The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-02-25
BY FRANCES JONES.


AS YOU settle into comfortable
seat in a theater. open your program
and are all prepared for the perform
ance TO begin, do you ever wonder
just what is going oit behind the cur
tain at which you Stare2 And then
not being either a member of the
company or of the stage hands union
you remain in your seat as a specta-
tor and see the curtain rise, just like
you always have. Then just imagine
that you were given the surprise of
your life, and permitted TO slip thru
the door that leads into that exciting
place back stage. This is what hap
pened to me one day last week and
since then I've been telling everybody.
! "Oh, yes. I saw the Follies and from
back stage too
Behind the scenes is no place for a
big person, when a performance is
going on. One should be a human
bean pole. and able to squeeze them
self into less than the reported six
teen inches allowed per person in
Westminster Abbey for England
Mary's wedding The situation is
much worse too when there is a rain
and a leaky roof, for just as one I'M
tangles themself from some of the
ropes leading to something or other
and selects a spot out of the way.
more than likely he is under a leak IN
the roof. and then when you've
changed your position to a dry look
ing place you find that the spot you
! have chosen to rest your elbow on IS
a brake or clutch or something which
the electrician jerks forward and then
when you move again you find your
self in front of the stage manager,
which will never. never do A person
could spend his entire time in keeping
out CT the way and never see one bit
of the show
But between moves, I managed to
q nj a a aar-iV, n
She looked like she was trying some
reducing exercises, but then they said
she was getting the muscles of her
legs in shape for her act. I saw the
comedian hunting for one of his hats,
which he had lost, saw a curtain
which looked beautiful to the audi
ence and which was a slightly soiled
piece of muslin. saw a big velvet cur
tain with weight of 500 pounds of
sand on it, heard the Stage manager
tear off a mile or two of remi-
niscences and failed to see one single
girl smoking.
Girls Wear Aprons.
Do you have the impression that
between acts the girls on the stage
romp around behind the scenes in
lovely silk kimonos2 Wei, they don't +;
| that is these didn't Lots of them
wore house dresses and aprons. There
| was very little guinness in the Follies
! time They laughed, talked. teased
| one another. and more than once the
| stage manager suddenly stopped giving
| directions to his men, to say in a
| stage whisper. ''Shh. girls. quiet" one
| of the men in the cast was making his
! share of the noise in trying to per-
| suade one particular girl in the chorus
| to sing tenor and Sing it loud. too.
/ he pleaded. Womanlike she wouldn'
/ give him a definite answer until just
ready to step from behind the wings,
| then she tossed back over her shoulder
| 4 Sure, I will"
Every once in a while the stage
| manager and 1 parted company. for
!, being both manager and having sew
I eral parts in the first act, he was a
I right busy person Once during the
/ afternoon. as he was explaining why
: it was that sounds from back stage
I didn't reach out into the audience
! very easily, suddenly he shot forward
] out onto the stage. and came back with