School Play

TEMPLE

Room X, previously famous for its quiet sitouts, succumbed this term to the noise and bustle of Junior Middles and Juniors, and gave up its walls to British Railways. With this extra accommodation easing our overcrowding, we set about the new school year with grim determination.

Our Senior Rugger team provided the shock of the year by holding The Manor, the favourites, until the dying seconds. For their services to the House in general and for their part in the Senior House match in particular, we congratulate Vaigo, Brisby, Humpherson and Gildener on the award of their Senior House Colours. Our Junior Rugger team did not fare so well, losing to a strong team from Queen's. Woolley, Raine and P. N. Abel received their Junior House Colours for their part in both Senior and Junior House matches.

The intellectual tastes of the Junior part of the House have been catered for by the formation this term of a Junior Debating Group, "The Conventus".

The Silver Knight returned to us this year, and our Chess team are to be congratulated on beating a strong Queen's team in the final.

To conclude a successful term, we ran away with the Junior Long Run, which was held for the first time this year. Robertson was awarded his Junior House Colours for coming second in this event.

THE SCHOOL PLAY

"THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL"

Within a minute we were in the world that the "School for Scandal" inhabited where, at the flick of a tongue, matches could be broken off, infidelity imputed, elopements forced, sons disinherited and daughters confined, maintained or divorced. Here was a play after the producer's heart, but what of us, the audience? For Sheridan's "The School for Scandal" was the play chosen for the first production in the new Memorial Hall, which now provides a permanent stage, lighting system and dressing rooms. The experience proved to be a salutary lesson for us as well as the actors. No major production has been done at St. Peter's for the last two years and only one boy in this production had ever taken part in one before. "The School for Scandal" provides ample opportunity for the blooding of inexperienced actors with its five major parts and its many character roles of scandal-mongers, fops, cynics, singing drunkards and Jewish money-lenders. One merit of this production was that nobody bestrode the rest and all were adroitly welded together.

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In deeper perspective, the play was a lesson for the audience. Today we see many problem plays with their gallery of neurotic characters, so that we run the risk of forgetting that form counts in drama. Characters may be interesting but never should be so at the expense of plot. Both should come together snugly and comfortably to produce a whole in which scene uncoils from scene, leading to a climax demanded by events as well as implicit in character. Of this art Sheridan provides a sound example and Mr. Holbeche successfully revealed it to us in all its shapeliness for our pleasure and instruction. After a faltering start, for which Sheridan is as much to be blamed as anybody, the production achieved a striking crescendo in Act II with two scenes, one, irate between Sir Peter and Lady Teazle, the other boisterous in its carousing and auction of the pictures. Here St. Peter's were on sure ground. Then, after the fun and grace of the screen scene, the play moved on to its genial and happy ending. We will never know exactly what went on behind and above stage but we do know that the production was helped considerably by the slickness and coolness of the scene-shifters, so rounded up by their manager, Mr. Gailey, that the maximum time for a scene change was 75 seconds.

I was less happy about diction and movement. Often there was a failure to deliver lines naturally, as if the speaker were overconscious that he had an elegant line to speak. On the other hand, while an eighteenth century comedy of manners calls for foppery and frippery in its histrionics, yet here such movements were perhaps over-emphasised and often lacking in elegance. Sir Peter's soliloquy in front of the curtains might have proved more arresting, if it had been delivered standing still. Nor were the actors helped by their make-up. Territt's alone was credible and creditable; that of the rest in general tended to be too thick and heavily lined. Also the widow Ochre who 'when she has finished her face joins it on so badly to her neck that she looks like a mended statue' had been forgotten by some members of the cast.

Of the major parts P. C. N. Brown gave the most consistent performance as Lady Teazle, in a role by whose casting the play stands to gain. He evolved a performance that went beneath the surface and thus was always in character and sustained it even when he was not speaking. From Lady Teazle's first entrance, with eyes sparkling and parcels from the boutique, we felt her hold over Sir Peter. She listened and reacted to what the others had to say, which in turn made her own lines more natural and meaningful. At the same time she invested them with sweet mischief and not venom, enabling us to accept her recantation at the end of the play. Brown was adequately supported by J. W. Lowe as Sir Peter Teazle. Here again was a good attempt to enter into the part and he displayed both a sense of timing and genuine emotion in the divorce scene.

