The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-06-10
Rhode Opera House as Member
Of Western Organization To
Book With All Agencies
OFFERS TIME TO The TRUST
Manager Joseph G.. Rhode Named as
wisconsin Director for Big Thea
trical Organization Control
ling Western Theatres

i Opera House in this city is the Wis
consin director and under the guidance
of whom the Rhode Opera House in
this city is operated, has dealt stag
gering blow to the theatrical trust by
declaring for an open door policy in
regard to the booking Of attractions
| for the coming season and this declara-
ton on the part of the managers of
theatres in the west promises to mean
lot to the theatre-geers of Kenosha
and other western cities.
The association which has declared
for the open door controls theatres in
many of the states in this section of
the country and in fact it's houses are
now scattered all over the country. It
mas recently secured control of some
Of the best theatres in the larger cities
Of the country. The declaration for
the open door policy means an end of
the theatrical war so far as the houses
represented in the association are con
cerned. All the houses in the Western
Theatre Managers Association will be
open to book plays from any booking
agency. During the past season many
Of the theatres In the cities as well
as in the small towns were forced to
close early in the year because of the
fact that it was impossible for them
to secure plays on account of the ban
placed upon them by the big New York
theatrical combine, but under the new
arrangement these houses will be able
to book attractions regardless of the
control Of them.
Manager Joseph Rhode, who is the
director of the association for Wiscon-
sin, will leave, later in the month for
New York to attend great meeting
of the managers with the heads of the
theatrical trust at which time the bars
will be thrown down and the managers
Of the trust will be notified that they
can get time for their attractions in
any Of the theatres in the association.
In speaking Of the movement Man
ager Rhode said: ''Kenosha, ir com
mon with all other cities represented
in the association, will be benefited by
the new arrangement and I am sure of
a higher class of attractions for next
year than ever before. [ have secured
many attractions from the Klaw and
Erlanger combination for the coming
lseason and this has In no way inter
fered with my booking of the attrac-
tions offered by the Schuberts and
other booking companies not recogniz-
led by the New York combination.
This will result in my being able to
keep the theatre open during the en-
tire season and to offer the best attrac-
tions at all times. This year it was
simply impossible to secure attractions
after the first of May and many of the
theatres in the west were forced to go
into vaudeville or close up. The vau-
deville business is an attractive propo-
sition, but if we can get the right kind
of attractions we would prefer to
operate the opera house as in past
seasons for the production of the legiti-
mate drama. I am planning to an
nounce my bookings for the year with
in shert time and I can assure the
people of the city that the list of
plays to be offered in Kenosha during
Ethe season of 1909 and 1910 will be
the equal of those presented in any
city of the same size in the west. -
The season at the theatre will open
late in August and it is possible that
vaudeville season of a few weeks
will be offered before the opening Of
the regular tsll and winter season, but
this has not been definitely decided
upon.