Portia nd Advoca te
III ust rat cil
Feature
Seel ion
*
/Il 1 «
»• (• If*
‘*44 1
k lM ih vfii
Mi
4
11 . U
ÎS I R A I h I > K K A n
K K S l ü T I O N , S e p t e m b e r 151 , 1 9 2 9
D O h
it
I'o ala r# M l U i
Milady
■«
w w
f
HKN
i I k *
c u r ta in
r is e s
upon
a
m
u s ic a l
musical
c n n i f i t v . lie it o n e o f t h o s e « o r t f e o u s t h i n p j i -
t i c k e t s c a ilpers’
l p e r s ’ prices
p r i c e s f for
or
(tie tahloiil miniatures with
v i l i i c i i those of m o r e moderate incomes are more
f a m i l i a r , t h e r e a r e those captious critics who note
e v e r y d e f e c t m t h e machinery of presentation.
Y
v
th a t
c o m m n n il
t h e o p e u iiiK . o r
me
of
Illustrated
Feature
Section
1 h r s u cc e ss o f r v r r y p e r f o r m a n c e d e p e n d s u p o n
h n r a b ility to a la n d I h r g a ff of m a n y to r tu rin g
h o u rs of p r a n c in g be fo re the fo o tlig h ts — a n d for
h r r f a ith f u ln e s s she g e n e r a l l y gets th e shortest
e n d o f t h e b o * o f f i c e r e c e i p t s — a n d s o m e t i m e s no t
even that.
» ol t o * « n o i l
u
Chorus
Billie Rirkm on, the New
Vork tiage beauty, form erly
of “ K eep Shufflin.*' She
is one of the typ iral ch o r
al beauties who trip a
streiiuoiis routine in o r
der tfi ti'h g h l the tired
business m an.
She
probably
never
received
one of the * polite notices "
* J«rk »w «
i h r w r i t f o f I l l s m i f f . ■ « * « t i u s ih f s i ap r l a l U l
« th e I m t r 4 « w o « l> # |»«f* H 0 # K | ml « • ■ • o r e * , «o b e re Me h « » « M a rg e
•I It»# '« s a i l K u t l n r i i I a '« o f I Me l » a « i e e t U
I tm in r ir r lliiiiio ii
I«
h f w s o n ; h f <*w ( h o u I t ile t o v a l i f * « 4 I « roturM ml I k e o o r l l « a
R t llh o a rl
li'ls o «
* M e t o k f i f a n « * • a r g a l r e « W r i i o f wf h i t r o a a o t l U a « a l a
• 4 H « r mm th e a ta ff ml I h r l l l l l t M i f l
ik e t h e a l r t e a l W | I U . « l i e r a f a r
la r e a r « la# f a a i l l a a e l « a t Mr m w w tb p ie r e ml t b e N e g r a l a I Me r a -
t M o • « • n o t M u mml f a a a a a - t U a « U M t M # a l r | « a l a .
I li a fat Mer « « a
a haooo • I M t b - A r a l r o a a f f f i a l i r a a « * a f j a M i l e a e m g e r e a r g a » i r « 4
Hr
J a c k « a n M « a M e# « » a e r e l a r , t a « a t e r a l a f tMe g r e a t t M e « t r l e a l prm-
«arara
i rs <l a4 ir t g t h e r a r p a f « l t « a
Ik a l Ia «a t'te 4
tMe A r a l t r a v e l l i n g
(• »M "*
»Me U l e %l (• 1 1#14a. J a l e a H m / t i g » r* 4 I r a e a t H o g a n « M e a
M o g a a a n 4 H< f I an s a n » n a a n i a ' « n j u i a w i t h l a t M e a l r t e a l a
AtM erl
Ja a k o a a . J r
l M i r 4 ml tM# l i n e
ta l « 4 a * a K e i t h c i r c u i t r a a a e 4 t a a a a á
• g# a a a a g r r a f a f t « « J l a r t
Mr
Jitka a a
a r l t e i w lt M a o l M a n l r Mara a f g e a a ia a l a l r r e a t a a f
i n t i m a i ' k t t a « l # 4 g e ml tMe t r « 4 i t l a « a a t» 4 M a l a » y ml a a a s e a e a l r
I Mia
is o n » ml a werle* ml « Ca r ta * Itmm t h e p e n ml tMe « * e n « M a Maa r n j a » ' 4
• M a l f r e a t a r ? ml I Me m *at f l v e r s i f l ' J a t p r ' M a r e * . « g r e a t a a a a k a r a f
« M t r M t a était e 4 t r a v a l
I f 4 'á
a
« H<>i lue lu
HI it Whir«!« of
IW
r 4 l ’d *«
(h r iii < h I
i r «aful
Negro
m u «H 4 I
ri|y
■%r* *«» ft
ram •
Ihr
T h e
«*<*11 -
di Mied
I»et for n i ii r e
mi (h r
ItU. k
bird*
« litiiuv
I ltd»« * (e d IIU'U
«reek«
• f
grurlliMg work
«ltd
uei «oy«
ill m i
H ut
I (» I »
«how«
m««
ttourke
h « %
n u i u 4<*4
I •
reio m
her
lar «Mt »
T here a i r also those wlui w on
der Ju»i how It all cam e about, and
«nil other» who take the show for
■ ra n g 'd as alw ays having
been
lust like the sun that shines dally.
