Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-26

| tention are noteworthy for their rare
artistic merit and they have called
| forth the efforts of some of the fore
most artists authors and musicians of
the day. We recall the Westchester
pageant alone as enlisting the aid of
tudor jerks and Gouverneur Morris in
the preparation of It's prologue, the
art of Violet Oakley in the designing
of Its costumes, and including a poem
by Richard Watson Glider in its I'm
vitation to the Pageant" Gloucester
In its fifteenth century pageant made
use of Perry Mackaye's version of the
prologue to Chaucers "Canterbury
Tales" the Coburn players directed the
hundreds of other participants; Mr..
Eric Pape designed the costumes, and
the. music was arranged by Mr. Wal
ter Damrosch. The pageant OF the
italian Renaissance, given last winter
at the Art Institute of Chicago, was
one Of the greatest spectacles of that
kind that had ever been witnessed in
America italy. in all her medieval
splendor, was shown in a setting Of
rare beauty, with nearly a thousand
art students and artists in costume
representing the historical characters
of the period. The book Of the play
was written by Thomas Wood Stevens.
the prologue rendered by Donald Rob-
ertson, and the dramatis personae in
cluded many of the names that stand
for art and culture in Chicago. The
Joan of Arc performance held at Har-
ward in June with Miss Maude Adams
in the title role and 1900 students act
Ing as supernumeraries, was perhaps
the greatest dramatic production ever
given in this country. Then we have
the descendants Of the Huguenots
holding a commemorative festival at
New Rochelle; Norwich. Conn.,, ceie-
brating the two hundred and fiftieth
anniversary of its founding, and Lake
Champlain holding its tercentenary
celebration. and now the Hudson
Fulton celebration in New York,
great historic and patriotic festival in
honor of the coming of Henry Hud-
son and his Haelve Maene in 1909.
and the memorable voyage of the Cler-
mont 200 years later.
Something of the enthusiasm of this
play-spirit has fired the students and
alumni of the College of Fine Arts in
Los Angeles, who are planning an
outdoor festival, with the fine old
trees of the college grounds as a back
ground for their stage settings The
pageant is to commemorate early
events in the history of California,
showing the primitive life OF the In
dians, the coming of the mission fa-
theirs, and the Introduction of the
Spanish element, with gay fiesta at
the close, Miss Alma May Cook, the
president of the Alumni society, has
been very active in working out the
artistic details of the affair, and Miss
Arley Gordon Tottenham. through her
connection with the art department,
has been able to enlist the aid of many
students of other departments of the
University of Southern California. The
story OF the play is to be rendered
by DR.. George Wharton James, and
with his knowledge of Indian lore and
the use of accessories loaned by him
which would be the priced possessions
of our great museums, the spectacle
promises to be one of true historic
interest, and is arousing not only the
artistic effort necessary to such pro-
duction, but a new pride in the his
tory and traditions of California.