miss winifred emery—amusing criticism—an actress’s home life—cyril maude’s first theatrical venture—first performance—a luncheon party—a bride as leading lady—no games, no holidays—a party at the haymarket—miss ellaline terriss and her first appearance—seymour hicks—ben webster and montagu williams—the sothern family—edward sothern as a fisherman—a terrible moment—almost a panic—asleep as dundreary—frohman at daly’s theatre—english and american alliance—mummers.
another striking instance of hereditary theatrical talent is miss winifred emery, than whom there is no more popular actress in london. this pretty, agreeable little lady—who, like mrs. kendal and miss terry, may be said to have been born in the theatre—is the only daughter of samuel sanderson emery, a well-known actor, and grand-daughter of john emery, who was well known upon the stage. her first appearance was at liverpool, at the advanced age of eight.
the oldest theatrical names upon the stage to-day are william farren and winifred emery. miss emery’s great-grandfather was also an actor, so she is really the fourth generation to adopt that profession, but her grandmother and herself are the[pg 47] only two women of the name of emery who have appeared on playbills.
as is well known, miss emery is the wife of mr. cyril maude, lessee with mr. frederick harrison—not the world-renowned positivist writer—of the haymarket theatre.
although mrs. maude finds her profession engrossing, she calls it a very hard one, and the necessity of being always up to the mark at a certain hour every day is, she owns, a great strain even when she is well, and quite impossible when she is ill.
some years ago, when she was even younger than she is now, and not overburdened with this world’s gold, she was acting at the vaudeville. it was her custom to go home every evening in an omnibus. one particularly cold night she jumped into the two-horse vehicle and huddled herself up in the farthest corner, thinking it would be warmer there than nearer the door in such bitter weather. she pulled her fur about her neck, and sat motionless and quiet. presently two women at the other end arrested her attention; one was nudging the other, and saying:
“it is ’er, i tell yer; i know it’s ’er.”
“nonsense, it ain’t ’er at all; she couldn’t have got out of the theayter so quick.”
“it is ’er, i tell yer; just look at ’er again.”
the other looked.
“no it ain’t; she was all laughing and fun, and that ’ere one looks quite sulky.”
the “sulky one,” though thoroughly tired and weary, smiled to herself.
[pg 48]
i asked miss emery one day if she had ever been placed in any awkward predicament on the stage.
“i always remember one occasion,” she replied, “tragedy at the time, but a comedy now, perhaps. i was acting with henry irving in the states when i was about eighteen or nineteen, and felt very proud of the honour. we reached chicago. louis xi. was the play. in one act—i think it was the second—i went on as usual and did my part. having finished, as i thought, i went to my room and began to wash my hands. it was a cold night, and my lovely white hands robbed of their paint were blue. the mixture was well off when the call boy shouted my name. thinking he was having a joke i said:
“‘all right, i’m here.’
“‘but mr. irving is waiting for you.’
“‘waiting for me? why, the act isn’t half over.’
“‘come, miss emery, come quick,’ gasped the boy, pushing open the door. ‘mr. irving’s on the stage and waiting for you.’
“horrors! in a flash i remembered i had two small scenes as marie in that act, and usually waited in the wing. had i, could i have forgotten the second one?
photo by window & grove, baker street, w.
miss winifred emery and mr. cyril maude in “the school for scandal.”
“with wet red hands, dry white arms, my dress not properly fastened at the back, towel in hand, along the passage i flew. on the stage was poor mr. irving walking about, talking—i know not what. on i rushed, said my lines, gave him my lobster-coloured wet hand to kiss—a pretty contrast to my[pg 49] ashen cheeks, and when the curtain fell, i dissolved in tears.
“mr. irving sent for me to his room. in fear and trembling i went.
“‘this was terrible,’ he said. ‘how did it happen?’
“‘i forgot, i forgot, why i know not, but i forgot,’ i said, and my tears flowed again. he patted me on the back.
“‘never mind,’ he said kindly, ‘but please don’t let it occur again.’”
once when i was talking to this clever little lady the conversation turned on games.
