Los Angeles herald., 1909-01-13
DEAF MUTE READS
LIPS OF PLAYERS
REGULAR ATTENDANT AT BUR-
BANK PERFORMANCES
Understands Lines and Action, and
Gives Outline of the Plot
After Hearing the
Play

Leon Arthur Fiske, a deaf mute, is a
regular Sunday afternoon attendant at
the Burbank theater. Mr. Fiske, who
is a graduate of the Wisconsin State
School for Deaf Mutes of the class of
1902, follows the lines Of the actors by
lip reading and always is able after
each performance to give fairly good
outline of the plot.
Il go to the Burbank every week
and find the plays interesting or dull,
as the case may be, for as 1 am deaf
and do not get the verbal part of the
play certain plays are more ineligible
and consequently more interesting to
me than Others" said Mr.. Fiske yes
terday at his home at 47O1 Compton
avenue. For this reason | appreciate
most plays in which the action, fol-
lowing ShakeSpeare's admonition to the
players, is best suited to the words.
Sometimes I can understand whole
scenes without help. That was true of
Sporting Life which l saw yesterday.
In this play there is much action-so
much that it tells the story pretty
clearly.
Comparison with Picture Show
''In order to make my position, when
man who hears, 1 may say that 1 am
in the same situation which confronts
the hearing man when he goes to a
picture show. There the pictures must
tell the story, else he would not know
what it was about. 50 with me the
stage pictures, the action and the act
ing, must tell the plays plot if that
plot is to be Ineligible to me. There
is, however, this advantage on my
side. Frequently I can read the lips
Of the actors and thus can understand
the giSt of what they are saying, even
if / miss an occasional word. Usually
at the Burbank I have the company
of a hearing friend, who is an expert
with the sign language, and thus 1
get many hints that help me to under
stand what the play is about. Sun
day, however, these explanations were
in large measure unnecessary, as the
play in pantomime told it's own story
with measurable completeness. I have
been deaf since years of age and
never have heard play in my life,
though have seen many of them.
Understands Lines
myself and friend were in our usual
seats, in the front row at the Burbank,
Sunday afternoon. We always sit in
the first row because it facilitates my
lip reading. From my seat I was able
to read the lips of Mary Hall, Will
Desmond, John Burton and Miss Tay-
Ior, together with several other mem
bers of the company; that is, when
the sentences happened to be spoken
plainly, so the motion of the lips was
not lost, and when the actors were
facing in my direction. I am told Will
liam Yerance, who has just Joined the
Burbank company, speaks with great
distinctness. Doubtless this is so, but
could not read Mr.. Yerance's lips
yesterday because I wasn't used to
him. 1t takes time, this lip reading.
You have to be accustomed to a per-
sons peculiarities of talking before you
can read their lips. Later I may find
Mr.. Yerance a great aid. From what
I am told I judge this will be the
case.
ST am much interested in the stage.
Many of my friends are also inter
ested. We, the deaf mutes, hope in the
future to give a play in our language
upon some Los Angeles stage. It
would be novelty for playgoers Of
cessfully presented elsewhere in the
sign language. Certainly there is no
reason why we cannot do it here, and
we are going to try.
Pantomime Big Hell
"Often T read that pantomime is a
lost art. It is not a lost art with us.
1t is a daily necessity. Naturally we
must adopt numerous short cuts in
communicating our ideas to one an
other and pantomime helps tremen-
dously. When talk to deaf friend,
for instance, do not spell out in full
all the words use. That would take
too long. Instead / employ a sort Of
shorthand, digitally expressed, and I
use pantomime. It is easy after you
once learn how.
"'Sporting Life is a good panto-
mime, by which I mean that it is a
play that I can understand easily
merely by seeing it. It is something
out of the ordinary, bringing one into
the inside life of all the characters
from the owner Of horses to the stable
man. Will Desmond acts the role of
a gentleman sport, who is a sport and
an honorable one too. Mary Hall and
A. Byron Beasley do well as a pair of
plotters who would leave nothing I'M
turned to carry out their plans for
successful rake-in at the finish of the
Derby. I think Sporting Life is really
something novel. The plot is we'll car
ried out and the story is interesting.
Gets All the Fine Points
:" Sporting Life is the first play I
have seen in which Mary Hall has
played bad woman. 1 liked her as
Mrs. De Carteret, liked her in other
roles, too; so it seems to me she plays
both kinds we'll. Beasley, of course, is
a 'corker' as a villain, and Desmond
is best as the hero. In the prize fight
scene he shows his shape. Of course,
he might be prize fighter himself,
but he isn't one. though he can act
the part even before a local pug.
although I cannot read William
Yerance's lips think his acting good
and hope to see more Of him. en-
joyed Sporting Life very much and
think it should prove popular"