A Tough Act to Follow - Theatre Etymology - Part 40

If somebody hears the phrase "a tough act to follow," the first thing that might come to mind these days is the song from the 2006 musical Curtains. The name of the song comes from the way the original phrase is used. Others may know this usage because it has moved from being only used in the theatre to being used in every day life.

The phrase dates from around 1900 and originated with vaudeville. It was said to mean that a performance or an individual was outstanding. It expresses that there was difficulty in finding favor with an audience because the previous act was successful. Other definitions, though similar, were applied around that time and later. Here are some of them.

• A difficult standard for other to equal or beat because of a previous achievement or performance.
• Someone or something difficult to emulate because he, she, or it is outstanding.
• Someone or something so successful that it is difficult for anybody and or anything following to be as good.
• Something or somebody so good that the performance overshadows everything that follows.

The word tough come from the Middle English or the Old English word tōh. This is descended from the Dutch word taai and the German word zäh(e). The word act comes from the Middle English word act(e)which comes from the Middle French word that is spelled in the same way which comes from the Latin word ācta, the plural of āctum meaning something done. This Latin word is a noun use of past participle of the word agere meaning to do. It comes directly from the Latin word āctus meaning a doing.

Follow comes from the Middle English word folwen or the Old English word folgian. These are descended from the Old Saxon word folgon, the Old High German word folgēn or folgōn, and the German word folgen. The phrase can also be "a hard act to follow. The word hard comes from the Middle English word or Old English word heard. These are descended from the Dutch word hard, the German word hart, the Old Norse word harthr, and the Gothic word hardus. They are akin to the Greek word kratýs meaning strong and the Ionic word kártos meaning strength.

The phrase has come into usage for titles of books, television episodes, and articles in newspaper and magazines as well as online. It has even become a trope in many types of media. It is said that Peanuts and Calvin and Hobbes are tough acts to follow in comics. You can listen to the song from the musical Curtains below:

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Dress Rehearsal - Theatre Etymology - Part 39

Most people know that a dress rehearsal means that everything needed for the production is meant to happen in the rehearsal. That means that all actors are completely off book, all costumes are worn, all sounds are played, all lighting happens, etc.

In some definitions, it says that a dress rehearsal is the last rehearsal before a performance. The last rehearsal before a performance usually is a dress rehearsal. However, sometimes, other types of rehearsals may happen between the last dress rehearsal and a performance.

The exact origin of dress rehearsal is not certain. However, it seems to be from the fact that the actors are fully dressed in their costumes for the play. The word dress comes from the middle Middle English word dressen which comes from the Anglo-French word dresser or dresc(i)er meaning to arrange or to prepare. The Middle English word could also come from the Old French word drecier which comes from the Vulgar Latin word dīrēctiāre which is a derivative of the Latin word dīrēctus meaning direct.

The word rehearsal comes from the Middle English word rehersaille. It is a form of the word rehearse plus the suffix al. The word rehearse comes from the Middle English word rehersen or rehercen which comes from the Middle French word rehercier meaning to repeat. The Middle French word is the equivalent to re- plus hercier meaning to strike or to harrow.

There is a superstition in the theatre that a bad dress rehearsal means a good opening night and a good dress rehearsal means a bad opening night. This is because it is thought that if the actors have a good dress rehearsal, they become too comfortable with their parts and start to slack off for the opening night performance. Of course, this is just a superstition, but it is understandable why it exists.

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The Summoning of Everyman in Lake Charles, LA for Five Performances

A girl lays on a platform and asks, "why did you call me?" as she plays with a bag that is filled with riches. Everyman has called her looking for comfort on his journey as he heads towardws the end of his (or her) life. More characters that represent earthly values rather than heavenly ones are also shown to abandon Everyman on his (or her) journey until that one certain thing is found that will help and will accompany Everyman into the grave and into the next life. This is just one part of the play The Summoning of Everyman.

This play is currently being produced at McNeese State University. I must put a disclaimer here that I served as the dramaturg for this play. However, the director and designers are the main people who came up with what is seen on stage as a dramaturg does research for these things.

Charles McNeely, director, came up with the intriguing idea of separating the role of Everyman among four actors. This makes sense as Everyman is meant to represent every person who ever lived, is living, or will live. Cast members include P.Z. Stanford, Supratik Regmi, Himshree Neupane, Markell Jolivette, Jennifer Tolbert, Madeline Smith, Sean Hinchee, Ariel Pete, Hannah Jolivette, and Essence Means. Michelle Brunson serves as technical director. You will want to keep a look out for Jennifer Tolbert, P.Z. Standford, and Supratik Regmi in this show. They all show promising growth as theatre artists and could some day be stars.

The play runs every night from Wednesday, October 24, 2018 to Saturday, October 27, 2018 at 7:30pm and on Sunday, October 28, 2018 at 2pm. General admission tickets cost $15. Tickets for senior citizens, students, McNeese teachers, McNeese faculty, and McNeese staff are $10. McNeese and Sowela students get in free when they show their student IDs. Tickets can be bought for the show by calling 337-475-5040 or by visiting the website for the performing arts box office. McNeese State University is located at 4205 Ryan St. in Lake Charles, Louisiana. The play takes place in Tritico Theatre in the Shearman Fine Arts Annex located on the corner of Ryan St. and E Sale Rd.

