The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1904-04-28
Two of the
Extra People
BY W. ". HINES
Copyright. 1903. by T. C. Mcclure


$e*e+e+e+e*s++e*s+s+e+e*e4 :
Sometimes they are called super.
numeraries," OF, in derision, "supea."
but stage land and the people them
selves take more kindly to- the more
commonly used term extra people"
In the big crowd Of applicants for
the position with the company which
was to present the society comedy
My Lady Sylvia" were ell sorts and
conditions Of men and women. The
fact that the advertisement inserted
by the stage manager in the morning
newspapers had stated that each ap-
plicant must have evening clothes
had not been sufficient to deter the
man who slept on park bench the
night before from applying, and next
to him in the line you might see the
eager. boyish face of some well
dressed stage struck young fellow
from one of the acting schools.
On the big dark stGge were crowded
over 200 mon and women. and from
these twenty men and as many women
were to be selected to take part in
the ballroom scene. The stage man.
ager passed rapidly from one to an.
other. "Haye you dress suit?'' he
said to the men, and 'Have you ball
gown7" to the women. In spite of the
fact that the advertisement had men.
toned these Us absolutely requisite,
fully half of the applicants did not
own them, and those who did not were
told to go ut once. Then the stage
manager picked out twenty men and
twenty women whom he thought
would be able to carry themselves in
the ballroom scene without awkward
ness.
The men were on one side of tho
stage and the women on the other.
There was no light except that fur
nished by a single "spot light" set in
the rear of the stage, and one could
not see across it well enough to rec
Ognize even a friend
Then began the rehearsal of the Sec
ond act, in which the ballroom scene
occurred.
''The scene. ladies and gentlemen =
began the stage manager. lis Laid in
the ballroom of the Duke of Ellerslie.
The stage settings and exits will in
dicate by chairs. Here is the entrance
to the conservatory and here to tho
supper room. At the rise Of the cur
tain you are waltzing. When the
music stops some Of you 60 into the
conservatory and some into the supper
room. others stand and Talk. When
Archibald is denounced want my pic.
ture this way"
And he began to group the people
about the stage. In the supposed en-
trance to the conservatory he placed
a man and woman. who, he said, were
supposed to be SO interested in each
other that they did not even look uI
when Archibald was charged with
theft. Nov. you two people keep VI
a conversation. Count up to a thou
sand and back again if you can't think
of anything to say to each other, but
be animated and absorbed in each 9th
err"
Neither had noticed the other unit
then on the dimly lighted stage. Ant
the first look. which brought recogni
| ton. caused each to start.
The woman spoke first. nnd with NJ
attempt at lightness said:
who would have ever dreamed i
possible that we should meet in sucl
strange place as this after we tolt
each other gootlhy in virginia7 Wher
have you been and what have 70,
been doingr'
"It Is strange that we should NEE
ut ALL" said the man. II have been dc
ing little of everything and nothin,
well. suppose you have entered on
Of the acting schools and have deter
mined to try to realize your old dream
Of going on the stagey
Exactly. And your"
'Oh, am here because need tn
s. week the part of super pays
Things have not gone well with m
since l left Virginia. made a futil
effort to establish law practice 1
Kansas. drifted to New York to tr
newspaper work. failed there and cam
here. This morning I counted up m
assets and found that they consiste
Of 81 in cash and an indefinite prospet
! Of job on one of the afternoon new
papers. / suppose you know that
cut OF all communication with the pe(
| pie at homer
/ "And you know nothing OF what ha