My head was in a whirl and I saw nothing for a moment. Nevertheless I approached the door and gave a gentle knock.
I felt as if I had committed a crime, this little rap resounded so loudly in my ears. A command to enter that sounded lugubrious was the response, and I opened the door.
Mechanically I came forward and found myself in the middle of a group of gentlemen without knowing which of them to address. Overcome with embarrassment I stood erect in the centre of the room while everybody looked me over. Then I summoned all my courage and I said, to the whole circle:
“Gentlemen, I should like to see the manager of this theatre, if you please.”
When I stopped speaking my teeth began to chatter so loudly that I bit my tongue.
A gentleman who looked more important than the others came forward and said:
“What do you want of him, little girl?”
Good heavens, must I speak again before all these people? To my own astonishment, I heard, as if it were somebody else’s, my own voice saying in a firm tone:
“Well, it is this way, sir. I am an artist, and I should like to come with my mother to the matinee that Sarah Bernhardt is going to give us.”
“Who are you, and where are you playing?”