CROWDED HOUSES

Evening Post, Volume XCVII, Issue 65, 19 March 1919, Page 8

CROWDED HOUSES

AT HIS MAJESTY'S THEATRE

Action was taken against Walter Fuller, proprietor of His Majesty's Theatre, at the Magistrate's Court yesterday afternoon on four charges of allowing overcrowding in the theatre. Mr. T. Young appeared for the defendant.

Mr^J. O'Shea, City Solicitor, said that the bylaw had been made in the interests of public safety, and the alleyways, etc., were the minimum consistent with safety, in the event of fire or panic. In the past some little latitude had been allowed theatre proprietors, but even though they had been warned that the practice must stop, they had persisted ;n allowing patrons to stand in the pas sages, and as a result action had iiad t-> be taken.

City inspectors gave evidence in support of the charges, Mr. Young contended that the bylaw was unreasonable. The practice of allowing a certain number of patrons to stand was permitted in theatres the world over. A discussion had' taken place in the City Council quite recently on the matter, and it was only decided by a bar? majority that the bylaw, should be enforced. He agreed that a' bylaw should govern the number of patrons who could Be allowed to stand, but, he held, that number should be governed largely by the exits of the particular theatre. There had been no prosecution of the kind for many years, and then suddenly four charges were laid against His Majesty's Theatre. The City Council flouted the bylaw itself by its action in allowing the Town Hall to be crowded on more than one occasion.

Defendant gave evidence as to the number of persons allowed to stand in English and other theatres. Considering the amount of standing room there was in His Majesty's Theatre, he considered the bylaw unreasonable. Actually, on the occasions complained of, all the seats, especially in the" gallery, were not occupied, and those standing were later accommodated with seats. At the time when the inspectors called, about 8.30, efforts were being made to seat everyone in the building. Not more than 600 tickets had been sold for the gallery on the Saturday evening when it was said to have been so crowded, whereas 900 people could be seated in that .part of the house. Ray Fuller, manager of the theatre, also gave evidence to the effect that all patrons were accommodated on the night ill question. -„. Mr. E. Page, S.M., held that before defendant could succeed on the ground that the bylaw was unreasonable he must prove his contention, and that he_ had failed to do. Moreover, he was satisfied that patrons had been allowed to stand about the passage ways. The Magistrate remarked that apparently the fault was not so much that there- was a lack of seating accommodation as that an usher was not on duty to "straighten them up." Defendant was fined £3,' and costs, on the first charge, and was convicted and ordered to pay costs on the remaining counts.