BEFORE AND BEHIND THE FOOTLIGHTS. 239 



and a good local man always receives a fair chance of 

 success. Mr. Harry Rickards since lie took over the 

 Garrick Theatre and turned it into the Tivoli, has made 

 a fortune. He has succeeded in running a cheap price 

 house, the highest charge for admission to a good 

 show being two shillings. Since the depression set 

 in things theatrical have not been good, and many 

 actors have been out of harness. Various means of 

 raising money have been devised. The theatrical 

 fetes in Sydney and Melbourne were big successes, 

 and were held on the largest grounds available. 

 Benefits are numerous, and when an actor runs short 

 of cash he can generally induce his comrades to give 

 him a benefit in a theatre ^'^ kindly lent for the 

 occasion ^' by an obliging manager. 



Taken throughout, the life of an actor in the 

 Colonies is enjoyable, although he has an immense 

 amount of study and hard work to get through. The 

 constant changes in the bill cause frequent rehearsals, 

 and there are no long runs as in London theatres. 

 The Colonial stage is an excellent school to acquire 

 experience in, for the actor has to play many parts iu 

 the course of a year. As a stepping-stone to higher 

 things in the profession a tour of the Colonies has few 

 equals. 