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Backstage - Theatre Etymology - Part 38

When it is said that things happen backstage, it means that those are the things that people don't see that have happened in order to make what they are seeing happen. Backstage is now used in that way to refer to any of those actions.

Politicians may refer to speech writers (if they acknowledge them at all) as people that make things backstage happen for speeches. Anybody that has a major event such as a rally, a parade, a concert, an art show, or any other event may refer to the people who organize the event as the people who make things happen backstage.

It is likely that most people know that the word comes from the theatre. Backstage literally means the actions that happen behind (or sometimes off to the side of) the stage that allow or have allowed things to happen on the stage. Today, even in the theatre, things that happen elsewhere allowing what appears on stage to happen are referred to as happening backstage. They don't have to literally happen backstage. They can happen in completely different buildings.

The origin of the word backstage is literally putting the two words back and stage together. The origin of the word back when used as an adverb as it would be if the word were the phrase "back stage," comes from the word aback becoming aphetic (having the disappearance of the first unstressed initial syllable). The origin of aback is from the Middle English word abak or the Old English phrase on bæc meaning "to the rear."

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Set the Stage - Theatre Etymology - Part 37

"Set the stage" is common phrase in usage. Most people know that it means to prepare for something or to "make way" or "establish the requirements" for something to happen. It can also mean "to make everything ready" for an event or to "make something possible" for something else to happen.

Of course, the phrase "set the stage" comes from the theatre. It is extremely literal because in the theatre the stage had to be set in order for a play to start. All of the correct scenery, set pieces, and props had to be on the stage in order for the play to start. Even if the stage was a bare stage, it was important that the stage was bare (and hopefully clean - although clean could be relative to the time period the performance took place).

The word set comes from the Middle English verb setten or the Old English verb settan. It is also descended from the Old Norse verb setja, the German verb setzen, and the Gothic verb satjan. All of these come from the Germanic word satjan which is a causative of setjan meaning to sit. The origin of the word stage can be found in the post for Exit, Stage Left.

Today, the phrase "set the stage" is also still used in theatre. It has also been used to name furniture stores, furniture collections, interior decorating companies, musical albums, makeup brands, marking and adverting companies, and clothing stores. Many books have used it as a title or part of a title. It is found in names of companies that focus on preparing for teaching children (or others) and in the titles of many articles written about various topics. These topics include movies, theatre, politics, television, celebrities, and sports.

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On Cue - Theatre Etymology - Part 36

Most poeple know that the phrase "on cue" means to happen at the right time. The term is theatrical, although sometimes people only know of the phrase from other sources.

When the phrase "on cue" is used, "cue" is a noun. It is easy to confuse cue with either queue (which means a line) and Kew (which is a part of the city of Richmond, London). Cue can also be a verb which is the action that indicates when the next action should occur.

There are a couple of different possible origins for the word cue. The first is that it probably came from name of the letter q. It was thought that this was used in an actor's script to represent the Latin word quando meaning when. The second is that it came from a word that meant a long plait of hair or a pigtail which came from the French word queue meaning tail (a heraldic term) or the Old French word coue which came from the Latin word cōda and the earlier Latin word cauda meaning tail.

"On Cue" has become a phrase that has been used to name many types of companies. A few of the types of companies are grocery stores, moving companies, paging equipment stores, and production companies. The phrase "on cue" is likely to be a phrase that is going to be continually used because theatre constantly uses cues and the term has not changed. In the theatre, sometimes cue is abbreviated a Q. An example of this can be found in the comic strip Q2Q.

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Make a Scene - Theatre Etymology - Part 35

The phrase "make a scene" can be taken literally or figuratively. There are many meanings for both senses. When the phrase is taken literally, a person is literally creating a scene. This might be a picture created on canvas. It might be a picture created on paper or a computer screen. It could be a diorama. It could also be something written in a story (a short story or a novel) or a play that takes place in one setting. That would be a scene.

When taken figuratively, here are some of the meanings that "make a scene" can have:

• To gain unfavorable attention by acting hysterically.
• To have an embarrassing outbreak of a strong feelings such as anger or sadness.
• To have a public outbreak of showing bad manners.
• To make a public disturbance.
• To publicly show a strong emotional display with happiness, excitement, anger, sadness, or other emotions.
• To bring unnecessary attention to oneself through through a public expression of tumultuous emotion.
• To create a loud, typically angry public disturbance, but it can be other strong emotions.

The word make comes from the Middle English word maken or the Old English word macian. These can be compared with the Low German word or the Dutch word maken and the German word machen. The origin of the word scene can be found in the post for Greedy Scene.

Other languages have phrases or words that mean "make a scene." In Australian slang, the word is wobbly or "chuck a wobbly." In French, the phrase is "faire un esclandre" which literally means "to make a scandal" or could mean "to make a stink." In Yiddish, the word shtuss means commotion, so to "make a shtuss" would mean the same as to "make a scene." The Yiddish phrase "Makhen a gevalt" also means to "make a scene" or to "shout for help." In Spanish the phrase that means "make a scene" is "montar un pollo." This literally means "ride a chicken." The phrase came about from the word poyo, meaning a small stone bench found at the entrance to many village houses. This in turn came from the Latin word podium referring to the pedestal used in the nineteenth century by speakers that would speak in the village square. The speeches given to the townspeople were often heated and would frequently result in animated exchanges, thus they caused a scene.