“games!” she exclaimed. “i know nothing of them: as a child i never had time to play, and when i was sixteen years old i had to keep myself and my family. of late years i have been far too busy even to take up golf.”
mrs. maude has two charming daughters, quaint, old-fashioned little creatures, and some years their junior is a small brother.
the two girls were once invited to a fancy dress ball in harley street: it happened to be a saturday, and therefore matinée day. their mother arranged their dresses. the elder was to wear the costume of lady teazle, an exact replica of the one reproduced in this volume, and which mrs. maude wore when playing that part, while the younger was to be dressed as a dutch bride, also a copy of one of miss emery’s dresses in the black tulip. they all lunched together, and as the mother was going off[pg 50] to the theatre, she told the nurse to see that the children were dressed properly, and take them to the house at a certain hour.
“oh, but, mummy, we can’t go unless you dress us,” exclaimed the elder child; “we should never be right.” and therefore it was settled that the two little people should be arrayed with the exception of the final touches, and then driven round by way of the haymarket theatre, so that their mother might attend to their wigs, earrings, hat or cap, as the case might be.
what a pretty idea. the mother, who was attracting rounds of applause from a crowded house every time she went on the stage, running back to her dressing-room between the scenes, to drop down on her knees and attend to her little girls, so that they should be all right for their party.
admiring the costume of the younger one, i said:
“why, you have got on your mother’s dress.”
“no, it’s not mother’s,” she replied. “it’s my dress, and my shoes, and my stockings—all my very own; but it’s mother’s gold cap, and mother’s earrings, and mother’s necklace, and mother’s apron—with a tuck in,” and she nodded her wise little head.
this was a simple child, not like the small american girl whose mother was relating wonderful stories of her precocity to an admiring friend, when a shrill voice from the corner called out:
“but you haven’t told the last clever thing i said,[pg 51] mamma,” evidently wishing none of her brilliant wit to be lost.
they looked sweet, those two children of mrs. maude’s, and the way the elder one attended upon her smaller sister was pretty to see.
in a charming little house near the brompton oratory mrs. maude lived for years, surrounded by her family, perfectly content in their society. she is in every sense a thoroughly domesticated woman, and warmly declares she “loves housekeeping.”
one cannot imagine a happier home than the maudes’, and no more charming gentleman walks upon the stage than this well-known descendant of many distinguished army men. mr. maude was at charterhouse, one of our best public schools, and is a most enthusiastic old carthusian. so is general baden-powell, whose interest in the old place went so far as to make him spend his last night in england among his old schoolfellows at the city charterhouse when he returned invalided on short leave from the transvaal. the gallant soldier gave an excellent speech, referring to founders’ day, which they were then commemorating, and delighted his boy hearers and “ancient brethren” equally.
on charterhouse anniversaries mr. maude drops his jester’s cap and solemnly, long stick in hand, takes part in the ceremony at the old carthusian church made popular by thackeray’s newcomes.
cyril maude was originally intended for another profession, but, in spite of family opposition, elected to go upon the stage, and as his parents did not[pg 52] approve of such a proceeding, he commenced his theatrical career in america, where he went through many vicissitudes. he began in a shakespearian rèpertoire company, playing through the western mining towns of the states, where he had to rough it considerably.
“i even slept on a bit of carpet on a bar-room floor one night,” he said; “but our beautiful company burst up in ’frisco, and i had to come home emigrant fashion, nine days and nine nights in the train, with a little straw mattress for my bed, and a small tin can to hold my food. they were somewhat trying experiences, yet most interesting, and gave great opportunities for studying mankind. i have played in every conceivable sort of play, and once ‘walked on’ for months made up as gladstone in a burlesque, to a mighty dreary comic song.”
so mr. maude, like the rest who have climbed to the top, began at the bottom of the ladder, and has worked his way industriously up to his present position, which he has held at the haymarket since 1896, and where—he laughingly says—he hopes to die in harness.
cyril maude gives rather an amusing description of his first theatrical performance. when he was a boy of eighteen his family took a house at dieppe for six months, and he was sent every day to study french with monsieur le pasteur.
“one day, when i had been working with him for three or four weeks, he asked me what i was going to make my profession.
[pg 53]
“‘comédien,’ i replied.
