The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1916-08-03
TALENT REVEALED
At REHEARSAL OF
JULIUS CAESAR
Preliminary Production SurnaSSes
All Expectations
LEADING PARTS ARE STRONG
Reputed Critic Declares Mob is
Superior in its Work to Pro-
fesslonas.
written by Miss Laura Rogers.

The dress rehearsal of julius
Caesar, which took place last night in
Clark's Woods, proved that Senning-
ton has achieved another triumph
The audience was made up of a
little group of people who had been
busy with the humber details OF the
great equinping soldiers with
spears and bucklers; instructing SEN
atofs in the art OF draping togas in
ducing small members OF the mob to
give up large-sized costumes to their
big colleagues-etc. Some OF the
helpers had been to rehearsals and
knew all about the cues and exits and
entrances and the correct form OF
greeting Caesar and the proper
method of shaking hands with Brutus.
All things considered. they were not
good material for an enthusiastic
audience They looked YEARLY at the
grassy stage. with its forest back
ground. Then frightened and said,
'Well, it's a perfectly beautiful place,
anyway
The band played an overture Then
struck up a stirring march, and with a
rush from the dim woods the play be-
gan. With a gasp OF surprise, the
spectators saw the drudgery Of cos
tunes and lights and stage arrange
ments converted into the life OF an
cient Rome. They saw the familiar
scenes, not as fragments, as at rehear-
ais, but as the play. And they were
astCnished to find that they became
as absorbed in IL as If they had not
known it by heart. There were no
surprises of plot or action in store for
them and yet they looked and listened
spellbound There was, however, one
continuous surprise; that We Ben
ningtonians were actually able to give
julius Caesar as it was being given
II is a matter for pardonable pride
that viii surely swell with each per.
Torrance that our town has been able
to achieve such production. In the
| first place, not many towns have
among their citizens professional
actor of the recognized ability OF Ar
| thur Elliot, and it is privilege to see
an actor OF Mr.. Elliot's calibre as Bru
tus. Anyone who knows of MIR. FL
| lots theatrical record, particularly
| i'm Shakespearean roles, will not be
| surprised at the excellence of his per
formance-the surprises will come II
| the cases Of our townsmen actors who
| have been concealing their dramatic
bent under other professions and oc
| cupations. Mr.. Mills. as Cassius, mus
be seen to be believed His oft re
curing scenes with Mr. Elliot will de
light their audiences, for in them WI
see not two modern men, but thu
veritable Brutus and Cassius-th'
illusion is complete. Probably NJ
member of the cast will call fortl
more wonder and admiration than Ed
ward Jenney, who plays Mark Antony
His famous "Friends, Romans, coun
trymen" speech will sway the aud
ence no less than the stage mob he /
addressing.
And so il goes-part after part /
so well taken that it would not sham
the professional stage: moreover
many of the small parts Of one or tw
lines are given with a finish that ha
much to do with the smoothness @
the general effect
A resident OF Old Bennington, VIII
is an accredited theatrical critic
and who watched the dress rehearsal'
with the keenest appreciation, r.
marked of our mob, "That Is bette
mob than have ever seen on the pr'
fessional stage" And there is rel
son for It, Instead of being made u
of "supers", who stray in for an eyel
ing, our mob has been fairly pc
manent body and they have been car
fully drilled in their turbulence. The
are intelligent, f0o-un'ike the the
trical mob-and know way they shou
Their leaders. John Hayes and WI
liam Cushman, are important factol
In the play. and their acting will be'
close study.
Mr.. Elliot pays generous tributes
: the talent OF members of the cast, hi
= II is hard work. as we'll as natur
ability. that has brought about the
6 happy results The. best Of ii is tn
h the play is not only admirable. b
!. enjoyable If there is any tired bu'
o ness man. who takes fright at Il
= mention of Shakespeare. let him tai
heart and start for Clarks Woo
! with as much confidence as he wou
q 20 to the Harte Theatre or the Ope
J. House. If by any chance he is int
ested in poltics--even uptoda
! American politics-he will find tire
p, In the observation of the master-po
~ tician, Mark Antony
:, Julius Caesar is essentially
" mans play a stirring. martial pe
!, 1t Is full of life and action and
u y one prefers truth to fiction 1t h