The phrase make a scene has been used to name music albums, songs, books, theatre companies, theatre events, articles, software, theatre and writing workshops, gardening or landscaping companies, wax a warmer for scented waxes and phone apps.

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Exit, Stage Left - Theatre Etymology - Part 34

When most people hear "Exit, stage left," they probably think of the pink mountain lion, Snagglepuss, that was created by Hanna-Barbera. It wouldn't be surprising since that is one of his catchphrases, the other being "Heavens to Murgatroyd!" The phrase "Exit, stage left," has come to mean quite a few things instead of just the typical exiting off of a stage.

Here are a few possible meanings of the phrase:

• An uneventful, orderly departure that is timed so it does not distract or detract from the situation.
• To disappear or exit from a place in a non-dramatic fashion so more interesting events can take place.
• To leave the scene without making a fuss.
• A timely departure meant to not draw attention to one's self.
• Literally exiting a stage from stage left.
• A phrase said to somebody when you want them to leave (although this is slang and may not truly be a popular usage).

The phrase obviously comes from the theatre in stage directions that would read, "Exit, stage left." However, unlike some people think, it does not come from Shakespeare. The stage instructions in his play The Winter's Tale are not, "Exit, stage left, persued by a bear." They are only "Exit, persued by a bear." In fact, Shakespeare does not have which way actors should exit the stage and only uses "Exit" or "Exeunt."

The word exit partly comes from the Latin word exitus meaning act or means of going out. This is equivalent to the prefix exi- which is a variant stem of exīre meaning to go out and the suffix -tus which makes an action verb. The word stage comes from the Old French word estage or the French word étage. These come from the Vulgar Latin word staticum meaning “standing place.” This is equivalent to stat having us added to the end, so it become status. This is considered a neuter of staticus and static. The word left, when used as a directional word comes from the Middle English word left, lift, or luft, or the Old English word left meaning idle, weak, or useless. It may also come from the Kentish form of lyft- (in lyftādl palsy). This is comparable to the Dutch and Low German word lucht which is akin to Middle English word libbe meaning to castrate. This is comparable to the Dutch and Low German word lubben.

The phrase has no been used to title books and musical albums. Snagglepuss is supposed to be a great actor. Because of this, it is interesting that when he said, "Exit, stage left!" he didn't always exit stage left. In this short clip, he actually exits stage right.

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Comedy of Errors - Theatre Etymology - Part 33

When most people hear the phrase a comedy of errors, they probably think, "Oh, that's a Shakespeare play." They would be correct. However, the phrase has more of a meaning that just a title of a Shakespeare play. It means an event or a series of events with so many mistakes or errors made during them that it made the entire time ridiculous.

Sometimes the phrase is used to refer to a series of awkward missteps rather than out-right mistakes, although they are technically the same thing in this case. For those who would first say that the phrase came from the title of Shakespeare's play. In the play, a series of mistakes is what happens over the day it takes place. Shakespeare's play tells the story of two sets of identical twins who were separated at birth. Of course, this leads to a series of misunderstandings, especially since each identical twin bears the same name as the other and the only way the difference between them is known is that they are followed by "of city name."

Shakespeare's play was written in 1600. The word comedy comes from the Middle English word comedye which comes from the Medieval Latin word cōmēdia or the Latin word cōmoedia which comes from the Greek word kōmōidía. The Greek word kōmōidía is the equivalent to the Greek words kōmōid(ós) meaning comedian, and kômo(s) added to aoidós meaning merry-making added to singer. The word error comes from the Middle English word errour which comes from the Latin stem errōr-. By now, the phrase has been used to name other books, articles, and musical albums.

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Change of Scene - Theatre Etymology - Part 32

Most people know that a change of scene means to go somewhere different in order to get a different experience of view. It can be short term such as leaving one's house to go to a restaurant or library and coming back, or it could be long term such as moving from one country to another. It can also mean a new way of thinking.

It probably isn't a surprise that this phrase comes from the theatre unless you have never heard of theatre. Obviously, when the set (or scenery) became different for a part in a play, that was a change of scenery. This obvious still happens in the theatre, but it does not happen like it used and sometimes it doesn't need to happen at all in plays today. In his 1908 book Significant Etymology or Roots, Stems, and Branches of the English Language, The Very Rev. James Mitchell, M.A., D.D. wrote, "The scene originally was part of the stage of a theatre on which the actors perform; and there were scene-painters and scene-shifters. But as such wings and scenes are scarcely used now, we have not so much change of scene as formerly." However, it is not clear exactly what he means.

Today, the term change of scene is also applied to television and films. In these media, a change of scene can take place much faster than in live theatre because of camera effects and digital effects. Characters may literally jump from being at the fairgrounds to suddenly riding in an airplane.

It is interesting to note that the German word verwandlung meaning transformation can be used to mean change of scene when in the theatre. Then, there is the French word dépayser which means to leave your comfort zone. It basically translates into the English words to decountrify, so it is a removal from a country. This is meaning that one has to get used to new things like suddenly being in a new place with no preperation, so it is a complete change of scene.

