DRAMA 



1855 



DRAMA 



Shakespearean Drama in Schools 



One of the best and most enjoyable exercises 

 for a class is the presentation of a play. All 

 children like to "make believe," and knowledge 

 of a play is best obtained by the endeavor to 

 memorize the lines and to present the thought 

 by appropriate intonation and gesture. No 

 more time is required to present a good literary 

 play than a worthless, transitory effort; young 

 people should therefore be encouraged to se- 

 lect some play of recognized merit. One of the 

 simplest and most charming of all plays for 

 children is the wonderful fairy play of Shake- 

 speare, Midsummer Night's Dream. The ideal 

 way is to have a class give this play after it 

 has been carefully studied in school as part 

 of the regular work in literature. The students 

 are then familiar with the entire play and can 

 easily memorize the beautiful lines. High 

 school classes have presented it well, while 

 children in the seventh grade, under twelve 

 years of age, have given the play in a most 

 acceptable and enjoyable performance, delight- 

 ful in its quaint conceits and humor as well as 

 in its beauty of expression. 



The play is easily staged, as all the action, 

 except the first and last scenes, takes place in 

 the forest. A dark-blue curtain as the back- 

 ground, with a tree trimmed with pink paper 

 to represent a blossoming cherry tree, four 

 sloping benches covered with green for the 

 resting places of the tired wanderers in the 

 wood, and a throne for Titania and Bottom, 

 her grotesque lover, complete the forest set- 

 ting. The stage may be thus arranged, and 

 no drop curtain is necessary. The first scene 

 may be given at the front of the stage, close to 

 the audience. In the last scene the throne 

 should be covered with white for the throne 

 of the duke and duchess; the four green 

 benches should be removed and a classic white 

 bench should be placed for the seats of the 

 lovers as they enter to the presentation of that 

 "most lamentable comedy," Pyramus and 

 Thisbe. 



Costumes. There are three groups in the 

 play. These are the courtiers, who wear hand- 

 some Greek dresses of various colors, made of 

 crepe cloth and trimmed with the Greek bor- 

 der; the clowns, who wear plain, short-skirted 

 slips of dark colors, with dark hose and sandals ; 

 and the fairies, who should wear sheer garments 

 and wings trimmed with silver and gold. Puck 

 should wear scarlet and have winged cap and 

 sandals; a fairy should wear pale blue, trimmed 



with silver; the four fairy attendants of Titania 

 should be tiny boys dressed in colors appro- 

 priate to their names and wear huge wings and 

 wreaths of flowers. The ass's head that Bot- 

 tom wears in the forest, the lion's head, the 

 crowns and Oberon's wand may be rented from 

 a costumer. The lantern, bush of thorn and 

 dog that Moonshine must have can easily be 

 obtained. The little children who give the 

 roundel should wear cheesecloth in soft colors, 

 while the dance that follows the play in the 

 last act may be given by other dancers in white 

 costumes. The girls in the sewing classes 

 should make all the dresses. Egeus should wear 

 a white beard and wig. Thisbe should have 

 the long dress of a Greek lady, and the clowns 

 should have swords. Flute should have a bag 

 with the scrolls for the actors and one much 

 longer scroll for the calendar. 



The four fairies, taken from the kindergarten 

 or first grade; the dancers, from the third and 

 fourth grades, and the other actors from the 

 sixth and seventh grades, serve to interest 

 many children in the presentation. The story 

 of the play should be told to the younger 

 classes by the members of the class that has 

 studied it, that they may better appreciate ita 

 presentation. 



One invaluable result of presenting such a 

 play is that the study and time are not mis- 

 spent. The world of literature will always be 

 better known and more highly enjoyed because 

 of this early excursion into one of its most 

 alluring paths. F.H. 



Consult Hunt's The Play of To-day; MOMS' 

 The American Dramatist; Eaton's The American 

 Stage of To-day. 



Related Subject*. These volumes contain 

 many articles which throw light on the subject 

 of the drama : 



Beaumarchals, Pierre Corneille, Pierre 

 Augustin Caron de Daly, John Augustln 



