The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1917-02-09
GENEROUS APPLAUSE
FOR "WISHING RING"
Large Crowd Had Enjoyable First Night
with Local Talent Performance and
Presentation Was Very
Creditable.

| One OF the largest casts of Barre talent
ever assembled entertained in "The Wish.
ing Ring" at the opera house last even
ing under the auspices of the Barre
| Woman's club. 1t was the first of two
presentations of the piece, the final per
formance having been booked for this
evening. With the big spectacle once un-
der way, the management would have
been amply justified in hanging out the
s. R. 0. signs, for the audience and the
| overflow OF performers from the stage
occupied pretty much every seat in the
gallery and the orchestra. Without res
ervation, the spectators gave "The Wish
ing Ring their unqualified endorsement
if such a tangible asset to any company
may be delivered through the medium of
spontaneous applause.
The mantle of charity which the news
paper critic is accustomed to place in the
inventory OF stage belongings in most
home talent productions need not be
evoked in the present instance. Evident
ly enough, those who enjoy entertain
are not surfeited with the conventional
musical extravaganza that has been
staged over and over again and the lat
est effort of the Woman's club in that
line indicates that the popularity of
such productions is not on the wane.
The visit OF Jean and Allen, who might
be Johnny and Grace, or Dick and Doro-
thy in anybody's home, to storybook
land is the beginning of theme for the
extravaganza and the rest moves along
on approved lines. There was much of
spritely dancing, especially in the first
part, and If the big company had sue.
eeeded nowhere else, the activities of
nymphs, roses, poppies, corn flowers, So
ciety girls, follies, suffragettes, etc,
would have been enough to redeem the
performance. The singing was tuneful
and parts of the dialogue were well cal
culated to tickle ones risibilities. Two
hometown comedians who have contrib
uted much to the gaiety OF local talent
shows, the one in years past and the
other in more recent amateur perform
ances, figured in the liyeliest funmaking
and their appearance on the stage was
invariably the signal for laughter.
Plainly. parts of musical revue of such
ample proportions suffered at times
through lack of preparation. But an
itinerant director cannot be expected to
produce a finished performance with only
a minimum of time allowed in which to
achieve maximum results; but interest
never Jagged and some Of the fnesse nat /
nrally lacking in the initial appearance
of the company will be supplied this I
evening. Perhaps the complaint of the I
school commissioners that home-talent /
are interfering seriously with /
he public school curriculum il not with /
,ut justification, but none of the school
looked as though they had I
been wasting away between the upper |
Of hard study and the neither
,tone Of too much rehearsing, On the
whole. the results were quite creditable, /
ind it may be said that an evening at
The Wishing Ring may drive away
thoughts of war and the H. G. of L.
The cast for the production is as fol-
ows: Jean and Allen Lorraine Loranger
md John Shepard; their mother, Mrs.
'harles Scott; Moon Beam, Mary Wat
on; Mistress Mary, Leona l.. Lamb;
.ing's messenger, Paul Tierney; king Of
iearts, John Leslie; knave OF hearts,
stanley Marsh; Mother Goose. Elsie
samage; Marjory Daw, Mrs, Thomas
;arrity; Tom, Tom. James Bennett;
simple Simon, "Cuddy" Duncan; the
ieman, James r. Mackay; Geraldine,
'alph Tobin; Mrs. Jack Spratt, Alex
traiton; Mr.. Spratt. ]. r. Mackay: Bo
'eep, Rose NJ. Levin; queen of hearts,
1rs. Ernest Trembly King Cole, Robert
tackle; Mrs. Pumpkin Eater, Barbara
icDonald; three fiddlers, Clarenee-Cur-
is, Ernest Trembly and Floyd Gerard; ,
ymphs, roses, poppies, gardeners, corn |
overs, daisies, snow drops, society girls, ,
ollies, suffragettes and the kings imps.
After the percentage diversion to the !
irector has been made and other ex !
enses met, the proceeds will be used to a
lrther the work of the Woman's club =