“‘comment? comédien? etes-vous fou?’ he exclaimed, horrified and astounded at such a suggestion, and added more gravely, ‘i am quite sure you have not the slightest idea how to act; so, my boy, you had better put such a ridiculous idea out of your head and stick to your books. besides, you must choose a profession fit for a gentleman.’
“of course i felt piqued, and as i walked home that evening i just wondered if there were not some way by which i could show the old man that i could act if i chose.
“the pasteur had a resident pupil of the name of bishop, a nice young fellow, and to him i related my indignation.
“‘of course you can act,’ he said; so between us we concocted the brilliant idea that i should dress up as bishop’s aunt and go and call upon the pasteur, with the ostensible view of sending another nephew to his excellent establishment. overjoyed at the scheme i ransacked my mother’s wardrobe, and finally dressed myself up to resemble a somewhat lean, cadaverous english old maid.
“i walked down the street to the house, and to my joy the servant did not recognise me. the old man received me with great cordiality and politeness. i told him in very bad french, with a pronounced cockney accent, that i was thinking of sending another of my nephews to him if he had room. at this suggestion the pasteur was delighted, took me upstairs, showed me all the rooms, and made[pg 54] quite a fuss over me. then he called ‘my nephew,’ who nearly gave the show away by choking with laughter when i affectionately greeted him with a chaste salute. this was the only part of the business i did not really enjoy! as we were coming downstairs, the pasteur well in front, i smiled—perhaps i winked—at bishop, anyhow i slipped, whereupon the polite old gentleman turned round, was most désolé at the accident, gave me his arm, and assisted me most tenderly all the rest of the way to the dining-room, his wife following and murmuring:—
“‘prenez garde, madame, prenez garde.’
“having arrived at the salle-à-manger the dear old pasteur said he would leave me for a moment with his wife, in case there was anything i might like to discuss with her, and to my horror i was left closeted with madame, nervously fearing she might touch on subjects fit only for ladies’ ears, but not for the tender years of my manly youth. needless to say i escaped from her clutches as quickly as possible.
“for two days i kept up the joke. then it became too much for me, and as we were busily working at french verbs, in the curé’s study, i changed my voice and returned to the old lady’s cockney french intonations, which was not in the least difficult, as my own french was none of the brightest. the pasteur turned round, looked hard at me for a moment, and then went back to the verbs. i awaited another opportunity, and began again. this time he almost glared at me, and then,[pg 55] clapping his hands to his head and bursting into laughter, he exclaimed:
“‘mais c’était vous, c’était vous la tante de bishop?’
“it turned out he had written that morning to bishop’s real aunt, accepting her second nephew as a pupil, and arranging all the details of his arrival. how surprised the good lady must have been.”
june 3rd, 1899, was the eleventh anniversary of cyril maude and winifred emery’s wedding day, and they gave a delightful little luncheon party at their pretty house in egerton crescent, where they then lived. the host certainly looked ridiculously young to have been married eleven years, or to be the father of the big girl of nine and the smaller one of six who came down to dessert.
their home was a very cosy one—not big or grand in those days, but thoroughly carried out on a small scale, with trees in the gardens in front, trees in the back-yard behind, and the aspect was refreshing on that frightfully hot oaks day.
winifred emery had a new toy—a tiny little dog, so small that it could curl itself up quite happily in the bottom of a man’s top hat, but yet wicked enough to do a vast amount of damage, for it had that morning pulled a blouse by the sleeves from the bed to the floor, and had calmly dissevered the lace from the cambric.
the maudes are a most unconventional theatrical pair. they love their home and their children, and seem to wish to get rid of every remembrance of[pg 56] the theatre once they pass their own front door. and yet it is impossible to get rid of the theatre in the summer, for besides having eight performances a week of the man?uvres of jane at that time—which was doing even better business at the end of nine months than it was at the beginning—those unfortunate people were giving charity performances every week for seven consecutive weeks, which of course necessitated rehearsals apart from the performances themselves. really the charity distributed by the theatrical world is enormous.
we had a delightful luncheon: much of my time was spent gazing at miss ellaline terriss, who is even prettier off the stage than she is on.
when mrs. maude said she had been married for eleven years, with the proudest air in the world mrs. hicks remarked:
“and we have been married nearly six.”
but certainly to look at ellaline terriss and seymour hicks made it seem impossible to believe that such could be the case. hard work seems to agree with some people, and the incessant labour of the stage had left no trace on these young couples.
after luncheon the maudes’ eldest little girl recited a french poem she had learnt at school, and it was quite ridiculous to see the small child already showing inherited talent. she was calm and collected, and when she had done and i congratulated her, she said in the simplest way in the world:
“i am going to be an actress when i am grown up, and so is baby,” nodding her head at the other small[pg 57] thing of six, for the boy had not then arrived to usurp “baby’s” place.
