Backstage at the Music Hall Summary

Backstage at the Music Hall: On Tour

"The Halt" describes a troupe of performer's arrival in a village for a tour, how picturesque and foreign the surroundings are after Paris. "Arrival and Rehearsal" continues this narrative, with the performers getting ready to open a new theatre. In "A Bad Morning," the performers are depressed and having a difficult time getting started. "The Circus Horse," a dialogue for one voice, tells of one performer's travels and how eagerly she recounts her and her husband's act. In "The Workroom," Colette describes the conditions of the dressing room and how the performing women gather there to complain about their acts, the management, and especially the sub-par allowances they are given for costumes. In "Matinee," she describes performing in the terrible afternoon heat, and how different the performer's facades...