LIBRARY 
 
 University of Califomb" 
 
 IRVINE^

 
 BY " 
 
 CONSTANCE D'ARCY MACKAY 
 
 4 
 
 THE LITTLE THEATRE IN THE 
 
 UNITED STATES 
 
 Illustrated. With index. Large 12mo. $2.00 
 net. 
 
 COSTUMES AND SCENERY FOR 
 
 AMATEURS 
 
 With numerous illustrations and index. 
 Large 12mo. $1.75 net. 
 
 HOW TO PRODUCE CHILDREN'S 
 
 PLAYS 
 
 12mo. $1.30 net. 
 
 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 12mo. $1.35 net. 
 
 PLAYS 
 
 THE BEAU OF BATH and Five Other 
 One-Act Plays 
 
 For amateurs and for Little Theatres. With 
 illustrations after Reynolds, Humphrey and 
 Romney. 12mo. $1.30 net. 
 
 THE FOREST PRINCESS and Five Other 
 
 Masques 
 
 Supplemented by papers on Costumes for 
 Masques and Music for Masques, etc. 12mo. 
 $1.35 net. 
 
 PATRIOTIC PLAYS AND PAGEANTS 
 The Pageant of Patriotism and The Haw- 
 thorne Pageant. Arranged both for outdoor 
 and for indoor performance, and so that they 
 can be split up into short plays. 12mo. $1.35 
 net. 
 
 THE HOUSE OF THE HEART 
 Ten short plays in verse for children of 
 fourteen or younger. 16mo. $1.20 net. 
 
 THE SILVER THREAD and Seven Other 
 Folk Plays 
 
 Short plays of various nations for young 
 folk. 16mo. $1.20 net. 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUILIfHIKS NlW YOMC
 
 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN 
 YOUR TOWN 
 
 A Manual of Suggestions 
 
 BY 
 
 CONSTANCE D'ARCY MACKAY 
 
 Author of "The Little Theatre in the United States," 
 "Patriotic Plays and Pageants," etc., etc. 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 1918
 
 PN 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1918, 
 
 BY 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY
 
 Remember . . . that behind officers and govern- 
 ment and people even, there is the country herself, 
 your country; and that you belong to her. 
 
 EDWARD EVERETT HALE, 
 in The Man Without a Country. 
 
 We must have but one flag. We must also have 
 but one language. This must be the language of 
 the Declaration of Independence. . . . We cannot 
 tolerate any attempt to oppose or supplant the lan- 
 guage and culture that has come down to us from 
 the builders of this Republic with the language and 
 culture of any European country. 
 
 The greatness of this nation depends on the swift 
 assimilation of the aliens she welcomes to her shores. 
 
 PRESIDENT WILSON. 
 
 The crucible must melt all who are cast in it; it 
 must turn them out in one American mold ; and this 
 must be the mold shaped one hundred and forty 
 years ago by the men who under Washington 
 founded this a free nation separate from all other 
 nations. 
 
 From Children of the Crucible, by 
 
 THEODORE ROOSEVELT. 
 September, 1917.
 
 PREFACE 
 
 THIS little book contains patriotic dramatic 
 material for use in American communities, 
 as well as a plea for Americanization through 
 drama: it strives to suggest, not to dogma- 
 tize; to point the way rather than to declare 
 it. Practicality is its chief aim. It endeavors 
 to set before its readers a brief outline of 
 what could be accomplished along the lines 
 of drama in all OUT cities where dramatic 
 work is stirring but unfocused. 
 
 The World War has shown us that drama 
 is a necessity in the lives of our people. 
 Army and Navy, Church and State, Hos- 
 pital and Recreative Council, Y.M.C.A. and 
 Y.W.C.A. are turning to it as to an ally. 
 Every Military and Red Cross parade has af- 
 firmed its power, " the thing made manifest 
 before the eyes of the people."
 
 vi PREFACE 
 
 And as Americanization is to be our watch- 
 word now and in the days that are coming, 
 what can make for solidarity more swiftly 
 and effectively than the art of drama? What 
 can more quickly and vividly make our his- 
 tory real to the foreign-born within our 
 midst? How shall they learn patriotism save 
 through participation? How shall they as- 
 similate our language save through the 
 spoken word? 
 
 National and Patriotic Leagues, schools, 
 settlements, civic and social centers have come 
 to feel that this is true. 
 
 The World War has kindled a greater love 
 for drama than we have ever had before: it 
 has revealed its power for service as well as 
 for recreation. We cannot let this power 
 die. After the war it must go on. It must 
 continue to be a force for patriotism and 
 solidarity. But it needs direction. 
 
 Therefore this little book has striven to 
 make a few suggestions on the subject of 
 Americanization through Drama; A City's 
 Unification through Drama; to give a brief
 
 PREFACE vii 
 
 survey of some of the work toward this end 
 done through pageantry, and by indoor and 
 outdoor community theatres; it also contains 
 a chart or dramatic program of progress for 
 cities wishing to make their plans ahead. 
 And lastly it contains dramatic material and 
 suggestions for Patriotic Celebrations for 
 National Holidays, such as Fourth of July, 
 etc., and for Community Celebrations for 
 Christmas. 
 
 The bibliography has been founded on 
 drama lists prepared by the author for the 
 Junior Red Cross and for Patriotic Play 
 Week for rural communities as organized 
 by the War Camp Community Service. 
 
 Very valuable and helpful lists of plays are 
 prepared by the Drama League of America, 
 Riggs Building, Washington, D. C. The 
 Drama League is working to make appre- 
 ciative audiences, and reaching every part 
 of the country. Anyone can join by send- 
 ing one dollar, and it is to be hoped that 
 every reader of this book has joined, or 
 will.
 
 viii PREFACE 
 
 Thanks are due to The American City, 
 The Woman's Magazine, The Churchman, 
 and The Popular Educator for their kind 
 permission to reprint the material in this 
 book.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA . 3 
 
 II THE UNIFICATION OF YOUR TOWN 
 
 THROUGH DRAMA ., iv ,. . 15 
 
 HI DRAMA CHART OR PROGRAM OF PROG- 
 RESS ....... .., 33 
 
 IV THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 
 
 AND YOUR TOWN . . . ., 46 
 
 V THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT . . . ; 62 
 
 VI How TO ORGANIZE AN HISTORICAL 
 
 PAGEANT 75 
 
 VII THE OUTDOOR THEATRE AND YOUR 
 
 TOWN 91 
 
 VIII SUGGESTIONS FOR PATRIOTIC CELEBRA- 
 TIONS OF FOURTH OF JULY AND 
 OTHER NATIONAL HOLIDAYS . . 98 
 
 IX SUGGESTIONS FOR CHRISTMAS COMMU- 
 NITY CELEBRATIONS AROUND THE 
 TREE OF LIGHT . . > ; . . 123
 
 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR 
 TOWN
 
 I 
 
 AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA 
 
 PERHAPS because the very essence of 
 drama is struggle it has taken the 
 World War, the greatest struggle of 
 all history, to reveal the place in our national 
 life which drama has suddenly come to oc- 
 cupy. The art which Puritanism crushed and 
 denied has now become one of the mightiest 
 forces making for democracy, a force that 
 has entered so deeply into the heart of Amer- 
 ica that never again can it be relegated to the 
 place it once held. Its power will keep on 
 growing long after the war is over. What 
 it has done in war time is vastly significant: 
 what it can do when the war is over is even 
 more significant. If in war time the drama 
 has revealed itself as possessing two great 
 powers, the power of service and the power 
 of re-creation (which is what the word 
 recreation really means), what may it not
 
 4 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 reveal in the days that are coming in the 
 days after the war? 
 
 Never before has the need of imaginative 
 recreation been so universally recognized. 
 And the present holds the promise of the 
 future. One has only to see what has been 
 done to realize what may be done, since the 
 drama is an art that is forever young, that has 
 within itself the magic of infinite renewal. 
 
 Therefore, before looking futureward it 
 may be well to glance at a brief summary 
 of what has already been accomplished. And 
 first of all it must be admitted that in the 
 achievement of making the abstract become 
 the concrete the drama leads all other arts. 
 It can swiftly and poignantly drive home a 
 truth. It can liberate the imagination and 
 make people see. 
 
 A greensward on which Jeanne D'Arc is 
 kneeling, her face uplift, exalted, the sword 
 of France in her hand. What is this but 
 patriotism made manifest to the multitude 
 through drama? 
 
 The tramp of marching feet: long lines of
 
 AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA 5 
 
 men in khaki: the heart-lifting strains of a 
 military march: a starry banner, blowing in 
 the wind. What is this but the spirit of 
 America made manifest to the multitude 
 through pageantry, one of the most ancient 
 forms of drama? 
 
 General Pershing has declared that imagi- 
 native recreation is necessary for the morale 
 of the American troops abroad, and the 
 " Over There Theatre " is promptly organ- 
 ized. For the first time in history army and 
 navy and church and hospital are looking to 
 this power as an ally, are one in declaring 
 that drama is what the soldier and sailor off 
 duty must have. 
 
 What has wiled away the tedium of camp 
 and barrack, of convalescent ward and trans- 
 port? Drama. 
 
 On what has the Y.M.C.A. placed most 
 reliance for its recreative entertainment? 
 Drama.* 
 
 *This has also become true of the Y.W.C.A. Pageants, 
 festivals, and plays have become part of their national recrea- 
 tive program; in all places where women and girl workers are 
 employed in great numbers, drama is the keynote of social 
 solidarity; rehearsals taking place after working hours.
 
 6 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 It is not only in military but in civil life 
 that this need is felt. The War Camp Com- 
 munity Service, organized by the United 
 States Government to deal with the problem 
 of the soldier's leisure outside the camps, finds 
 in drama one of the answers to the query: 
 With what shall we fill the soldier's leisure 
 hours? 
 
