The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-11-18
OLD DRURY
LANE THEATRE
OLD PLAYHOUSE HAS
NO RIvALS-IT IS NOW MORE
THAN 100 YEARS oLp-oF RE-
CENT YEARS IT HAS BEEN THE
SCENE OF MELoDRAMA.

Springfield Theatre: The Tooth an
niversary Of the present Drury Lane
theatre building in London passed al
most unnoticed by the press and pub
lie last October. 1t may have been that
they thought that the glory had de-
parted from old Drury, or it ma have
been waiting for the more suitable
anniversary of this year, for April s
closed a season Of $50 years since the
building Of the first of the four sue
cessive Drury Lane theatres that have
been erected on the same spot. This
April milestone should touch every
playgoer nearly, for no theatre of to-
day in the English speaking world is
more deeply rooted in the history Of
English acting and dramatic literature
than the Drury Lane.
Mr.. Pepys tells us about the first
house in his diary, complaining that
he could not hear the music and that
the pit was drenched with rain. He is
the most frivolous recording angel Of
the most frivolous period of the Eng
fish drama, and the new house in 1868
Is n Of the noteworthy events of his
gossipy chronicle. It must have been
closely patented on the E~lizabethan
theatres, with its pit %unroofed and it's
stage projecting into the audience and
having for spectators as well as
actors. Seventeenth century theatres
were short-lived, and this one burned
down early in 1872.
Second Building Famous.
1t Is the second building. put up two
years later from plans by christopher
When, hat has made the name Of
TNrfI INV T p ar,ocf1 FNhi~ &1ra
house Of Dryden, Cibber, Garrick and
Sheridan. Here, under Sheridan's
management, were given the first per-
formances Of The Rivals and The
School for Scandal. Here Charles
Lamb, a child Of 6, was taken to the
theatre for the first time, and sat in
his mothers lap in the pit, dazzled by
the glories Of Persia, as revealed by
the play Of Artaxerxes. He tells
essay called My First Play, and
the little boy must have had even then
a. we'll developed sense of the theatre
to remember all the minute detail of
the theatre and play, from the orange
girls outside to the court of Persia
within. The theatre Of Drury Lane is
constantly referred to in all of Lambs
essays, and is evidently a prominent
feature in his landscape, both figura-
lively dllu llLSAd Oily 4oi AlS lIdN lICT
admission after he had produced
in it one of his comedies, and he lived
in a house facing the playhouse.
About fifteen years after Sheridan
had inherited Garricks management
and company of actors the theatre wa
condemned as unsafe, and in 1874 a
new n was erected, but burned down
in 1909, and The London Times of the
next day records the magnificent con-
a. o1.1 ~ .-IstoI. rsr,-N 1fSyL i1 xh~ a., ~
sky and lighted up st. Paul's and the
Thames.
Present Building in 1912.
The present building went up in
1912 and was opened Oct. ~ with a
performance of Hamlet and an ad-
dress written by Byron. which has
been characterized as the worst thing
he ever wrote. 1t is to be found only
in his collected works. and few would
resurrect it. even on an anniversary
occasion. The theatre Is said t o be q
copy of the Grand theatre in Bor~
deaux, but if that is true the resem i
outside the Bordeaux theatre looks
like a, Greek. temple. while the Drury
Lane has been referred to as a plain,
honest, homely, industrious, whole
some, brown brick playhouse, all plain
and smooth like a ouakers' meeting.
That was only the exterior semblance,
which is unchanged today, except for
a colorado on Catherine street. The
interior was gaudy enough then, as it
is today. with gold leaf and red plush
to please any lover of prodigal decor
alton. w.. a #e
. The last century brought little to
the Drury Lane theatre to make 1t
worthy the name of great which IL
had under Garrick and Sheridan. Ed
mund Kean, Macready, and Henry r.
wing brought brief intervals of light
into it's history, and as long as it was
n of the only five royal theatres III
was not hard to fill its enormous u
ditorium, though the seating capacity
is over $500. In 1913, when an act Of
parliament gave 1t numerous competi-
tors, it's history became that of char
latans and adventures. But when
Sir Augustus Harris made it the no.
5tional theatre for the exploitation OF
those national virtues Of morality,
humor and horror of crime which are
embodied in every good meIodrama,
he found a rue and successful yoca-
.tion for the theatre. Ever since 1t has
been the home Of rlelodrama and van
5tomime. OF recent years it has sent
to America The Whip and the Speck-
led Band as specimens of its best
work and has received in return Ben
EHur and EVeryWonlara. Thanks til
this theatre the Drury Lane melo-
drama and pantomime are, for the
modern playgoer in England a1d
America, as distinct types of dranaat-