Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1914-09-21
SAVING THE PLAY
Actors Are Often Called Upon to
Exercise Quick Wit.
SOME CURIOUS EXPERIENCES.

ingly disastrous failure into success,
Politics, literature, courtesy, all are
served by quick tongue and ready
word
Actors, as well as business men, have
special use for quick wit. so often do
they need help out of a difficulty dur
ing the play. A college performance
was saved from wreckage by one Of
the young actors.
| One of the cast, boy easily upset,
had just given his line. "All l need is
an advertisement" when half of his
stage mustache fell of.
"Oh, no." said the ready youth be-
side him, seeing his embarrassment;
what you need is hair restorer."
And under cover of the laughter the
victim had chance to recover himself.
1t was surely the same readiness
that enabled Rose Eytinge to go
through one of the most extraordinary
experiences any actress ever had. In
San Francisco she was once asked to.
fill Mary Andersons place at short
notice. appearing with the local stock
company. The play was to be East
Lynne" BY singular chance, no prompt
book could be found, nor could they
secure copy of the novel. Miss Ey-
tinge protested that 1t would be i'm
possible for her to play. as she had
never so much as seen the piece. That
fact they refused to believe. More
over. to add to her difficulty, though
all the company claimed to know the
old drama backward. no one seemed
to have an idea of the lines she, as
Lady Isabel, would have to speak.
"Oh, that'll be all right" said John
Mccullough. the manager. to whom she
appealed. Just you sob and look sorry.
and it will 60"
So Miss Eytinge. rather than cause
, the loss Of closing the theater, went on
totally unprepared to act in an abso-
lutely unfamiliar play.
Tom Keene. the Archibald Carlisle
instructed her in the proper emotion
from scene to scene. "Now she's a
Jealous cat, a jealous cat" he would
whisper. Now she's kitteny." Nov
she's sorry she was such fool" "Now
!. she wants her young ones" Now she
= up and dies"
The performance seemed to cause en-.
tire satisfaction to the audience. and
Mccullough, as he generously handed
over half the receipts to the heroine OF
the hour, declared. "Well. you may
have had to vamp that part. but I've
often seen 1t played with less soul"
The story of an experience demand.
ing similar readiness of wit is told OF
John Brougham, the early American
comedian and playwright On one oc'
i casion,. when his own clever burlesque
: "Pocahontas. had been billed and the
house sold out in advance. the leading
v actress left without warning to take
another position in Baltimore. The au
dience had assembled before her alb
sence was discovered by the manager
and star AS it was that play or moth
ing. Brougham. who was famed for his
witty impromptu speeches, went before
the curtain and suggested giving the
piece without Pocahontas. He recalled
the old story of the actor who played
Hamlet so execrably that on the fol
8 lowing night the tragedy was giver
with that character omitted by request
Now, II Hamlet can be acted with
% out the hero" he remarked, why no
. 'Pocahontas' without the heroine? o.
J. course you are all aware of the fac
"a that 'Poca ahontas is much greater
/ play than Hamlet Even If you do no
N know that, l do. and l ought to, for
g, wrote 1t myself. Are you willing Il
try itT'
go aheadv came the cries from tht
\. audience, who settled themselves bacl
'. to see the result.
ot The burlesque proceeded as usua
!. until the entrance music was played
s. for Pocahontas: then. turning toward
the audience Brougham, as Powhatan
sadly began: Ladies and gentlemen
that sweet strain is supposed to brinl
n my daughter POcahontas on the stage
l. You are already aware that she is II
the city of Baltimore, and the sterl
law of the land will not permit Chris
ual, muC0 less SdNdBe, W De III wv
= places at once. Thus does the Law
protect that most useful instrument
s' the alibi However. If Poky were her
Id she would hasten to say Whereupol
VS. the comedian gave her lines in exac
le imitation Of the missing actress, keep
ing up the dialogue in two persons a
= through the play. The delighted pee
pie who were fortunate enough to
present declared that Brougham wa
\ avenged
10 G. p. Huntley tells OF an inciden
that took place at an east side theate
in London. The gods" were boom
the piece and throwing chunks Of brea
IT. at the performers.
n At last the star came forward an
said: "Now, look here! We're trying ou
best to amuse you. Throw bread.
you like: but" he added as he stoppe
and picked up chunk. thank heave
I'm not too proud to eat it."
The gods were vanquished--Ann
Bird Stewart In New York Tribune.
= Labor conquers all things. II Is idlI