Art of Shadowgraphy Trewy

8/13/2019 Art of Shadowgraphy Trewy

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T H E A R T O F

SHADOWGRAPHY.

MOW IT IS DONE.

B Y

TREWEY.

MIDDLESBROUGH :

J o k d i s o n & Co., L i m i t e d , P r i n t e r s a n d P u b l i s h e r s


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P R E F A T O R Y N O T E .

T pHOU G H Shadow gr aphy has been known

from time immemorial, and as 'tw ere a

thing: of bye- gone day s, T rew ey s practice of

the art comes as a novelty , and is highly

entertaining alike to the schoolboy and the

lean and slippered pantaloon.

f la ny w orks professedly ex positions of the

mysteries of shadowland have already been

w r itte n, but , be ing in the ms elv es my s ter ie s ,

they hav e been to the uninitiate d quite un

intellig ible. T he object in plac ing t his

pam phlet in the hands of the public, is to

i llustrate and render practicable to the amateur

the e n te r ta in in g H a n d i cr a f t of T r e w ey .

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The amateur should be careful to cover any mirror in the roomwhich would reflect the light and cause two shadows.

Fig.9

The R abb it Many works have been produced to explain and illustrate Shadows on the Wall, and almost invariablyhave begun with a rabbit. If there be any who do not know how toperform J:his, a glance at the illustration will suffice to instruct.

Fig. 10 The Swan.

Figs . 11 and 12 The Wolf is being performed by Cam pi andFrizzo, but

A FEW WORDS ABOUT TREWEY.

He was a man,t&ke him for all in all,

I s h a l l n o t l o o k u p o n h i s li k e a g a i n .

A/TONS. T R E W E Y , the original Fanta is ist Humoristique, is well* * known in the principal Theatres in England. Those whosee his entertainment cannot fail to observe that the merit of theperformance lies in the marvellous skill which it domands. One sees

many clever conjurers, men who produce strange and apparently impossible results by somo inexplicable means. It is wonderful, but theaudience knows always that the strange effect is only produced by adeception of some sort, and that tho conjurer has only succeeded inpretending cleve rly to do wh at was only apparen tly impossible. Theordinary apparatus conjurer excites for this reason only our wonderment and not our admiration. His performance has no merit at all

when one sees how it is done. Treweys entertainment is of adifferent stamp. There are no elaborate apparatus or concealedmechanical contrivances, no false bottomed and double-lidded boxes.

His properties are of the simplest kind, and his performancesexc ite ones amazement on account solely of his skill. He really doeswhat, to everyone who sees it , is abso lutely impossible, and which isonly accomplished by himself by reason of his own cleverness and of aphenomenal developm ent of manual dexter ity. To balance as he doeshalf a dozen objects on the top of one another asit seems in entiredefiance of the law of gravitation requires an amou nt of skill, of quick ness of the eye and the hand, which is a most marvellous example ofhuman achievement. An d so with his other thousand and one trickswith cards and coins with anythin g. In every th in g the same won

derful development of dexterity, which the Paris Figaro cleverlydescribed as Trew eyism . I t is worth while, perhaps, to considerthe manner in w'hich this Treweyism has been developed, andjtodo that it is necessary _to know_the man and his history.

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F i g . 1 3 T he E le p h a n t , a n d

F i g . 1 4 T he B ir d , a n d

F ig . 1 5 T he C a t , h a v e b e en p e rf e c te d b y T r e w e y .


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Fig. 16 The Old Man.

Fig. 17 Perfect Nose.

Fig. 18 The Countryman, and

( l i f e o f t r e w e y c o n t i n u e d ).

Trewey was born a t Augouleme, the great paper-making townin the South of France. His father was employed as machinistat one of the manufactories, and occupied a house on the premises.

