. On the art of the theatre . ltheatre, for the Imperial certainly was a difficult theatre to findand reach. If a play is an artistic success, there is nothing to prevent itsfinancial success. The public, when it knows where it can see agood thing, never fails in time to go and see that good thing. It isa vicious doctrine to teach that the public is a fool. The public is,I take it, the nation, and I am not willing to hear the nation abusedby a few middlemen who are not in earnest about anything exceptmakingla small living by serving the nation one ill turn after nation should see t
. On the art of the theatre . ltheatre, for the Imperial certainly was a difficult theatre to findand reach. If a play is an artistic success, there is nothing to prevent itsfinancial success. The public, when it knows where it can see agood thing, never fails in time to go and see that good thing. It isa vicious doctrine to teach that the public is a fool. The public is,I take it, the nation, and I am not willing to hear the nation abusedby a few middlemen who are not in earnest about anything exceptmakingla small living by serving the nation one ill turn after nation should see to it that before long it has better theatre ihe bal work in the Theatre of to-day has a bad influence on Uthe /masses. It is assisting towards the general restlessness which has increased in late years. The public needs masters on whomit can rely—the public is like a woman, but if the so-called masters to-day go in so much for what they call humouring thepublic and giving them nothing, upheavals are bound to [Face pa^e 176. ^ THE FIRST DIALOGUE ^ and creative artwould take too long to go thoroughlyinto at present. There are already some theatre menat work on the building of the theatres; some arereforming the acting, some the scenery. And all ofthis must be of some small value. But the very first^thing to be realized is that little or no result cancome from the reforming of a single craft of thetheatre without at the same time, in the sametheatre, reforming all the other crafts. The whole, Jrenaissance of the Art of the Theatre depends upon^the extent that this is realized. The_Act-^f theTheatre, as I have already told you, is divided upinto so many crafts: acting, scene,jCQstume, lighting,carpente5nng,singTng, dancing, etc., tliat it mustbe reaHzed atjthe commencement ,not FART reform is needed; and it must be realizedthatonepartrohe craitThas a direct bearing uponeach of the other crafts in the theatre, and thatno result can come from fitful, une
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjecttheater, bookyear1911