The word change, when used as a verb, comes from the Middle English word cha(u)ngen which comes from the Anglo-French or the Old French word changer which comes from the Late Latin word cambiāre or the Latin word cambīre meaning to exchange. When it is used as a noun, the word change comes from the Middle English word cha(u)nge which comes from the Anglo-French or Old French derivitive of the verb noun derivative of the verb changer. The origin of the word scene can be found in the post about a greedy scene.

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Star-queller - Theatre Etymology - Part 31

A star-queller sounds like it is some type of device that puts out the light of a star. However, that is not what the term means. A star-queller is actually a performer whose bad acting ruin a performance and may worry the lead actor. If the lead actor is distracted, this could quell his stardom.

It is thought that the theatrical term comes from around 1880-1910. However, it is interesting that it does not seem to appear in print, though. The only time that it appears in print when not as a term that is defined is in 1906 in a book by John Gurdon called Dramatic Lyrics in a poem called "Herse." It is about Herse, the goddess of dew, daughter of Selene and Zeus. Part of the poem reads, "Fair shining star-queller, the horns of thy crescent drawn close, from thy quiver."

The theatrical definition of star-queller is first found in 1937 in Fair shining star-queller, the horns of thy crescent drawn close, from thy quiver by Eric Partridge, edited by Paul Beale. It says that a star-queller is "an actor whose imperfect acting mars that of better actors. In 1952, the term star-queller is defined as "A clumsy actor whose slow movements and bad acting worry the leading player, star role. See star part, stellar role" in A Dictionary of Theatrical Terms by Wilfred Granville.

The same definition by Eric Partridge appeared again in 1973 in the sixth edition of The Routledge Dictionary of Historical Slang. Then in 2015, star-queller is defined as " player whose bad business spoils the efforts of better players." in volume six of Slang and Its Analogues, Past and Present, A Dictionary Historical and Comparative of the Heterodox Speech of All Classes of Society for More Than Three Hundred Years; With Synonyms in English, French, German, Italian, Etc.; Rea to Stozzle by John Stephen Farmer with contributions by W.E. Henley.

The term was again defined in 2017 in Volume II - L to Z of A Dictionary of Sang, Jargon & Cant - Embracing English, American, and Aglo-Indian Slang, Pidgin English, Gypsies' Jargon and Other Irregular Phraseology. It once again defines the term as, "is a term applied to an actor whose imperfect acting mars that of better actors."

The word star comes from the Middle English word sterre or the Old English word steorra. The can be compared with the Old High German word sterra which is akin to the Old High German word sterno, the Old Norse word stjarna, the Gothic word stairno, the Latin word stella, the Greek word astḗr, and Sanskrit word stṛ. Queller is the noun form of the verb quell. The word quell comes from the Middle English word quellen or the Old English word cwellan meaing to kill. These are akin to Old Norse word kvelja meaning to torment and the German word quälen meaning to vex.

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Desultory - Theatre Etymology - Part 30

If somebody is desultory, that means that they do not have a plan or they are jumping around from subject to subject. Today, it is more likely that a person would be called scatterbrained. Desultory, however, can also be applied to things like lessons, meetings, papers, or other tangible or intangible items. They may not have a definite plan. They may not be connected with the main subject or they ay be disappointing in a performance, consistency, progress, or quality.

While desultory is a great word to be used rather than calling a person scatterbrained, that does not cover the origin of the word. The word desultory originates in the theatre. It goes all the way back to the 1570s or 1580s.

The Latin word dēsultōrius was used to mean pertaining to a dēsultor (a circus rider who jumps from one horse to another). This is equivalent to dēsul-, which is a variant stem of dēsilīre meaning to jump down (dē- de- + -silīre, combining form of salīre to leap) plus -tōrius -tory. -Tory is a suffix occurring in loanwords from Latin. It could also form adjectival derivatives directly from verbs (obligatory; transitory).

Some sources say that when a rider jumped from horse to horse, they were galloping. It is the idea of jumping from one horse to another was later applied to jumping from one idea to another. Some words with related etymologies are somersault, sally, and result.

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Marvin's Room in Lake Charles for Seven More Performances

A woman sits on a park bench in Disneyworld. She told the rest of her family to go enjoy one of the other attractions without her as she wanted to rest. Suddenly, she coughs into a handkerchief and as she looks into it, she sees that she's coughed up blood. Suddenly, she falls to the ground because she fainted.

The next thing that is known is that she awakes and doesn't know where she is. Her sister tells her that she is in the lost children's hut. This is just one of the episodes that deals with family drama in Marvin's Room. In the play, Marvin, an elderly father, has suffered two strokes and one of his daughters, Bessie, takes care of him. Bessie's Aunt Ruth also lives with them. Bessie is diagnosed with leukemia and her sister and her sons come down to Florida from Ohio to find out of their bone marrow matches Bessie's. However, these are only a few of the trials faced in the play.

Marvin's Room is currentlySadler playing at The Lake Charles Little Theatre. Jo Ann Hanks is wonderful as Bessie. You can see that she definitely pours her emotion into her acting. This is also true of Ellie Marqeuz whoe plays Ruth and Carson Turgeon who plays Hank.

