t' take place in an open square, with its raised fountain not far
from the porch of the cathedral, so that _Mercutio_ might be able to
point right and left when he declared that his wound would serve, altho
it was not "as deep as a well or as wide as a church-door." Pretty as
this is and clever, it seems a little petty. To suggest that _Mercutio_
was in need of visible promptings for his fancy, is to diminish the
quick-wittedness of Shakspere's wittiest character.

Yet, either of these instances will serve to show the searching
thoroness with which the stage-manager seeks to project the whole
performance in all its minor details, having combined in advance the
gestures of the several actors, the movements of each in relation to
those of the others, the properties they make use of, and the scenery in
the midst of which they play their parts. Altho the scenery, the
properties and the costumes are designed by different artists, it is the
duty of the stage-manager to control them all, to see that they are
harmonious with each other, and that they are subdued to the atmosphere
of the "production" as a whole. He subordinates now one and now another,
that he may attain the more fitting contrast. Mr. Bronson Howard was one
of the authors of 'Peter Stuyvesant, Governor of New Amsterdam,' and to
his skilful direction the "production" of the play was committed. The
first act took place in a Dutch garden ablaze with autumn sunshine; and,
therefore, all the costumes seen in that act were grays and greens and
drabs of a proper Dutch sobriety. The second act presented the
New-Year's reception at night in the _Governor's_ house, and then the
costumes were rich and varied, so that they might stand out against the
somber oak of the spacious hall.

To the first rehearsal of a play, new or old, the stage-manager
sometimes comes with all the salient details of the future performance
visualized in advance, knowing just where every character ought to place
himself at every moment of the action, and having decided where every
piece of furniture shall stand, and how the actors will avail themselves
of its assistance. One accomplished stage-manager of my acquaintance, an
actor himself, works out with a set of chess-men the intricate problem
of moving his characters naturally about the stage. Another, a
playwright this one, has a toy theater in which to manoeuver the
personages of the play into exactly the most effective positions. In one
of M.