“oh yes, so am i,” said little six-year-old. but when i asked her to recite something, she said:
“i haven’t learnt yet, but i shall soon.”
the maudes were then eagerly looking forward to some weeks’ holiday which they always enjoy every autumn.
“i like a place where i need not wear gloves, and a hat is not a necessity,” she said. “i have so much dressing-up in my life that it is a holiday to be without it.”
somehow the conversation turned on a wedding to which they had just been, and winifred emery exclaimed:
“i love going to weddings, but i always regret i am not the bride.”
“come, come,” said her husband, “that would be worse than the mormons. however many husbands would you have?”
“oh, i always want to keep my own old husband, but i want to be the bride.” at which he laughed immoderately, and said:
“i declare, winifred, you are never happy unless you are playing the leading lady.”
“of course not,” she retorted; “women always appreciate appreciation.”
they were much amused when i told them the story of my small boy, who, aged about seven, was to go to a wedding as a page in gorgeous white satin with lace ruffles and old paste buttons.
[pg 58]
“i don’t want to go,” he remarked; “i hate weddings”—for he had officiated twice before. something he said leading me to suppose he was a little shy, i soothingly answered:
“oh, well, every one will be so busy looking at the bride that they will never look at you.”
to which the small gentleman indignantly replied:
“if they aren’t even going to look at me, then i don’t see why i need go at all!”
so after all there is a certain amount of vanity even in a small boy of seven.
“i cannot bear a new play,” mrs. maude once said. “i am nervous, worried, and anxious at rehearsal, and it is not until i have got on my stage clothes that it ceases to be a trouble to me. not till i have played it for weeks that i feel thoroughly at home in a new part.
“it is positively the first real holiday i have ever had in my life,” she exclaimed to me at the time of her illness; “for although we always take six weeks’ rest in the summer, plays have to be studied and work is looming ahead, whereas now i have six months of complete idleness in front of me. it is splendid to have time to tidy my drawers in peace, ransack my bookshelves, see to a hundred and one household duties without any hurry, have plenty of time to spend with the children, and actually to see something of my friends, whom it is impossible to meet often in my usually busy life.”
so spoke miss winifred emery, and a year later mrs. kendal wrote, “i’ve had ten days’ holiday[pg 59] this year, and am now rehearsing literally day and night.”
after that who can say the life of the successful actress is not a grind? a maidservant or shopgirl expects her fortnight’s holiday in a twelvemonth, while one of the most successful actresses of modern times has to be content with ten days during the same period. yet mrs. kendal is not a girl or a beginner, she is in full power and at the top of her profession.
all theatrical life is not a grind, however, and it has its brighter moments. for instance, one beautiful warm sunny afternoon, the anniversary of their own wedding day—the cyril maudes gave an “at home” at the haymarket. guests arrived by the stage door at the back of the famous theatre, and to their surprise found themselves at once upon the stage, for the back scene and suffolk street are almost identical. mrs. maude, with a dear little girl on either side, received her friends, and an interesting group of friends they were. every one who was any one seemed to have been bidden thither. the stage was, of course, not large enough for this goodly throng, so a great staircase had been built down from the footlights to where the stalls usually stand. the stalls, however, had gone—disappeared as though they had never existed—and where the back row generally cover the floor a sumptuous buffet was erected. it was verily a fairy scene, for the dress-circle (which at the haymarket is low down) was a sort of winter garden of palms and flowers behind which the band was ensconced.
