London Central Secondary School - Golden Glimpses Yearbook (London, Ontario Canada)

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S24 Tl-IE REVIEW In the latter part of the 19th Century the setting on the stage became very realistic, if the scene is a room, perhaps a garden or another room opens off it, making it more homelike. The Great War of the 20th century created a tendency in drama towards the melodramatic and symbolic in plays. The actors work with the intention of pleasing and amusing the audience. Rapid changes can be made in scenery by means of revolving stages on which three or four scenes can be substituted for one. W'onderful lighting effects are obtained by the skill of trained elec- tricians. Plays are also written to appeal to cul- tivated and literary audiences. Much is being done in amateur Little Theatre movements to develop a national drama. -Margaret Prior '93 Dramatic Executive This year the excellent work of the Dramatic Society will be carried on by pupils in whom the school puts its trust most readily. They are all students who rate highly with their fellows and we are confident that they will work to the advan- tage of the Dramatic Club and distinguish them- selves. Mr. Buck is their chairman and Marjorie Roulston is the President. Secretary, Paul Smith, Treasurer, Alice Der Stepanian 5 5th Rep., Gor- don Houghtong 4th Rep., Esther Ginsberg, 3rd Rep., Katheline Smithg 2nd Rep., D'Arcy Zur- brig, lst Rep., Walter Pope. Mllfargaret Prior '23 Richard B. Harrison On Tuesday morning, October 30, Mr. Richard B. Harrison, accompanied by Mayor XVenige, attended auditorium exercises at the Central Collegiate. He gave a very interesting talk on his former London days and school experiences here. About fifty-four years ago, Mr. Harrison was a boy, attending the old Waterloo street school here. He won prizes in elocution. His London home was on Wellington street. From London he went to Windsor, where he worked at Walker's distillery. From Wlindsor Richard Harrison went to Detroitand became a bell-hop. After bell-hopping he was a waiter. Mr. Harrison was persuaded to study drama and he began classes at the Detroit Training School. In between classes he was porter at a department store. His next step was to form his own dramatic club, with which he has had great success. Mr. Harrison's simple address was greatly applauded by everyone. Thi-re were also some negro Spirituals sung by the Whispering trio. The trio included the Misses Wriglit, Burwell and hlickens. Their songs were enjoyed immensely. The Student vice-president, Miss Anne Wal- den, gave a vote of thanks and the programme was brought to a conclusion by the singing of the school song. -Joan Cogdorz E23 Props Last year the operetta and plays were greatly enhanced by the props Mr. Buck and his com- mittee of helpers are to be commended for their splendid work. Many precious hours were spent by them in the drill hall making scenery. Great originality was displayed in the various sets and it must have required a great deal of patience, skill and hard work to get the desired results. The school appreciates the work done by this committee consisting of Gordon Houghton, Terry Ferris, Charles Seager, Ted Clugston, john Leach, john Henderson and D'Arcy Zurbriggl under the very capable and efficient direction of Mr. Buck. - -Jack Morgan C23 Spreading the News The play produced last spring by the Dramatic Society and presented in the auditorium of the Collegiate was unusually interesting and amusing. It was an Irish comedy entitled 'Spreading the News, and was sponsored by the Literary Society. The actors were under the direction of Miss Rod- dick, and must have felt gratified by the splendid applause which they received from the audience. The scene was laid in the market square of a small Irish town, an apple stand was in one corner of the square, and hay was sprinkled over the floor to add a touch of realism. Red jack Smith CPeter Shuttleworth, who endured for several hours the ordeal of having his hair dyed henna for the occasionl had left his pitchfork in the square, and Bartley Fallon, a lugubrious, complaining man CWilson Reasonj, offered to return it. The deaf apple woman, Mrs. Tarpey CGeraldine Hughesj noticed the overturned market basket of Bartley Fa1lon's wife CBetty Pattersonj and she concluded that the two must have been quarreling, because she saw spilt sugar on the ground. When she heard that Bartley was following jack Smith with the pitchfork she immediately thought he was taking drastic action to demolish Red. In real- ity, he was only returning the implement. She, of course, began to spread her news, one person telling the next, until finally they had poor Red dead, and fairly buried. The whole tangle, however, was straightened out when Red himself made an appearance and declared he would knock down the first one to find his dead body. This play, written by Lady Gregory, as a vehicle for the Abbey Theatre Players of Dublin, was a difficult piece for young amateurs. On the

