The Child Actress.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 20, 18 October 1907, Page 3

The Child Actress.

One of the most popular aetor-nianagcrs in London recently gave it as his opinion that the employment of children on the stago was becoming more unpopular every year, rlo said that stago children were a nuisance to tho actors and a weariness to the audience. , (When I hear, ho stated, that a child or two is going to appear at a play dn an ordinary theatre, whero the stage manager does' not know 7 how to deal with its Jtind, and tho mail who is producing the play is not gifted with tho combined insight or a schoplmistress, nurse, mother, and/ toyshop saleswoman,. i could put my finger where thero is going to be trouble. Here is a picture from life of a young person being "rehearsed" for tho first'time for a play in which slio has got to say three or four lines in each of three acts. Tho Producer of tho Play: "Now, Miss A.; will you come forward, stand here, look up at this lady, and say, 'But, mother; you itold me he was coining back to-day. 1 " Miss A.: "What are all those lamps for along tho .stage?" Producer: "To light all of you, so that.tho audience can nee you. And now, will you look up at this lady and say, ' But, mother, you told me ho was .coming back to-day;' " Miss A.: "Will they all be lighted when ! come in?" ' • <■■■'■■• Producer: "Yes, everyone will see you; so you must be very caroful to do what I tell you. Will you look tip at-; " Miss'A.: "But 1 don't want to be seen, not for the first few nights at any rate, till' 1 have got used to it. Need they 'all be lighted just at first?" Producer: " Oh, but everyone will want, to see you if you are acting nicely and doing what you aro told. Now, will you look up at this lady and say " Miss A. (in tears): "But I don't want them to look 1 I won't como on to the'hateful stago if all these lamps aro lighted and everybody is staring at ine." Producer (looking helplessly round for chocolates) : "Well, anyhow, they are not lighted now. Have some sweets and then, just say that line: 'But, mother Miss A.: "I hate squashy chocolate." •> After various rehearsals conducted in this fashion my young lady began to enjoy herself, acted her part with much spirit, and received a small ovation all to herself on .tlie first night. But at tho end of a.fortnight or so life becamo dull again, and -with a view to varying its monotony she pat down on tho floor of her dressing-room one night after being dressed and announced that nothing on earth should induce her to go on the stago that evening. Her dresser took no.notice of the decision at first, but when the, call-boy's voice sounded on the stairs and the young person, still sat motionless, she grow alarmed and sent for the stago manager,. whoso x helplessness when, ho appeared, however, rivalled her own. "I havo got an eye-ache," said little miss, sitting calmly on the floor surveying her openworlc stockings with critical admiration, "and my head goes all wagglcty'when I walk."' ' "Do you want mo to pick you up and carry you on the stago?" asked the stago manager, wrathfully. . ... \ •;; "You can, if you like, but I shouldn't say a word when I got there," says miss, coolly, with ono ear on the final bars of the orchestra's overture, ,to which'the stage manager also is listening in agony. It is too lato to dress the understudy; the whole proceeding is out of his range of action; there, aro tears of. helpless rage in his eyes, as lie survoys tho young person; ... . who, when the over-

turo is within tivo bars of completion,'-jumiis up descends the stairs four steps at a time, 1 and is in her place on the stage when the last note dies away. The humour ,of these proceedings has appealed to Her so' strongly that she repeats them- with variations', once or twico a fortnight, till the manager threatens dismissal and the stage managerproposes to resign when he hoars that a new play lias been accepted with two child parts in' it. Commenting on this, a critic says:— It is a very risky and stupid, proceeding to entrust any serious part of a story which you, arc putting-before these peoplo to . a . child, whoso thoughts and actions are as much a matter of chance as those of a inonkoy. The wholo machinery of the theatre, human-and mcchanical, is, as I say, at the mercy of her and her understudy. If something, goes seriously wrong for one night the nerves of the theatre officials and of the other actors,are on the rack for a iweek afterwards; if -blunders and listless-acting go on for two or-three alights in succession, the run of tho play is in serious danger. I do not believe that the risk is worth taking. The genuine child lover in the audience isseriously annoyed, and wants nothing except to send the. young lady to bedthe lover of a good play, as 1 have suggested, is not at all certain to get what ho wants; while no one call pretend that the'nervous strain of a dramatic presentation 1 of a part whose words and movements are essential to the play is anything but extremely bad for the ordinary child. ' •' Considered, however, as a carefully tended portion of the stago decoration,,,with . t-wo lines to speak in 0110 act, ,tho speaking or omission of which will not make tho faintest difference to anything that is going 011, children are delightful. in a play, musical or Othorwisc. i'ut them, therefore, in smart frocks and big hair ribbons, into an occasional scene for all Itho world to realise that their mother's decision about running away with tho hero is going to be considerably affected by their existence. . But let the mother and the hero do tho talking.