SHAKESPEARE SOCIETY

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 87, 9 October 1937, Page 14

SHAKESPEARE SOCIETY

A miscellaneous evening was held at a recent meeting of the Wellington Shakespeare Society, and the reading of "Arms and the Man," known in Us musical adaptation as "The Chocolate Soldier," proved very entertaining. In announcing the programme the president (Mr. W. A. Armour) made brief reference to the life and work of the author George Bernard Shaw. He mentioned that Shaw, who is an artist as well as a moralist, believes that in the fine arts we have a subtle but perhaps the most effective and greatest vehicle for propagandist | work. Born in Dublin in 1856, Shaw at an early age entered a land agent's office, but his interests were music and political science. In 1876 he went to London and for several years subsisted on a small allowance made by his mother, studying and doing mock literary work. He wrote novels but these are unknown or forgotten. It was in 1892 that he became dramatic critic to the "Saturday Review" and at that time he began to write plays and did literary work on music, art, et Shaw's contributions to modern thought are threefold. First there are his plays which are brilliant satires, for the most part, on contemporary prejudices. ■ Then there is his dramatic criticism, and thirdly, there are the ideas which he has promulgated as an economist and sociologist. The characters in the play were taken by the following:—Mr. F. J. Jones (Major Petkoff). Mrs. H. E. Duff (Catherine Petkoff), Mn. W. G. Ross (Raina), Miss S. Williams (Louka). Mr. W. G. Ross (Captain Bluntsehli), Mr. F. Pears (Major Sergius SaranofT), Mr. J. P. Nicoll (Nicola), Miss G. Kerry read the stage directions. Next month the society will present "Antony and Cleopatra."