North Shore Country Day School - Mirror Yearbook (Winnetka, IL)

Page 18 text:

THE VAUDEVILLE The Vaudeville, this year, set a new precedent for these annual Talent shows . The reversion to a typical Gay-Nineties ' type of production was overwhelmingly re- ceived by an enthusiastic audience. In former years our so-called vaudevilles were made up of various skits and acts put on by the different class groups. This year the var- iety element was still present, but the whole thing was tied together by an old-time vaudeville theme. The curtain rose on a bevy of beautiful girls and handsome gents, made up of senior classmen, who immediately put everyone in the proper spirit with their rendition of In Old New York . Three Senior couples brought down the house with an original ar- rangement of the old favorite, Mary . Another old time hit, By the Sea , was pre- sented by the Freshmen girls who daringly appeared in 1890 bathing suits. A breath- taking chorus-line was presented by the Junior boys, in their riotous Can-Can dance, and three black faced hoofers went to town on Dark Town Strutter ' s Ball . Mr. Duff, as a typical vaudeville M. C, not only held the skits together, but also added to the hilarity of the whole show with his continuous stream of humorous remarks. The highlight of the comedy acts was the Junior boys ' burlesque of Abdul the bulbul Ameer , which literally rolled em in the aisles . There were many other acts that added equally to the spontaneous gaiety and laughter of the evening, and those, with a number of amusing between act skits, made up the rest of the program. The curtain rang down on the entire cast in a Grande Finale Musicale of Give My Regards to Broadway . We hope that such a successful Vaudeville this year wi for an even bigger and better production next year. prove to be an incentive 14

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THE PURP Through close cooperation among business, advertising and editorial staffs, this year ' s Purp was able to produce a paper that will be a worthy addition to the school ar- chives. The editorial staff has presented to the school a more complete, concise and ac- curate account of school activities than has been given in former years. They surpassed former achievements in presenting diversified features. Several innovations were made which improved the quality of the Purp. The alumni column proved very popular as it kept the school in closer contact with our men in the Armed Forces. The Editorial column, noted for its crusading, was widely read for its timely and pertinent content. Bat ' n Banter kept the school ' s jivehounds up with the latest musical gossip. The Purp rounded out its edition with humorous articles of high caliber. Next year ' s staff will have the difficult task of living up to the quality of this year ' s publication, produced by co-editors Betsy Shanklin and Carolyn Kuehnle. However the task is not at all an impossible one, if the underclassmen use their available talent. 13

Page 19 text:

Patience , the opera chosen to be our 1944 production, is Gilbert and Sullivan at their satirical best. A take-off on the aesthetic trend of the Gilbertian period, the oper- etta is not as widely known as some, but the music, particularly, is unsurpassed. It has no tenor lead but an abundance of good major roles, points which were taken into consideration when making the choice. Opera-time, and the spirit that goes with it, is a North Shore tradition, the value of which cannot be overrated. That spirit ran high this year among all those industrious members of the stage crew, art department, costume committee, and make-up crew, not to mention the entire cast. Even had the production not been the triumphant success it was, the experience and pure fun derived from such complete cooperation would have been well worth the effort. A unique thing occurred this year — no epidemic broke out the week before March seventeenth. It ' s the first time in history! Both Friday and Saturday nights ' casts gave their best, unhandicapped by measles or mumps. Incidentally, both casts were superb, playing to houses packed with responsive audiences. The chorus also deserves praise, the boys for their well-drilled marching and the girls for their unaccustomed aestheticism. Many thanks to Miss Bacon for her effective coloring and scenery, to Mrs. Duff, Mrs. Graham, and Mr. Smith for their patient coaching, to Mrs. Brueggeman and her com- mittee of mothers for costuming us so beautifully, and to the business, stage and make- up crews. As for Mr. Duff himself, our director cannot help but know how grateful we are. 15