THEATER 



5781 



THEATER 



various states issue proclamations calling on 

 the people to give thanks. The day is not a 

 national legal holiday the United States has 

 no legal holidays, not even the Fourth of July; 

 but almost every state has legalized it, by legis- 

 lative act. Throughout the country, but espe- 

 cially in New England where the custom origi- 

 nated, the day is looked upon with great 

 reverence. It is peculiarly a family day, and 

 the very sound of the name brings back inev- 

 itable memories of "back home;" of the old 

 farmhouse kitchen and the pantry crowded with 

 "good things." 



Thanksgiving Day in Canada. The Do- 

 minion, too, has an annual Thanksgiving Day, 

 which is celebrated in much the same way, with 

 family reunions and religious services. It is 

 proclaimed by the Governor-General as a har- 

 vest festival, and unlike that of the United 

 States is not always set for the same day. Usu- 

 ally it falls in the last week in October, but if 

 harvest is especially early, an earlier day may 

 be appointed. It is not strictly a legal holi- 

 day, being dependent solely on the government 

 proclamation. A.MC c. 



Consult Sindelar's Thanksgiving Entertain- 

 ments; Love's The Fast and Thanksgiving Days 

 of New England. 



TEB'ATER, a building in which to view 

 dramas and other spectacles. The modern the- 

 ater consists mainly of two parts, the audito- 

 rium and the stage. The auditorium is for the 

 accommodation of spectators and includes en- 

 trances and exits, stairs, offices and rooms nec- 

 essary to the conduct of the theater and con- 

 venience of patrons. The auditorium is usually 

 of horseshoe shape, with the floor sloping up- 

 ward from the stage. Balconies, varying in 

 number from one to four, are built in most 

 theaters and follow the horseshoe shape of the 

 auditorium. Immediately in front of the stage 

 a place is provided for the orchestra. 



The stage itself is reserved for the actors and 

 the scenery, which, to meet the demands of 

 modern audiences, must be extremely elaborate. 

 Behind and at the sides of the stage are the 

 dressing rooms for the performers. To handle 

 the scenery and shift it into the changing posi- 

 tions demanded during performances requires 

 the employment of a large number of men. 

 Above the stage are the "flies," where the scen- 

 ery is hung in pieces ready to be lowered into 

 position on the stage, and below it is another 

 space of sufficient depth to allow the scenery 

 from the stage to be lowered into it. In mod- 

 ern theaters scenic effects can be obtained that 



only a few years ago would have been consid- 

 ered impossible. By mechanical means, horse 

 races, chariot races, moving trains and steam- 

 boats are produced with great skill. 



The lighting system of a modern theater is 

 quite different from what it was fifty years ago. 

 A complete system of electric lighting for the 

 whole theater is now controlled by one or two 

 men operating at a table at the side of the 

 stage. Protection against fire is carefully pro- 

 vided for; to prevent the spread of fire from 

 stage to auditorium theaters are now compelled 

 by law to be provided with a fireproof curtain, 

 made usually of iron in sheets or asbestos. 



The price of seats in theaters varies consid- 

 erably. In the time of Shakespeare seats in 

 English theaters ranged from one penny (two 

 cents) to one shilling (twenty-four cents) ; soon 

 after the Revolutionary War the price of seats 

 in American theaters was twenty-five cents for 

 the gallery and $1 for box seats. In New York 

 the usual price for orchestra seats to-day is $2 

 and $2.50 ; in Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia and 

 other large cities it is from $1.50 to $2.00. This 

 is more than is demanded for seats in Germany, 

 where the best seats are never sold for more 

 than $1.50. The principal London theaters de- 

 mand $2.50 for the best seats. 



Theaters are compelled to follow certain rules 

 in building arrangements, to furnish a specified 

 number of exits and to be provided with effi- 

 cient fire-fighting apparatus. The neglect of 

 these precautions has led to terrible disasters, 

 notably the burning of the Iroquois theater in 

 Chicago (1903), 'in which 575 were killed; Leh- 

 man's Theater, Petrograd (1836), in which 700 

 died; and the Ring Theater, Vienna (1881), in 

 which 640 perished. At least five other theater 

 fires have occurred in which more than 200 lives 

 were lost. 



According to law patrons of the theater may 

 express their approval or disapproval of a per- 

 formance in a moderate manner, but if doing 

 so with intention to stop or interfere with the 

 performance they are liable to forcible ejection. 



Ancient Theaters. The first theaters of 

 Greece were rude affairs built of scaffolding 

 round a space in which the actors performed. 

 As the drama developed, so did the theater. 

 The collapse of a theater in 499 B. c. led to the 

 building of more permanent structures, though 

 it was not until many years later that stone 

 buildings were erected. The theater of Diony- 

 sus in Athens, remains of which are still to be 

 seen, was a work of the fourth century and was 

 completed under the direction of the statesman 



