Quigley Preparatory Seminary - La Petit Seminaire Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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year it found a new director in the wings in the person of Fr. John O'- Donnell. Though this was the first time Fr. O'Donnell directed the Quigley Players, he is by no means a stranger to the group. He himself was one of the most successful mem- bers when it presented Shadow and Substance in l94l Aided by Fr Liske who gave the Quigley Players their name in i933 Gustav Rosenberg, a slightly agi- tated art collector, was played by Roger O'Brien who with a great deal of mastery managed to let down Mary Herries and a sympathetic audience nightly. His counterpart the business-like banker named Foster was Edmond Parker who as the successful agent of liberation gave an excellent edge of the seat performance and who adapted Kind Lady for our stage Fr O Donnell chose a cast more qualified by enthusiasm than began rehearsing Kind Lady Mean while Ed Conway Joe Corrigan and Joe Vizza spent hours changing the stage into Miss Herries living room and Vincent Heying our electrician fulfilled the directors wish Le there be light Weeks of practice glided by Then the cast dropped scripts put on costumes and after dress and line rehearsals gave Quigley one of its finest first night perform ances This is the way they were seen The role of a doctor and Abbott s highly efficient henchman was very smoothly played by Edward Burke usual requirements of Miss Herries shallow nephew Peter Santard who gained for himself both chuckles and sighs as well as the promise of a wed ding gift One of the most difficult roles of the play that of the unbalanced Ada Henry Abbott s wife was commend ably personated by the most experi enced member of the group Daniel Coughlin who established his ability last year as a cat The character who received more 3 BL 'S JK, , v A in , i J . V . -P as Q-, by experience. ln October this group Martin Dunleavy ably filled the un- . . . . . D 3 . - 7

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Y duvune Word Thus us the reason why a s munaruan steps upon a stage ln thus aum the Drama Department lues v ry close to the semunary s speech course yet ut dufters un uts means of achuevung thus aum ln thus aum our drama department stands apart from that of a hugh school or college Consuderung thus the wave of applause that swells up from the auduence may gratufy a group that has put un a hard nught s work but ut shall never be accepted by them as the standard of theur success Thus year Kund Lady the suxty turst presentatuon of the Drama Department saw for the furst tume the Iught of Quugley s stage The play had been prevuous ly scheduled though not presented un l945 Thus 15

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laughs than anyone else was the smnl ang lrnshman Ed O Connor In the part of Rose Mass l-lerrnes mand He proved his versatullty by turning out some of the play s most serlous scenes wnth equal success The Edwards famlly caused many shudders and some smnles as they as slsted Henry Abbott Deep voaced Bull McGlynn effectlvely tread the boards as the overpowering Mr Ed wards l-lls unfemlnlne wlfe was ad mnrably portrayed by the surprlslng Mnlan Nemecek To complete the trno there was James lvers who was a man of few words but much acting abnlnty as the Edwards teen age son the laugh provoklng Buster Taken colorful group The vnllaun of the plece l-lenry Ab bott was accomplished wlth admur able success Rlchard C OConnor was In thus spnteful role playnng a cal culatlng crook who flrst drew laugh ter as an artist of dubious ablllty Later however he transformed amusement to antlpathy as an un scrupulous extortuonlst of undeniable ablllty l-lls was a convlnclng land courageousl performance Finally there ns the tutle role of the knnd lady who opened her heart and her house to Abbott only to fund nt next to Impossible to close them agann Thus role played byJ Hotch kan carried the audience through gay frnvollty grnppnng desperation and flnal trlumph as Miss Herrles changed from a fashnonable lady of upper so cnety to a mlserable broken old woman and once again to the mustress of her own house The curtains closed and soon an empty stage returned to darkness A happy audience filtered homeward 28 Ed Bu ke l-llppoc otes bet dye Do ond B Il Lo ely couple Ed Porker the he o ocqu esces through the streets and a tlred but triumphant cast wlped off thenr make up for the last time Another page had been completed nn the brll luant story of the Quigley Players ' - r ' r ' r r n i, v . ' ' ' ' v ' , r i , ' ' ' ' lg . - .. u T ff , ' 4 . ' B together they were the play's most A T P ' ' 9 I.