[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
Of course as the villain Feltheryn got that wonderful scene in the
second act in which he soliloquized about the joys of lust: and the scene
that followed was not without satisfaction as he got to order the torture
(horrible, but off stage) of Snegelringe, who would soon deserve torture if
THE INCOMPETENT AUDIENCE 435
he didn't stay out of the bedchambers of some of Sanctuary's better class
of bored ladies. Rounsnouf, the company comedian, got to play the tor-
turer and he was quite good at it; although one had to keep an iron hand
on his performance or he would chew the scenery to such a degree that
the audience would begin to laugh, and that was unforgivable in a play of
such passion and violence.
It was a good play, no doubt about that! But Feltheryn would have
preferred to delay his own murder to the last act. As it was, he lay dead
in a puddle of pig's blood at the end of the second act, and there was
naught for him to do for a full third of the play but sit backstage in his
costume and makeup waiting to take a bow at the end. And he had a
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sneaking suspicion that the applause he got would have been consider-
ably greater if the audience had not had time to forget how good he was
when Glisselrand plunged the knife from the supper table into his throat.
But enough of that! It was time the company took on a comedy, and
The Chambermaid's Wedding was probably the best comedy ever written.
Tragedy was all very fine, and it inevitably drew a crowd, but Sanctuary
was a town with plenty of tragedy of its own; Sanctuary could use a few
laughs, and Feltheryn intended to provide them.
There was only one small difficulty, and that was the lack, in the
troupe, of a third-string female. Glisselrand would of course play the
Countess, and Evenita the title role of the Chambermaid. But there was
Serafina, the Schoolgirl, to cast as well, and one needed a strong actress
for that because there were a great many lines, a song, and most of the
time on stage the school^//-/ was disguised as a schoolboy. That was be-
cause she had a schoolgirl crush on the Countess and, in an innocent
schoolgirl way, wanted the Countess to make love to her.
They had tried doing the play with a boy in the part and it had proved
a disaster. That was before Lempchin had joined the company. If they
were forced to use Lempchin it would be worse than a disaster! Besides
which, audiences loved to see a pretty young girl dressed up in tight
pants pretending to be a boy. It was traditional, and even a bit erotic.
No, Feltheryn sighed to himself as he sat at the kitchen table looking at
the script; they would have to find another female, that was all there was
to it. And the best place to look for women was in the Street of Red
Lanterns, at the Aphrodisia House. Myrtis had helped them before, she
might be able to help them again.
He went upstairs to where Glisselrand was preparing for an afternoon
nap, explained carefully what he had in mind, and got her blessing.
Whatever else might be thought of The Chambermaid's Wedding, it was
the one play in which all the sympathy and love went to the older
436
STEALERS* SKY
woman, not to the younger title role; and Glisselrand was of an age to
appreciate that-
Feltheryn would of course play the Count, who was also in a way a
villain; but at least he would be on stage right up to the final curtain.
His trip to the Aphrodisia House was despoiled only by the presence of
a
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Click here to buy
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the offending broadsides distributed by Vomistritus. Apparently
Lempchin had not yet got to the Street of Red Lanterns. Feltheryn pulled
a few down as he passed them, but the glue was beginning to dry and it
was difficult to get it off his hands once it was on. He had to beg pardon
at the door when he finally arrived and ask for a basin and then, as the
glue was much tackier than he had thought, he had to ask for help from
one of the ladies of the house.
Feltheryn was not beyond appreciating the charms of the lovely young
woman who helped him, nor was he in the least insensitive to the fine-
tuned professionalism of her performance, displayed in even so humble
an activity as helping him get his hands clean. The world's oldest profes-
sion was at least eighty percent theater, he recalled from his wild and
reckless youth. Any woman could offer sex for money, but it took talent
to make that sex so desirable that the audience returned again and again
for the show.
And it was a show: the act itself was only the last curtain of an evening
compounded of beautiful costumes, exotic perfumes, graceful movement,
tantalizing conversation, stimulating music, and a setting that was a mar-
vel of womanly design. To visit the Aphrodisia House was to enjoy a
show with only one plot but a constantly changing cast of characters: and
it was that fact which made the difference between Myrtis's elegant cour-
tesans and the sad and desperate women who walked by night in the
Promise of Heaven.
