Smyrna times. [volume] (Smyrna, Del.) 1854-1987, 1942-04-23
THIRD ANNUAL
PLAY FESTIVAL
Held at U. of d., Newark,
This Saturday; Z Plays
at All-Day Meet
SMYRNA TO TAKE PART

'Delaware's Best at Their Best"
is the apt slogan which tells con-
sisely the story of the Third An
nual Play Festival to be held at the
University of Delaware on Satur-
day, April 25. Seven plays repre-
senting the best in community and
educational theatre work in the
state will be given on that date as
a part of the Festivals final elm
nation round. The plays to be
presented run the gamut of the
dramatic art from the classic
Richard II, through the modern
istic Undertow and Will o. The
Wisp, to the comedy The Funeral
lin of Crickneck.
School Contest i'm Afternoon
The Festival program consists of
afternoon and evening perform
ances. In the afternoon, the win
ners of the county public school
elimination rounds held in each
county during the period from
April 10 to IA will compete for pos
session of the Festival Cup, won
last year by Dover High School.
The fourth play in the afternoon
group will be given by the winner
of the private school tournament,
to which group a plaque will be
awarded.
Community Theatres
In the evening three community
theatre groups will give one-act
plays and will compete for an ap-
propriately inscribed plaque, DR..
John Dolman, president of the
Swarthmore Players Club and the
producer of many excellent plays,
will be the critic judge. In addition
to being professor of English at the
University of Pennsylvania, DR..
Dolman is the author of book on
stagecraft entitled 1.-THE Art of
Play Production.
HiSh oCirool OlouP
Plays to be presented by high
school groups at the afternoon per-
Torrance are: Richard II, Under
tow, Will o. the Wisp, and The
Message From Khufu. Shape
speare's Richard II, directed by
Francis x. Gallagher, will be given
by the Wilmington High School
Dramatic Club, victors of the New
Castle County elimination. The
dramatic group from the John Bas-
sett Moore High School in Smyrna,
which won the Kent County con-
test, will give Will o. the Wisp, di-
rected by Miss Blanche Lee. I'm
dertow, the winning play in the
Sussex County tournament, will be
offered by the Seaford High School
representatives and will be directed
by Miss Virginia Barber. The
fourth play in this group will be A
Message From Khufu, which will
be presented by players from
Salesianum High School, winners
of the private school tournament.
Father Joseph Mccoy will direct.
Little Theatre Group
The evening performance will
consist of three plays by commun-
ity theatre groups. The Funeral
lin of Crickneck will be the pre-
sentation of the Wilmington
Drama League and will be directed
by Mrs. William Penn Frank. The
University Drama Group of New
ark under the direction of Mrs. c..
R. Kase, will offer The Dark Lady
of the Sonnets. The other play of
the Festival, When the Whirlwind
Blows, will be given by the "Y"
Players of the Wilmington Y. M.
and Y. w. H. A. Miss Sarah
Goldstein will be director.
To Present Prizes
At the completion of the Festival,
prizes will be presented to the out
standing actor and actress in both
the high school and community
theatre groups. Awards will also
be made for the best director in
each group, as well as for the best
makeup. The Festival will take
place in Mitchell Hall, on the Uni
versity of Delaware campus. The
high school contest will begin at
2.15 P. M, and the first of the
community theatre plays is sched-
uled for 8.15 p. m. Tickets for the
entire group of seven plays are
available for the nominal admission
charge of 55c.