And probably, although the appetites of the superior players
may often fail them, the supernumerary or the representative of minor
characters could generally contrive to make a respectable meal if the
circumstances of the case supplied the opportunity.
The difficulty that attends eating on the stage does not, it would
seem, extend to drinking, and sometimes the introduction of real and
potent liquors during the performance has led to unfortunate results.
Thus Whincop, to whose tragedy called "Scanderbeg," published in 1747,
added "a List of all the Dramatic Authors, with some Account of their
Lives," &c., describes a curious occurrence at the Theatre Royal in
1693. A comedy entitled "The Wary Widow, or Sir Noisy Parrot," written
by one Higden, and now a very scarce book, had been produced; but on
the first representation, "the author had contrived so much drinking
of punch in the play that the actors almost all got drunk, and were
unable to get through with it, so that the audience were dismissed at
the end of the third act." Upon subsequent performances of the comedy
no doubt the management reduced the strength of the punch, or
substituted some harmless beverage, toast-and-water perhaps, imitative
of that ardent compound so far as mere colour is concerned.
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