as been said of scenery may be applied also to the use of incidental
music. So soon as such music becomes obtrusive, it distracts the attention
from the business of the play: and it cannot be insisted on too often that
in the theatre the play's the thing. But a running accompaniment of music,
half-heard, half-guessed, that moves to the mood of the play, now swelling
to a climax, now softening to a hush, may do much toward keeping the
audience in tune with the emotional significance of the action.

A perfect theatrical performance is the rarest of all works of art. I have
seen several perfect statues and perfect pictures; and I have read many
perfect poems: but I have never seen a perfect performance in the theatre.
I doubt if such a performance has ever been given, except, perhaps, in
ancient Greece. But it is easy to imagine what its effect would be. It
would rivet the attention throughout upon the essential purport of the
play; it would proceed from the beginning to the end without the slightest
distraction; and it would convey its message simply and immediately, like
the sky at sunrise or the memorable murmur of the sea.

VI

EMPHASIS IN THE DRAMA

By applying the negative principle of economy of attention, the dramatist
may, as we have noticed, prevent his auditors at any moment from diverting
their attention to the subsidiary features of the scene; but it is
necessary for him also to apply the positive principle of emphasis in order
to force them to focus their attention on the one most important detail of
the matter in hand. The principle of emphasis, which is applied in all the
arts, is the principle whereby the artist contrives to throw into vivid
relief those features of his work which incorporate the essence of the
thing he has to say, while at the same time he gathers and groups within a
scarcely noticed background those other features which merely contribute in
a minor manner to the central purpose of his plan. This principle is, of
course, especially important in the acted drama; and it may therefore be
profitable to examine in detail some of the methods which dramatists employ
to make their points effectively and bring out the salient features of
their plays.

It is obviously easy to emphasise by position. The last moments in any act
are of necessity emphatic because they are the last. During the
intermission, the minds of the spectators will naturally dwell upon the
scene that has been present