A sad play usually doesn't work well without comic relief. This provided by Kevin Driscoll who plays Dr. Way and Dan Sadler who plays Bob. Of course, the rest of the cast is wonderful, too. Lee, Bessie's sister, is played by Stacy Solak. Dr. Charlotte is played by Leslie Harless. Cole Becton plays Charlie and Heather Phillips plays the retirement home director. The production of this play is directed by James Johnson and is dedicated to Jo Ann Rigney.

Other crew members are Katy Cole (assisstant director), Johnathon Richards (Lighting Advior), Jordan Coe (Light Operator), Cameron Scallon (Sound Operator), James Johnson (Set Design), Heather Partin (Costume Design), Kevin Driscoll (Hair & Makeup), Rebecca Harris (Box Office), and James Johnson (Concessions Manager). Set construction was done by Dan Sadler, Randy Partin, and the cast and crew. The stage crew consists of Hunter Becton, Christopher Marshall, Jaylon Williams, and Quaid Nichols.

The production can be seen seven more times at The Lake Charles Little Theatre. The dates are as follows:

• Sunday, October 14, 2018 at 2pm
• Friday, October 19, 2018 at 7:30pm
• Saturday, October 20 at 7:30pm
• Sunday, October 21 at 2pm
• Friday, October 26 at 7:30pm
• Saturday, October 27 at 7:30pm
• Sunday, October 28 at 2pm

Tickets for the show can be bought online at Vendini for Marvin's Room at The Lake Charles Little Theatre.

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Flabberdegaz - Theatre Etymology - Part 29

Flabberdegaz sounds like a name for an old man that does nonsensical things. While you might call an old man like that a flabberdegaz, the real meaning of the word is basically flubbed lines in a performance of a play. These can take many forms. An actor may forget lines and make up other lines. It may be that the actors uses lots of filler lines like er and uh. Flabberdegaz can also be applied to the actor himself. It is thought that instead of flabberdegaz, sometimes the term Marjo McFluffer was used.

The word comes from the late 19th and early 20th century. It was defined as "Words interpoated to dissemble a lapse of memory; gag. Also, imperfect utterance or bad acting" in the 1890 book Slang and its Analogues Past and Present: A Dictionary Historical and Comparatie of the Heterodox Speech of All Classes of Years With Synonyms in English, French, German, Italian, Etc. The book was either a.nonymously written or written by somebody who went by John . The term was defined again in 1897 in the first volume (A-K) of A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant Embracing English, American, and Anglo-Indian Slang, Pidgin English, Gypsies' Jargon, and Other Irregular Phraseology. The book was compiled and edited by Albert Barrere and Charles G. Leland.

It was defined again in 1918 in the fifth volume of The American Dialect Society's Dialect Notes when it gave the defintion as, "Talk; vain imaginings in speech." It said it was a general term, but that by 1918, it was aso a rare term. However, sixteen years later, flabberdegaz was defined as "nonsensical talk" in A Dictionary of American Slang by Maurice Weseen.

It wasn't defined again until 1973 when The Routeledge Dictionary of Historical, Sixth Edition by Eric Partridge, abridged by Jacqueline Simpson wrote that it means "a gag or stop-gap words; a pice of bad acting or instance of imperfect utterance." The word wasn't defined again until 2005 when it was defined as "vain imaginingss in speech" and was said to come from the Pacific Northwest. Informal English: Puncture Ladies, Egg Harbors, Mississippi Marlbes, and Other Curious Words and Phrases of North America by Jeffery Kacirk says that this definition come from a source with the name Lehman.

The origin of the word is not certain, but it is thought that it may come from the nonce word (a word coined and used only for a particular occasion) flabberdegasky or the word flabbergast. Flabbergast means "to overcome with surprise and bewilderment" or "to astound." It is a variant of the word flabagast which is thought to have come from the words flabby and aghast. Flabby comes from an alteration of flappy or the Middle English flabband meaning attested once. Flappy is the adjective form of the word flap. Flap comes from the Middle English word flappe meaning a bloe or a slap or the Middle English word flappen meaning to hit or to slap. This can be compared to the Dutch words flap and flappen.

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Front of House - Theatre Etymology - Part 28

Front of house sounds like it refers to the front door and windows of a house, one where a person would walk up and knock on the door so a person could answer. However, that is not what front of house means. Front of house is a theatrical term. It refers to any part of the theatre that patrons can regularly access. This pretty much means any part of the theatre except for the stage and dressing rooms.

Front of House has also become a term in the restaurant industry meaning positions that work with patrons. These positions can be servers, seaters, bartenders, and cashiers. All of these people deal directly with patrons. In a theatre, the front of house manager usually deals with directing lobby traffic, organizing all volunteers such as ushers, and making sure the front of house is a welcoming place. Other people that work in the front of house may be ushers and those who sell tickets.

Sometimes there are people such as front of house mixers or front of house audio and lighting crews. They people obviously work with the lights and the sounds for a show. They can be both for theatrical productions and musical concerts. The front of house personnel are important because they are the first people that patrons see when walking into a venue.

It is not certain when the term front of house originated, but it is known that circa 15 B.C., Vitruvius wrote De Architectura in which he admonished people who made theatrical productions to select a site that produced good acoustics and was .ealthy for the audience. The word front comes from the Middle English word frount or front which comes from Anglo-French or Old French which comes from the Latin word front- (stem of frōns) meaning. forehead, brow, or front. You can find the origin for the word house in the post for Bring the House Down.

