How a play is produced/The Curtain Man
The Curtain Man
THE curtain man sits in a glass box I near the stage. At a sign from the prompter he lowers the curtain. The curtain falls quickly or descends tragically and slowly, according to the way the play ends. If the theatre is on fire the curtain man must remain at his post until the iron safety curtain has been let down. He is aware of this heroic duty: his face wears the concentrated expression of one who holds an exposed advanced post. Next to him is a pint of beer.
The firemen stand just behind the door where they are most in the way. They are black and serious: they do not laugh: they do not weep. But if a candle is burning on the stage, or if an actor lights a cigarette, they follow this fiery action with tense interest. They are always ready to rush on to the stage with drawn hatchets.
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