The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-12-20


( brand Of plays far superior to those
they are giving us at present.
/ Joseph Jefferson has given recent evil
/ dence of his entire satisfaction with
/ the progress the drama is making In
! Boston he was invited TO inscribe a
/ lew lines TO the growth of stage af-
/ fairs during the last century, for the
( centennial celebration Of the Boston
4 Globe, and this is what he wrote:
/ When we reflect upon the histori-
/ cal fact that the first English actors
who came TO Boston were not allowed
/ 10 perform, lest the drama should cor
/ rupt the morals Of the town, and that
! today many new and magnificent the
/ aires are being built for the production
/ Of plays, it is quite evident that the
/ drama has had its full share of prog
ress.
/ During the regime Of Charles I and
! II the drama had fallen to its lowest
/ grade. The hcentious court Of England
/ had banished the plays Of Shakespeare
I from the stage, deeming them too tame
and pure to suit the depraved taste Of
the time. 1t is, then, no wonder that
the Puritan fathers. remembering the
degraded state Of the theatre before
/ they left their country, should have
made vigorous protest against the
Introduction Of the players.
Fifty years ago no theatre was al
lowed to open its doors on Saturday
night, 1t being considered too near sun
/ day to admit of stage performances
This I am quite satisfied, gave rise to
the Saturday matinee.
The broad and liberal views that
have of late years been taken by the
church toward the stage have done
much to strengthen the position Of the
latter.
| "Clergymen nowadays often visit the
theatre, and their hocks have long since
sought the best dramatic performances
as a delightful and educational form
OF entertainment; so that the stage has
kept pace IN its progress with the other
arts.
4 trust that this important advance
viii continue"
The player IN the provinces has far
from an easy time Of it. If it isn't
one thing it's another, and the other is
generally followed by a deputy sheriff
with an attachment. However, the
player in the provinces is a cute cuss
Note the appended editorial from a
/ country newspaper;
/ Even the newspapers get taken in
| and done brown occasionally. This is
/ what happened this Office last week
/ when IL printed a job of bills for the
Eddy & Elliott Comedy company. The
hotel where they stayed was also out
its board and lodging bill. Before leav-
ing here for Colfax. where thew were
10 give their next spasm, they pledged
] themselves to remit from there. Up
TO present date they have RENTED not
a single cOpeck. The bunch of alleged
actors consisted Of three goggle-eyed.
lfrousle-headed females. distinguished
more for their discOrdant vocal chords
and a display of surplus adfpose tissue
in the region Of where the bust ought
to be than a knowledge of dramatic
art. The males Of the gang consisted
Of an alleged manager with a suit Of
I wearing apparel Of the vintage OF
former days, a beard cut a la Van
Dyke. and a penchant for managing to
be broke when il came time for the
ghost to walk: two 'hamfats' who
ought 70 be stopping hogs or working
on the section, and a -colored coon
who looked as though he had just
graduated from a crap joint on the
levee. They were the bummiest lot of
transformers that ever afflicted Mel
vim We trust the newspapers will see
to II that they receive the proper ad-
vertising."
Little Helen was visiting the the
atre for the first time and little Helen
mad many questions to ask.
What are those for, mamma?" in
CURED the tot when the lights fiared
up along the front OF the stage as the
curtain was lifted.
Those are the footlights."
so we can see their feet, mamma,
when the shades are up"
He searched the programme through anc
through
And came across a joke or two,
/ IL was an easy task 20 find
/ hy whom the costumes were designed,
! NJ no made the wigs and who supplied
The drinking water. purified;
From whom the carpets were obtained
And VINO the floor so nicely stained:
The exclusive piano used-nay, more
lie learned the name Of every store
( which ne had never known before.
Patrons, he saw, desired invited -
{ The management would be delighted
And many other compliments.
Worth anything from 80 cents;
And then-he came across at last
What he was searching for-the casts
New York Sun.
There is repertoire company in Ore
gOn that is in trouble. and through its
troubles it seems likely that a Chicago
iiTm Of play pirates win be involved.
It appears that this company has
been in the habit Of buying plays from
a Chicago outfit and has.iust discovered
that they We're current offerings re-
written. The Margarita Fisher COM
pany, it is called, and Margarita, ac-
cording to the bills, is the youngest
leading lady on the stage"
1t is but one Of the companies that
play the Htte villages which the regu-
lar shows never visit" explained a
Snowman. They pick up all their ac-
tors in country towns. They get young
men who can play some musical in
! strument. and take a chance on them
being able to act. The main thing IS
the band. The music draws the people
in. Sometimes the actors drive them
out The salaries are low. but not so
bad for the people that get them Re-
member farmland only gets $40 a
month
What do they do for theatre build
ings In these hamlets2" was asked.
Nearly every settlement has some
kind of a hall. When they haven't, the
show plays in a tent. in a barn in a
field inclOsed by a high board fence,
even on the open prairie. one Of those
companies is never stuck for a place 70
show"
And scenery?"
They carry it with them They even
have a canvas prOscenium arch which
they can string across q barn and make
it look like a theatre"
And plays2"
They buy pirated plays from a house
in Chicago which revamps copyrighted
productions ard sells them under other
names"
And money!"
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