 In all large cities Summer Play Schools 
 have been organized to keep the children of 
 soldiers from the demoralizing influence of 
 playing on the streets while their mothers 
 are at work. "He fights. She works. 
 Meanwhile, what becomes of the children? " 
 In all these Play Schools patriotic drama al- 
 ready has its place as part of the day's pro- 
 gram. 
 
 Nor is this all. What has helped to speed 
 up recruiting, Liberty Loans, Red Cross 
 drives, Food and Health conservation? What 
 eliminated three thousand miles of space? 
 What brought " The Front " to our very 
 doors, so that we could see and feel the im- 
 mensity of the struggle? What made "No
 
 AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA 7 
 
 Man's Land " into " Every Man's Land " 
 for those of us here at home? Drama, and 
 nothing else but drama. Everywhere, 
 through every aspect of the war, drama is 
 resurgent. 
 
 It is a paradox that at present the silent 
 drama speaks to the largest audience. And 
 the service rendered by the movies in war 
 time cannot be overestimated. That the si- 
 lent drama has proved itself of immense 
 practical value no one can deny. But if we 
 are to become now and hereafter an articu- 
 late nation then we need articulate drama 
 more than inarticulate drama. Therefore all 
 that is done along the lines of articulate 
 drama is of greater import though it 
 reaches a minority rather than a majority 
 audience. For in time the minority audi- 
 ence must become the majority audience, or 
 the drama will have failed of its full birth- 
 right of splendor. 
 
 War has revealed our national greatness. 
 It has also revealed our national weaknesses. 
 And chief among these weaknesses is the
 
 8 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 lack of national solidarity. Our American 
 citizens have not been American enough: our 
 foreign citizens after years in this country, 
 are still our foreign citizens. 
 
 The war has begun the welding: after the 
 war the work of Americanization must go on. 
 Throughout the length and breadth of the 
 country patriotic leagues and societies are 
 being formed to bring this about. The 
 democracy of the world has been in danger; 
 it will be won back at a terrific cost. And in 
 order that these dead shall not have died in 
 vain all that they fought for must continue 
 to be held before the eyes of the American 
 people. Through school and church and set- 
 tlement, through patriotic leagues, through 
 social and civic centers this work of Ameri- 
 canization must go on. The ideal for which 
 thousands of men are giving their lives must 
 not be allowed to perish. And it is in this 
 work of Americanization that the drama 
 will be teacher, interpreter, commemorator. 
 It will be drama by Americans for Amer- 
 icans.
 
 AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA 9 
 
 Americanization through drama will be 
 part of the program of every club, school, 
 settlement, and social center. It will be part 
 of the work of every Little Independent The- 
 atre and a major part of the work of every 
 civic celebration in every city throughout the 
 country. Americanization may or may not 
 be emphasized in the professional theatre; 
 but in all drama that is of the people, by the 
 people, for the people it will have a perma- 
 nent place. This was presaged even before 
 the war when Little Independent Theatres 
 such as those of Detroit, Michigan; Gales- 
 burg, Illinois; Kansas City, Kansas; Water- 
 loo, Iowa; and the Wisconsin Players, called 
 for plays by local playwrights interpretative 
 of the life of the district in which these Little 
 Independent Theatres were situated; plays 
 that would make for local patriotism and 
 quickened interest. 
 
 And, strangely enough, amongst the vast 
 destructive things that this war has done, it 
 may accomplish something constructive for 
 American drama by developing plays about
 
 10 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 American life. And this is something of 
 which we are deeply in need. For where 
 are the playwrights who interpret the folk 
 of our seacoast as Synge interpreted the wild 
 west coast of Ireland? Where are our play- 
 wrights who give us plays of our manufac- 
 turing cities that have the smack and tang 
 of the work of Harold Brighouse or Stanley 
 Houghton? There are a host of well-made 
 ephemeral American plays dealing with dif- 
 ferent sections of this country that give us the 
 outside but not the inside of the thing they 
 interpret. They are plays of plot rather than 
 of character. There is no deep racial feel- 
 ing manifest in them. Where are the play- 
 wrights who do for America what the Irish 
 playwrights and Players have done for Ire- 
 land, or what the Manchester School has 
 done for England? Here and there, in 
 American one-act plays such as Susan Glas- 
 pell's study of Mid-western farm life called 
 Trifles, in some of Percy Mackaye's Yankee 
 Fantasies, in brief plays by Zona Gale and 
 Alice Brown, in the terse, trenchant sea
 
 AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA 11 
 
 studies of Eugene O'Neill America is find- 
 ing her realistic interpreters. 
 
 Even before we entered into the war sev- 
 eral Little Independent Theatres like that 
 of Cleveland, stressed the socializing force of 
 the drama; for in Cleveland it is planned to 
 make the Little Theatre a center for the art 
 of its foreign-born as well as its American 
 citizens, realizing that to create and appre- 
 ciate in common accord makes for true civic 
 solidarity. 
 
 Pageant after pageant has already shown 
 the struggle, the self-sacrifice, the valor by 
 which our nation was upbuilt. Everything 
 that makes the people of a nation work to- 
 gether, play together and appreciate to- 
 gether, is a national asset. Our recent 
 Fourth of July Celebrations, our Christmas 
 Community Celebrations are movements in 
 this direction movements that strengthen na- 
 tional ties just as family reunions strengthen 
 family ties. These gatherings are to the 
 cities what Old Home Week is to little New 
 England towns. And it is at these celebra-
 
 12 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 tions that the ideal of democracy can be kept 
 shining, alike through precept and through 
 practice. These are the times, when people 
 are stirred and emotionally united, that ideas 
 can be driven home. 
 
 The most unlettered immigrant can under- 
 stand the symbol of America lifting the bur- 
 den from the back of the oppressed of other 
 nations who come to dwell beneath her flag. 
 He will understand what it means to see the 
 chains of autocracy struck off by the strength 
 of democracy. He will realize what it means 
 when Liberty and Opportunity bid the alien 
 newcomer welcome. And this will be the 
 moment to ask the foreign-born collectively 
 and individually what gifts of heart and soul, 
 of loyalty and service they bring to America 
 in return for what she has given them. 
 
 Our national holidays, our days of com- 
 memoration or festival, days like the Fourth 
 of July and Labor Day and Christmas will, 
 in the years that are coming, take on new 
 significance. They will become Americaniza- 
 tion days. And because of them every city
 
 AMERICANIZATION THROUGH DRAMA 13 
 
 in this land will have its stadium or outdoor 
 theatre, as well as its Independent Theatre. 
 Each city will work out its own dramatic 
 plan or schedule; for these celebrations must 
 not be allowed to become stale. They must 
 not be repetitious. 
 
 This can be avoided by accenting different 
 holidays on different years; using different 
 civic groups each year, and by having very 
 simple celebrations some years, with more 
 elaborate celebrations occurring at intervals 
 of four or five years. 
 
 Nor must certain forms of drama be made 
 monotonous by too frequent use. Every- 
 thing depends on keeping this impulse fresh 
 and glowing. It is not alone the pageant 
 and the play that must be used ; but all forms 
 of drama the festival, the pantomime, the 
 masque; dance-drama; processional; and sim- 
 ple folk celebrations. 
 
 The art workers of every city will find 
 scope for their patriotic powers through serv- 
 ing the art that includes all arts, the art of 
 drama. Music, light, color, dance that is like
 
 14 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 rhythmic sculpture all these will be co-ordi- 
 nated. And it is well that it should be so. 
 For, however we may hide our eyes from the 
 fact, commercialism is our national blot on 
 the 'scutcheon. And only through the love 
 of beauty which is the love of art can com- 
 mercialism be overcome. Art is forever the 
 foe of commercialism, and until a love of it 
 seeps through all classes of society we can- 
 not cease to become a commercial country. 
 Until we come permanently to care for the 
 immaterial rather than the material, for the 
 imperishable rather than the perishable, the 
 blot on the 'scutcheon cannot be removed. 
 And for the sake of our national honor we 
 cannot let it remain. We must make the 
 word Americanism mean more than it ever 
 has before. And drama, the most dynamic 
 of the arts, stands ready to help us. These 
 war years have proved that it is vital to our 
 national life. It was through national fervor 
 that the drama first had its birth. We have 
 ignored its power too long.
 
 II 
 
 THE UNIFICATION OF YOUR TOWN 
 THROUGH DRAMA 
 
 WHY is it that when it has been proved 
 time and time again and now most 
 of all that drama is a dynamic 
 force that we either neglect it altogether or 
 make such futile and sporadic use of it in the 
 life of our towns and cities ? Why is it that all 
 that could be done through drama is con- 
 sciously or unconsciously neglected? Why 
 is it that this force has never been put to 
 use as a power for Americanism? Why is it 
 that several places that have made an effort 
 in this direction quickly weary of well doing, 
 and give up the work after the first few at- 
 tempts, where the foundations are only half 
 laid? 
 
 There are several reasons, all of which ap- 
 pear to be real reasons. Let us make a list 
 
 15
 
 16 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 of them, standing them up like nine pins, 
 against which we shall later roll the ball of 
 common sense, trusting that they will go 
 down before it as most obstacles do. In 
 other words, since something is lacking, let 
 us take up these dramatic Lacks and Diffi- 
 culties, and answer them categorically, one 
 by one. 
 
 1. The first and most portentous difficulty 
 seems to be the lack of a definite dramatic 
 program, covering a space of years, each step 
 in this program leading logically to the next. 
 