[pg 60]
what would the players of old, charles mathews, colley cibber, edmund kean, liston, and colman, have said to such a sight? what would old mr. emery have thought could he have known that one day his grand-daughter would reign as a very queen on the scene of his former triumphs? what would he have said had he known that periwigs and old stage coaches would have disappeared in favour of closely-cut heads, electric broughams, shilling hansoms with c springs and rubber tyres, or motor cars? what would he have thought of the electric light in place of candle dips and smelling lamps? how surprised he would have been to find neatly coated men showing the audience to their seats at a performance, instead of fat rowdy women, to see the orange girls and their baskets superseded by dainty trays of tea and ices, and above all to note the decorous behaviour of a modern audience in contrast to the noisy days when grandpapa emery trod the haymarket boards.
almost the most youthful person present, if one dare judge by appearances, was the actor-manager, cyril maude. there is something particularly charming about mr. maude—there is a merry twinkle in his eyes, with a sound of tears in his voice, and it is this combination, doubtless, which charms his audience. he is a low comedian, a character-actor, and yet he can play on the emotional chord when necessity arises. he and his co-partner, mr. harrison, are warm friends—a delightful situation for people so closely allied in business.
[pg 61]
immediately off the stage is the green-room, now almost unused. formerly the old green-room on the other side of the stage was a fashionable resort, and the green-rooms at the haymarket and drury lane were crowded nightly at the beginning of the last century with all the fashionable men of the day. kings went there to be amused, plays began at any time, the waits between the acts were of any length, and general disorder reigned in the candle and oil-lighted theatres—a disorder to which a few visitors did not materially add. all is changed nowadays. the play begins to the minute, and ends with equal regularity. actors do not fail to appear without due notice, so that the under-study has time to get ready, and order reigns both before and behind the footlights. therefore at the haymarket no one is admitted to the green-room, in fact, no one is allowed in the theatre “behind the scenes” at all, except to the dressing-room of the particular star who has invited him thither.
mrs. maude made a charming hostess at that party.
i think the hour at which we were told on the cards “to leave” was 6.0, or it may have been 6.30; at any rate, we all streamed out reluctantly at the appointed time, and the stage carpenters streamed in. away went the palms, off came the bunting, down came the staircase, and an hour later the evening audience were pouring in to the theatre, little knowing what high revelry had so lately ended.
some people seem to be born old, others live long and die young; judging by their extraordinary[pg 62] juvenility, mr. seymour hicks and his charming wife, née ellaline terriss, belong to the latter category. they are a boyish man and a girlish woman, in the best sense of lighthearted youthfulness, yet they have a record of successes behind them, of which many well advanced in years might be proud. no daintier, prettier, more piquante little lady trips upon our stage than ellaline terriss. she is the personification of everything mignonne, and whether dressed in rags as bluebell in fairyland, or as a smart lady in a modern play, she is delightful.
it is a curious thing that so many of our prominent actors and actresses have inherited their histrionic talents from their parents and even grandparents, and mrs. hicks is no exception, for she is the daughter of the late well-known actor, william terriss. she was not originally intended for the stage, and her adoption of it as a profession was almost by chance. a letter of her own describes how this came about.
“i was barely sixteen when mr. calmour, who wrote the amber heart and named the heroine after me, suggested we should surprise my father one day by playing cupid’s messenger in our drawing-room, and that i should take the leading part. we had a brass rod fixed up across the room, and thus made a stage, and on the preceding night informed a few friends of the morrow’s performance. the news greatly astonished my father, who laughed. i daresay he was secretly pleased, though he pretended not to be. a couple of months passed, and i heard that miss freke was engaged at the haymarket to play the part i[pg 63] had sustained. oh, how i wished it was i! little did i think my wish was so near fulfilment. i was sitting alone over the fire one day when a telegram was handed to me, which ran:
“‘haymarket theatre. come up at once. play cupid’s messenger, to-night.’
