Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-09-09
MATTER OF ENGOREs

Presently, when the theatrical season
gets under full Roadway, we'll be RECALLED
with the usual written nonsense about the
so-calied encore fend. remarked an OBJ
servant theatergoer II don't know OF any
subject concerning which more misleading
bosh Is written than that having to do with
the encore flend
There are encore fiends. Of course. IN
every city but there are not one-twentieth
as many of them as the public Is led to
suppose.
THE genuine encore dend is an irritating
lunatic. but he isn't in any wise responsible
for the great majority OF the tedious en-
cores to which the playfolk respond. They
themselves seem to positively love the en-
core imbecile, and when. by chance, there
doesn't happen to be any encore fiend IN q
theater, they just encore themselves 30 TO
speak.
Tn the vaudeville houses this sort of
thing is particularly noticeable. The popu-
larity and the financial success OF tho
vaudeville entertainers depend. in large
measure, upon the number of recalls they
get from audiences. and when the genuine,
sure-enough recalls don't eyentuate tney
come out and do their little stunt over
again anyway. just as II the audience had
| vociferously demanded them to return
'Just notice this the next time you at.
tend vaudeville show and see I'm not
right.
1.-THE --LATEST. deadest, stalest stage stunt,
| that isn't worthy of a hand and never
by any chance gets one. even from the con,
| frmed encore fends. Is invariably aone
| over again, sometimes three or four times,
| by the insstent theatrical fatheads VINO
are determined to make 1t appear tnat tney
| are getting encores whether they rea'S arc
| or not. ,,.r
"rhey trip of the stage. and. even wneh
! their departure Is followed by the gloom
| lest and most disappearing SORT OF s,ence
| on the part of the audience. they Amos.
| Immediately trip back again. bowins anu
| Sinking, the orchestra leader strikes up
| the band once more, If the lnnlction na an
| been a song. and away they star .s"r,
! into the dismal repetltlon VI ehe
| "That is what you can call taking re-
| calls with a vengeance. It's Simply sea-
| ing ern, as matter of fact. ana peiioi ~
| ances are long-drawn-out and wearisoae
sin ply because these no-accouht,
| serving entertainers are bouno anu -u so
| termined to take as many encotes as .1e
| stage people who really get and deserve
| them. TIL, o.. so,no-
| thing else that is really diverting TO coae
| ale ng on the program have IN conseque.nSe
| to- sit back and yawn and YEARLY abandon
| themselves to their sad destiny until tne
| recall robbers get through with their sra'u-
| itoue rehaShings. ,u9
Zeke in the balcony or gallery "hoI ue
| spite all of the warningful misses OF the
| bored audience persists In clappins Ior .,ie
temperance OF the Hou-eueei .oihS's,
| latter will stretch the point even a1ter a
| &C Lple of deadly silent rebuf1s on the par
| of the house whole ana come Dan
| just as il the. clapping OF the soiltaFy cap
| pc constituted an ovation.
| This sort of thing is not as say, con.
fined to the vaudeville people, either put
| the musical comedy folk are inslstent pur,
| suers Of the policy-if you'd care 10 can
| II policy-of grabbing recalls that are never
extended to them.
"a topical song singer, for instance, VIII
come back and come back. time without
end long after his twists and turns upon
words have ceased to amuse, ana WIN
| nary a clap in the house. simply TOT tne
| glory of being able to brag. next summer
| when he's resting. about the number OF re-
| cs lis he had during his last season out
| "The orchester leader Of a musical comedy
| is generally as much at fault as the mo-
| notouous funny man. With no encourage
| n.ent whatever the orchestra leader hoids
W his baton q signal TO the insuu-
| mentalists when the audience is Wlstiully
| hoping that the topical song man VIII go
| anyway and let the performance proceed,
and the topical song man slides out again
| with the first note Of his ditty and begins
| his mournful foolery all over again.
| 1.-THE orchestra leader also FORCES the
| chorus of an extravaganza company 10
| work hard by pulling his baton to an at
| tention' when there isn't even the symp-
| tom of a demand on the part Of an audi
| ence that chorus or finale be zone over
| again.
! 1.-THE encore f1end exists, OF course, ana
| is a pest Just as the boil weevil or some
| more domesticated bugs are, but 1t ism
| wholly his fault, or anything like 1t, tnat
an evening at the theater is evocative OF
| so many yawns when the recall thieves
are engaged in their pilfering.