 2. Lack of Co-ordination. 
 
 3. Lack of Vision. 
 
 4. Lack of a Centralizing Point where 
 plans can be discussed. 
 
 5. Lack of Leadership. 
 
 6. Lack of Time. 
 
 7. Lack of Money. 
 
 8. Lack of Initiative. 
 
 9. Lack of an Art Standard. 
 
 10. Willingness to take something "just 
 as good."
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 1? 
 
 Let us proceed against these difficulties: 
 1. Lack of Definite Program. 
 
 Many cities have been unified through a 
 pageant, a masque, a festival, or a great out- 
 door play wherein large numbers of people 
 have participated, and then this plan has been 
 dropped. Now to give a play or pageant of 
 this scope every year is too exhausting. 
 Moreover, even though splendidly done such 
 a thing becomes monotonous, and under mo- 
 notony enthusiasm dies, inspiration ceases. 
 
 It is a wise and wonderful thing to be will- 
 ing to begin with little and work toward 
 more. The trouble is in this country that too 
 many cities, dramatically speaking, begin 
 with much and work back to little. The re- 
 sult is an appalling dramatic waste waste 
 of effort, time, and spirit that with a future- 
 looking plan could so readily be conserved. 
 What is needed is a dramatic chart or pro- 
 gram. This program can be compared to a 
 necklace in which large beads alternate with 
 small beads: yet the whole necklace, because 
 it has been definitely planned and the beads
 
 18 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 strung in accordance with that plan, will have 
 charm, unity, significance. 
 
 DoQCUoooCZloooCZloo Q* 
 
 The small beads represent the small but 
 significant dramatic unifications which occur 
 during a series of consecutive years: the large 
 beads represent the large civic festivals which 
 occur at intervals. All are strung on one 
 cord: each is a uniting link leading to the 
 next link. 
 
 What could be simpler or more easy of ac- 
 complishment than to have a definite chart 
 or program that would be a civic necklace? 
 
 The beads may vary in carving and color, 
 as do the beads of the Orient. But the final 
 effect must have oneness and symmetry. 
 
 And this is what a dramatic chart can help 
 to do. 
 
 The chart must be planned so that mo- 
 notony will be avoided; so that the burden 
 does not fall year after year on the same
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 19 
 
 group; so that unification and through this 
 Americanization can be striven for; so that 
 time, money, and energy will be conserved; 
 so that local and group patriotism will be 
 stirred to the utmost; so that a high art 
 standard will be reached and maintained. 
 
 Then, too, this chart must be arranged so 
 that it will interest the youth of the com- 
 munity as well as the older people; so that 
 it will appeal to both cultivated and unculti- 
 vated, sophisticate and unsophisticate. 
 
 As far as the author knows no municipal 
 dramatic charts have as yet been published, 
 and the one that is given in this book is 
 placed here merely as a suggestion and not 
 in a spirit of dogmatizing; for, as has been 
 said in the preface, this is a Manual of Sug- 
 gestion. 
 
 2. Lack of Co-ordination: Lack of Knowl- 
 edge of How to Unify a Town Through 
 Drama: Lack of Knowledge as to How 
 the Work of Americanization Can Be 
 Set Afoot.
 
 20 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 The unification of a city through drama is 
 not a new idea. Every military parade, every 
 Red Cross procession, every Labor Day 
 parade, and every Historical Pageant has in 
 it the power of unification. And in that uni- 
 fication Americanization is latent. 
 
 An idea seems to be abroad in the land 
 that in order to unify towns through drama 
 there must be a continual succession of 
 pageants or festivals in which at least half 
 or a quarter of the town participates. Noth- 
 ing could be further from the fact. A large 
 pageant or festival has amazing unifying 
 power. Yet in ratio so has a play that can 
 be repeated in every part of the town until 
 its message has seeped through the very life 
 of the community. 
 
 Different holidays can be emphasized: dif- 
 ferent groups made responsible for their 
 dramatic quota in succeeding years. 
 
 One year it may be the city's patriotic 
 societies; next its dramatic clubs; or its for- 
 eign citizen leagues; or its high schools and 
 local colleges and academies. Or it may be
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 21 
 
 the combined efforts of adult foreign-born 
 citizens one year, and little citizens the next. 
 The churches, the settlements, the art guilds 
 can each have their year. A thorough unifi- 
 cation will depend on the Dramatic Chart. 
 The technique of dramatic unification differs 
 with the size of the town. The largest city 
 has naturally the most problems to solve. 
 Group pride, group effort, group enthusiasm, 
 group patriotism must be roused. The spirit 
 of the guild workers of the Middle Ages, of 
 the cathedral builders, artists and artisans, 
 can be turned in our age into dramatic chan- 
 nels. 
 
 From a practical point of view Ameri- 
 canization will most quickly be gained by 
 knowing what your city most needs to Ameri- 
 canize it, or to lift it: and then setting this 
 thing before the citizens by dramatic emphasis. 
 Emphasize this idea or ideal. Hammer at it. 
 Point it. Underscore it. Drive it home. 
 
 In order to do this you will have to empha- 
 size one idea at a time instead of half a 
 dozen different ideas. Unify the city each
 
 22 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 year through a definite dramatic object. 
 And this holds good in both the large and 
 the small town. 
 
 In cities both large and small too many 
 dramatic groups work independently of each 
 other. There is no pulling together of all 
 the threads, no oneness of impression. There 
 are a dozen different goals instead of one 
 goal. 
 
 3. Lack of Vision. 
 
 This lack comes largely from not being 
 able to plan ahead : to see what has been done 
 as a basis for what might be done. But 
 through the tremendous Renaissance of pa- 
 triotic drama that is going on at present this 
 lack is fast disappearing. 
 
 4. Lack of a Centralizing Place Where 
 
 Plans Can Be Discussed. 
 
 If your town is to be unified through 
 
 drama there must be some place of creative 
 
 atmosphere where artists and art workers 
 
 can meet to discuss their plans; where charts,
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 23 
 
 diagrams, books, and catalogues can be kept. 
 There must be a central gathering place. 
 The towns that have accomplished the most 
 along these lines Detroit, Galesburg, Cleve- 
 land, and others have central gathering 
 places. The spirit of Drama must have a 
 home. House it, and it will begin to work 
 miracles. Therefore a Little Independent 
 Theatre or an Outdoor Theatre is a prime 
 necessity. You can begin with one or the 
 other. Later, as the work grows, you will 
 have to have both. 
 
 5. Lack of Leadership. 
 
 Lack of leadership will cease in any town 
 as soon as the drama is given a home. A 
 theatre draws art workers to it as with a 
 magnet. Out of the work done a local leader 
 will arise; or a group of leaders; or as in 
 the case of Detroit, there will be a " Dra- 
 matic Engineer " summoned by the com- 
 munity from some other place. So far in 
 this country "dramatic engineers" are few; 
 yet the list is growing.
 
 24 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Lack of leadership often comes from lack 
 of a dramatic center in which leadership can 
 develop. 
 
 6. Lack of Time (Fatigue). 
 
 Often a town will fail to make the most 
 of its dramatic opportunities because its citi- 
 zens who should be leaders plead lack of 
 time. But it can be pointed out to them 
 that a dramatic schedule or chart saves time. 
 
 Because of the remembered fatigue con- 
 nected with some large festival people are 
 often inimical to communal drama. This is 
 because a plan embracing small efforts has 
 not been made clear to them. When it is 
 made clear to them that their services will be 
 required only in certain years this feeling will 
 vanish. 
 
 7. Lack of Money. 
 
 This plea, one of the oftenest made next 
 to lack of time, is utterly preposterous when 
 what is at stake is considered: is worse than 
 preposterous when one considers that such
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 25 
 
 a dynamic group as the Washington Square 
 Players began with a thousand dollars capi- 
 tal: a sum which has served to start many a 
 significant Little Theatre, North, South, 
 East, West. 
 
 There should be a definite budget, and the 
 dramatic chart must be made to fit it. This 
 budget will increase as time goes on, since 
 nothing succeeds like success. Thousands of 
 dollars are wasted in municipal parades that 
 are from an art and civic point of view ut- 
 terly worthless. Start your plan as have all 
 dramatic pioneers and the money will be 
 forthcoming. 
 
 It cannot be reiterated too often that it is 
 spirit and not money that counts. But the 
 dramatic unification fund cannot be left to 
 chance. A practical sum must be collected 
 or appropriated, and all plans must be in 
 accordance with that sum. 
 
 And in connection with the smallness of 
 the sum let it be said again: "Do not be 
 afraid of simplicity" 
 
 Genuine artistic leadership always means
 
 26 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 actual economy in the end; for your true 
 " dramatic engineer " has a knowledge of 
 subtle yet inexpensive effects that can be 
 employed to heighten simple productions. 
 There must be no waste of either effort or 
 material if the chart is to succeed. The cos- 
 tumes of each play and festival must be 
 saved so that they can be used again and 
 again either through being re-dyed or re- 
 combined. What is used in a play this year 
 can be re-used next year or the year after 
 with a marvelous effect of newness and fresh- 
 ness if only the plans are laid ahead. 
 
 8. Lack of Initiative. 
 
 Lack of initiative is one of the worst lacks 
 of all, but a definite program or chart can 
 help to rectify it where it exists. Lack of 
 initiative often comes from a lack of vision; 
 from being unable to see what can be ac- 
 complished. Lack of any real love for or 
 enthusiasm for art often lies at the base of 
 it. Timidity is another reason for it. Lack 
 of knowledge another. Local lethargy an-
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 27 
 
 other. But the great war has so galvanized 
 communities into action that now the mists 
 of local inanition can be quickly dispersed 
 by the sun of effort. It is the leaders in 
 your community that will have to stir the 
 laggards. This may be done through meet- 
 ings, talks, or through the impulse of the 
 drama itself. Nothing so opens people's 
 eyes as a fine and stirring performance. 
 