“i rushed to catch a train, and found myself at the stage door of the theatre at 7.15 p.m. all was hurry and excitement. i did not know how to make-up. i did not know with whom i was going to appear, and miss freke’s dress was too large for me. the whole affair seemed like a dream. however, i am happy to say mr. tree stood by and saw me act, and i secured the honour of a ‘call.’ i played for a week, when mr. tree gave me a five-pound note, and a sweet letter of thanks. my father then said that if it would add to my happiness i might go on the stage, and he would get me an engagement.”
how proud the girl must have been of that five-pound note, for any person who has ever earned even a smaller sum knows how much sweeter money seems when acquired by one’s own exertions. five-pound notes have come thick and fast since then, but i doubt if any gave the actress so much pleasure as mr. beerbohm tree’s first recognition of her talent.
thus it really was quite by accident miss terriss entered on a theatrical career. her father, knowing the hard work and many disappointments attendant on stage life, had not wished his daughter to follow his own calling. but talent will out. it waits its[pg 64] opportunity, and then, like love, asserts itself. the opportunity came in a kindly way; the talent was there, and miss terriss was clever and keen enough to take her chance when it came and make the most of it. from that moment she has never been idle, even her holidays have been few and far between.
every one in london must have seen bluebell in fairyland, which ran nearly a year. indeed, at one time it was being played ten times a week. think of it. ten times a week. to go through the same lines, the same songs, the same dances, to look as if one were enjoying oneself, to enter into the spirit and fun of the representation, was indeed a herculean task, and one which the vaudeville company successfully carried through. but poor mrs. hicks broke down towards the close, and was several times out of the bill.
photo by london stereoscopic co., ltd., cheapside, e.c.
mr. and mrs. seymour hicks.
it is doubtful whether seymour hicks will be better known as an actor or an author in the future, for he has worked hard at both professions successfully. he was born at st. heliers, jersey, in 1871, and is the eldest son of major hicks, of the 42nd highlanders. his father intended him for the army, but his own taste did not lie in that direction, and when only sixteen and a half he elected to go upon the stage, and five years later was playing a principal light comedy part at the gaiety theatre. like his wife, he has been several times in america, where both have met with success, and when not acting, at which he is almost constantly employed, this energetic man occupies his time by writing plays, of a light and [pg 65]musical nature, which are usually successful. one of the best, under the clock, the runaway girl, bluebell in fairyland, and the cherry girl have all had long runs.
when the hicks find time for a holiday their idea of happiness is an out-of-door existence, with rod or gun for companions. most of our actors and actresses, whose lives are necessarily so public, love the quiet of the country coupled with plenty of exercise when able to take a change. the theatre is barely closed before they rush off to moor or fen, to yacht or golf—to anything, in fact, that carries them completely away from the glare of the footlights.
another instance of theatrical heredity is ben webster, whose talent for acting doubtless comes from his grandfather. originally young ben read for the bar with that eminent and amusing man, mr. montagu williams. it was just at that time that poor montagu williams’s throat began to trouble him: later on, when no longer able to plead in court, he was given an appointment as magistrate. i only remember meeting him once—it was at ramsgate. when walking along the esplanade one day—i think about the year 1890—i found my father talking to a neat, dapper little gentleman in a fur coat, thickly muffled about the throat. he introduced his friend as montagu williams, a name very well known at that time. alas! the eminent lawyer was hardly able to speak—disease had assailed his throat well-nigh to death, and the last time i saw that wonderful painter and charming man sir john everett millais,[pg 66] at a private view at the royal academy, he was almost as speechless, poor soul.
well, montagu williams was made a magistrate, and young ben webster, realising his patron’s influence was to a certain extent gone, and his own chances at the bar consequently diminished, gladly accepted an offer of messrs. hare and kendal to play a companion part to his sister in the scrap of paper, then on tour. he had often acted as an amateur; and earned some little success during his few weeks’ professional engagement, so that when he returned to town and found montagu williams removed from active practice at the bar, he went at once to mr. hare and asked for the part of woodstock in clancarty. thus he launched himself upon the stage, although his grandfather had been dead for three years, and so had not directly had anything to do with his getting there.
old grandfather ben seems to have been a very irascible old gentleman, and a decidedly obstinate one. on one occasion his obstinacy saved his life, however, so his medical man stoutly declared.
the doctor had given ben webster up: he was dying. chatterton and churchill were outside the room where he lay, and the medico when leaving told them “old ben couldn’t last an hour.”
“ah, dear, dear!” said chatterton; “poor old ben going at last,” and he sadly nodded his head as he entered the room.
