I thought this story was overdrawn, but, after traveling over somewhat
the same route which this fellow countryman had taken, I came to
the conclusion that it was no exaggeration, but a true bill in all
particulars. On the night of our second day in Paris we went to a
theater to see one of the topical revues, in which Paris is supposed to
excel; and for sheer dreariness and blatant vulgarity Paris revues do,
indeed, excel anything of a similar nature as done in either England or
in America, which is saying quite a mouthful.
In the French revue the members of the chorus reach their artistic limit
in costuming when they dance forth from the wings wearing short and
shabby undergarments over soiled pink fleshings and any time the
dramatic interest begins to run low and gurgle in the pipes a male
comedian pumps it up again by striking or kicking a woman. But to kick
her is regarded as much the more whimsical conceit. This invariably sets
the audience rocking with uncontrollable merriment. Howsomever, I am not
writing a critique of the merits of the performance. If I were I should
say that to begin with the title of the piece was wrong. It should have
been called Lapsus Lingerie--signifying as the Latins would say, "A
Mere Slip." At this moment I am concerned with what happened upon our
entrance.
At the door a middle-aged female, who was raising a natty mustache,
handed us programs. I paid her for the programs and tipped her. She
turned us over to a stout brunette lady who was cultivating a neat and
flossy pair of muttonchops. This person escorted us down the aisle to
where our seats were; so I tipped her. Alongside our seats stood a third
member of the sisterhood, chiefly distinguished from her confreres by
the fact that she was turning out something very fetching in the way of
a brown vandyke; and after we were seated she continued to stand there,
holding forth her hand toward me, palm up and fingers extended in
the national gesture, and saying something in her native tongue very
rapidly. Incidentally she was blocking the path of a number of people
who had come down the aisle immediately behind us.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account