The Fascinating Land of Drama

Manawatu Times, Volume LVI, Issue 5614, 31 March 1931, Page 9

The Fascinating Land of Drama

BUSINESS GIRLS’ LUNCH CLUB ADDRESSED BY MISS 0. ASHTON.

Presiding at the Business Girls’ Lunch at the Rosco restaurant yesterday, Miss C. Mardon extended a welcome to Miss C. Ashton, secretary to the Y.W.C.A. in Palmerston North, and a newcomer to the city, and introduced her as the speaker for the day. Miss Ashton expressed thanks for the kindly greeting and asked members to go with her for a little while into the fascinating land of drama, which, she said, some of them might have discovered a land where new, exciting wares \vere being cried every day.

Tracing some of the happenings which had brought about our modem plays, Miss Ashton said drama had played a very important part in the history of all nations and the play had its origin in very ancient days. Had they ever considered that the Book of Job was a play—a wonderful drama? The first scene depicted Job living in a prosperous happy life, the second an interlude, with Satan testing him and the third Job and his afflictions and his ultimate triumph, a trumpet call of triumph all down the ages. Greek drama would make an exciting and wondrous tale of its own to unfold. Their drama rose out of their pagan festivals and reached a very high state. The wonderful English dramas had developed through the centuries. Away back in the time of the Saxons there were the minstrels, travelling players, and story-tellers. Often these were attached to the house of some great man to provide entertainment for all in the castle. The seasonal festivals were re- , lies of old pagan festivals. Many of the plays grew out of the games • and dances used on these occasions. It was probable that the game of “hockey” had its origin in the old pagan festival when a human sacrifice was made and the crowd tried to get the victim’s head. St. George and the Dragon plays in vogue at that time; in which the hero always attacked with a sword, probably grew out of an olcl sword dance. . Puppet shows came from Italy about the same time, one relic of which we had to-day in the Punch and Judy show, derived from a puppet play about Pontius Pilate and Judas Iscariot. Pageants, processions and tableaux were popular on festival days, when Bible stories were given. Beginning at the gate of the city the players would go through the main streets, giving a scene in each and at the end of the day the whole story would be enacted before the palace gates or some equally important place. These old pageants always had a religious setting and story. , .. Most fascinating were the old “Mystery” and “Miracle” plays, mystery plays being dramatised Bible stories and miracle plays lives of the saints and legends concerning them. During the eleventh, 12th and 13th centuries all dramas were religious, mostly written, supervised and often acted by the clergy. In the fifteenth century the plays became too elaborate for acting in churches, all sorts of secular interests were creeping in and the clergy found they could no longer be used as propaganda. Most of these plays had for their theme God’s dealings with man from the Creation to Doomsday, and lasted from dawn till dusk. Old accounts for producing them, treasured to-day, included “a hook to hang JudasV; “half a yard of red sea”; “starch for a storm,” etc. Although the story of Noah was always a comedy and the devil introduced with humour into plays, it must not be thought that these people were irreverant. Religion was very real to them, permeating all of their every day life and not just a social duty for Sundays. The object was to make these stories alive to uneducated audiences

who could not read. The story of the Crucifixion was portrayed with great dignity and beauty and performed by various guilds, each being given a part the bakers acting “The Last Supper”; the cooks “The Descent Into Hell”; the drapers, “The Creation,” and the fishmongers “The Resurrection.” God was always depicted as a patriarch, the devil in a hairskin suit, St. Peter with a gilt beard—these styles were traditional.

The staging was quaint, a triple stage being wheeled from place to place. The top was for the angels, the middle being the main stage and the bottom, Hell—also a retiring room for actors. These old plays had this appeal in that they dealt with what has been of pressing interest in all ages, the struggle between good and evil. Queen Elizabeth prohibited all drama dealing with politics or religion but in spite of that they continued spasmodically down to the 17th century. To-day there was a revival of interest in these old plays, especially in the Nativity Play, and it was interesting to note that at the students’ camp at Feilding at Easter, an old nativity play, “Eager Heart,” had been put on. Masefield was re-writing two great plays set to be acted in a cathedral.

The weakness of the plays up to the end of the 16th century was in the plot, but they were of great educational value.

At Queen’s College in 1546, there was an “Act of Expulsion” for any student who failed to act in at least one play 'a year or failed to attend the performance. No women were allowed in plays until after the Restoration. The great Shakespearean age changed the characters completely in that they were ordinary every day beings who rose to great heights. In the time of Puritaus there was no play-acting at all and the reaction showed itself in the reign of the Stuarts, when utterly indecent, wretched plays were introduced, but this phase worked itself out. Queen Anne and several later sovereigns had, not been interested so that drama did not receive court patronage. Goldsmith and Sheridan were the outstanding dramatists and Mrs. Siddons, the most notable actress as Nell Gwynn, was of the Stuart period. At the beginning of the Victorian era there were only two theatres licensed for the acting of proper plays. In 1543, when restrictions were removed there was pandemonium and plays of a sickly sentimental type wotc rife followed by another swing of the pendulum and the level was raised with more, real sane plays. Oscar Wilde, important for being earnest, Pinero and Gilbert who found success when associated with Sullivan, were some of the writers mentioned.

For the last 30 years interest in the theatre had been steadily increasing and this dramatic revival had not yet reached its elimax. Hundreds of plays good, very good, and indifferent had been written and this was a great age for amateurs. Various organisations were fostering the study and Miss Ashton mentioned that South Canterbury had a drama league modelled on the British Drama League and last year produced 16 plays and held a festival.

The keynote of modern drama was realism and G. Bernard Shaw was the chief disciple of the realistic school, while others were Galsworthy, Drinkwater and C. Casey. “Having seen what fascination lies within the borders of this land, don’t you want to explore it further?” said Miss Ashton.

It is hoped to have a Drama Club at the Y.W.C.A. this winter and feeling that this would appeal to members, Miss Ashton left the idea of the club with the Lunch Club.

Thanks were voiced by Miss D. Stairs and carried by acclamation. Mrs. A. Cooksley was a .visitor to the lunch.