"A PEEP BEHIND."

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 610, 13 September 1909, Page 8

"A PEEP BEHIND."

WATCHING THE PANTOMIME WHEELS" ' GO ROUND. ' . : HALF-LIGHT ■ IMPRESSIONS. (Br Sylvius.) ' ' • From tlio cosy quiet dress circle, I groped my way down the flight of steep stone stops in the dark,, bent, an' seeing tlio ..unseen. in ; .a modern pantomime. From the. front, '"Jack and Jill*' moves beforo- tho', focus of- thd oyo like a. well-oiled i bit of machinery, with - tho working" parts worn into 6mootli relationship with.cach.other, whirring.merrily on.with that sort of • inevitable action one •is impressed with: when gazing , into tho' engine-room of a steamer at . sea. , Everything, tlint happens, every .change .of scene, tho cbuntlcss: exits apd entrances of 'chorus; and ballct, ap-'-tobocogß inHho pantomime wheel which must find their-allotted : placo if left to themselves.. And they do/ But . how , frail ' tho machinery . parts aro, and what labour, thought,- and. scrupulous care has. to be exercised, nightlycan only. 1 bo grasped'by going behind ,the. scenes., • • Ballets from .Behind, Emerging from, the gloom of dungeon'"'steps, which might have,led to anywhere so profound was-tho blackness, I trippea over an iron rod, and ran into - a bunch of girls,--,beautiful girla encased in-silk (into which' they had been poured by an artistic hand, it seemed), huddled "i the .wings, waiting' for. a 'word, a note, a chprd, or somethitig,; the signal for thorn • to prance into-the sqtiaro of brilliant light which' illuminated tho stage, only visible \iko bars'of through ; a' 1 paling fenco. The . "moon box* was- being raised-with almost imperceptible slowness behiud the "back cloth," tolling mo.that,tho "Harvest".ballot was making all tho noise on tho other side. Looking in from tho dimly-lit wing's,'tho stage seemed to bo a blaze of light, and- the'dainty dancers in their- scarlet' and gold . dresses wore as Circelike salamanders inviting one to "como and bo singed.'- 'With visual use, tho phantasy passed —passed with a jerk. "Out of the way, there!", came, a voice.from under a heap of scenery which lay against tho side wall of, the- theatre.-. "With startling suddenness tho stage was "blacked out," and round mo in the gloom was a swarm of pantmg, hurrying - girls—

■•'•'■'' ■"'•'■'■'Tlump.Rirls; tender girls,. : : ;1 Solid girls,, and slender girls"— • rashing.'pell-mell for! the back ".of .''.'th'o'-8&g0..' The irons . supporting 'the ""■'firings" '■• wera wrenched: away,, the ' scene', moved away, and " as' "if by magic''"another ono grew 111 its "place in a" few 'seconds. • Click!' And once more" the "stage' was bathed in dazzling light, and'a) bevy'of angels in pink batmng toilets sailed in' to theswing of tho catchy waltz' tune—''"""' "Splashing in the briny, .'. Splashing in tho /soa." ' Click! Out .went. tho lights , but the. tuns went on, and, 10, against the scene wore \ a dozen of .the fair tumbling about in the sunflecked ■ breakers.'-This is one' of the prettiest effects in tho pantomime,,- and though disillusionising, ought to bo explained. When, tho lights go out, >the: ordinary sea-shore scone is hoisted out .'of \ sight, leaving, a white doth pierced .with.'., a,-, number- ,of wholes, of varying size. Through these slits, which' are made of elastic; texture, girls; ara 'nserted, isome to the, waist, and others to only the head and shoulders at varying• heights.. Soma kneel, down arid' others. stand on boxes to-fit themselves, into tho marine ' On this cloth a kinematograph, of rolling'breakers (tinted in" natural colours) is; played,; and the effect—well,- it is Manly to tho life. The illusion is made perfect by the shrieks and laugh* 'ter- of the girls as they (apparently),' tumbla about in the surf. T referred toHhe frailty of pantomime machinery.; ■An • instance of it occurred on Saturday':night, when, it was, found that the direct,current, for,;the ! kinematograph had.not/be'en'turned on.'oorisequenUy, the picture never came, and the -would-be'.surf bathers yelled 'in. a sea of Stygian blackness'-; instead of the pellucid,green, of Pacific .breakors.. It-was very trying'for the audience—and. the stage manager's temper. ~.;. ■ Giants in Repose. '■.', ■ ■■':...' p£,'■';,■■' v' •■•.■'.■■'■ "Stop Over' these!"■ advis-SdV friendly i voico. as., we' appfoach'edca^nuinber':of;clothes-props; Notiiwishing to-mife artfd.wyrby knocking thomI .grasped the; first one,, and found'it was was>(>ne,of;theiginnrs logs,, and this particular, giant was;seated,On a.plat-, hjs-stilts,',' preparatory to dressing himself./: Ho ■ had "'a great pink head beside aim', and was strapping the top of'the stilts round his thighs, whenl grabbed the p'olo in the .vicinity of his size !23. | boot.. :There.Wcro'four.of the giant;family on the platform, ■ and what' I' had mistaken-;for props were tho nether -limbs of this terribla family. .ThV.fnriniest.sight was that of ono of the 'tallest giants fully, attired; waitingliis en-, trance with bis headunder his own head, looked' a' more wart' on' the ■' Gargantuan creature. ■ ■-• ;''■. ■ ■ '■''. ■-, '- : ! Sustenance: in' tho Wings." .: ,'; iV: _ Attracted; by light andlaughter, the two irresistible elements, v I wandered. to tho o.p. corner to' listen to "Jimmie" Campbell (tha Dame) and Fred Leslie »(the Baron) ohattering jocularly. Thero I found'dear little Jack-r-a chubby Httlo fellow, in dove grey—sipping "hot milk and "water, from.a cup, as she hold a Sink, shawl round her lily neck. ' She criently preferred these to. - Jill*; when out of sight of the. audionco.. It was distressingly disillusionising—they -wore so devoted in- tho. limelight. Miss Stella Gastollo i 6 a nicer Jack close up than'.she. is: rows of .stalls away;-and she,sipped her:innocent beverage with, the same charm as she. trolls about "Tho Lassie' from' Lancashire." Warm milk and.,wator 'is soothing to the - glottis,. and'' grateful ; ;. and comforting as "Epps's 'cocoa in the,stress ofv» pantomime season'.'-.." '." s . v\.■:■'■•-• .".-.-