 9. Lack of an Art Standard. 
 
 Here we come face to face with a na- 
 tional deficiency which only time and effort 
 can remedy. But that it is being remedied 
 and in some cases swiftly remedied, no one 
 can question. And for this the Little The- 
 atres that have sprung up almost overnight 
 in many of our towns are largely responsible. 
 
 It cannot be said too often that any mes- 
 sage America is to give her people through 
 drama must have art in the telling, if the 
 message is to reach them and remain with 
 them. All the great stories and poems of the 
 world have lived in the hearts of succeeding
 
 28 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 generations because they have had art in the 
 telling. The import of the message must 
 be equaled by the art through which it is 
 conveyed. Too much of the work of com- 
 munity drama is ragged and not well put 
 together. This sometimes comes from at- 
 tempting too much in too short a space of 
 time. A small thing perfectly done is bet- 
 ter than a large thing imperfectly done, 
 though many communities have yet to learn 
 this fact. 
 
 For some reason or other America has al- 
 ways had a respect for numbers. ' We had 
 a big festival " or " We gave a play with 
 three hundred people in it " sounds better 
 to some ears than to say : ; ' We did such 
 and such with a small cast, and we came near 
 doing it perfectly." This regard for totality 
 seems to be a survival of the spirit " 40 
 ELEPHANTS 40 " of the old circus days. 
 The drama with a large cast is epical; the 
 drama with a small cast is lyrical: one is 
 magnificent; the other gem-like. The value 
 of each is equal.
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 29 
 
 But in this country we have had to learn to 
 appreciate the smaller work of art. In dis- 
 cussing this, " the loveliness of little things," 
 Clayton Hamilton has this to say in Prob- 
 lems of the Playwright: 
 
 "It is one of the paradoxes of art that 
 its very finest works are nearly always minor 
 works. The pursuit of perfectness is in- 
 compatible with the ambition for amplitude, 
 and a vast creation can seldom be completely 
 fine. A cameo is a more perfect thing than a 
 cathedral. ..." 
 
 This is why a small production is often a 
 better thing for a town than too large a 
 production. That is why a play or a masque 
 is sometimes a far better choice than a 
 pageant to drive home any truth, national 
 or local. A clear, salient, unforgettable dra- 
 matic impression must be made instead of a 
 blurred impression. And much of our dra- 
 matic work is blurred blurred by haste, by 
 carelessness, by indifference, and lack of 
 standard. 
 
 What is tawdry and cheap and ephemeral
 
 30 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 must be banished. And the establishment of 
 a Little Independent Theatre with a high 
 art standard will help to raise the whole 
 dramatic standard of a town by showing 
 people what is good and what is not. This 
 is not a dream, but a fact. It has already 
 been proved in several cities. Amongst them, 
 Detroit. 
 
 Three fine one-act plays with a definite 
 idea behind them or one longer play of the 
 same type repeated through all the sections 
 of the town until everyone has had a chance 
 to see it is better than a dozen ill-done festi- 
 vals produced throughout the year. 
 
 Many people who are interested in com- 
 munal drama ignore what the professional 
 theatre at its best has to teach them and 
 they do themselves and the mighty art of the 
 theatre a grievous wrong. For all the finest 
 art of the drama as we know it stems from 
 the theatre and must stem back into the 
 theatre again. 
 
 " Ignore the theatre," says Granville Bar- 
 ker, "and the theatre revenges itself."
 
 UNIFICATION THROUGH DRAMA 31 
 
 Above all, this movement should not be 
 musty and scholastic. It should have free- 
 dom and vitality. It cannot be dry-as-dust 
 and savor too much of the schoolroom. It 
 must have simplicity, yes. But it must have 
 color, sweep, emotion, climax. And these 
 things are forever conserved in the profes- 
 sional theatre at its best. 
 
 Through participation we will not only be 
 unifying and Americanizing our national life 
 but we will be sending back to the theatre of 
 the future perhaps to our National Theatre 
 creative, articulate, American audiences 
 that will demand the best. And as has been 
 said a thousand times, the " Power of De- 
 mand lies in the hands of the audience." * 
 
 We are continually harking back to the 
 Greek and Elizabethan dramatists without 
 stopping to consider the creative audiences 
 
 * The Drama League, Riggs Building, Washington, D. C., is 
 working to make appreciative audiences, and reaching every 
 part of the country. Anyone can join by sending one dollar, 
 and it is to be hoped that every reader of this book has joined, 
 or will. Also, in a few brief years, the Little Theatre move- 
 ment has done much to raise the standard of appreciation 
 throughout the country.
 
 32 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 to which they played audiences to whom 
 beauty and poetry were as requisite as bread. 
 For every play is a collaborated effort. 
 Without that strange quickening which is 
 shared by audience and dramatist no play 
 can really live. And where are Democracy's 
 imaginative audiences? If Democracy is to 
 come to its full flower we must see that they 
 exist. We must send an imaginative, 
 homogeneous American audience into the 
 theatre. 
 
 10. Willingness to Take Something "Just 
 as Good" if the Thing Can Be Done 
 Easily. 
 Nothing that influences the life of a great 
 
 nation can be too good. The only fear is 
 
 that it will not be good enough.
 
 Ill 
 
 DRAMA CHART OR PROGRAM OF 
 PROGRESS 
 
 THIS program is by no means meant to 
 be a rigid one. It is not intended as 
 anything but an outline of what might 
 be done: a list of suggestions rather than any 
 wish to dogmatize.* 
 
 Any City's or Town's Dramatic Equip- 
 ment should consist of (at least) : 
 
 1. A Little Theatre (focusing the art life 
 of the community). 
 
 2. A Small, Inexpensive, Easily Made 
 Portable Theatre to be Used in Connection 
 with the Little Theatre. 
 
 3. An Outdoor Theatre or Stadium. 
 
 * Considering the need for it an astonishingly small amount 
 of American Historical Drama is available: the writing of it 
 lies in the future. Until it comes, workers must be content 
 with what is now available. 
 
 33
 
 34 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 1. Community drama is dependent upon 
 music. The programs of all municipal bands 
 and orchestras should be made up with ref- 
 erence to the city's dramatic schedule. That 
 is, the music that can be used to accompany 
 symbolic dances, or dramatic action in parks 
 or outdoor theatres also can be used for 
 municipal concerts, thus serving two pur- 
 poses. 
 
 2. The programs of all municipal or com- 
 munity choruses should be planned in direct 
 relation to the city's dramatic program. 
 
 DRAMATIC PROGRAM 
 
 AMERICANIZATION YEAE 
 (First Year) 
 
 An Outdoor Masque showing the relation 
 of foreign-born citizens to America. Acted 
 by a chosen cast of American and foreign- 
 born citizens. Produced on the Fourth of 
 July, and repeated on Labor Day.
 
 DRAMA CHART 35 
 
 Establishment of a Little Independent 
 
 Theatre. 
 
 This theatre's program to include the pro- 
 duction of at least six one-act patriotic 
 plays * which will be repeated in all parts 
 of the city in parks and playgrounds or on 
 the porticos of City Halls and libraries, etc. 
 This can be done through the establishment 
 of a Little Portable Theatre. 
 
 Patriotic Programs by Municipal Bands. 
 Patriotic Songs by Community Choruses. 
 
 FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 Three or four one-act patriotic plays for 
 high schools, produced in consultation with 
 the Little Theatre director or committee. 
 Or a three- or four-act play of the same 
 type. 
 
 * Owing to the meager supply of Patriotic Plays available, 
 plays of American history or character can, if necessary, be 
 substituted. For a list of such plays, see pages 98 and 106 
 of this volume.
 
 36 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Three one-act patriotic plays for the Grade 
 Schools. 
 
 These plays to be repeated in all parts 
 of the city and to be produced in connection 
 with the Little Theatre's director or com- 
 mittee. 
 
 Or a simple historical pageant may be 
 given on a general patriotic theme which 
 will unite all the schools. 
 
 CHBISTMAS COMMUNITY CELEBRATION 
 ABOUND THE TREE OF LIGHT 
 
 Instead of simply singing the traditional 
 carols, have the Tree of Light dark until Lib- 
 erty appears with her uplifted torch. Then 
 have all the lights on the tree flare up. One 
 or two of the old carols may be introduced; 
 but the rest of the carols should be patriotic 
 ones led by Liberty, songs which are neither 
 of the North or South or East or West; 
 but distinctly American, like Katharine Lee 
 Bates' " America the Beautiful " and Arthur 
 Farwell's " Hymn to Liberty."
 
 DRAMA CHART 37 
 
 All properties and costumes of all cele- 
 brations to be conserved until they are needed 
 again. 
 
 AMERICAN MYTHS 
 (Second Year) 
 
 The Establishment of an Outdoor Theatre. 
 
 Hiawatha * given on a large scale with a 
 great many symbolic dances interwoven. 
 Corn dance, dance of fireflies; of winds; of 
 nature forces; Spirits of the Sunset, etc., 
 etc. The whole production to be finely done. 
 To be acted by the local colleges and high 
 schools. 
 
 Small Spring festivals in parks and play- 
 grounds woven around Indian myths. The 
 
 * We are accustomed to think of Hiawatha as something 
 rather childish, yet staged as it should be, with a wealth of 
 color, an3 with superb lighting effects, it could give as surely 
 as any Greek Drama the sense of man's battle with Fate, the 
 supreme antagonist: and there could be wonderfully brought 
 out the theme of the Four Seasons which runs through it, from 
 the lyric love passages of Spring to Winter and Death at the 
 end. The great unheeding forces of nature could be mystically 
 suggested throughout. The real play of Hiawatha has never 
 yet been written. The writing of It lies in the future.
 
