The Wanganui Chronicle. SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1935. ARE COMPETITIONS WANTED?

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 198, 24 August 1935, Page 8

The Wanganui Chronicle. SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1935. ARE COMPETITIONS WANTED?

r piE YV anganui Competitions Society, on the eve Of another annual meeting, is faced with the question of whether there is a sufficient demand for competitions to warrant them being carried on. Support from competitors is not lacking, and the value those competitors receive from the advice and counsel of judges has never been in doubt, but whether the public feels the want of competitions from an entertainment point of view is a matter not so easy to decide. Naturally, the attitude of the public is governed to a large extent by the standard set by the competitors. If the standard be high the patronage will surely be commensurate with it. In a corresponding sense the patronage will be low if the standard be low. There is another phase to the problem, however, to which the society has addressed itself with such deliberation that it feels loath to desist in the work of carrying on—the discovery of new talent. Competitions ‘form the nursery of the stage, and, as proof of that, YVanganui can point to several whose talents were developed from the small-hall stage to something of greater and more appealing proportions under the opportunities afforded by the Competitions Society. The society itself may not have concerned itself with the actual instruction and coaching of the talent in its early stages, but it afforded the means of first testing its calibre,before the exacting criticism of qualified judges, backed all the time by the public sitting in criticism of both judge and competitor. Afterwards, wlhen public support was at its height, the society was able to carry the work further and actually take a hand in the coaching of talent by providing scholarships. Looked at from the most important angles, competitions are desirable, but their promotion depends upon four basic requirements: Talent in the making, a committee capable of organising each festival in order to parade that talent properly, the appointment of judges sound in wisdom and ability, and finally, adequate public support. The first three have never been lacking so far as Wanganui is concerned, but lhe question of public support, which is probably more vital than any of the others if the work is to continue, is, at the moment, under a cloud. If it is not forthcoming the YVanganui Society will be forced to relinquish its task.