Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-03-23
DR. anna
League to
Be Active
Pageants and Plays
and Lectures to Be
Featured During
the Year.

its best forms if the present plans
of the Drama league materialize.
After two years OF inactivity dur
ing the war, the league gathered
its members and their friends in a
large and enthusiastic audience to
greet Baroness Huard. This was
the initial performance after the lull.
The coming year is the tercen-
tenary Of the birthday of several
of our American poets. New York
has just celebrated that Of our thor
oughly American poet Lowell.
England was~represented at the Gel
ebration by the novelist and play
wright, John Galsworthy.
1t has been suggested that the
league honor these men during the
coming year by great patriotic
pageant, grouping around the pic
tured events of their lives scenes
from their poems and historical
scenes of the stirring days when we
struck the shackles from the slave
and welded Our states into nation.
Such pageant, they believe,
could be made an artistic success
and would help to rouse the feel
ing of love Of country, and OF pride
in her achievements. 1t was only
four years ago that a few women,
interested in the drama, met in the
Fontenellc hotel to talk over organ
izing a league in Omaha. Among
these women were Mrs. Porter
Peck, Mrs. Lowry Childs, Mrs.
Clement Chase, Mrs. E. M. Fair
field. Mrs. H. l.. Cummings, Mrs. A.
Jefferis and Miss Kate McHugh.
In two years it had become one of
s the established institutions of the.
city.
Modern Drama.
An interest in the study of mod
ern drama was reused by readings
and lectures. Finding the public
library not we'll supplied with these
plays, the league purchased col
lection, which later BECAME the
property Of the library.
Some of the most noted lecturers
brought by the league-arc Slough
ton Holborn of Oxford, Lady Greg
ory Of the Irish thcater. Granville
Barker was brought by the COM
bined work of the league and the
Society of Fine Arts. :
The league, through its bulletins,
kept its members informed as to
the merits of plays being presented
in our city--or in New York or
Chicago.
They also brought to our city the
Portmanteau theater.
On Friday, March II, it presented
+, Mrs. A. Starr Best, the founder of
the league, who gave an address on
"Community Recreation Against
Bolshevism." Mrs. Best at the
luncheon given in her honor talked
Of the coming meeting Of the ma
tional league, which will be held in
Chicago April q to a. "All over
the country" she said, "the league
is rousing to a new interest since
the close of the war"
Drama League Board Members.
President, Miss Kate A. McHugh;
first vice president, Mrs. Warren
Blackwell second vice president,
Mrs. Luther Drake; third vice presi-
dent, Mrs. Myron Learned; fourth
vice president, Mrs. ]. E. Summers;
fifth vice president, Mrs. Victor
Rosewater; recording secretary.
Mrs. E. c. Twamley; corresponding
secretary Mrs. George B. Prinz;
treasurer, Mrs. A. w. Jefferis; chair
man of education, Mrs. Samuel
Burns; publicity, Mrs. E. M. Syfert;
membership. Mrs. Clement Chase;
courtesies, Mrs. Howard Baldrige;
plays, Mrs. E. M. Fairfield; auditing-i
Miss Arabella Kimball.
Just a word more about the
Drama League of America, organ
lied April Is, 1910, which has as its
officers and directors the following
prominent women:
President, Mrs. A. Starr Best, !
Evanston, ILL.,. secretary. Mrs. John
r. , Edwards. Chicago; treasurer,
William, T. Abbott, Central Trust
Company of Illinois. Vice presi-.I
dents, Brander Matthews, New
York City; Mrs. William S. Heffer-
an, Chicago; Mr.. Richard Burton,
Minneapolis; Mrs. Otis Skinner,
Philadelphia; Frank c. Brown. Bos-
ton; Mrs. Fred w. Vaughan, San
Francisco. Directors: Raymond M.
Alden, Urbana, Ill; Louis K. Ans
pacher. New York; George p.
Baker, Boston; Mrs. Wilbur F.
Blackford, Chicago; S. H. Clark,
Chicago; Percival Chubb, St. Louis;
Gibson Gardner, Washington;
Theodore B. Hinckley, University of
Chicago; Miss Alice NJ. Huston,
Evanston, H.; Eames MacVeagh.
Chicago; Mrs. J. Creighton Mat
thews, New Orleans; AIRS. William
Vaughn Moody, Chicago; Benedict t
Papot, Chicago; Felix E. Schelling,
Philadelphia; J. E. Williams. Streat-
or, Ill. a.
At the coming national conyen-
ton, to be held in Chicago April ~
70 u, there is expected an unusu..
ally large gathering OF men and
women interested in things dra-
matte. Delegates to the meeting
VIII probably bring back to Omaha
INSPIRATION to new forms OF activity
and the league confidently hopes tor
great success in the coming year.