Bryn Mawr College - Bryn Mawr Yearbook (Bryn Mawr, PA)

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Helen Hurd and Janet Howell spent every free minute performing wonderful tricks with brush and paint, and, needless to say, the scenery was most realistic. We didn ' t realise it, however, at the time — we didn ' t realise anything except that it was work, work, work, and then we didn ' t see how things could be finished. Everyone chipped in earnestly and eagerly, and with a few rehearsals scattered here and there, in less than a week, the curtain was ready to go up. Four o ' clock that aftcnoon of the performance, on realising that there was no way of making our glorious dragon-fly visible as it soared upward in the black realms of an unlighted stage, I had hurried to town for an unknown quantity named luminous paint. No wholesale dealer had heard of it, and finally some divine power directed my steps to a strange basement paint-shop, looking more like a Chinese junk-shop. There the valuable article was found, and with trembling steps I arrived at college, just in time to paint the precious animal before the curtain rose. What was my horror, as we broke forth in song in honour of our beauteous dragon-fly, to discover no sign of the insect. I could see Mary Boyd and Pinky Ashton pulling the ropes, but no insect. The paint, after all, wasn ' t working I After that everything went wonderfully. Alice won the hearts of the audience; Kate ' s Baked potatoes yesterday! Baked potatoes to-morrow! Always baked potatoes to-day! and even Jeanne ' s and Peggy ' s jokes about Taylor ' s tardiness — stale at that stage to us — brought down the house. All went well till the black list animals entered and stumbled around the stage, quite unable to see through their masks, and endeavouring to do a little of everything, sang their plaintive song, keeping time with dumb-bell exercises. In their breathless exit they quite overlooked Humpty Dumpty, and overstepped him as well, knock- ing him flat. The dances under Pat Murphy ' s management — rather a joke, don ' t you think, consider- ing Pat ' s rapid promotion in the dancing classes? — were all that is delightful; and the take- off on the gym class most amusing. The babies and kittens were adorable, and Bill ' s Cheshire smile kept the gym in gales of laughter. The whole play went as on greased wheels — need it be said, with Elsa as a stage manager? and soon we were singing Thou Gracious Inspiration! the ninety of us crowding on the stage at once, overwhelmed with the glorious success, and Betty Swift, having lost part of her usher ' s costume in her excite- ment, standing in her nightie arrayed. That Alice was a great success, no one can deny, and 1910, of course, appreciated the fact even more than the highly-appreciative audience. Annie Jones, thrilled even by playing the accompaniments, rushed behind the stage and, clasping poor, little, dazed Cabby, 91

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.. aitee at JSrpn ££ator IN reading my diary over. I set-. under March 15, 1907, the day of our Freshman Show, the words: Lots of people think it the cleverest thing given at college. That sounds truly like ll»10, and might be said to be somewhat prejudiced, hut even the Typ says it was one of the best plays ever given in oolkg We think so, of course; and of all the marvelous feats that we have performed in college, I think we will all agree that Alice at Hryn Mawr gave us most fun and means most to us. even now. in the dav when Susanne assembled her show committee to decide between the glaring Dctihcigh Melodrama and Mary Worthingtoifs upt application of Alice in Wonder- land to Hryn Mawr, we lived Freshman Show. In the true spirit of 1910, every member in the class tried for the part of Alice : and Jeanne and U tty still speak with tears in their eyes of the afternoon when their tiny corridor was overflowing with l ' .Mo. dressed in short white frocks, pink sashes and socks, and with hair down their hacks. The choice was diffi- cult, but Habhy proved to be all that was most ingenue and delightful. The rest of the caste was not so difficult, and soon every idle moment was spent learning parts. Such was our industry that P ' ames. our idlest, was found to be restraining her propensity for social tubs, and using those few daily moments repeating her lines to the four porcelain walls. Copies of the play had to be made, and for days Susanne ' s floor was covered with sprawling figures, scratching off parts. The costumes, of course, were most elaborate, and none but the ingenious heads of 1910 could have devised the ways and means necessary to manufacture them within the few hours allowed to each member of the class. Division of labour was carried to such a fine point that it wss Boggsie ' i one and only task to make tails for the snimals. so

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kissed her wildly on both cheeks. We all were mad with excitement, and rushing in wild hilarity to our halls, gave the performance over and over again, till the wee, sma ' hours ended the glorious day of Alice in Bryn Mawr. Izette Tabek. fxttymm Cla00 Supper OUR Freshman Class Supper 1 I wonder if all the rest of the class think of it with the same large capitals that I do. It was our entrance into society, our first bit of riotous living, and I remember now with the keenest delight the excited thrills that ran up and down my back as we marched up the west stairs, singing vigorously, Sophs are out this evening. The other classes lined around the walls were probably commenting on our prodigious vainglory — there ' s been some talk of it, I believe, even in later years — but I remember thinking, sympathetically, then, It ' s too bad, but you ' ll have to make the best of it. We can ' t all be 1910. I was so excited that when I got to my seat, I promptly sat in a glass of lemonade, a little episode which was repeated several times during the evening. Then a breathless hush fell upon the company, and Hildegarde gave me a poke, and I don ' t remember anything more till I sat in another glass of lemonade, and woke up — the cooling freshness of the lemonade had something to do with it, I believe — to see the Upperclassmen and Sophomores filing slowly out of the room. Then there fell another solemn hush — we weren ' t quite used to ourselves in company clothes, and didn ' t know just what to do— but some over-bold huzzy— to tell the truth, I think it was Kirk— began beating faintly on the table with her knife and fork, so we all took courage, and the clamour soon reached terrific heights. At intervals we paused to toast our own future, our own hockey, our own basket-ball, our own statistics, our own motto, our aspirations, and finally our breaks. Our own affairs were in evidence all right that night, just as they have been ever since. We finished up gloriously, singing Auld Lang Syne, with one foot on the table, in the orthodox fashion. And, as our Irish Ros would say, Sure, and there ' ll niver be anither sich. Kate Rotan. 22