"There now!" said the young woman, drying his hands with an em- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl akte20.pev.pl
Of course as the villain Feltheryn got that wonderful scene in the
second act in which he soliloquized about the joys of lust: and the scene
that followed was not without satisfaction as he got to order the torture
(horrible, but off stage) of Snegelringe, who would soon deserve torture if
THE INCOMPETENT AUDIENCE 435
he didn't stay out of the bedchambers of some of Sanctuary's better class
of bored ladies. Rounsnouf, the company comedian, got to play the tor-
turer and he was quite good at it; although one had to keep an iron hand
on his performance or he would chew the scenery to such a degree that
the audience would begin to laugh, and that was unforgivable in a play of
such passion and violence.
It was a good play, no doubt about that! But Feltheryn would have
preferred to delay his own murder to the last act. As it was, he lay dead
in a puddle of pig's blood at the end of the second act, and there was
naught for him to do for a full third of the play but sit backstage in his
costume and makeup waiting to take a bow at the end. And he had a
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
sneaking suspicion that the applause he got would have been consider-
ably greater if the audience had not had time to forget how good he was
when Glisselrand plunged the knife from the supper table into his throat.
But enough of that! It was time the company took on a comedy, and
The Chambermaid's Wedding was probably the best comedy ever written.
Tragedy was all very fine, and it inevitably drew a crowd, but Sanctuary
was a town with plenty of tragedy of its own; Sanctuary could use a few
laughs, and Feltheryn intended to provide them.
There was only one small difficulty, and that was the lack, in the
troupe, of a third-string female. Glisselrand would of course play the
Countess, and Evenita the title role of the Chambermaid. But there was
Serafina, the Schoolgirl, to cast as well, and one needed a strong actress
for that because there were a great many lines, a song, and most of the
time on stage the school^//-/ was disguised as a schoolboy. That was be-
cause she had a schoolgirl crush on the Countess and, in an innocent
schoolgirl way, wanted the Countess to make love to her.
They had tried doing the play with a boy in the part and it had proved
a disaster. That was before Lempchin had joined the company. If they
were forced to use Lempchin it would be worse than a disaster! Besides
which, audiences loved to see a pretty young girl dressed up in tight
pants pretending to be a boy. It was traditional, and even a bit erotic.
No, Feltheryn sighed to himself as he sat at the kitchen table looking at
the script; they would have to find another female, that was all there was
to it. And the best place to look for women was in the Street of Red
Lanterns, at the Aphrodisia House. Myrtis had helped them before, she
might be able to help them again.
He went upstairs to where Glisselrand was preparing for an afternoon
nap, explained carefully what he had in mind, and got her blessing.
Whatever else might be thought of The Chambermaid's Wedding, it was
the one play in which all the sympathy and love went to the older
436
STEALERS* SKY
woman, not to the younger title role; and Glisselrand was of an age to
appreciate that-
Feltheryn would of course play the Count, who was also in a way a
villain; but at least he would be on stage right up to the final curtain.
His trip to the Aphrodisia House was despoiled only by the presence of
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
the offending broadsides distributed by Vomistritus. Apparently
Lempchin had not yet got to the Street of Red Lanterns. Feltheryn pulled
a few down as he passed them, but the glue was beginning to dry and it
was difficult to get it off his hands once it was on. He had to beg pardon
at the door when he finally arrived and ask for a basin and then, as the
glue was much tackier than he had thought, he had to ask for help from
one of the ladies of the house.
Feltheryn was not beyond appreciating the charms of the lovely young
woman who helped him, nor was he in the least insensitive to the fine-
tuned professionalism of her performance, displayed in even so humble
an activity as helping him get his hands clean. The world's oldest profes-
sion was at least eighty percent theater, he recalled from his wild and
reckless youth. Any woman could offer sex for money, but it took talent
to make that sex so desirable that the audience returned again and again
for the show.
And it was a show: the act itself was only the last curtain of an evening
compounded of beautiful costumes, exotic perfumes, graceful movement,
tantalizing conversation, stimulating music, and a setting that was a mar-
vel of womanly design. To visit the Aphrodisia House was to enjoy a
show with only one plot but a constantly changing cast of characters: and
it was that fact which made the difference between Myrtis's elegant cour-
tesans and the sad and desperate women who walked by night in the
Promise of Heaven.
"There now!" said the young woman, drying his hands with an em- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]