“blast ye! i’m not dead yet,” roared a voice from the bed, where old ben was sitting bolt upright. “i’m not going to die to please any of you[pg 67].”
he fell back gasping; but from that moment he began to get better.
another eminent theatrical family, the sotherns, were born on the stage, so to speak, and took to the profession as naturally as ducks to water, while their contemporaries the irvings and boucicaults have done likewise.
it must have been towards the end of the seventies that my parents took a house one autumn in scarborough. we had been to buxton for my father’s health, and after a driving tour through derbyshire, finally arrived at our destination. to my joy, mr. sothern and his daughter, who was then my schoolfellow in london, soon appeared upon the scene. he had come in consequence of an engagement to play at the scarborough theatre in dundreary and garrick, and had secured a house near us. naturally i spent much of my time with my girl friend, and we used often to accompany her father in a boat when he went on his dearly-loved fishing expeditions. never was there a merrier, more good-natured, pleasanter gentleman than this actor. he was always making fun which we children enjoyed immensely. practical jokes to him seemed the essence of life, and i vaguely remember incidents which, though amusing to him, rather perturbed my juvenile mind. at the time i had been very little to theatres, but as he had a box reserved every night, i was allowed now and then to go and gaze in wild admiration at garrick and dundreary.
one afternoon i went to the sotherns for a meat[pg 68] tea before proceeding to the theatre, but the great comedian was not there. “pops,” for so he was called by his family, had gone out at four o’clock that morning with a fisherman, and still remained absent. the weather had turned rough, and considerable anxiety was felt as to what could have become of him. his eldest son, lytton, since dead, appeared especially distressed. he had been down to the shore to inquire of the boatmen, but nothing could be heard of his father. we finished our meal—mr. sothern’s having been sent down to be kept warm—and although he had not appeared, it was time to go to the theatre. much perturbed in his mind, lytton escorted his sister and myself thither, and leaving us in the box, went off once more to inquire if his father had arrived at the stage door; again without success.
this seemed alarming; the wind was still boisterous and the stage manager in a fright because he knew the only attraction to his audience was the appearance of edward sothern as lord dundreary. it was the height of the season, and the house was packed. lytton started off again to the beach, this time in a cab; the stage manager popped his head into our box to inquire if the missing hero had by chance arrived, the orchestra struck up, but still no mr. sothern. it was a curious experience. the “gods” became uneasy, the pit began to stamp, the orchestra played louder, and at last, dreading a sudden tumult, the stage manager stepped forward and began to explain that “mr. sothern, a devoted fisherman, had gone out at four o’clock that morning; but had[pg 69] failed to return. as they knew, the weather was somewhat wild, therefore, they could only suppose he had been detained by the storm——”
at this juncture an unexpected and dishevelled figure appeared on the scene. the usually spick-and-span, carefully groomed mr. sothern, with his white locks dripping wet and hanging like those of a terrier dog over his eyes, hurried up, exclaiming:
“i am here, i am here. will be ready in a minute,” and the weird apparition disappeared through the opposite wing. immense relief and some amusement kept the audience in good humour, while with almost lightning rapidity the actor changed and the play began.
in one of the scenes the hero goes to bed and draws the curtain to hide him from the audience. mr. sothern went to bed as usual, but when remarks should have been heard proceeding from behind the curtain, no sound was forthcoming. the other player went on with his part; still silence from the bed. the stage manager became alarmed, knowing that sothern was terribly fatigued and had eaten but little food, he tore a small hole in the canvas which composed the wall of the room, and, peeping through, saw to his horror that the actor was fast asleep. this was an awkward situation. he called him—no response. the poor man on the stage still gagged on gazing anxiously behind him for a response, till at last, getting desperate, the stage manager seized a broom and succeeded in poking sothern’s ribs with the handle. the actor awoke with a huge yawn, quite[pg 70] surprised to find himself in bed wearing dundreary whiskers, which proved a sharp reminder he ought to have been performing antics on the stage.
