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The Spike: or, Victoria University College Review, June 1923

Dramatic Club

Dramatic Club

Contemporaneously with the appearance of this "Spike," the Dramatic Club will be entering on a new year, and the opportunity for recording the history of the year now closing is most welcome. There is much to set down, and the Club can show a record of good performance, sound finances, and, "magic auro desideranda," an enthusiastic personnel. Bright are the prospects for the new year, which begins with the annual general meeting on June 14th; without more ado, the annual programme of readings will be then begun, and when "The Spike" appears, "Captain Brassbound's Conversion "will have been read.

Nothing was attempted in the third term of last year, but after the examinations, readings were recommenced, and during the long vacation several plays were read. "Typhoon," by Melchior Lengyel, was chosen for the 6th February, and proved an interesting play, although its unusually large cast and foreign' atmosphere rendered it somewhat difficult to read.

"The Pigeon," Galsworthy's clever little sketch, was read on the 15th February. Miss Cooley and Mr. Evans gave excellent renderings of the chief roles, while 'Mr. Cousins enlivened matters by giving a realistic imitation of an intoxicated cabman.

On the 1st March "The Voysey Inheritance," a legal play by Granville Barker, gave members an opportunity to interpret some very cleverly-portrayed characters, Mr. Wiren's presentation of a bombastic military officer being quite good.

The first reading after the vacation was Pinero's "Magistrate." This ever-popular farce proved a great success, being read in the presence of quite the largest audience ever seen at a meeting of the Dramatic Club. The page 68 most outstanding performance of the evening was Mr. Cooper's interpretation of Cis Farringdon ("The Boy"), in which he was admirably seconded by Mr. Fair as the Magistrate. Several new members of the Club took part in the reading, and gave very creditable accounts of themselves in some of the minor roles.

The Club appeared before the public—as we hope it will at least once each year—on Friday, April 13th, in the Gymnasium. The medium of its appearance was "The Younger Generation," and at the final curtain only one regret existed—that a theatre had not been chosen of a size in proportion to the excellence of the show.

It was a "family play," and the characters might be described as mother two sons, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. There were others, but they were only incidents. The case for the younger generation was put by two normal sons and a normal daughter with somewhat narrow-minded parents and a very narrow-minded grandmother. One normal son comes home in a broad-minded state of intoxication, and kisses the parlourmaid. The other drops a restaurant bill which conclusively proves that he has strayed from the straight path of meat teas to the pleasant ways of dinners with Wine and a cocktail. The normal daughter receives a letter which discloses to the parental censorship that she is somebody's "Darling Grace."

Such is the simple material of the play, but Mr. Stanley Houghton handles it in a manner wonderfully sympathetic, and our hears went out,. first to the children, whose "bringing-up" has apparently consisted of an unreasoning repression; and then, anger giving way to pity, to their repressive father, whose bringing-up was the work of a woman who saw in children "an original sin" which must be stamped out. Yes—scourged out of them with whips and burnt out of them with fire if need be.

Miss Grono, as this grandmother, played her part with a high degree of art. Only an artistic spirit can refrain from skimping an ugly part; but Miss Grono stood firm. As the mother, Mrs. Kenyon, Miss Cooley was delightful, providing a pleasant contrast to the austerity of Mr. Evans as Mr. Kenyon.

Mr. Kenyon was a dogmatic chapel-goer, whose dogmatism crumbled to bewilderment before the reasoned rebellion of the younger generation. Mr. Evans played the part strongly, but should remember Lord Kitchener. One man cannot make a play, and gagging which leaves the next speaker without a cue is—well, a mistake.

The Kenyon boys, Arthur and Reggie, portrayed by Messrs. Byrne and Cooper, were a diverse pair of brothers. Perhaps two more years of life as a Kenyon and a sense of greater sin—Reggie drank, but Arthur was drunk—made Arthur misanthropic, while Reggie was so genial. Mr. Byrneplayed a hard part well, but it was for Reggie that the mothers in the audience heaved sighs.

Grace Kenyon was, as Miss Churchill always is, delightful. The critic does not forget the charm of Miss Churchill's voice when he suggests that her exceptional merit lies in her ability for graceful movement on the stage,.however cramped the setting may be.

Mr. Yaldwyn, Uncle Tom Kenyon, the moving power in the younger generation's rebellion, was pleasingly substantial and convincing, and again showed that he can always be relied on.

Miss Morpeth, a very kissable parlourmaid; Messrs. Alan and Eric Cousins, who came to ask Mr. Kenyon to stand for the city council and, incidentally, to witness his domestic discomfiture; and Mr. W. Watkins, Grace's would-be (and finally accepted) fiance, all had something to say, and performed their several tasks with credit.

This initial performance clearly demonstrated that much may be expected from future efforts of the Club, to participate in which it is hoped all the budding histrionic talent in the College hitherto latent will become available. All will be welcome—except, as S.S.M.'s song has it, 'that parasitic and enclitic oft toxitic, noxious weed, The Champion of Cram, O!"