 38 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 coming of Spring and Winter, the story of 
 the Moccasin Flower, etc., etc. On no ac- 
 count must the main theme, Hiawatha, be 
 touched upon in any minor festival, or it will 
 become stale. 
 
 Indian Music Played by the Municipal Band. 
 
 Indian programs or music sung by the 
 community chorus (Cadman, Farwell, Cole- 
 ridge-Taylor) . 
 
 In the Little Theatre plays interpretative 
 of different sections of America, the prairies, 
 Wisconsin, mining districts, the Great Lakes, 
 New York, the South, New England, by 
 such authors as Alice Brown, Eugene O'Neill, 
 Percy Mackaye, Susan Glaspell, Zona Gale, 
 William Ellery Leonard, etc., etc. See 
 pages 110 and 111 of this volume. 
 
 Community Christmas Celebration. 
 
 American historic festival given by the 
 different churches of the city. 
 
 1. Christmas carols of Old England; then 
 a few native Indian songs. Then Martin
 
 DRAMA CHART 39 
 
 Luther's " A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," 
 always connected with New England. Then 
 Oliver Holden's " Coronation," connected 
 with the XVIIIth Century in America. 
 Then Phillips Brooks' " Little Town of Beth- 
 lehem," connected with the XlXth century. 
 Then Katharine Lee Bates' " America the 
 Beautiful," connected with our own time. 
 Each group to be in the costume of its cen- 
 tury, 
 
 or 
 
 Each group may be led by a singer in a cos- 
 tume suggestive of the particular century 
 connected with the special carol or hymn. 
 
 COLONIZATION YEAR 
 ( Third Year) 
 
 Simple Outdoor Play. 
 
 Given on a much smaller scale than Hia- 
 watha, dealing with American settlement or 
 colonization. (Such plays as Lily Long's 
 Radisson or James Oppenheim's The Pio- 
 neers.)
 
 40 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 In the Little Theatre. 
 
 Comparative programs of world plays 
 (since all the world helped to discover and 
 colonize America). Plays by English, Irish, 
 Italian, French, and Scandinavian authors, 
 etc., etc. 
 
 Christmas Celebration Around the Tree of 
 
 Light. 
 
 Christmas carols of the different nations 
 which sent colonizers to America: English, 
 French, Russian, Italian, Scandinavian, etc., 
 etc. 
 
 FOB YOUNG PEOPLE 
 
 Comparative one-act plays in high schools, 
 dealing with frontier and pioneer life or with 
 Pilgrim or Puritan life. 
 
 Long play in grade schools, dealing with 
 any of these themes. 
 
 In the parks and playgrounds the May- 
 pole of Merry Mount, showing the first 
 Mayday in New England.
 
 DRAMA CHART 41 
 
 AMERICAN AUTHOR YEAR 
 (Fourth Year) 
 
 Plays by American Authors in the Little 
 
 Theatre. 
 Plays in the High Schools and Colleges by 
 
 American Authors (such as ff Little 
 
 Women/' etc., etc.). 
 In the Grade Schools. Plays by American 
 
 Authors. 
 Fourth of July Celebration by Foreign-born 
 
 and American Children. 
 
 Since Mrs. Elizabeth Goose (or Vergoose, 
 as the name originally was) was born in Bos- 
 ton in the XVIIIth century, she comes under 
 the heading of an American author, so a 
 Mother Goose Festival for all the children 
 of the city, with songs and dances woven into 
 it, would be appropriate. It would give 
 opportunity for lovely color schemes, since 
 all the garden of Mary, Mary Quite Contrary 
 could be there, as well as the followers of 
 Daffydotvndilly in their gay daffodil-colored 
 costumes. A dance of the Alphabet Children
 
 42 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 could spell out quaint messages, and conceits, 
 each child wearing a letter like a sandwich 
 man, the whole dance to be done in a Pierrot 
 effect of black and white. In the rich colors 
 suggested by the pictures of Maxfield Par- 
 rish could come Old King Cole and his Fid- 
 dlers Three; The Four and Twenty Black- 
 birds could emerge, singing, from a huge pie. 
 Shepherd dances could accompany Little Bo- 
 Peep; Dances of Haymakers in quaint cos- 
 tumes could be woven about Little Boy Blue. 
 Athletics could be introduced by means of a 
 tall candlestick over which Jack-Be-Nimble 
 could jump. Indeed, the whole festival could 
 be a tribute to Mother Goose, resembling in 
 its way Grainger's Tribute to Foster. At the 
 very end there might appear a huge shoe, 
 dragged in by the merrymakers, and presided 
 over by the Old Woman Who Lived in a 
 Shoe. At the end, the Old Woman Who 
 Lives in the Shoe tosses off her disguise and 
 appears as America. Into the heel of the 
 shoe go all the foreign little citizens. With 
 their everyday clothes they wear caps and
 
 DRAMA CHART 43 
 
 aprons or kerchiefs that are distinguishing 
 badges of their different countries. These 
 they quickly take off inside the shoe and 
 emerge from the toe of the shoe as Little 
 American citizens with red, white, and blue 
 caps on their heads, and the Stars and Stripes 
 in their hands. 
 
 Labor Day. 
 
 Parade of Units from the Labor Unions, 
 and a re-using of all The Mother Goose Fes- 
 tival material by relating it to labor, and 
 placing the young people, skilfully grouped, 
 on simple floats. Thus the Pie of the Black- 
 birds can represent the Bakers' Union; 
 Old King Cole, the Musicians' Union; the 
 Shoe, the Shoemakers' Union; the Alphabet 
 Children, the Printers' Union; a study of 
 Mother Goose will reveal something to fit 
 every trade under the sun, and the floats, 
 though simple, could be whimsical and pretty. 
 The float " settings " could be copied from 
 Mother Goose as illustrated by Kate Green- 
 away, and by Maxfield Parrish, the first being
 
 44 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 light in color effects and the second richer 
 and more somber. 
 
 Christmas Community Celebration Around 
 Tree of Light. 
 Children's festival, children's Christmas 
 
 carols; Santa Claus presiding. 
 
 Music by American Composers Given by Mu- 
 nicipal Bands. 
 
 Songs by American Authors. Given by Com- 
 munity Choruses.. (Traditional American 
 music might be given the vast ballad lore 
 of the Kentucky Mountains, now collected 
 by Cecil Sharpe and others.) 
 
 LOCAL HISTORY YEAR 
 '(Fifth Year) 
 
 Pageant of Local History for Fourth of July. 
 In the Little Theatre a program of experi- 
 mental plays that is, plays which make ex- 
 periments along the line of lighting, styliza- 
 tion, etc. All city schools and city organiza- 
 tions to work for the Pageant.
 
 DRAMA CHART 45 
 
 'Labor Day. 
 
 A float parade, re-using all the costumes of 
 the Pageant, showing the development of 
 labor in this country, both in the home and 
 out of it. (Might be called The Pageant of 
 the Lineage of Labor.) It might show a his- 
 tory of labor in America, first in the home, 
 and then out of it. 
 
 All costumes used in all former celebrations 
 to be re-dyed and re-vamped and added to 
 the new Pageant costumes. 
 
 Municipal Band and Community Choruses 
 to use music of the Pageant throughout the 
 city.
 
 IV 
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 
 AND YOUR TOWN 
 
 THE very fact that war is apt to quench 
 the torch of art is one reason why all 
 the art forces that we have striven to 
 kindle should be conserved in war time. Paris 
 and Venice have taken every precaution to 
 guard their art treasures. America has com- 
 paratively few native art treasures: in fact, 
 one of the greatest art treasures she has is her 
 newly wakened communal art spirit. This 
 must not be allowed to die. Although the 
 other arts in this country have languished 
 during the war, drama has received a quick- 
 ening impetus, and this impetus should be 
 fostered, and conserved; in especial because 
 drama holds within itself the essence of all 
 the arts. 
 
 46
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 47 
 
 And if Americanization is to be our chief 
 end and aim during and after the war, every 
 city must have its civic art center where the 
 fire on the altar is kept alive; in other words, 
 its drama center where an art standard is 
 established and maintained, in order that 
 the work of Americanization through drama 
 will be equal to its high purpose. To try to 
 accomplish this work without an art standard 
 is like putting a beautiful goddess into 
 slovenly raiment, and then bidding her give 
 her message to the world. 
 
 All of the Little Independent Theatres or 
 nearly all,* are doing patriotic work, either 
 through the production of stirringly patriotic 
 one-act plays; through performances for the 
 Red Cross; or through other lines of active 
 service. The Little Theatre at Erie, Pennsyl- 
 vania, has adopted a French war orphan as 
 a charge du theatre, and the spirit which has 
 kept this Little Theatre alive in war time is 
 
 * A complete history of the Little Theatre movement can be 
 found in The Little Theatre in the United States by Constance 
 D'Arcy Mackay, published by Henry Holt and Company. 
 $2.00 net
 
 48 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 excellently expressed in its interesting cir- 
 cular: 
 
 " Do you think the Playhouse should close 
 in war time? It is no trivial thing to keep 
 a light in the window and the home fires 
 burning. 
 
 ' The war is breaking up our petty inter- 
 ests and small circles, and merges us into a 
 great relationship. We have become fellow- 
 travelers on the same road, and must share 
 our joys as we share our griefs. We must 
 keep alive those things which make for neigh- 
 bor liness. . . . 
 
 " All life is service. The fullest develop- 
 ment of the individual life and therefore its 
 greatest joy lies in its contribution to the 
 common will and to the common happiness. 
 
 " The Little Playhouse is an asset to Erie. 
 Are you? 
 