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To Play To The Gas - Theatre Etymology - Part 27

n this day, if somebody says, "to play to the gas," it sounds like a car term. After all, there are things that happen with cars or trucks and they are said to add play to the gas pedal. However, the phrase to play to the gas is thought to have meant to make just enough money to get by, meaning that a theatrical production made just enough money so people were literally able to play their gas bills.

However, that exact definition does not seem to be found. In the fifth volume of Slang and its analogues past and present. A dictionary, historical and comparative of the heterodox speech of all classes of society for more than three hundred years. With synonyms in English, French, German, Italian, etc by John Stephen and William Earnest, "to play to the gas" is said to mean to play to small audiences. This was published some time between 1890 and 1904.

It is interesting that the phrase then appears in a 1906 Dutch publication known as Tall en Lettern. This means Language and Arts and seems to be by J.M.N. Kapteijn. The Dutch phrase is "Voor stoelen e n banken spelen" which translates to "Play chairs and sofas." However, it is not listed as that translation in English in the publication. Instead, it says that the phrase is the equivalent of "to play to the gas." It would seem that this is supporting that the phrase actually means to play to small audiences as it sounds like playing to chairs and sofas was something that was probably done in homes of people who held theatre there and thus had sitting rooms with a few chairs and one or a few sofas for friends.

It seems that the next time the phrase appears in recorded print is in 1933 in the book Earl Derr Biggers Tells Ten Stories by Earl Derr Biggers. It is said to have come from the October 7, 1922 edition of The Saturday Evening Post in a story called "Moonlight at the Crossroads." He wrote that one of his characters was talking to another called Maynard and said, "My dear sir, you can never appreciate the life I got into. For a short time all went well; then the houses fell off. We didn't play to the gas. Our salaries stopped, our pitiful luggage was seized for hotel bills, we ate but rarely. Somehow, we struggled on. I had never dreamed such misery could exist in the world. We managed to reach Dublin, and there my resistance gave out. I wired a friend for money to go home." This part of the story does have to do with people in the theatre and seems to support the phrase "to play to the gas" meaning to make enough money to get by.

The phrases can make sense when put together. Actors may have played to the gas, meaning a small audience that paid just enough for them to make enough money to pay the gas bill or make whatever they needed to get by. The phrase could have also changed meaning over the years as language does tend to change.

The word play has many definitions. When it is a noun, the word play seems to come from the Middle English noun pleye or the Old English nounn plega. When it is a verd, the word play seem to come from the Middle English verb pleyen or the Old English verb pleg(i)an. This can be comared to the Middle Dutch word pleien meaning to leap for joy, dance, rejoice, be glad.

The word gas was coined between 1650-1660 by the Flemish chemist J.B. van Helmont. It is thought that he coined the word based on the Greek word cháos meaning atmosphere.

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Gin and Fog - Theatre Etymology - Part 26

 Gin and fog sounds like it might refer to special effects used in the theatre as a term akin to smoke and mirrors. However, that isn't the case. The term gin and fog, or sometimes written gin-and-fog, refers to hoarseness caused due to heavy drinking the previous night. A dictionary of words and phrases from the past says that a voice would have a peculiar quality of "fruitiness" and says that the term comes from around 1880 via the theatre.

However, the earliest reference that seems to appear actually comes from 1841 in the second volume of a book called Merrie England In The Olden Time by George Daniel. He wrote, "'Now my little lads and lasses! Shut one eye, and don't breathe on the glasses! Here's Nero a-fiddling while Rome was a-burning—and Cin-cinnatus a-digging potatoes. Here's Sampson and the Phillis-tines—Cain and Abel, and the Tower of Babel.' This was sounded by a gaunt fellow (a stronger man than Sampson, for he lugged him in by the head and shoulders!) with a gin-and-fog voice and a bristly beard. His neighbour, a portly ogress with a Cyclopical physiognomy (her drum 'most tragically run through!'), advertised a grunting giant, (a Pygmalion to his relations!) and backed his stupendous flitches against Smith-field and the world."

It appeared again in 1852 in Household Words where it was written,

"One word about the customers, and we will rejoin our chariot, which must surely be extricated by this time. Thieves, beggars, costermongers, hoary-headed old men, stunted, ragged, shock-haired children, blowzy, slatternly women, hulking bricklayers, gaunt, sickly hobbededoys, with long greasy hair. A thrice-told tale. Is it not the same everywhere! The same pipes, dirt howling, maundering, fighting, staggering gin fever. Like plates multiplied by the electro-process;like the printer's 'stereo'; like the reporter's 'manifold' ;you will find duplicates, triplicates of these forlorn beings everywhere. The same woman giving her baby gin; the same haggard, dishevelled woman, trying to coax her drunken husband home; the same mild girl, too timid even to importune her ruffian partner to leave off drinking the week's earnings, who sits meekly in a corner, with two discoloured eyes, one freshly blacked; one of a week's standing. The same weary little man, who comes in early, crouches in a corner, and takes standing naps during the day, waking up periodically for 'fresh drops.' The same red-nosed, ragged object who disgusts you at one moment by the force and fluency of his Billingsgate, and surprises you the next by bursting out in Greek and Latin quotations. The same thin, spectral man who has no money, and, with his hands piteously laid one over the other, stands for hours gazing with fishy eyes at the beloved liquor; smelling, thinking of, hopelessly desiring it. And, lastly, the same miserable girl, sixteen in years, and a hundred in misery; with foul, matted hair, and death in her face ; with a tattered plaid shawl, and ragged boots, a gin-and-fog voice, and a hopeless eye."

