Everything was now in a regular train: theatre, actors, actresses, and
dresses, were all getting forward; but though no other great
impediments arose, Fanny found, before many days were past, that it was
not all uninterrupted enjoyment to the party themselves, and that she
had not to witness the continuance of such unanimity and delight as had
been almost too much for her at first. Everybody began to have their
vexation. Edmund had many. Entirely against his judgment, a
scene-painter arrived from town, and was at work, much to the increase
of the expenses, and, what was worse, of the eclat of their
proceedings; and his brother, instead of being really guided by him as
to the privacy of the representation, was giving an invitation to every
family who came in his way. Tom himself began to fret over the
scene-painter's slow progress, and to feel the miseries of waiting. He
had learned his part--all his parts, for he took every trifling one
that could be united with the Butler, and began to be impatient to be
acting; and every day thus unemployed was tending to increase his sense
of the insignificance of all his parts together, and make him more
ready to regret that some other play had not been chosen.

Fanny, being always a very courteous listener, and often the only
listener at hand, came in for the complaints and the distresses of most
of them. She knew that Mr. Yates was in general thought to rant
dreadfully; that Mr. Yates was disappointed in Henry Crawford; that Tom
Bertram spoke so quick he would be unintelligible; that Mrs. Grant
spoiled everything by laughing; that Edmund was behindhand with his
part, and that it was misery to have anything to do with Mr. Rushworth,
who was wanting a prompter through every speech. She knew, also, that
poor Mr. Rushworth could seldom get anybody to rehearse with him: his
complaint came before her as well as the rest; and so decided to her
eye was her cousin Maria's avoidance of him, and so needlessly often
the rehearsal of the first scene between her and Mr. Crawford, that she
had soon all the terror of other complaints from him. So far from
being all satisfied and all enjoying, she found everybody requiring
something they had not, and giving occasion of discontent to the
others. Everybody had a part either too long or too short; nobody
would attend as they ought; nobody would remember on which side they
were to come in; nobody but the complainer would observe any directions.