[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

ries. The
newspaper parcel is crumpled up into a ball, and allowed to fall lightly upon
the stage. The
rabbit has obviously disappeared. The hat containing the cannon-ball is taken
up and, in an
instant, the heavy metal sphere vanishes, the rabbit reappearing in its place.
The lighted
candle which previously supported the other hat, is taken from the folds of a
handkerchief;
and finally, the hat is lifted from the candlestick revealing the cannon-ball
which has taken
the place of the candle. Thus, instead of a definite climax comprising one
single effect, we
have, as it were, a protracted climax including a number of separate but inter-
dependent
magical occurrences.
In such a case as this, it may seem that the rule we have stated in reference to
climax
cannot hold good. But, as a matter of fact, the principle remains entirely va-
lid. The climax is
not really distributed over a number of effects; it merely remains in suspense
until the final
effect is produced. That is clearly so because, until the last development has
been reached,
the interest increases, step by step. The real climax does not occur until the
moment the final
revelation is made-or, at any rate, it should not occur until then. Any revelati-
on made after
the true climax has passed must necessarily constitute an anticlimax. Therefo-
re, we may say:
(19) When a presentation includes a number of effects in series, the final, ef-
fect
should represent the true climax, and its predecessors successive steps whe-
reby that climax
is reached.
From the differences in treatment required in the respective cases of drama
and
magic, it will be seen that when, as often happens, those two arts have to be
combined,
special precautions should be observed. Since procedure which may be admi-
rably adapted to
the requirements of one art may be fatal to the other, nothing is easier than to
play hob with
both arts when in combination. Thus, if magical effects have to be introduced
into a dramatic
production, or dramatic effects are associated with a magical performance, a
clear
understanding of the methods which should be adopted is most essential. Wi-
thout such
knowledge, a presentation which, if properly managed, might be a great suc-
cess, may easily
become a disastrous failure. In the case of a combination of magic and drama,
the truth of the
saying that there is no royal road to success finds a very special application.
The only road to
be followed with safety is the path of knowledge. We shall therefore give a
brief
consideration to the procedure advisable when magical and dramatic effects
are associated.
As a point of departure, we may refer to a fact, not generally recognized, but
amply
demonstrated by experience. It is a fact that is useful in showing something
of the normal
conditions to be met when drama and magic are simultaneously employed.
The fact to which
we allude is this: Many magical effects which (if presented as separate items
in a program)
evoke thunders of applause, are received with absolute silence when introdu-
ced as episodes
in a dramatic plot. This, at first sight, may seem strange, but the apparent sin-
gularity
disappears when one comes to a proper understanding of the circumstances.
There is
necessarily a reason for the result observed, and one that is well worth ascer-
taining.
Looking at the matter broadly, it becomes evident that when magic and drama
are
associated, the diverse requirements of the two arts must call for a certain a-
mount of mutual
adjustment. Something of each must be modified for the benefit of the gene-
ral effect. In
Rule
5
, we stated the fundamental principle of unity, which demands that every pre-
sentation shall
represent a distinct and complete entity, comprising one definite effect. Thus
we see that
when a magical item (instead of standing alone and complete within itself) is
adapted to form
an episode in a play, it no longer conveys an impression of finality, however
complete may
be the dramatic situation attending it. That is to say, it ought not to convey
such an
impression, in the circumstances described. Of course, it is quite possible to
pitchfork a
magical effect into a dramatic performance, without reference to the require-
ments of the plot
and without serving any essential purpose, and then make that interpolated
piece of magic go
with the audience, just as it would go apart from the play. That kind of thing,
however, does
not represent the combination of magic with drama. Neither art aids the other
in the slightest
degree; while the magic is being presented, the drama has to halt. When the
drama proceeds
again, the magic must be cleared out of the way. Procedure such as this
contravenes every
essential rule of artistic unity. It degrades magic to the level of mere padding,
as music and
poetry have been degraded so frequently in modern plays of the vaudeville
order. The simple
truth is that the artistic combination of various arts can only be achieved by
subjugating those
arts, one and all, to the general requirements of artistic unity. They must not
each be called
upon to provide isolated "turns," one down and t'other come on. Their con-
tributions must be
so dovetailed together that each item forms a necessary step in the progress
toward one
common end.
A magical item presented in the course of a play should, therefore, form an
essential [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]