Los Angeles herald., 1909-07-07
THEATER INSPIRES
THE SLUM JEWELLERS
Beneficent Institution Spreads Ena
liahtenment Among Denlzens of
Crowded Districts

lar Shakespearean play; or further on
see a. group Of ragged little children
acting LAS You Like 1t" to an enthu-
siastic audience of little mothers" and
their charges seated on the curbstone;
or farther still down the street find Il
bright-eyed little girl relating in volu-
BILE Yiddish all she could recall of
Snow White" wouldn't you be sur
prised? Well, you needn't be, for that
is an every day scene since the Edu-
cational theater was built under the
auspices of the Educational alliance in
a packed district of lower New York
The theater was opened five years
ago, and in that time has given diver
sion and inspiration to more than $780,
900 children, and has seen an even
greater number turned away from the
doors because there was no room inside.
prince and Pauper," Little Lord
Fauntleroy," Snow White" "Tho
Tempest" Sara Crewe" "As You Like
1t" and 1.-THE Forest Ring" have been
given here to enthusiastic and appro-
Ciative audiences. Those Of the read
ing world who have known Of these
plays have not yet ceased wondering
that they should have been chosen for
children Of the city slums, for street
gamins. for factory workers, for people
of the score or more nationalities that
are populating that section of New
York. Like most Of the world, they
have reckoned things from the popular
hypothesis that poverty is synonymous
with ignorance, low ideals and lack of
Imagination. The founder Of the chill
drens theater thought otherwise, and
she has proved her point.
Miss Herts' Innovations
The Educational alliance exists for
the purpose OF lettering the condition
of immigrants and new residents of
New York 1t had an entertainment
committee that, like the usual depart
ment of that nature in any club, Of
fered meaningless amusement to the
people. It's miscellaneous programs.
even if less vulgar, We're certainly less
clever than the Bowery shows, con-
sisting mostly of meaningless play
let's and self-conscious declamations by
the children. Miss Minnie Alice Herts,
woman of means and of social and in
. telectuaI prominence in New York, was
asked to take charge of the depart
ment. She agreed under condition that
she be allowed to develop the enter
tainments after her own ideas. Believ-
Ing in her ability the alliance gave her
tull permission to do as she pleased
Then Miss Herts began to do radical
Things. She chose plays that had ideals
usually considered far above the heads
OF the east side folks. She chose her
payers, not because they had been
taught to declaim, because someone
said they had talent, or because they
happened to have a bit of prominence
In their small world. She chose them
from the rank and file of the neighbor-
| hood She let it be known that each
worker, whether shifting scenery or
playing the part of the star, was con-
tributing something to the entertain
ment land that each in turn should
nave chance at the bigger things.
She allowed several people to learn
the same part, and chose from among
them the one she thought had best in
terpreted it, and she let the interpreta-
\ tion be that persons own, never a
gesture or attitude being suggested
There are over 500 members of Miss
Herts classes, and nearly everyone has
acted some part.
! When the play was all learned and
the costumes-donated by more af-
fluent folk-had been finally donned, the
theater was opened on Saturday even
ings for the old and young, and again
on Sundays, especially for the children
n of the city. Each child present had a
ticket given him by some school, and
this he had turned in with cents as
the price of his admission. The people
of the Ghetto, Little italy and other
homes of New York's polyglot people
saw these plays with pleasure and with
understanding.
+ New World of Imagination
J. The first impulse of all childhood Is
t to make believe" to pretend, to people
g the workaday world with wonderful
= things that do not exist to the naked
?. eye. In congested New York there is
= little for the imagination to feed on,
q yet to the children of the more con-
v gested places Miss Herts opened up
4 new world. For these children who
q had perhaps never seen tree or
flower that did not grow in Washing
= ton square, she chose "As You Like
a It." and as the parts were learned and
= the play progressed, the fertile child
mind turned the tiny stage into 2 real
forest of Arden. For the while the din
= and dust Of the streets outside were
q u lost to ear and eye and hand in hand
3 with Rosalind the tired little children
y wandered far in new world.
I Educators and social worker say
| that the children of the slums, the
Il street-grown ones, are keenest and
= quickest when 1t comes to learninr a
e new thing. The officials of the library
e near the theaters testified later that
there had never been such a demand
y for Shakespeare in the history OF the
= institution and when "As You Like
d It." cheaply bound, was brought TO the
e theater and put on sale for the con-
venience of the players and the audi
r ence, the copies disappeared WIN o.
fattering rapidity never known TO the
blood-and- thunder novel, usually be-
lieved to be the favorite on the East
Side.
Natural Talent Developed
AS eacn ACTOR is HOI only dllOWeu
but encouraged to interpret the part as
he or she thinks it should be. there is
little affectation on the part of the
players there Is much earnestness and
much natural grace. With the respon-
r sibility resting on them they have be-
come great students. The librarians
are petitioned for pictures showing
scenery or costumes, the manners of
some beloved teacher are unconscious
ly assumed as suited to the part, and
when 1.-THE Forest Ring" was being re-
, hearsed candidates for the parts of the
bears saved their pennies and rode out
to Central park to spend long hours in
the zoo watching the bears. Inciden-
tally they learned something of animal
life and. coming closer to nature, came
closer to the higher plane of civiliza-
ton.
Miss Herts finds that her theater
can help in the social as well as the
moral and educational upbuilding of a
J community. She declares that the
, plays not only influence manners, Gus
} toms and morals but also fashions.
} She tells how thirty little girls who
were to play the part of guests in
Closing it on Sunday has cut Off
thousands of children from their one
weekly diversion, and the alleys and
streets will claim their own. A bigger
theater is needed; in fact a dozen such
could he opened and run every night