It also appeared in 1856 in the text, "The street ballad-singers of the present day are no improvement upon their predecessors. The elaborate blackguardism ard gin-and-fog voices of these excruciating screech-owls speak little for the boasted march of intellect." This was printed in An Elizabethan Garland; Being a Descriptive of Seventy Black-Letter Ballads Printed Between the Years 1550 and 1597.

It appeared in print after 1880 in the third chapter of the 1889 work How the Poor Live, and Horrible London bu George R. Sims. He wrote, "The drink dulls every sense of shame, takes the sharp edge from sorrow, and leaves the drinker for awhile in a fools' paradise. Here is the home of the most notorious 'drunkardess'—if I may coin a work—in the neighbourhood. Mrs. O'Flannigan's room is easily entered, for it is on the street-level, and one step brings us into the presence of the lady herself. She is in bed, a dirty red flannel rag is wrapped about her shoulders, and her one arm is in a sling. She sits up in bed at the sight of visitors, and greets us in a gin and fog voice, slightly mellowed with the Irish brogue. Biddy has been charged at the police-courts seventy-five times with being drunk, and she is therefore a celebrated character. She is hardly sober now, though she has evidently had a shaking which would have sobered most people for a month. Her face is a mass of bruises and cuts, and every now and then a groan and a cry to certain Saints in her calendar tell of aches and pains in the limbs concealed under the dirty blanket that covers the bed."

The term continued appearing in print in the early 20th century. It appeared in the 37th chapter of the 1905 work, The Crimson Blind by Fred M White. He wrote, "Merritt rocked heavily on the other's breastbone, almost stifling him. 'Wot?' he said, scoffingly. The pleasing mixture of gin and fog in his throat rendered him more hideously hoarse than usual. 'Not make up a prayer! And you a regular dab at all that game! Why, I've seen the women snivellin' like babies when you've been ladlin' it out. Heavens, what a chap you would be on the patter! How you would kid the chaplain!'" White used the term again in his 1906 work, The Yellow Face when he wrote, "A figure slouched up to him and a hoarse voice whispered in his ear: 'Party of the name of Maggs,' he said in his gin-and-fog voice. 'Pal of 'Simple Charlie.' Old Charlie couldn't get away to-night, so he sent me instead. Don't you be disappointed, guv'nor; you will find me just as clever with them bits of steel as Charles himself. Bit of burglary, ain't it?'" It was then used by Ian Hay when he wrote, "'Tha's right, ole son! You give 'im socks,' remarked a hoarse and rather indistinct voice of the gin -and -fog variety, from among the spectators." in his 1910 work, The Right Stuff.

Gin is an alcohol that is made by distilling grain mash with juniper berrieds and sometimes other fruits, so it would make sense to describe a voice as having fruitiness to it. The word gin is a shorting of geneva, usually capitalized as Geneva, referring to the Hollands. The word geneva comes from the Dutch word genever which comes from the Old French word genevre which comes from the Latin jūniperus meaning juniper.

The word fog is thought to be a back formation of the word foggy. Both words are thought to come from the Middle English word fooge or fog which comes from the Scandinavian or Norwegian fogg meaning long grass on damp ground.

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Charles, His Friend - Theatre Etymology - Part 25

"Charles, his friend," sounds like it is just a part of speech in a play. It sounds like one character is telling another that Charles is somebody's friend. However, the phrase is actually used for an uninspiring part in a play where the role is only there so the main character has somebody with whom they talk. There is no other reason that the character exists in the world of the play.

Saying that it sounds like reading part of dialogue is not too far from the origin of the phrase. It could be said that this is a stock character, though there is even less substance to this character than there is to a stock character. However, some sources say that "Charles, his friend," is actually the secondary young man of a play.

The phrase seems to have originated from the personae dramatis of an old forgotten play. The character was simply listed as "Charles, hi friend."

The name Charles means man. It is thought to have come from the German name Karl or German word karlaz meaning a free man. It is also thought that it may have come from the German name prefix hari which means army or warrior. The name was made popular in 17th century Britain when the Stuart king was named Charles I.

The word friend comes from the Middle English word friend, or frend or the Old English word frēond meaning friend, lover, or relative. It is also possibly decended from the Old Saxon word friund, the Old High German word friunt, the German word Freund, or the Gothic word frijōnds.

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The Ghost Walks - Theatre Etymology - Part 24

"The Ghost Walks" sounds like it is an eerie phrase meant for Halloween. After all, there is a 1924 mystery movie called The Ghost Walks and there is the super hero, The Phantom, who is known as The Ghost Who Walks. However, neither of these have to do with the phrase, either. "The Ghost Walks" is a phrase meaning that salaries will be paid.