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THE REVIEW Q5 whole, however, they handled themselves remark- ably well. Laird Bovaird played the part of James Ryan, Stewart Miller the part of Tim Casey, and Charles Fisher that of Shawn Carly. Margaret Prior went out of type to play the catty housewife fMrs. Tullyj, Paul Smith acted the role of a stolid policeman U0 Muldoonj, and Gerald Wyant the part of the magistrate, a pompous Britisher. Wilson Reason and Betty Patterson played their parts well, and the deaf actions of Geraldine Hughes were very good. All these admirably represented Irish village types. Entertainment of this kind shows us that the life at L.C.C.I. is not entirely one of work, but that we have the opportunity to participate in many amusing and interesting activities. -Catherine Liddy '33 The Value of Dramatics Dramatics in our secondary schools is a field which is broadening and developing every year. Only a few years ago the production of real plays -not mere mock trials and poor imitations of senior plays-was almost entirely absent. Today the school curriculum requires that a certain num- ber of plays be produced each year by the students. Why has dramatics come to the fore in so short a time and why is it being stressed more and more as a definite course? The answer to this lies mainly in its value to the students. The average pupil is restricted by a single personality. He can understand and take part in only one or two phases of school life. With the introduction of dramatics all this is changed and each student can have the experience of play- ing all sorts of roles-villain, hero, comedienne, bandit and detective, cockney and Irishman and all the other varied parts. When the plays to be enacted are carefully selected, they are of great literary value to the students. Such immortal dramas as Shakespeare's plays and others are among the Hnest works of literature. Dramatics was the first form of litera- ture and is one of the best. In taking part in the production of plays stu- dents receive experience in stage and managing technique, in obtaining lighting effects and in directing the plays themselves. The effect of working in co-operation with others, the mental stimulus of learning and analyzing lines-all these serve to develop a student and exercise his powers. We at Central have our at disposal a live and efficient Dramatic society which produces each year several plays. Play the part assigned you in the play, or be an enthusiastic member of the audience. In either capacity, you are serving the interests of Dramatics. -Mary Dampier The Little Theatre Movement Most of us when thinking of the Little Theatre movement consider it as one of the many things proceeding from modern times. Yet it is twenty years since Little Theatres started in Canada, and it is over twice that number of years since they first started in Europe. However, it is true that during the war they were practically all discon- tinued, only to be started again with new zeal and eagerness. One of the factors which aided in this was the prominence of the movies soon after the war, making it necessary for those interested in the drama of the legitimate stage to take some steps in preserving it. Naturally, the first thing we wish to know when we hear of the Little Theatre movement is its object and purpose. Of course the original purpose of those who started the Little Theatres was to learn and practice the different phases of drama. The thing which especially distinguishes it, however, is its desire to experiment in different playwritings and in production. In connection with the latter the two factors of lighting and scenery are the most used. This experimental spirit is much easier to carry out in the Little Theatre because with an audience of about three hundred, for instance, an intimacy between the players and the audience is present, making it pos- sible to introduce new and special types of plays and simply representative scenery, or, in some cases, a novel type of scenery. Another important factor of the Little Theatre is its non-commercial- ism. There are no actors to be paid and the scenery is very simple and made at home with the minimum of cost. The play is not given for the sake of the money which will be received but for the interest of both audience and players. The Little Theatres have contributed a great deal to drama arts and it is expected that they will contribute even more in the future. Through them have been trained people who eventually went on the professional stage and some of them have even entered upon theatrical careers. A very important service rendered by the Little Theatre is that it is a medium for the hearing of new writers. One of the most important of the men who have made names for themselves through writing for the Little Theatre is Dunsany. Other authors whose plays have been made known through the Little Theatre are Mazo de la Roche, Duncan Campbell Scott, Marion Osborne, Merill Denison, Stephen Leacock, and A. A. Milne. The Little Theatre satisfies the long felt want of the production of one-act plays. Hitherto these could only be enjoyed by the reading of them, but now, thanks to Little Theatres, we are able to see them actually portrayed. In advocating less scenery the Little Theatre is doing another service for drama by centering the interest on the play itself and not so much on the scenery. In general the Little Theatre has greatly promoted the study of drama, and in Canada particularly, has pro- moted the study of native drama. We in Canada are especially fortunate, because