 " The Little Playhouse is a place and an 
 idea. The place is one of entertainment; the 
 idea is community service. The place vital- 
 ized by the idea becomes a contrate expres- 
 sion of civic pride.
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 49 
 
 ' The Little Playhouse is the beginning of 
 a community center and has a threefold pur- 
 pose to encourage and develop every kind of 
 artistic endeavor in the city. 
 
 ' To promote neighborliness by bringing 
 people together and interesting them in one 
 another. To add something to the joy of 
 life by the presentation of good music and 
 worth while plays." 
 
 The Erie Community Chorus (one of the 
 first of its kind to be organized in America) 
 and the Erie Community Orchestra both have 
 their homes in the Playhouse. 
 
 Indeed, this Little Playhouse represents 
 signally what can be done by a Little Theatre. 
 Anyone who has an idea to express may bring 
 that idea to the Little Playhouse. 
 
 The work toward Americanization done by 
 the Neighborhood Playhouse on Grand Street, 
 New York City, is almost too well known to 
 need citation. This charming little theatre is 
 situated in the midst of the Jewish immigrant 
 district, and on its stage are given notably 
 fine plays in Yiddish and English; festivals
 
 50 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 in which people of the neighborhood take part 
 under skilled direction as well as plays by 
 companies of professional actors from uptown. 
 Movies of a high type are also given here. 
 The best in art is put within the reach of 
 immigrant pocketbooks and the Neighborhood 
 Playhouse thus becomes the focusing point 
 of a vast overcrowded district. Some years 
 ago under the auspices of this theatre a 
 pageant was given outdoors in Henry Street. 
 A block of this congested thoroughfare was 
 roped off and the surrounding tenements 
 formed the balconies of this improvised audi- 
 torium, while on the city pavement the 
 pageant players acted episode after episode. 
 It has already been proved that as a focus- 
 ing point for a city's art life nothing equals 
 a Little Theatre. It can be made the hub, 
 and from it can radiate the spokes of the 
 wheel that will reach into every section of 
 the city. Used as it should be used it can 
 become a clearing house of art. Here pa- 
 triotic or symbolic pageants, festivals, and 
 masques can be planned. Here the civic cele-
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 51 
 
 brations for Fourth of July and Community 
 Christmas Trees discussed. Here all the com- 
 munal dramatic forces of the city can be co- 
 ordinated. And here, last but not least, the 
 American playwright can be given his oppor- 
 tunity; for the Little Independent Theatres 
 have given and are giving the native author 
 a chance to express himself and the life around 
 him. Through these Little Theatres we feel 
 the first dim gropings for a National Theatre 
 that shall worthily interpret America for 
 Americans. 
 
 Even so far the work that has been ac- 
 complished by Little Independent Theatres 
 in their task for city unification is wonder- 
 fully inspiriting. Take as an example the 
 Arts and Crafts Theatre of Detroit, Michi- 
 gan. This theatre is the centralizing point 
 for the art workers of its community. It has 
 its regular subscription audience; its student 
 audience that is eager to learn all that can 
 be learned; its teacher audience composed 
 of teachers from the public schools who are 
 bringing back to their public school produc-
 
 52 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 tions all that they have learned in the Arts 
 and Crafts Theatre of color and simplicity, 
 of beauty and stylization, arid, above all, of 
 economy of means. 
 
 The Arts and Crafts Theatre is thus rais- 
 ing the dramatic standard of the whole city. 
 It is educating not just the few, but the 
 many. It is making the demand for beauty 
 universal. It does not attempt to do too 
 much; but does what it does supremely well. 
 Each year it increases its scope and enters 
 more and more deeply into the life of De- 
 troit. It gives, through a portable theatre, 
 productions in the public schools, showing 
 what the standard of such productions should 
 be. It shows how to use one set of inexpen- 
 sive scenery for a dozen different plays. 
 
 Every year the director of the Arts and 
 Crafts Theatre, Mr. Sam Hume, produces a 
 simple and lovely outdoor masque that sets 
 the standard for all outdoor productions in 
 Detroit. 
 
 The Little Vagabond Theatre of Balti- 
 more besides its splendid production of plays
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 53 
 
 also works to maintain a high art standard 
 in the public schools and has specimen pro- 
 ductions of young people's plays where 
 marked stress is laid on simple yet imagina- 
 tive scenery. Other Little Theatres, such as 
 that of Galesburg, Illinois, plan a Christmas 
 Community Celebration around the Tree of 
 Light; while the Little Theatre of Fargo de- 
 vises agricultural pageants for the farming 
 districts of North Dakota. The Little The- 
 atre of Cleveland has already set the plan of 
 Americanization afoot in its tiny playhouse. 
 People are only touching the outside rim of 
 what the Little Independent Theatres may 
 accomplish for the community. There is so 
 little expense connected with the running of 
 a Little Theatre that it makes it possible for 
 it to survive stressful times. Allowing for 
 Little Theatres that have had to drop out, 
 even in war time, Little Theatres have held 
 together valiantly. The list of cities possess- 
 ing Little Theatres or groups working toward 
 Little Theatres comprises the following: 
 In California Berkeley, Los Angeles,
 
 54 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Oakland, Sausalito, San Francisco, Santa 
 Barbara. In Connecticut Bridgeport, 
 Greenwich, Hartford. In District of Co- 
 lumbia Washington. In Florida Miami. 
 In Illinois Chicago, Evanston, Freeport, 
 Lake Forest, Quincy. In Indiana Evans- 
 ville, Indianapolis. In Iowa Waterloo. 
 In Kansas Kansas City. In Kentucky- 
 Louisville. In Louisiana New Orleans. 
 In Maryland Baltimore. In Massachusetts 
 Cambridge, Northampton. In Michigan 
 Ann Arbor, Detroit, Jackson, Kala- 
 mazoo, Saginaw, Ypsilanti. In Minnesota 
 Duluth, Faribault, Minneapolis, St. Paul. 
 In Missouri Joplin. In Montana Boze- 
 man. In Nebraska Lincoln. In New 
 Hampshire Plainfield. In New Jersey 
 Montclair, Newark, Perth Amboy. In New 
 York Buffalo, New York City, Rochester. 
 In North Dakota Fargo. In Ohio Cin- 
 cinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Greenville, To- 
 ledo, Portsmouth. In Oklahoma Bartlets- 
 ville. In Oregon Portland. In Pennsyl- 
 vania Allentown, Erie, Brookfield, Meads-
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 55 
 
 ville, Pittsburgh. In Tennessee Knoxville. 
 In Wisconsin Madison, Milwaukee. 
 
 Before the World War a thousand dollars 
 a year sufficed to start and maintain many a 
 Little Theatre until it was sufficiently on 
 its feet to depend on its audience. It will 
 now take twice this sum. Even its housing 
 is a more or less simple matter once the 
 fire laws are complied with. It can be or- 
 ganized as a club, as the Provincetown Play- 
 ers of New York City are organized, and 
 thus eliminate theatre tax or license. 
 
 For Little Theatres that pay no salaries 
 to their players $2,000 a season seems to be 
 the usual sum for maintenance, if strict econ- 
 omy is practised. This sum, if the theatre is 
 properly managed, is put back into the the- 
 atre fund and whatever is made, over and 
 above this, is paid out for any extra expenses 
 the theatre may incur. 
 
 To reduce the theatre budget to $2,000 
 a season, someone in the Little Theatre 
 group must have a knowledge of pigments; 
 of how to build scenery from compo board
 
 56 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 as well as canvas; of how to use the draped 
 stage, or, as it is technically called, the stage 
 hung with curtains. Either the director or 
 the theatre artist must also know how to 
 use and re-use certain scenic effects in com- 
 binations that will not be detected by the 
 audience. This is where the ingenuity of 
 the community is aroused. A knowledge 
 of the use of inexpensive materials is also 
 necessary, if the theatre is to be managed 
 for this sum, for the inexpensiveness of the 
 costumes depends upon how great or how 
 beautiful an effect can be secured through 
 sateen, cotton poplin, mercerized cotton, 
 cheese cloth, and crepon. Here is where a 
 knowledge of dyes is also invaluable. And 
 last, but not least, if expense is to be kept 
 down, there must be someone experienced in 
 painting scenes with lights. This, if certain 
 scenes have to be used again, will greatly les- 
 sen their monotony for the audience. An 
 outdoor scene painted with amber light can 
 be made to appear quite differently when 
 given a moonlit effect with blue and white
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 57 
 
 lights. Such knowledge forms the stock-in- 
 economy of every Little Theatre in this 
 country. 
 
 The reader of this chapter will have gath- 
 ered from what has already been said that 
 each Little Theatre works out its expense 
 account differently, its budget being modified 
 by the price of seats, the number of seats, 
 and the number of performances per week 
 or per month, as well as the policy of 
 the particular theatre, and whether or not 
 it is addicted to the subscription sys- 
 tem. All these things have a bearing on the 
 budget. 
 
 Prices vary so in different parts of the 
 country, and each Little Theatre has such 
 individual problems to meet that any scale 
 suggested for their maintenance must of ne- 
 cessity be approximate. Rent is not the same 
 in Chicago, Illinois, and in New Orleans, 
 Louisiana, in Bridgeport and Baltimore. 
 And rent is one of the chief problems con- 
 nected with the Little Theatre. Then, too, 
 a Little Theatre's policy has an immense deal
 
 58 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 to do with its upkeep. If the theatre build- 
 ing is used all the time by the company play- 
 ing and rehearsing in it, it naturally has a 
 bearing on the general expense. If the the- 
 atre is such that it can be let for concerts 
 and lectures, it will help materially with 
 the rent. The seating capacity also is a 
 consideration, for it regulates the theatre tax. 
 Every State in the Union has different laws 
 regarding theatre taxation. 
 
