Elmwood School - Samara Yearbook (Ottawa, Ontario Canada)

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SAMARA 27 DRAMATICS DRAMATIC NOTES THIS year, the Senior Dramatics Class, deviating somewhat from the usual procedure of presenting a three-act play, gave an abridged version of a long play and, in addition, a one-act play, — She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith and X equals O by John Drinkwater. We would like to give our sincerest thanks to Mrs. Murphy who took over the position of dramatics teacher when Miss Miriam Graham went overseas with the St. John Ambulance Brigade. She gave much time and effort to make these plays a success. We should like also to thank The Citizen for allowing us to print their report of the plays. Excellent Plays Presented by Pupils of Elmwood School Parents and friends of the pupils of Elm- wood school filled the assembly hall of that institution yesterday evening to witness the presentation of two plays by members of the Senior Dramatic Class. These were X = 0: A Night of the Trojan War, by John Drink- water, and a telescoped version of Goldsmith ' s classic, She Stoops to Conquer. In past years Elmwood has built up a reputation for amateur dramatics and last night the present students of that art fully maintained the tradition established by their predecessors — and won laurels of their own. In the Trojan War scenes, the characters participating being Pronax, Janet Edwards, Salvius, Jane MacKeen, Greeks; and Ilius, Pat Balantyne, with Capys, Suzanne Mess, Trojans, and Peggy Huestis, Greek sentinel, the Homeric atmosphere was definitely brought on the stage and communicated to the audience. In the rendering of the soliloquies and the dialogue in which Drinkwater stresses the futility of war for such a cause as the beauty of the face that launch ' d a thousand ships and burnt the topless towers of Ilium savored somewhat of classroom recitation, it must be remembered that many older and more experienced performers never wholly succeed in ridding themselves of the selfconsciousness that is responsible for it.

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26 SAMARA SPORTS NOTES WE returned to school last September with a feeling of loss as we knew Miss Snell would not be there to greet us. She had gone overseas with the Canadian Red Cross Nursing Division and as she had been with us so long we missed her a great deal. We soon heard with pleasure, however, that Mrs. Palmer had consented to take our physical training classes in her place and, under her guidance, we have had a very full and enjoyable year in sports. Early in the fall, the school tennis team tried again to win back the inter-scholastic Tennis Shield, but it was beaten by the excellent Glebe Collegiate team which won the shield the second consecutive year. Our year of inter-house sports started well with some basketball games. Due to early snow, however, the final games had to be postponed until the spring. Nightingale, who always seems to be too liberally supplied with Amazons won the house basketball shield but not without battling violent opposition. Nightingale Juniors, following in the footsteps of their elders, defeated both the Fry and Keller junior teams. With the arrival of snow, stiff badminton competition began, and both the inter-house and school matches were a source of interest until the last game was played. Keller and Fry had better luck in this field, winning the senior and junior tournaments respectively. Keller also won the house Tennis Shield for the fourth year. Sports Day last year was held in the after- noon of June eleventh. Size and strength triumphed again, with Nightingale winning Sports Day and Fry coming a close second. The house tug-of-war was especially exciting but here again Nightingale was well anchored and pulled both Fry and Keller to defeat. As the last sports event of the year. Sports Day supplied an eventful and satisfying end to a very pleasant year. SCHOOL TENNIS TEAM First Singles - - - - Janet Edwards Second Singles - - - Philippa McLaren Third Singles - - - Gretchen Mathers First Doubles - - - Cynthia Powell Paula Peters The sports winners are as follows: Inter-house Basketball Shield — Nightingale (Continued on Page 36)

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28 SAMARA But in the action that followed, the stealthy stabbing scenes on the wall and in the tent, the suspense waiting upon the discovery of the bodies of the victims, the sudden realiza- tion of tragedy, these youthful artists showed spontaneity and naturalness. In She Stoops to Conquer, the characters were: Mrs. Hardcastle, Ruth Osier; Mr. Hardcastle, Elizabeth Wyatt; Tony Lumpkin, Pauline Coulson; Miss Hardcastle, Anna Cameron; Miss Neville, Phillipa McLaren; Hastings, Lois Davidson; Marlow, Betsy Allen; Sir Charles Marlow, Janet Caldwell; Landlord of The Three Pigeons, Peggy Huestis; Diggory, Ann Patteson; Roger, Stephanie Hale; Miss Hardcastle ' s maid, Annabelle Godfrey. The members of the cast entered into the spirit of this eighteenth century comedy, playing their respective parts with verve and gusto. To say the very least, each did her best not to let Goldsmith down. They have undoubtedly grasped th e funda- mental principles of the art they are studying and their success on this occasion may be measured by the fact that no part of the fun of the act in which Marlow mistakes Hard- castle for the landlord of the inn, and makes love to Miss Hardcastle, believing her to be the barmaid, was lost. They merited the congratulations their friends offered, as also did Mrs. Julia Murphy, their director. In welcoming the guests, Mrs. C. H. Buck referred to the former director, Miss Miriam Graham, who, after five years ' service at Elmwood School, returned to England with a St. John Ambulance Brigade at the begin- ning of the year. She has been succeeded by Mrs. Julia Murphy, a former member of the staff. — W. J. H. This year, for the first time, members of the Elmwood Senior Dramatics Class took part in the Ashbury plays. Under the patient guidance of Mr. N. M. Archdale, the play, Shall We Join The Ladies ? by J. M. Barrie, proved to be a success and was much enjoyed by an appreciative audience. The following account of the play is an excerpt from the review of the Ashbury plays in The Citizen. Ashbury and Elmwood Combine in Two Excellent Presentations On Saturday evening, to a large audience in the Technical School auditorium, the students of Ashbury College and Elmwood School collaborated in presenting two plays, the performance of which held the interest and won the admiration of an audience that included His Excellency the Governor General, H.R.H. the Princess Alice and members of their staff. The first, a comedy-drama, Hassan, by J. E. Flecker consisted of four scenes with the setting in Bagdad. These were played before a curtain only, the imagination of the specta- tors being left to supply the Oriental color and exotic accessories. To this end, Michael Shenstone ' s comments between the acts were of great assistance. Hassan, a confectioner, falling in love with a veiled widow, persuades a friend to secure him a love philtre. But the friend, proving false, his overtures are rejected and, heart broken, the pastrycook falls asleep in the Street of Felicity by the Fountain of the Two Pigeons. Four disguised adventurers coming along, he is transported by basket into a doorless house, where a plot against the Caliph is divulged, and frustrated by a suggestion of the lovelorn sweetmaker, for which he is rewarded by exaltation to a very high position. A definite standard of excellence was maintained by all the members of the cast