Here T rew ey was born in the workshop, and in the workshop itseemed probable that his life would be sp e n t; for the wild dreamsof the fathers ambition was th at his son should become engineerto the manufactory. Trew ey, it is tolerably safe to say, wouldhave made a wonderfully expert mechanic, and would havebecome a very original and inventive engineer if the fath ers choicehad fixed his subsequent career. B u t le pere propose and the sonchooses for himself. Trew ey finally determined his subsequentcareer when lie was seven years old. He was taken one day to theCircus at Marseilles and saw the performance of a conjurer. Th e

wonders of mechanics and triumphs of engineering seemed by comparison little wo rthy of imitation. The boy was carried aw ay b y hisadmiration of the wonderful skill of the performer possibly anordinary fellow enough and fully made up his mind, as man y thousands of other boys have done, to become a conjurer. Bu t, unlikethe other boys, he seriously tried to become one. He began topractice at once, to try to do some of the juggling tricks which hehad seen done. As he attained some degree of boyish proficiencyhe began to exhibit to liis schoolfellows and playmates with an infantile forecast of the success which later in life he was to achieve.

His schoolboy audience was appreciative and encouraging, and hewent on to cultiv ate in a humble way the Thespian muse by riggingup a rough proscenium at a back window in his fathers house, andperforming the everywhere popular Punch and Judy to a delighted

ju venile audience outside. The figures were his hands draped inrags. The music was limited to an overture on the comb and curlpaper, and there^was no charge for admission, but the success wasgreat.

He remained firm in his intention of becoming a professional con

jurer, and was not, perhaps, a very diligent student at school. Therewas not very much^to^be learnt from books in the conjuring way.A slate he found by practice could be made to spin round in a veryinteresting manner when balanced on the point of a slate pencil, but

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Fig. 19 The Grimacer have been performed, but imperfectly,b y others.

Fig. 20 The Volunteer, and

Fig. 21 Robinson Crusoe are Trew eys inventions.


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Fig. 22 The Jockey, andFig. 23 The Rope Dancer were invented b y Trewe y during

his last visit to the Alham bra. At the same time.


it was an exercise that began to pall after a time ; and a spelling bookwas rather too large to conjure up a tight juvenile sleeve. Patern algifts of sous he valued mostly because they were handy things to conjure with, and he kept his pence for that purpose. Sugar candy

delighted him not, since it was only good to eat, and its purchasedeprived him of his best apparatus . The father began relu ctan tly toacknowledge after a time th at the engineer project had better perhapsbe given up, and lie decided to make some slight concession to theboys love of m yste ry and to bring him up as a priest. So at ten yearsof age he was sent to the local seminary where the only branch of hisghostly studies which he found to his liking were those in the gymnasium. Here he was facile princeps, as he was too when the timecame round for the representation of the school play. Then his previously acquired dra matic experiences stood him in good stead, and he

was alw ays comic man in the plav. But these occasions were too fewand far between for a boy who was possessed by the one idea ofw itchin gjh e world with noble feats of conjuring. His fellow studentsformed an always appreciative audience ; but tho world within thecollege walls was too little for a boy of his ambition. He wantedwider appreciation of the results of his religious education ; and oneday, a fter he had completed three years of constant conjuring practiceat the seminaire, he went to Marseilles, where his parents were thenresiding, for a short holiday, and refused to return. He was kept athome, but there was a revival of the original engineering intention,

and the boy was sent daily to work at the factory. It was a delightfulchange for him. He could go and see all the conjurers and jugglersat the circus, and, after all, mechanics had some connection with theart upon which his mind was centred. The lathe, he perceived withdelight, had its uses for turning the plates, and cups, and balls, and athousand other things, such as form part of a conjurers apparatus.

And besides, anvils, vices, and hammers, though cumbrous th ings topalm, yet yielded satisfactory balancing effects, and formed materialfor m any new and interesting tricks. He had more coins to practice

with now than lie had had before, and his progress was faster than

ever. He went on practising, practising, and making such simpleapparatus as is required for a performance of sleight-of-hand, untilthe time came when he considered himself qualified to perform inpublic, and]then one day he suddenly disappeared in company^vith an '[

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Fig. 24 The Boatman, and

Fig. 25 The F isherman were first produced,

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Fig. 26 The perfection of the Preacher.

Fig. 26a Shews the mode by which the Preacher is performed.

