Fire Still a Theatre Nemisis

A news story today about a fire in a Vicksburg, MS theatre reminds me once again about the dangers that lurk in buildings that are full of dark corners, electrical connectors, combustibles, and just plain junk. As someone who spent most of his working life in theatres and in a theatre that was a decided firetrap, I am thankful that no lives were lost in Vicksburg. But whenever I read of a theatre fire I do remember that the epochs of theatre history are often marked by them.

London's famous Covent Garden burned down in 1807 and again in 1856. The English dramatist Richard Brinsley Sheridan was the proprietor of the Drury Lane Theatre in 1809 when, despite the presence of an iron safety curtain and huge water tanks in the flies, it fell victim to flames. There is a famous story that Sheridan was found drinking wine early that morning at a coffee house. A friend commented on his apparently stoic acceptance and Sheridan replied, "A man may surely be allowed to take a glass of wine at his own fireside."

The most horrible theatre fire in the United States remains the Iroquois Theatre blaze in 1903 in Chicago. Over six hundred people, mostly women and children, perished in minutes in spite of a rapid response by Chicago fire fighters to the downtown Loop location. This disaster sparked many improvements in theatre safety, including fire proofed scenery, lighted exit signs, and panic bars on doors that must open out not in.

Though there is no indication of carelessness or disregard of rules in the Vicksburg fire article, new generations of theatre artists must continue to be on guard when it comes to safety. Richard Christiansen comments in his book, A THEATRE OF OUR OWN, that there is great temptation when struggling groups are faced with too many rules and too little time. "To avoid being shut down . . . they put a little money under the cash register when the building inspector comes to call."

Needless to say this is a temptation for a fate that noone would really wish for.