Being that a ghost has nothing to do with money, the phrase seems strange. The first time any type of instance of the phrase seems to be found in print is from the Sunday, May 29, 1831 edition of London's The Atlas. A General Newspaper and Journal of Literature in a section known as "Theatrical News." It stated,

On Saturday the actors at Drury Lane were struck with horror to find that no "ghost walked;" that is, that the treasury was shut. It appears that 800l. were wanted by the treasurer. Captain Polhill would pay down no more than 400l., according to the terms of his agreement with Mr. Lee. This led to a secession on the part of the latter gentleman from the concerns of the theatre. The deed of separation was regularly drawn up and signed, the partnership dissolved, and Captain Polhill remains sole manager of Drury Lane. There were various accounts of the supposed cause of this disagreemnt, and it was said that the rival queens of Drury had, as in days of yore, by their contentions, frightened Alexander from the throne. The cause we have stated first, however, a mere matter of business, is the real one.

It appeared again in 1833 in Nine Years of an Actor's Life when R. Dyer wrote, "If I played with applause, it was a matter of indifference whether the ghost walked on Saturday or not." It then appeared in the September 24, 1835 edition of Household Words when it was printed in the text, "When no salaries are forthcoming on Saturday the 'ghost doesn't walk.'"

The next time the phrase appeared in print was in the June 24, 1883 edition of Referee when it said, "An Actor's Benevolent Fund box placed on the treasurer's desk every day when the ghost walks would get many an odd shilling of six-pence put into it." It then appeared in the 1889 Edinburgh edition of A dictionary of slang, jargon and cant: embracing English, American, and Anglo-Indian slang, pidgin English, tinkers' jargon and other irregular phraseology when Albert Barrere and Charles Godfrey defined it as follows:

Ghost walking (theatrical), a term originally applied by an impecunious stroller in a sharing company to the operation of "holding the treasury," or paying the salaries, which has become a stock facetiae amongst all kinds and descriptions of actors. Instead of inquiring whether the treasury is open, they usualy say -- "Has the ghost walked?" or "What! has this thing appeared again?" (Shakespeare).
[undated quotation]
(Commercial), in large firms, when the clerk whose duty it is goes round the various departments paying wages, it is common to say the ghost walks.

It seems that the phrase has also moved to being used in the military. However, there has only been a short part that has mentioned that it is a reference to Shakespeare. There is not any certainty to the story, but it is repeated in many places and is the likely origin even though it can only be considered folk etymology.

It is thought that a strolling (touring) group of actors was performing Hamlet and that they had not been paid for about a month. The actor who was playing the ghots of King Hamlet (who may have been the manager of the company or at least a person who handled the money for it), when the actor playing Hamlet said the line found in Act I, Scene 2 that goes, "I will watch tonight. Perchance 'Twill walk again." responded with "No, I'm damned if the Ghost walks any more until our salaries are paid." Some sources are more gentle and put" d---d" rather than "damned."

Other sources give a slighty different account of the actor's reply. These include:

• "No, I'll be damned if the Ghost walks again until our salaries are paid."
• No! The Ghost walks no more until our salaries are paid!"

Some sources say that the actors were paid that night. Others do leave the story without knowing if the actors were paid or not.

The word ghost comes from the Middle Engish word goost or the Old English word gāst. These can be comparted to the German word Geist meaning spirit. The word walk comes from the Middle Engish word walken or the Old Engish word wealcan meaning to roll or toss or possibly the Old English word gewealcan meaning to go. These can be compared to the Dutch and German world walken meaning to fully cloth, the Old Norse Word Old Norse word vālka meanng to toss.

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Wandelprobe - Theatre Etymology - Part 23

If you guessed that Wandelprobe was related to sitzprobe in a way, you'd be correct. It is technically pronounced as "von-dell-pro-buh," but some directors and other theatre professionals may say it "wan-del-pro-buh" or "wan-del-probe."

Different directors and conductors conduct wandelprobes differently. In fact, even the same person may hold them differently depending on the production and the needs of the production. However, in general, it means that the actors and singers are free to wander over the stage while the band or orchestra plays. They still have to sing the parts they are assigned while wandering over the stage.

This wandering isn't free range wandering, though. They have to wander to the approximate blocking for the production, if not the exact blocking. However, this is usually done out of costume, though it may be done in costume if that is the director's desire. There may still be stops in order to work with the orchestra or band and the actors or singers in order to figure out how movements go together with the music. Because of this, it may be necessary to use props.

If props are used is a decision that is left up to the director and others who are behind the scenes for the production. Sometimes actors and singers only wander over a bare stage during a wandelprobe. At other times, there are parts of the set or a complete set.

A wandelprobe is usually held before tech starts and there usually are not lighting cues. However, some directors and conductors like to have lighting cues set and running during a wandelprobe. Everything is basically up to the decisions of the director and conductor. However, a wandelprobe (or even more than one wandelprobe) takes place before the first full dress rehearsal.

Some people make the mistake of calling this rehearsal a wanderprobe, and that is understandable since the actors and singers wander. However, the word "wandelprobe" comes from German and technically means "convertable trial." While the German word wandel can mean change, flux, shift, or vicissitude, if the word is changed to wandeln, it can mean change, walk, or stroll. The German word probe means sample, text, trial assay, proof, rehearsal, specimen, practice, or pattern. So, the word wandelprobe comes from German words put together that mean "walk" or "stroll" and "rehearsal," so it is a "walking rehearsal."

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