( L IF E O F T R E W E Y C O N T I NU E D ).

acrobat, already a professional, whose acquaintance he had formed,and entered upon his professional career. He was fifteen years oldthen, and as he had been practising ever since he was seven, he hadbecome to lera bly ex pert. The other mem ber of the com pany was notmuch older, but the two boys went to work in a business-like mannerto give performancs in the cafes of the neighbouring towns. Th ey

were fa ir ly successful sometimes, but Trewey is not ashamed now torecollect many occasions at the time when the travelling varietycom pany of two found themselves hungry and tired, bu t with nothingto eat and nowhere to sleep. Often has he been reduced to thenecessity of borrowing from some obliging landlord of the cafe wherein his performance was given, such primitive apparati as knives,forks, and potatoes with which to juggle, and bottles and glasses toprovide an exhibition of balancing feats. B ut success or non-success,it is all the same to the enthusiast, either stimulates to fresh exertions,and all the time he was practising, as ho always had done before, and

as he has alw ays done since. Success soon begins to come to thosewho seek it in this diligent fashion, and in a year of these wanderingsthe young juggler had established a local reputation which broughtto him the offer of an engagement in one of the Marseilles music halls.It was not a very grand engagement, nor a particularly lucrativeone, but it was one step on the road to popular recognition. Thesalary was tenpence a day, and the duties were multifarious. Hehad to give his own entertainment, and to take part in the pantomimic and com edy performances eve ry night. I t was not a ve ry elevate d professional statu s this, but such as it was it was shared on

equal terms by no less a personage than Plessis, who is now thegreatest of the French comedians, and it was made pleasant by theappreciation which his skill met with. And as was the custom inFrench places of amusement, appreciation was warmly expressed.A custom very pre valent at this time was to th row mon ey on to thestage to the performers, and Trewe y got a good share of these favours.This 'on ce z common manifestation of approval has since becomeunpopular.

He had long acquired the habit of saving his money to conjure

with, and he saved up his money to such purpose that in a short tim ehe was able to conjure himself into the possession of two grand newcostumes, which, together with his popularity, enabled him to command an engagement a t the Alcazar, the principal place of amusem ent]in Marseilles, where his first great success was achieved. f^He was o nly

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CHARACTERSI N T H E

SHADOW

P A N T O M I M E

T H E P O L I C E M A N

D R I N K I N G


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(L IK E O F T R E W E Y C O N T IN U E D ).

Legerdemain, in which he makes uso of eggs, handkerchiefs,

coins and cards. W ith the latter, using only one hand, ho makesseven distinctly different cuts on a pack, ringing tho changes ina remarkable fashion. His de xte rity in throwing cards is extra ord inary ; to give an idea of the distance to which he can throw them,imagine the. space from the stage of the A lham bra (said to be thelargest hall in Europe) to the furthest pa rt of the top gallery. A t thistheatre, Trewey fulfilled a fourteen months most successful engagement.

He gives a musical entertainment, sweet and vEolian, with

instruments of his own invention.

He possesses great skill in tho uncommon art of writing backwards any words selected by his audience, and is a lightn ing sketchartiste of exceptional ability.

His manipulation of what tho French call Le papier tic papaMathieu, by which ho makes numerous familiar objects, is a revivalof an old popular amusement.

He is the author of comic scenes for mimic performance, viz., Here, There, and Everyw here, Out of Town, The Persecuted Pianist, and Boum Serv e/. W ith the latte r lieopened a most successful campaign in Paris and other large cities.

Tab arin, or Tw enty-five heads under one ha t, is a performance named after the inventor. Trew ey s mobile featuresserve his purpose well in this exh ibition of individ ualities. Itis not so much the bonn et, but tho head th at is in it, andwhile some have attem pted a few im personations in this way, Trewey

in a ve ry short time illustrates a National P ortrait Ga llery.Am ong others, there is the Irishman, with a broad grin over the kissing of the blarney stone ; a Scotchman, severe of countenanceand calculating, perhaps, the cost; a happy-go-lucky Spanish fisherman ; the Chinaman, with both fingers up as a tally ; a coquette(a la Minnie Palmer), Louis X I. (after Irving), the humorous man(after Toole), Turk, Arab, a Jesuit priest, schoolman, and so on, oneo fth e best being tha t of Napoleon. Th ey aro all done in pantomime.

