DRAMA IN THE VILLAGE

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 June 1927, Page 3

DRAMA IN THE VILLAGE

THEATRE ON WHEELS. All over England and Scotland villagers look forward to a visit from a big, grey car. They know that there will be laughter and gaiety in the village hall in the evening, for the car contains ten professional players and the “theatre” of the Arts League of Service. The object of the league is to bring the arts into everyday life, and to this end the players present an excellent variety programme. In the grey car they carry, in addition to their own luggage, all the costumes, “props,” curtains and scenery required for their plays. Seven and a-half years ago a few professional actors and actresses borrowed a station wagonette and, with a capital of only £25, set off on a fortnight’s tour of Sussex villages. Their enterprise was a success; and the league has progressed by leaps and bounds since. The theatre has visited about 550 towns and villages, covering some 40,000 miles, and its players have been the guests of thousands of hostesses in all parts of Britain. A grant from the Carnegie Trust has enabled a second travelling theatre to take .the road, and this is known as the southern company. Every village the theatre visits provides a hall for the entertainment, extends hospitality to the players, and guarantees £2O for each performance. Hitherto it has been impossible to visit many out-of-the-way villages, as they are unable to find “billets” for the players. A sleeping caravan to accompany the theatre, however, is being built, and in future even the most remote villages will be able to have performances. The programme is always a very varied one, including one or two oneact plays, dancing and singing. So far about sixty one-act plays have been produced. Bernard Shaw’s “Arms and the Man,” is the only three-act play in the company’s repertoire. It is impossible to give Shakespeare as there are not sufficient players. The best and most virile audiences are those in the mining towns. The contrast between the colourful beauty of the plays and the grimy surroundings attracts hundreds of workers.