But Miss Sills got the last laugh, as she usually does.

Miss Sills recently said she would step down as general director of the company, also at the end of this year.

"We are able," Miss Sills said recently, "to build a company and keep it more or less together all season."

Miss Sills is still called Bubbles by a number of friends and doesn't mind at all.

Indeed, questions of policy were already playing on Miss Sills's mind.

Miss Sills said yesterday that she was ready to take on that role again.

Miss Sills pointed out that in some ways the resident companies stand to benefit from the festival.

Miss Sills dealt with that crisis on a number of fronts.

Miss Sills said yesterday that she had received about 150 such letters.

Miss Sills added, "The company is in need of a 10-year plan, and he's young enough to see it through from beginning to end."