WILD SCENES AT A THEATRE

Otautau Standard and Wallace County Chronicle, Volume IX, Issue 427, 15 July 1913, Page 7

WILD SCENES AT A THEATRE

ARREST OF AN IMPRESARIO. j Wild scenes which occurred at the Garrick Theatre, London, at the week-end had a sen- j sational sequel when an American impresario was arrested., aft^r an exciting chase, on the \ charge of threatening a famous actor-manager, by reason of wh'ch he went m fear of personal injury. The dramatis persons, m this strange affair were — Mr Arthur Bourchier, the famous actormanager, who has for loiig years appeared at the Garrick. A corps of commissionaires, apparently m Mr Bourchier's employ. j Mr John Salter Hansen, an American j impresario, the gentleman arrested. And A staff of men supposedly m his employ. THE GARRICK STORM!eD. ' BLOOD, BLACK EYES, AND BRUISES, WITH POLICE AS AUDIENCE. The series of events culminating m Mr Hansen's arrest began m the Law Courts, where Mr Hansen oblained an injunction to restrain Mr Bourchier from acting m breach of a certain agreement. This injunction was served at the Garrick Theatre later m the day by solicitors acting on Mr Hansen's behalf. At that time a rehearsal of a new play, ' Croesus/ written by Baron Henri De ; Rothschild, was m progress, and it is the play wheh is the cause of all the trouble. Earlier a number of workmen had appeared outside the theatre and pasted the following bill over the notices of ' Croesus ' : — J. SALTER HANSEN WILL SHORTLY PRODUCE A NEW PLAY. From the entrance porch Mr Hansen directed this work, while a little knot of curious spectators watched the proceedings from the pavement. Mr G. R. Cran, the solicitor acting on behalf of Mr Hansen, subsequently issued the following statement : — J In an action brought by my client, Mr , John Salter Hansen, against Baron Henri De Rothschild and Mr Arthur Bourchier, Mr Justice Bucknill has granted an injunction restraining my client from being prevented from exercising his rights under a certain agreement m respect of the Garrick Theatre, dated April 1, 1913, whereby Mr Hansen became licensee of the said I theatre for a certain period from May 10. | The Judge further ordered that Mr Bourchier be restrained from acting jn breach of a certain other agreement, made between ; my client and Mr Bourchier, for the em- • ployment of the latter to play the leading part m ' Croesus,' the sole rights of representing which m the English language m . England were acquired by my client from Baron Henri De Rothschild. The next evening the theatre was invaded by certain stage hands and others, and after scenes of some violence and disorder Mr Bourchier's staff were ejected, and —The Invaders Took Possession. — In numbers the invading force was far superior to the staff on duty m the theatre. The invaders remained m peaceable possession throughout the night, and there was nothing to break the monotony of their watch until ' late the following afternoon. Meanwhile Mr i Bourchier had applied to a Judge m Chambers, and the result was that the Garrick Theatre was "invested" by a small army of commissionaires and a crowd of stage hands, as well as other persons who had been attracted to the spot by the marshalling of the men m uniform. A few policemen who were about looked on with a supercilious air. The sun was shining brightly, they were comfortably warm, and it did not concern them whether Mr Bourchier or Mr Hansen held the theatre. They are not dramatic critics — just policemen, and that's enough any way. Behind the many doors facing Charing Cross road stood firm and grim the victors of the night before, secure against invasion on the inner side of locked doors. Secure so long as the doors remained closed, but then they didn't. A strange thing happened. Instead of the besieged lying low, as it were, m their fastness, one of their number incautiously opened a front door to speak to a police sergeant. He not only undid the door, but he undid the fort. The besiegers seized the psychological moment and the opportunity, and made a gallant dash for the open portal. The rush was irresistible, and, carrying all before them, the commissionaires, pushing the guardians of the theatre aside, forced their way m. Something m the nature of a free fight then took place. The scene, according to an eye-witness, was of an exciting character, for the stage hands fought lustily. Backward and forward the fight waged, but mostly forward, for the invaders were now An overwhelming numbers. Blows were freely exchanged, the weaker fell, and the stronger trampled on them; noses began to stream forth blood, and eyes were blackened and bruised. To repulse the invaders was impossible, and the men who had taken pos- i session the night before found themselves battered, shaken, and — Rudely Ejected Into the Street. — Then, when all Mr Hansen's representatives had been turned out, the attacking force entered into full possession. All the doors .; and the iron \ gates were locked, and the stage door entrance was barricaded. Behind them there stood, alert ahd ready, a number of the successful invaders awaiting a probable return of those ousted. Mr Hansen, having heard of the disturbance, drove up m a motor car, and, . after making something of a speech to the crowd that had gathered round, drove away again. Meanwhile the police had nothing to do except to keep the crowds moving m front of the theatre. They did not enter into the dispute m any way. When the reporters arrived on' the scene of battle the doors were still being guarded by watchful commissionaires, fortified by members of Mr Bourchier's staff. To attempt to obtain an entrance was as futile as to try to stop the incoming tide, for the janitors were powerful men, with determination writ large on their countenances. Even people m authority, connected with the theatre, communicated with those inside by shouting, < and. with the assistance of grimaces and much display of dumb show, succeeded m I delivering their messages. On the step outside tho door, which was the centre of the [ conflict, there remained grim evidence of the j sanguinary nature of the struggle between the opposing parties — many splashes of blood which no one had thought worth while to remove. One of the army of invaders remarked : "We got an fairly easy, and simply punched them out; m fact, we gave them something more than we got last night." j Later Mr Bourchier issued the following i statement: — The Hon. Mr Justice Bucknill, as Vacation Judge, this morning (May 17) ' vheard an application at his private house ' made by Mr Harold Morris on behalf of Mr Bourchier for an order to discharge the interim injunction which was granted by him on Thursday on an application made ex parte 'on behalf of Mr Hansen, restraining Mr Bourchier from preventing Mr Hansen , using the Garrick Theatre. After hearing i Mr Bourchier's version of the facts the Judge made the order for which Mr Bourchier asked, and Mr Bourchier, m the course of the afternoon, re-entered into possession of his theatre. Later m the afternoon an application upon Mr Bourchier's sworn information, and that of his stage manager, was made to the Chief Magistrate at Bow Street by Mr Bodkin for the arrest of Mr Hansen, with a view to his finding sureties to keep the peace towards Mr Bourchier m consequence of threats of personal violence used by him towards Mr Bourchier. This warrant was executed later m the day, when Mr Hansen was_ arrested m the Gray's Inn road.

[The Court of Appeal rejected Mr Hansen's application to restrain Mr Bourchier from producing the 'Croesus/ over which the critics did not enthuse. 'Hansen was bound over.]

The, Only Way.— Wife : "Mercy! What brought you home so early tonight?" Husband: "I had my pocket picked." Tommy : "Don't you hate house cleaning ?" Freddy : "TSTaw. When ma cleans house she don't clean me."