The sun., 1903-12-06
OPERA AND OPERA SINGERS.
THE REIGN OF STAGE MISMAN-
AGEMENT CONTINUED.
How windows and Doors Misbehaved to
the Detriment Of Puccini's "TOsca"
-Edyth walker sings Better Than
She Spells-Orchestral Acoustics
and Standards OF Artistic Ambition.

She Spells-Orchestral Acoustics
and Standards OF Artistic Ambition
BY st. Paul. the work goes bravely on
But little while ago and the air around US
quivered with the heat OF Mr.. Conried d
proolamations about the wonderful I'M
provements which were to be made In the
performances at the Metropolitan Opera
House. We we're to have new artistic
ideas, a perfect ensemble, a vast improve
ment in the orchestra, better singers In
the minor roles, o more compel ent chorus
a smarter and better drilled ballet, and
above all things rehearsals, rehearsals,
rehearsals, till all went with the smoot hness
and swiftness of press agent g pen.
Well, the first week Of the season came
and with 1t a performance Of sRigoletto'
In which the stage arrangements were 30
much better than they had been In the
older days, when the excellence Of the cast
was relied upon to please the public, that
they called forth warm praise in this jour-
nal. At last, thought the chronicler Of
musical doings, there Is some one behind
the scenes OF the opera house who has had
training in q playhouse. a real theatre.
where pc>c.ical endeavors are made 10
create illusions.
Since that first night there has been an
unbroken series Of demonst lations that the
conditions are such that intelligence, If it
is there, is helpless. Competent men are
employed by Mr.. Conried. II ia idle to say
that such people as Anton Fuchs do not
know their business. But when the stage
hands do not understand German and the
stage manager does not speak English,
difficulties are likely to arise. The manager
of the opera house speaks both languages
with facility, and he might manage to
direct his stage hands, as he practically
promised to do
But Mr.. Conried is rapidly learning that
managing an opera house is large con-
tract. He went into the business without
the slightest knowledge Of it, and he has
had some pretty interesting lessons al
ready. He Is going to get some more.
Meanwhile he has found that he cannot
attend to all the details himself, and so
some things have had to 60 on in the bad
old fashion.
There is only one stage and there is only
one orchestra. Hence there can he only
limited number Of general rehearsals. Now
. Parsifal" has to be prepared, and that is
no small task. In fact 1t is a huge under
taking, and it is taxing all the energies OF
Mr. Hertz, the conductor. who is rehearsing
the singers and musicians in the score.
His labors are not at all aided by the man
ager, who complacently ignores the re-
quirements Of the work, because, as i. may
be said on good authority, he is reposng in
a downy nest of ignorance as TO the contents
OF the libretto.
l.
of the simple truth that Mr.. Conried, who
is a man of uncommon executive ability
and theatrical manager of artistic pro-
clivities, has not had time to do everything.
1t is much easier to play Pooh Bah in a
Gilbert and Sullivan operetta than it is to
do 80 in real life.
The stage management, then, is lax and
at times puerile. It would All too much
of the useful space Of this paper to catalogue
the ridiculous things that are done and
the equally ridiculous accidents which
happen and which could he prevented by
proper rehearsal. When the two police-
men in "Tosca" on Wednesday night tried
to drag Cararddossi out Of Scarpias cham
Der, they backed him up against the centre
doors and then tried to jam him through
them despite the obvious fact that the
doors opened inward. Now those same
two men had only few minutes previously
made their entrance through those same
doors, and ought to have noted which way
they opened 80 as to be prepared for that
piece Of stage business.
But in all probability they had not had
scene rehearsal Of that act, and were un-
acquainted with the set. Hence they for
hot ~ M In = np
first performance. The result was that
they almost pushed the rear wall out of the
room and made people in the audience
laugh when they should have been seriously
affected. 1t was hard for Nine. Ternna
and Mr.. Scott to restore the mood Of the
scene after that.
A similar thing happened when another
police agent attempted to enter the torture
chamber. He struggled vigo orouslyt open
the door the wrong way, while again
a laugh was caused at point in which the
mood ought to have been at least thought
full. In the very beginning of the act when
Scarpid rdersSciorrone to open the window,
the window would not stay open. Twice
the luckless Scidrrone pushed it back,
we'll knowing that Scdrpia had after ward
to shut it, but it swung shut of itself and
people in the audience laughed.
While Scarpia is interrogatng Cdrdrn-
dossi he is annoyed by the aging of the
cantata below. The stage directions say:
Disturbed and annoyed by the singing he
closes the window" Puccni's musical idea
was to- simulate the sudden shutting out of
the sound. Instead Of that. on Wednesday
night Mr., Scotti, seeing that the window
was closed, dramatically waved his hand at
it, and the singing below ceased as IL he
had turned off the gas. 1t was ridiculous,
and it helped as lot Of other small mis-
haps did. to destroy the theatrical effeo-
tiveness of the soene.
If 4Tosca" were an old fashi oned opera
in which people gahbled a lot of recitative
for time. and then came down to the foot
lights to sing arias. these blunders would
signify less, though even the! old-style
opera can be dignifed by honest treat
ment. But "Tosca" is serious lyric trag-
edy. 1t deserves careful stage manage
ment; yea, it demands it, just as much as
@Tannhaeuser" or 1Iohengrin."
Puccini's music is constructed on sys-
tenn similar TO Wagners. though not the
same. Leading themes are employed with
dramatic intent, and the action should