actor and fisherman had experienced a terrible time in their boat. the current was so strong that when they turned to come back they were borne along the coast, and as hour after hour passed poor sothern realised that not only might he not be able to keep his appointment at the theatre, but was in peril of ever getting back any more. he made all sorts of mental vows never to go out fishing again when he was due to play at night; never to risk being placed in such an awkward predicament, never to do many things; but in spite of this experience, when once safe on land, his ardour was not damped, for he was off fishing again the very next day.
when i went to america in 1900 mrs. kendal kindly gave me some introductions, and one among others to mr. frohman. his is a name to conjure with in theatrical circles on that side of the atlantic, and is becoming so on this side, for he controls a vast theatrical trust which either makes or mars stage careers.
i called one morning by appointment at daly’s theatre, and as there happened to be no rehearsal in progress all was still except at the box office. i gave my card, and was immediately asked to “step along to mr. frohman’s room.”
up dark stairs and along dimly lighted passages i followed my conductor, till he flung open the door of a beautiful room, where at a large writing-table[pg 71] sat mr. frohman. he rose and received me most kindly, and was full of questions concerning the kendals and other mutual friends, when suddenly, to my surprise, i saw a large photograph hanging on the wall, of a hamlet whose face i seemed to know.
“who is that?” i asked.
“mr. edward sothern, the greatest hamlet in america, the son of the famous dundreary.”
“i had the pleasure of playing with that hamlet many times when i was a little girl,” i remarked; “for although ‘eddy’ was somewhat older, he used often to come to the nursery in harley street to have games with us children when his mother lived a few doors from the house in which i was born.”
mr. frohman was interested, and so was i, to hear of the great success of young edward sothern, for of course sam sothern is well known on the english stage.
the sumptuous office of mr. frohman is at the back of daly’s theatre. it is a difficult matter to gain admittance to that sacred chamber, but preliminaries having been arranged, the attendant who conducts one thither rings a bell to inform the great man that his visitor is about to enter. mr. frohman was interesting and affable. he evidently possesses a fine taste, for pieces of ancient armour, old brocade, and the general air of a bric-à-brac shop pervaded his sitting-room.
“english actors are as successful over here,” he said, “as americans are in london, and the same may be said of plays, the novelty, i suppose, in each case[pg 72].”
the close alliance between england and america is becoming more emphasised every day. why, in the matter of acting alone we give them our best and they send us their best in return. so much is this the case that most of the people mentioned in these pages are as well known in new york as in london; for instance, sir henry irving, miss ellen terry, mr. and mrs. kendal, mr. weedon grossmith, mr. e. s. willard, miss fay davis, madame sarah bernhardt, miss winifred emery, mr. cyril maude, miss ellaline terriss, mr. seymour hicks, mr. and mrs. beerbohm tree, mr. w. s. gilbert, mr. anthony hope, mr. a. w. pinero, and a host of others. sir henry irving has gone to america, for the eighth time during the last twenty years, with his entire company. that company for the production of dante consists of eighty-two persons, and no fewer than six hundred and seventy-three packages, comprising scenery, dresses, and properties.
“no author should ever try to dramatise his own books: he nearly always fails,” mr. frohman added later during our pleasant little chat, after which he took me round his theatre, probably the most celebrated in the united states, for it was built by the famous daly, and still maintains its position at the head of affairs. on the whole, american theatres are smaller than our own, the entire floor is composed of stalls which only cost 8s. 4d. each, and there is no pit. in the green-room, halls, and passages mr. frohman pointed out with evident delight various pictures of booth as hamlet, since whose time no one[pg 73] had been so successful till edward sothern junior took up that r?le in 1900. there was also a large portrait of charlotte cushman, and several pictures of irving, ellen terry, jefferson, and others, as well as some photographs of my old friend mr. sothern.
i have quoted the terrys, kendals, ellaline terriss, ben webster, winifred emery, and the sotherns as products of the stage, but there are many more, including dion and nina boucicault, whose parents were a well-known theatrical couple, george and weedon grossmith, the sons of an entertainer, and george’s son is also on the stage. both the irvings are sons of sir henry of that ilk, and so on ad infinitum.
from the above list it will be seen that most of our successful actors and actresses were cradled in the profession. they were “mummers” in the blood, if one may be forgiven the use of such a quaint old word to represent the modern exponents of the drama.