They1shadowgraph is, perhaps, the part of Treweys present

entertainment that surprises and amuses most, as people are notlikely to note so readily the finesse of his other work. To explainand illustrate tho mysteries of this entertainment is tho object ofthe present little work.

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The inotto which he has adopted as his own is Travai l (work),

patience, and progress, and there can be no dou bt of how he has followed out the precept. There is no royal road to learning, andTreweys gifts have been acquired by patience and perseverance.

In thinking of the patience and industry of the Frenchman toacquire so many gifts for the amusement of others, there was somesatisfaction in knowing that they were realising due recognition andreward.

The Prince of Wales has many times witnessed his performance,

while the Emperor of Austria, Baron Rothschild, and others, have, onmore than one occasion, sent for him specially to come and performfor them.

Tre we y has several pupils and copyists, one in particular (a pupil)of whom he entertains great hopes. Th is pupil is now travellingon the Continent, under the name of Fa yar dx , Jougleur and

Treweyiste.

This book is intended as a prologue to a larger work which will

shortly be published, and which will contain a full and completedescription, with illustrations, of all Treweys complicated art.

J o r d i s o n & C o , L i m i t e d , P r i n t e r s ,

M i d d l e s b r o u g h .

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Everything for the Conjurer and Entertainer at

j f G A M A G E S.

^ A/ l 'T i /^ k * / fe f l A M outhly M a g a zi ne devotedI n t A T l f l Q I v I u r l ^ to Mag ic a nd H y pnotis m .

Y e a r ly S ubs c r ipt io n, 40 Post Free. 4*d. S ing le Copies.P u b l i s h ed 011 the aoth of the Month.

A L L T hh ' \ I P R O F U S E L Y

L A T E S T T R I C K S

C O R R E C T L Y

E X P L A I N E D .

x*r

I L L U S T R A T E D .

I INT ERES T ING L\

W R IT T E N .

E di ted by Wn

1, Goli*8Ton. Publishers : A. W. I iAMA GF., L th . Ho i .ror n, Lonhon, E.C.

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L A T E S T C O N J U R I N GThe gre atest book published. US page?. Nearly 200 illustr ations .

B y Wi l l Go l d s t o s .

P r i c e, H a n d s o me l y Bo un d i n C l o t h , 2 - : P o s t F r ee, 2 3 . J u s t P u b l is h ed .

A F E W P R I N C I P A L I T E M S :

f t

C h a p t e r I .

La test t r i c k s , wi thand w ithout apparatus,many published for thefirst t ime. Illustrated.

Chapter I I .

E v e r y n e w a n d s t a r tl ing i l lusion accuratelyex pla i nod w i th i l lus tr ations

Chapter 111.

Late st methods forperforming t in; MysticKettle" that boils on ice,including the MagicK ettle. ' tuo most remark able utensi l to holdl i q u e u r . T h i s l i t tleke ttle can produce a lmost a n y dr i n k f rommi lk to whi sk ey. I l lustrated.

C h a p t er I V .Correct method to escape

from H andcuff s, Leg- ironn.Hope, Iron Collars, Padlocks, Sacks, I ron T run k s ,

W oo de n Box es , B ar rels ,Iron Cages. /lluttrated.

C h a p t e r V .Hand Shadows and how

to work them. IlUtd.W it h o u t !i doubt the grcAtvHtan d chea| >eftt book e v r j>ub-

liHhcd oil Muyic.Order ituiuudifttcly to it void

dl appointment.

V E N T R I L O Q U I S MB y M E R C A T .

Contains the best and fullest account of the great pronrebs and improve mentmade in this art. . Also the lates t dia logues ana ex act Way of wor king {tourc*.

We s tr ong ly adv is e s tud e nt s of thi s f a s c in a ti ng a r t to send us thu ir or de r inadvance, as the ed ition ia limite d.

P R IC E , 1 P o s t 3 d .

GAMAGESN b W C A T A L O G U E OF

CONJURING TRICK S, PUZZLES and IL LU SIONS,

SHADOW APPARATUS.

S E N T F R E E T O A N Y A D D R E S S .

} A, W, Gamap, 11, Holliorn, London, E.C.

Art of Shadowgraphy Trewy

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