He did not finish, for two players walked in from opposite entrances onto the forestage, acknowledged the applause with a bow, turned their bodies square to the audience, their faces to each other and began to converse.
The play proceeded, though oranges were still sold, their sellers groped, and beer bottles popped explosively. “She does not have so much to do, Mrs. Chalker,” Pitman said at one scene’s end. “She is the villain’s wife, the mistress’s maid and nothing more?”
“She told me her main part is later. Now hush! For here comes Mrs. Absolute.”
Lucy entered and the crowd laughed. It was partly her waddle of a walk. She played the role of Bianca, the courtesan, but not in the usual style of scheming vizard. This courtesan had paid a price for her lasciviousness: a belly swollen by
