Beanstalk
First Syllable.
BEAN.
Scene.—Widow Frankey’s kitchen. Representation of this made by use of window described [above], kitchen table and chairs, plates, pastry board, &c.
Widow Frankey, in apron and cap, is busy making pastry, and talking to herself about her son Jack, and wondering when he will return from the errand on which she has sent him.
Jack appears. Tells his mother where he has been, and she scolds him for being so slow.
He goes out in a temper, and Widow Frankey leaves her work, sits down and cries, finally falling asleep.
Jack returns, finds his mother asleep, and determines to make up for his ill-temper by finishing the pudding she has already begun.
(An amusing scene can be shown here by the funny mistakes he makes, putting into the pudding all kinds of odd ingredients, amongst them a bean.)
His mother awakes, to find dinner set, and ready.
There is great fun over the pudding when the widow finds the bean.
End of First Act.
Second Syllable.
STALK.
Scene.—Corner of market-place, where a flower-seller has her stall. For this purpose a table, draped with art muslin, with a few pots of ferns on it, and some flowers made from tissue paper, will be all that is required.
Girl sits on a stool doing up bunches of flowers.
Jack comes along running, and in his hurry knocks the table over.
Flower-seller pretends to be very angry, and insists upon Jack’s paying for the damage.
He does so, and the girl laughingly gives him the stalk of a flower for fun. He puts it in his button-hole and walks off, leaving the girl laughing.
End of Second Act.
BEANSTALK
Scene.—Widow Frankey’s kitchen.
Jack returns to his home, and tells his mother of his escapade, showing her the stalk which the flower-girl had given him.
Just then the door opens, and the flower-girl enters, throws Jack’s money on the table, telling him she took it only for a joke. He returns the stalk to the girl, who laughingly tells him that it is a beanstalk.
Widow Frankey retires, and Jack tells the pretty flower-girl that he loves her.
End of Last Act.
CHAPTER X
THE POSSIBILITIES OF THE MUSICAL SKETCH
The musical sketch occupies a high and prominent position in the scale of entertainments given by the individual. With many it is more popular than ventriloquism, impersonations, reciting, or conjuring, and needs as much skill and study as any of these other accomplishments. For its successful rendition the artist must be equipped with
1. Subtle humor and pathos.
2. Impromptu patter.
3. A good memory.
4. A clear pronunciation.
5. Mimicry.
6. Self-accompaniment from memory.
7. Individuality and mastery of the audience.
He must also be well versed in the popular topics of the day, and be able to dish them up in an attractive manner to suit the humor of his various hearers; and, of course, a certain amount of natural talent is indispensable.
In this mode of entertainment there should be no pause. The whole time the artist should either be engaged in patter or playing, and he must go from anecdote to anecdote smoothly and without jerkiness, always relating his stories as if they were his own experiences.
He should begin an after-dinner story in some such way as—
“The other night, when dining with my friend, Mr. A., I had the misfortune to be stuck down beside his elderly maiden aunt, Miss Dimbledock, who my host had previously informed me was a stanch adherent to the Blue Ribbon Army. Now, as Mr. A. is her only living relative, he naturally expected to inherit her wealth, and consequently had given instructions to Coggledab, the butler (who on ordinary occasions served as coachman), that especial attention and care were to be lavished upon her severe and abstemious person; but, alas, he had forgotten to instill him with her principles, and the result was that the poor old lady was mortally offended, for, ere we had reached the second course, Coggledab leaned over her chair in a fatherly and solicitous manner that well became his white hairs and portly person, and whispered in a voice that penetrated every corner of the room:
“‘Gin, whisky, or brandy, Mum? You can’t be enjyin’ of yourself! You’re not drinkin’!’
“And it is to this apparently trivial incident that a year ago a flourishing dogs’ home was opened in New York, and that my poor friend Mr. A. can be seen any day selling matches at his post in Times Square! And talking of the importance of trivialities, reminds me of an adventure that befell me the other day. I had hired a taxi-cab, and was just stepping into it——,” &c., &c., thus introducing quite a different anecdote.
Now, the outlines of the incident of Mr. A.’s dinner-party are taken from a comic paper, but twisted and colored to suit the requirements of the artist; and there are many stories that may be dished up in similar manner, while frequently personal experiences are extremely humorous when rightly treated.