T o the wondering one. th at p e r
son wlio I U . S rurtoslty enough to
» an t to know liow tin show came
Into belli*. u visit to a rehearsal
would not Is- without ha com i ten -
nations
T h e opening night of a
m usical comedy production mark
ttie culm ination o( m any weeks of
ginetting work and nervous strain
for all the business organization
of the rom iw nv. the east, and moat
of alt the pretty hi tie Choristers
whose svelt figures and graeeful
dances give essence and ch aracter
to the snow
It ts tlie dim inutive bit of fetnl-
tniiity known a s ttie m ilady chorus
ill upon whom the burden of
grief tliut ts called a rehearsal
rests most heavily
For
m any
week these chorus girls have stru g
gled against the hum an Instinct to
rt i in order to become personified
preelsion In tile dance steps, drills
m arches,
entrances.
and
exits,
through which they must go In fu
ture iierform ances.
Ilehotd the chorister fo r Just
what she Is. without the traditional
Idea Dial she Is hut a .sublimated
gold digger
Nothing
could
be
more wrong th an tills popular con-
eepllon of the m ajority of the girls
who lrln the m erry, m erry toe to
the daily entertainm ent of tired
business men. and m any others not
nearly so Imbued with business, nor
so tired us th ey m ight lie. T he
lrls are tired enough to m ake up
or all oil au »iiening night (for
have they not walked, run, danced
and ate'iled through nerve wreok-
tug numbers until every bone In
supple tsodl.M ac h o d t).
?
girls
b e g i n
trooping to the
luNiie ofllce OT
(»fflce of the p ro
ducer or dlriH--
toi rtiOM hold
ing uromift«*. a c
cording to llu*
judgm ent
of
that worthy are
itutructcd to rc-
porl to i desig
nated
hall
or
em pty
theatre
a specified
day
On th at day
w ith
It t t l f
H a r d C.
S i k U w i , J r „
form er editor
of the T » t-
^ lier
and a
m Idely know n
uew « p a p e r
man who haa
alw ay* given
the
chorus
girl a “ break**
MB the c«l-
uroiu of his
puhlit atio n a
Ile
U
now
editor o f the
Ape* New«.
l o >■ -
Umlnary r*|»U-
nslloti. ail pre.«-
ure iMaord
line
1 ips of
A tabloid allow lias from tour to
ten number*
T h e larger produc
tions those of standard two bout
and tw enty m inute duration In
clude between sixteen and tw enty-
two songs and m edleys with
at
least two lengthy finales Ui a rts
Korli of ttie«- requires a routine of
dsiu-e step* th at run s from halt
a dow n different cross leg m ove
m ents to as m any as fifty different
dance steps
T o the well-aeasonrsl chorister
working under a dance director
with experience, m any ot these
steps are sim ple; hut only so be-
rau.se the girls' stage-practice, and
previous seasons of hard work have
riveted ttie routine of m any dances
ui»ni their minds, and h abit tins
bestowed a nam e upon these steps
as a sort of a convenient handle
l>y which one m ight grasp them.
However, the cry of th eatre p a
trons for som ething now compels
the dance Instructor to devise a
new and dllferent arrangem ent ol
dance stc|>s for tils every new pro
duction; and It Is the chorister u p
on whom ttie burden of accom
plishing these rests. Ttie director
having passed the critical first
■ lighter's Judgm ent, m ay tlnd h im
self wltti a bonus fo r Ills work In
t huikuig
up
those
harrowing
movements, but the poor girls who
have executed them so faith fu lly
us to «trente th at happy Judgment
keep right oil doing It w hile the
show lasts and draw ing the same
sa la ry os th at w ith which ttie stiow
started. I t Is the gtrl who pays
th is tim e In energy.
In response to the "c a ll" pu b
lished In trad e papers or following
up th e tip passed by word ot
m outh aroun d th e district where
show folk* live, move and have
th eir bettif w hen " a t liberty," the
pi p. 1 <•.1111111« Hi- chum s words ot an opening nuir.ber
are passed out and the vocal director, a pianist, p lays the
first piece
T lie director, If he b a young man. executes what
he regards as a proper routine ot steps tor th e num ber
It age has endowed him witti too m uch surplus (at [or
d ia l activity, or if rheum atism or some such sim ilar a il
ment ts lus tnasler. a girl Is given an intensive i>eriod ot
instruction In the number and she becomes the model lo r
the others.
((• n U « a r 4
M l ' #l#kt>
T h e fam ous Blackbird»" chorus, probably the highest paid group of Negro chorines
T b H r »acerva has been due to tong and sUenuous hours of rehearsing
w ithin
recent
year*