 As for the interior equipment of a Little 
 Independent Theatre * it must have a stage 
 raised not less than 24 inches from the floor 
 and measuring not less than 24 feet wide, 25 
 feet deep and 14 feet high with a proscenium 
 opening not less than 20 or 22 feet wide. 
 The space included in these measurements 
 must be entirely free from all obstructions. 
 
 * Data, pictures of interiors and exteriors of Little Theatres, 
 expense budgets, descriptions of scene setting and lighting 
 can be found in The Little Theatre in the United States, pub- 
 lished by Henry Holt and Company, at $2.00 net. 
 
 Complete details for painting and building scenes, and plates 
 of scenes and costumes can be found in Costumes and Scenery 
 for Amateurs, published by Henry Holt and Company, at 
 $1.75 net. 
 
 Both are by the author of this book.
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 59 
 
 There must be at least two dressing rooms 
 adjacent to the stage. These must be ade- 
 quately ventilated, lighted, and heated, and 
 supplied with water. The stage must be 
 provided with an electric feed wire carrying 
 110 volts, capable of being tapped and hav- 
 ing either direct or indirect current. 
 
 The price of admittance will have to be 
 planned to co-ordinate with the seating ca- 
 pacity. Usually Little Theatres are run on 
 a subscription basis, unless as in the case 
 of Erie, Pennsylvania, and the McCullom 
 Theatre at Northampton, Massachusetts, ad- 
 mission is free and the theatre is used solely 
 for communal upbuilding. 
 
 In organizing a Little Theatre there will 
 have to be a director whose word on all ar- 
 tistic matters is law. Besides this, a business 
 manager, an art director, a musical director, 
 and a group of play readers headed by a 
 chief reader or Chairman of Play-reading 
 Committee who confers with the director on 
 the final choice of plays. There should be 
 a theatre secretary who may also be the
 
 60 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 theatre press agent; and a theatre treasurer. 
 Many Little Theatres have boards of direc- 
 tors who put all matters connected with the 
 theatre to a direct vote. 
 
 No matter how the theatre is run, by a 
 small or a large group, it must have a defi- 
 nite policy to start out with, if it is to pros- 
 per, and this policy must be agreed on in 
 advance. 
 
 In a Little Theatre new ideas are con- 
 tinually cropping up. In time to come there 
 will undoubtedly be performances by foreign 
 citizens, who will give plays in their own 
 tongue as well as translations of their na- 
 tional plays acted in English before Ameri- 
 can audiences. 
 
 There will also be patriotic plays or plays 
 interpretative of American life participated 
 in by foreign citizens or given by Ameri- 
 can citizens before audiences of the foreign- 
 born. 
 
 Also with many Little Theatres the time 
 will undoubtedly come when a small dra- 
 matic gallery or museum will be used in
 
 THE LITTLE INDEPENDENT THEATRE 61 
 
 connection with the theatre. Here will be 
 designs and costume plates and charts that 
 will be of value to all the dramatic groups 
 of the city, whether planning for plays or 
 festivals or pageants.
 
 V 
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 
 
 THE United States Government believes 
 so heartily in the pageant as a means 
 of stirring national patriotism that it 
 keeps a list of all available pageants on file 
 at Washington. The historical pageant 
 quickens the sense of nationalism as well 
 as the art sense of the community. It pos- 
 sesses a power for unification and co-ordina- 
 tion of large groups of people that a play 
 does not possess. It is a civilizer. It brings 
 an appreciation of beauty into every part 
 of the city. People who would not dream 
 of participating in a play are readily drawn 
 into a pageant because group work over- 
 comes all self-consciousness. Pageantry 
 reaches people whom a play could never 
 reach. It is an arouser of patriotism, and
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 63 
 
 through arousing patriotism, makes for 
 Americanism. 
 
 So much has been written about pageants 
 and they have been so much talked about in 
 these days of dramatic and patriotic ferment 
 that almost everyone has come to know that 
 a pageant consists of a series of episodes 
 which portray the history of a place, of a 
 movement, or of an individual. That is, be- 
 ginning with the birth of that place, or move- 
 ment, or with the youth of a particular per- 
 son, the pageant progresses in a series of 
 episodes, each episode interrelated to the 
 whole. It is actual human history given in 
 the guise of drama. It covers the dry bones 
 of fact with a mantle of glamour. It gives 
 perspective and a sense of the continuity of 
 human existence, its struggles, defeats, and 
 hopes. It is the drama of numbers and big 
 effects, epic in its scope and character. It 
 employs spoken speech, pantomime, dancing, 
 marching, and singing to convey its full ef- 
 fect. 
 
 The modern pageant as we know it today
 
 64 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 was originated by Louis N. Parker * in Eng- 
 land, and then brought to this country where 
 American pageant artists have adapted its 
 pictorial effect and big brushwork to their 
 own needs and the needs of the community. 
 But the fact that Louis N. Parker wrought 
 some of the most superb pageants in Eng- 
 land, and can be called the originator of 
 modern pageantry is in itself a significant 
 fact; for it shows that this art, whose very 
 essence is community service, was made pos- 
 sible by a worker in the theatre. Not by a 
 social propagandist, or a teacher with ad- 
 vanced views of pedagogy; or by a writer of 
 history or a pamphleteer; but by a worker 
 in the art of the theatre a man who has al- 
 ways served the theatre to the best of his 
 ability: a man, moreover, who is more 
 closely identified with the historical play 
 than any other dramatist of the present 
 generation. 
 
 The pageant was born of theatre knowl- 
 
 * Louis N. Parker is known as the author of such historic 
 plays as Drake, Ditraeli, Pomander Walk, etc., etc.
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 65 
 
 edge and aspiration. It is the theatre's gift 
 to the community. 
 
 America, as has been said, took the pageant 
 from England and adapted it to her needs; 
 yet with this difference. Whereas pageants 
 in England were always on a large, magnifi- 
 cent scale, pageants in America were, from 
 the beginning, of two kinds: big and little. 
 Great American cities have the vast type of 
 pageant; but small towns, which had very 
 little money, wanted pageants also. So the 
 smaller type was devised. In England there 
 was one type; America's democratic spirit 
 demanded that there be two types. 
 
 The beginnings of English history were 
 intertwined with the glitter and pomp of 
 Caesar's Rome. America, on the other hand, 
 had homespun beginnings, sober in color and 
 in spirit. This very plainness related the 
 smaller pageant to the soil from which it 
 sprang, and gave it a chance for inexpen- 
 sive production in smaller cities. 
 
 In England the pageant was a welder of 
 the community. It brought everyone in the
 
 66 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 town together to work for the good of the 
 whole. It stirred national and local patriot- 
 ism, and wakened a deeper love of art. In 
 America the pageant has done all this, and 
 more. In many cases it outlasts its own 
 production. That is, the seed sown by the 
 pageant has continued to flourish after the 
 pageant is over. In one city, the pageant 
 chorus, organized for the pageant, continues 
 its work as a separate entity. 
 
 Out of a pageant in a Southern city 
 sprang a notable Little Theatre. In an- 
 other city it is the community chorus that 
 thus survives: in still other cities the pageant 
 dancing is continued through the establish- 
 ment of playgrounds where festivals are 
 given. And, perhaps the finest result of all, 
 very beautiful permanent outdoor theatres 
 have been established as the result of his- 
 torical pageantry. This is one of pageantry's 
 most salient and lasting benefits to the com- 
 munity. There has come to be a feeling that 
 a pageant that does not leave behind it some- 
 thing which goes on growing in a commun-
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 67 
 
 ity is a pageant that has not truly suc- 
 ceeded. 
 
 This is the only way in which the pageant 
 of local history can survive its production, 
 the only way in which it can be made last- 
 ing. For once it is over, it is over. It will 
 seldom stand repeating. Only the memory 
 of it, the patriotic thrill of it, will remain: 
 scenes stamped forever on the pages of the 
 mind: an Indian Chief seated beside his dy- 
 ing campfire; youths leaving the plow to an- 
 swer their country's call: slim girl dancers 
 seen in silhouette against the waning light 
 of afternoon. This pageant of local his- 
 tory is in one way ephemeral. It lives but 
 for the moment. Thus it can only be used 
 in one small section of the country. It is 
 not available or advisable for use in any other 
 part of the country. 
 
 Therefore there has come into being the 
 pageant that deals with a movement or with 
 the life of a famous individual : * a pageant 
 
 * As examples of these types of pageants the following may 
 be cited: The Susan B. Anthony Pageant, by Hazel Mackaye,
 
 68 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 that will be general, not local in its interest. 
 This type of pageant is distinctly an Ameri- 
 can creation. The demand for it exists all 
 over the country, and has resulted in its 
 being made available in book form. Such 
 pageants may deal with Independence Day; 
 with the growth of democracy; or with the 
 lives of American heroes. Like the local 
 pageant, this pageant having general in- 
 terest, may be produced on a large scale: 
 or on a more simple scale, according to the 
 size of the town in which it is given. In 
 keeping national heroes and their deeds be- 
 fore Americans, and before the foreign-born 
 who are to be Americans, these pageants 
 
 produced for the Woman's Suffrage Party in Washington, D. 
 C., was the first pageant in this country to deal with the life 
 of an individual, beginning with the youth, and ending with 
 the old age of its heroine. An example of a pageant with an 
 idea applicable to all parts of the country is Thomas Wood 
 Stevens' Pageant of Independence Day, published by The 
 Stage Guild, 1527 Railway Exchange Building, Chicago, 111., 
 at 50 cents net. This can be used in any part of the 
 country, since its underlying theme is liberty. Still another 
 pageant of this type, arranged for young people, and touching 
 on the lives of Washington, Lincoln, and Franklin, is The 
 Pageant of Patriots, in Patriotic Playt and Pageantt, pub- 
 lished by Henry Holt and Company, at $1.35.
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 69 
 
 are doing their share towards Americaniza- 
 tion. 
 
