The Association for the Promotion and Protection of an Independent Stage in the United States

Founded either in 1897 or 1898, the organization was established by Mrs. Fiske, Richard Mansfield, Helena Modjeska, James O'Neill, Francis Wilson, and other theatrical figures who had been shabbily treated by the growing Theatrical Syndicate or Trust. Members agreed to try to play only in houses not allied with the Trust, to give fiery curtain speeches and interviews assailing the growing monopoly, and to alert the public in every other way to the menace. The power of the Trust and the cynical defection of Mansfield undermined the group.