Above tho Scone.. . v - Spurning the 6ta'ge, I mounted to the. "flieis" ; —the overhead gallery that runs round ' the ' stage. There one.,is, "up in tho clouds,"' ua .away,', above suspended i over 1 the'stagd .is a perfect mazo. of painted,cloths, hung so thickly that it is difficult,,'even,Arhcni.close. iip.v to; tell what tlicy-are. 'flioy. are susjjended with block and tackle, all . tho ropes "being brought . to the one side: for; convenience in handling,. How the fiy-nien detect one 1 pair, of'ropes from another and; prevent tho running gear becoming hopelessly entangled must-be a trad©: secret.' To mo it appeared -an incomprehensible task. Yet they had time to hove, a littlo game' with tlie "broads".in between scene-shifts. An Electric .Moment. . But watolj them on a • cue ■to change scene. One man. stpnds by the drop-curtain wihdlasa . and. each 0f... the other eight grasps his own particular pair ,'ofj ropes.'. Away down, below, on the opposite' sidey„ the stage manager can bo seen with his finger hovering above an eloctrio button,'as ho. watch'cs tho performor wIW gives the curtain cue.'- The. note is sung.' Eing-a-lingl whimpers the. electric bell in tho -flies. v Whirr 1., the. curtain drops, and tlio 6amo instant every fly-inan is quietly busy with hif ropes.' It is.all over in three or four seconds— in .which- timo oiie \sefc of sky-borders ha? v ' been raised and another set lowered, '.ono bacV cloth elevated out. of eight, ' and anothei dropped—the scene' is Changed! The noil moment ono of tho riien volunteers'to mako i> "htarts," and I leave. \ ' The Wai'drobe Mistress. ; ~ At tho.back.of .the flics sits.a- woman,' near » sewing machine,, and surrounded by tho Jaraphernajia of a dressmaker.. She and her assistants are known as "the wardrobe/' audi theire v is. the task to preserve: as fat as possible thi ?,'S ry ' °J tho costulucs ' It is no easy task. When I saw her she was stitching a cover of silk on a canvas, dancing shoe—flat 6olos, 1 no heels whatever,' an upper of strojfc whito ■ canvas on to which is sown silk or satin of-what-over colour is desired. ."Hon long does a ballot shoo in action last? 1 ! 11 asked. • ; a 'J depends—some girlß nro much heavier 'than.other;.' Some, of, thorn haven't been recovered since wo.were in Chpstchurch; Then thero is/a girl in the company who knocks out her covers iu a week I'V lie-covering ballot' shoes is'the one interminable job for tho-pan. tomimo "wardrobe.": Cuh you iinaginv,' too,' what tho packing and unpacking of tho'half- - dozon dresses worn by each of the 100 girhrin tlio Bhow- must mean? There, again, tho "wardrobe" is responsible. 1 "' ctl °f' "!°/magnitude of "Jack and Jul as a production and a means of employ. : ment. is given when it is. averred that tlioro aro between' 150 and IGO peoplo travelling with tho, show. . It takes, nine fly-men, : . eight- woperty men, sixteen stage carpenters (eight-oc each side), eight electricians, and four limolight men, ,to work tlio -agnrt from tAe ■ ihombers' of . the company who provido ' tie performance. Truly. Mr... J. : C. Williamson'« pantomimes aro just as much entitled, to rani; as great industries from the. economical'standpoint as, they are satisfying in on artistie sense. v . •