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Second to Brown's performance was P. J. H. Mann's Rowley. He showed an acute observation of stance and facial gesture and his voice always sounded dignified, warm and varied. It was a good, consistent, well thought out performance. Of the Surface brothers, R. L. Bywater made a good attempt at the most difficult part in the play, Joseph, "the man of sentiment". At times he was too likeable and not sufficiently cold for this smooth hypocrite, but he improved as the play progressed. As his profligate brother with an Irish sounding heart of gold, C. J. Territt knew what he was doing and took us with him most of the time. He must learn to cure his gait and avoid walking like a Marx brother whose horse has just been shot from under him. D. K. Hirst's performance of Lady Sneerwell was misconceived. There was never enough hate, never enough strength. Here was no poisonous and evil character but a highkicking pantomime dame with only the boots missing. He gave a good performance but the wrong one. R. A. Spencer's Mrs. Candour was better and showed assurance, whilst for a man making fortunes in India, F. I. Watson was too weak. R. H. Grayson as Sir Benjamin Backbite produced an almost perfect performance as an affected dandy. His lisping of "w"s for "r"s was a happy touch, particularly in his line "they fought before they left the room". J. M. Pickard's Crabtree went slightly wrong in that he tended to reduce his role to a self-parody. This fault was evident in his relation of the story of the Nova Scotia sheep that had twins. To finish the catalogue, A. H. Baker contrived to look fresh and innocent as Maria, J. R. Rowbottom was in excellent voice and J. F. Williams gave a sound and pleasing performance as Moses. To them and their producer's credit all those characters convinced us that the play was no museum piece, entertaining us with a topic that is perennially exciting, scandal.

The furniture and the set designed by John Gaastra, with two glorious pictures, caught the beauty and elegance of the eighteenth century. Sometimes the central doors were too dominant and made the settings for each scene a trifle monotonous but on the whole they provided a fitting background for the entrances and exits of the "School for Scandal". The set could have been helped by variety in the lighting, which perpetually bathed the stage in a uniform white light, casting some ugly shadows. The atmosphere of the play was sustained by the incidental music, although it was not nearly as jolly as it could have been. There was some mature technique in the horn playing of P. Hunt.

All in all, the play gave us a worthwhile evening, being a worthy successor to the productions of Leslie Burgess and providing golden auguries for the future.

Sir Peter Teazle

CHARACTERS

J. W. Lowe

Lady Teazle Joseph Surface, a man of sentiment Charles Surface, his younger brother Sir Oliver Surface, rich uncle to the brothers P. C. N. Brown R. L. Bywater C. J. Territt F. I. Watson

Maria, Sir Peter's ward, in love with Charles Rowley, an old family friend of the Surfaces Lady Sneerwell Mrs. Candour Crabtree 1 Scandalmongers

A. H. Baker P. J. H. Mann D. K. Hirst R. A. Spencer J. M. Pickard Sir Benjamin Backbite R. H. Grayson Snake, employed by Lady Sneerwell to spread scandal T. E. H. Smart Moses, a money-lender J. F. Williams Careless I. Kirkus Sir Harry Bumper r C harles's drinking-companions 1 M. J. Poynor A Gentleman C. G. Evans Trip, valet to Charles J. R. Rowbottom Sir Peter Teazle's servant P. W. Quickfall Lady Sneerwell's servant R. J. D. Wilson

Joseph Surface's servant M. R. Wroe

The settings designed and executed by J. N. Gaastra, D. R. Gailey and R. Hawkins, assisted by several of the following scene-shifters : —R. H. Barker, J. T. Bradshaw, A. P. Bramworth, S. R. Hutchinson, W. E. Jones, J. D. Lightfoot, D. L. Marshall, I. T. Parkin, R. S. Peat, J. D. A. Platts, D. H. Rhodes, P. H. Sykes, N. P. Thornton. Make-up by Mrs. R. C. T. Hall, assisted by Mrs. B. H. Holbeche and Mrs. N. J. Dunstan. Wardrobe Mistress : Miss M. Banks. Prompter : J. M. B. Frank. Lighting by D. C. Shubrook. Portraits in Gallery Scene painted by J. N. Gaastra. Satin Screen made by Miss Banks and R. Hawkins. Incidental Music specially arranged by Mr. F. Waine and I. T. Hunter. Orchestra: Violin I: J. C. Brisby (Leader), A. J. Bytheway. Violin II : A. J. D. Foster, R. P. Shouksmith. Violoncello : Mr. D. S. Mair, J. C. Powell. Clarinet: A. Hardman. French Horn : P. Hunt. Percussion : M. A. Clegg. Continuo : I. T. Hunter. Conductor : J. R. Anfield. The play was produced by Mr. B. H. Holbeche, assisted by Mr. R. J. Wilson. 16