The
accommodation provided for him is limited enough; little more than his
head can be permitted to emerge from the hole cut for him in the
stage. But his situation has its advantages. He cannot possibly be
seen by the audience; he can conveniently instruct the performers
without requiring them "to look off" appealingly, or to rush
desperately to the wing to be reminded of their parts; while the
sloping roof of his temporary abode has the effect of directing his
whispers on to the stage, and away from the spectators. It seems
strange that this system of posting the prompter in the van instead
of on the flank of the actors has never been permanently adopted in
this country. But a change of the kind indicated would certainly be
energetically denounced by a number of very respectable and sensible
people as "un-English," an objection that is generally regarded as
quite final and convincing, although it is conceivable, at any rate,
that a thing may be of fair value and yet of foreign origin. "Gad,
sir, if a few very sensible persons had been attended to we should
still have been champing acorns!" observed Luttrell the witty, when
certain enlightened folk strenuously opposed the building of Waterloo
Bridge on the plea that it would spoil the river!
It is certain, however, that with the first introduction here of
operatic performances came the gipsy-tent, or hut, of the prompter.
Pages:
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322