty in number. Some man
useis, however. draw up so lengthy =
hoan - lney ma 1T necessary to en-
poay 1t In a small handbook.
among the rules common 10 all tho.
3ters may be mentioned the following.
~ Inc hail. of the face must be
si1aven II required by the exigencies ~
the play represented;" (2) "AI1 enpa 90
menus TO be regarded as exclusive aud
nc artist shall appear at any Other
.nea,er or hall without the consent in
MIltins OF the manager or his renre-
90 All artists ngage are
~ pay any part or parts for which
,.eS may be cast, and to understudv
II required and (4) In the event Of
ene theater being closed through riot,
llte, PUBIC calamity, royal demise
ePlceHlc or Illness of principal, no sal,
airy shaH be claimed during such clos
lng.' At the foot of the contract is an
lnti1natlon that any breach of the
above rules and regulations subjects
.ne person Who infringas to Immediate
ent.
AS a matter Of fact, however, such
op1lon is only exercised inextreme cases.
Inc usual method adopted for ENFORCING
compliance with the theater rules is .
much milder one. 1t consists in levy.
ing Il graduated scale of fines for every
lnfrlhseHent brought to light. Such
mes are deducted from the offenders
weekly salary, and may be anything
from slXpence to a guinea. A very or
clnary one TO impose is half a crown
for h breach Of discipline It meets
wlth-that of talking behind the scenes
more often encountered than is any
otner. Late attendance at rehearsal Of
exceeding the limit allowed for "varia-
tion of Watches") means mourning a
Similar penalty.
one or the grarest ofsenses OF which
an actor or actress may be guilty is
that tof addressing the audience from
the stage during the course OF a per
Torrance. In some theaters the only
recognized punishment for this is in
slant dismissal, a note to this effect
Being inserted in the contract. Inter
polat!ng into the dialogue words or
business not previously sanctioned
by the management is also held TO be
particularly heinous.
An exception, however, Is usually
made where musical comedy is con-
cer1ed, for in entertainments CT this
nature the practice of ''gagging', is
more or less freely adopted. Libret-
lists, indeed, have much reason to be
thankful that this is the case. since
the success of their work is often
largely due to the M in which the
comedians build up their parts for
themselves.
The individual in whom is vested the
responsibility for maintaining due or
der behind h scenes is the stage man
ager Consequently everybody makes
1T mis- business to cultivate pleasant re-
lations with him from the outset. AS
may be INA gined, his position Is a deli
cate one. calling for the display OF a
good deal of tact, since in the execu-
ton OF his office he is sometimes re-
CURED to drop on" a personal friend.
Should he show favoritism discipline is
bound to suffer, with the result that he
himself is called to account. No one
however seems to know exactly how
this is brought about, for imagination
pales before the idea of a stage man
ager reporting himself for neglect of
duty.