 That our foreign-born citizens can be given 
 a vivid idea of our history and our national 
 spirit through the use of the pageant goes 
 without saying, since they themselves can 
 take part both as participants and audience. 
 And this is the time when their patriotic ob- 
 ligations must be made clear to them: an 
 opportunity for making them " one hundred 
 per cent American." 
 
 Over and over again in scenes dealing with 
 emigration the immigrant has been shown 
 bringing his gifts to America. But very 
 little stress has been put on what America 
 gives the immigrant. It is high time that 
 this should be done. 
 
 Drama, the spoken word, vision, " the 
 thing done," can make this clear to the im- 
 migrant. Foreign-born American citizens 
 and their children must be made to feel that 
 they are American citizens; that our heroes, 
 Washington, Lincoln, Nathan Hale, Frank- 
 lin, and Patrick Henry, are their heroes; that
 
 70 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 our history has become their history. The 
 lives and deeds of Garibaldi, of Kossuth, and 
 William Tell and Gustavus Adolphus will 
 be more real to foreign-born American citi- 
 zens than the deeds of our American heroes, 
 until the time comes when we make the lives 
 of our heroes equally real to them through 
 actual representation. They must learn 
 through participation the events of our his- 
 tory. Foreign-born citizens and citizens not 
 foreign-born should participate together. 
 
 Always in our Fourth of July and kindred 
 celebrations, our foreign-born American citi- 
 zens appear in scenes from the history of the 
 countries which they have left. Is it not 
 time that they should appear in scenes from 
 the history of the country to which they have 
 come, and to which they have sworn their 
 allegiance? Through play and pageant and 
 festival this work can be accomplished: 
 through play and pageant and festival the 
 foreign-born citizens must learn what Ameri- 
 canization really means. It will not be for 
 nothing that they memorize the actual words
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 71 
 
 of our heroes. The actual scenes will make a 
 deeper appeal than ever the printed page 
 can make. 
 
 And it may be well to remind even our 
 American-born citizens that, in the words of 
 Franklin, " Where Liberty dwells, there is 
 my country," which was a favorite motto 
 of Carl Schurz, a great American, though 
 born in Germany. 
 
 It has been claimed by some drama en- 
 thusiasts that to have immigrants acting in 
 scenes of our history rather than in scenes 
 of their own history will rob both festival 
 and pageant of the glowing Color that their 
 national dress, their picturesque folk cos- 
 tumes bring to us. Thus, they will either 
 have to appear in the drab nondescript garb 
 of our present century, or in the costumes 
 of American history a history which covers 
 a brief span and which has but few cen- 
 turies of costume to draw upon. But this 
 need not be so. The rich variety of folk 
 costume need not be lost. The color and 
 beauty of folk costume can be used in Amer-
 
 72 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 ican scenes. It can be made a part of them; 
 for there can always be scenes showing how 
 the tides of immigration first came to Amer- 
 ica, and here folk costume will blend with 
 American historical costume in a wonderful 
 way. 
 
 Who were the first Norwegian immigrants 
 to come to America? In what State and in 
 what year did they settle? They can be 
 shown as they first came to your State, or 
 to other States, or to your town in all the 
 quaintness of their peasant garb. Russians, 
 Poles, Portuguese, peoples from the East 
 of Europe all can be shown as they first 
 arrived, just as the Pilgrims can be shown, 
 or the Dutch, or the French. Each stream 
 of foreign life can be pictured at the exact 
 moment when it first joined the main stream 
 of American life. Thus the folk color will 
 not only be conserved, but given a new con- 
 trast and significance. 
 
 Indeed, we may later evolve a very simple 
 Greek type of festival with American sub- 
 ject-matter. Here the audience will take
 
 THE HISTORICAL PAGEANT 73 
 
 the part formerly assigned to the Greek 
 chorus. They will come in as a sort of re- 
 sponse to what is taking place on the stage. 
 They will learn their lines beforehand and 
 respond chorus-like to the pageant players. 
 Spontaneity will be assured by having audi- 
 ence and players come together without re- 
 hearsal so that the day of production will 
 unite them for the first time. Stuart Walker, 
 in one of his Portmanteau Theatre plays, 
 gave a hint in this direction, showing how 
 actors and audience could be united, when 
 players seated in the audience formed part of 
 the play. 
 
 The pageant, like the play, has a very 
 definite technique, and it is only when this 
 technique is exceedingly skilful that we get 
 the swiftly moving, poetic, colorful repre- 
 sentation that a pageant is meant to be. Too 
 much of the pageant work in this country has 
 amateurish technique behind it. The whole 
 pageant standard needs to be raised: needs 
 to be infused with more of the high art of 
 the theatre in order to lift and glorify it.
 
 74 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Small pageants are undoubtedly useful, and 
 can be made interesting through having a 
 fine standard of production. But larger 
 pageants, in order to hold an idea before 
 the community saliently and unforgettably, 
 must be in the hands of creative artists, or 
 their purpose will fail.
 
 VI 
 
 HOW TO ORGANIZE AN HISTORICAL 
 PAGEANT 
 
 TO be successful, any pageant, be it small 
 or large, has the same general scheme 
 of organization. And while the de- 
 scription given here is for a large pageant 
 to be given in a large city, a small pageant 
 can be organized in the same manner. 
 
 Where a pageant is given as a free civic 
 celebration, involving no sale of tickets, there 
 is less financial organizing to be done: in 
 this case funds are appropriated for the 
 pageant either by private or municipal sub- 
 scription when the number of seats has noth- 
 ing whatever to do with the pageant fund. 
 
 Where the pageant fund and the intake 
 from the box office must be considered, the 
 seating capacity of the pageant grandstand 
 
 75
 
 76 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 naturally has a direct bearing on the 
 pageant fund and the price of admission 
 must be in accordance with that fund. 
 
 Plans for the production of a local, his- 
 torical pageant must be laid at least a year 
 ahead. A small general pageant needs only 
 three or four months' planning. 
 
 Next to the desire to give a pageant, the 
 most important thing is the money to finance 
 the pageant, and the next most important 
 the securing of the pageant director. The 
 organization of the pageant might be said 
 to come in the following order. 
 
 1. (a) Money to finance the pageant, 
 (b) Newspaper publicity to that end. 
 
 2. (a) Consideration of a site on which 
 
 to give the pageant, 
 (b) Engaging a pageant director and 
 consulting with the pageant staff 
 on the selection of pageant site. 
 
 3. Renting the pageant office where all 
 
 business is to be conducted. 
 
 4. Renting a permanent pageant hall with 
 
 tributary pageant halls for rehearsal.
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 77 
 
 5. Enlisting the pageant players and as- 
 
 signing parts. 
 
 6. Costumes and properties. 
 
 7. Outlining the musical program for the 
 
 pageant. 
 
 The project of having a pageant may be 
 broached at some public meeting called for 
 that purpose; at some public dinner; or the 
 ball may be set rolling by the meeting of a 
 group of individuals. 
 
 Any of these meetings may be called by 
 the Mayor of the city if he is interested; in 
 any case the Mayor and his staff must be 
 bidden to the primary meeting. 
 
 City historical pageants have been started 
 by the Drama League; by the Parks and 
 Playgrounds; by Civic Leagues; by City 
 Colleges or Art Associations; by Civic Bet- 
 terment Associations; by Boards of Trade; 
 by Local Historical Societies; by the city 
 government officials; or by a group of pub- 
 lic-spirited citizens with the city's best in- 
 terest at heart. 
 
 Newspapers in almost all cases lend hearty
 
 78 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 support to the pageant project provided 
 that no favoritism is shown and that each 
 paper gets, at the beginning, the same 
 amount of information. 
 
 Money is furnished through various 
 sources. The city government; wealthy citi- 
 zens and city organizations such as clubs, 
 orders, lodges may contribute. The Board 
 of Trade in any city is generally a large 
 contributor. In some cases the whole 
 pageant is financed through the efforts of 
 the wealthiest and most art-loving citizens. 
 Again it may be the city government that 
 supplies all the funds. The pageant may 
 be financed in several ways, according to 
 the kind of pageant given. The pageant 
 may be underwritten, and the money col- 
 lected from the sale of seats returned to 
 the underwriters. Or if the pageant is given 
 free, the money may be utilized for the ex- 
 penses of the pageant without return. In 
 the first case the pageant expenses and the 
 sale of seats must be correlated so that ex- 
 penses will be covered.
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 79 
 
 Nothing can go forward until the money 
 is raised. To attempt the pageant without 
 money pledged in advance spells shipwreck 
 for all concerned. 
 
 The next step is to look over all available 
 ground with an eye to the fact that from 
 ten to forty thousand people will have to 
 be seated. There must also be space for 
 stage dressing rooms. And the vista back 
 of the stage must, if possible, be good to 
 look upon. Also the spot selected must be 
 easy of access. The general arrangement 
 and acoustics must be considered. Indeed, 
 the pageant site plays more of a part in 
 determining what the pageant is to be than 
 most people realize. 
 
 No pageant site can be fully decided upon 
 until the director has seen it, so one of the 
 first steps is to engage the pageant staff 
 consisting of the pageant director who is 
 also often the author of the pageant; a 
 pageant stage manager, usually with two 
 assistant managers; the director of the 
 pageant dances with two assistants, one of
 
 80 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 whom may or may not be the pageant solo 
 dancer. 
 
 The musical director of the pageant must 
 also be engaged so that the pageant or- 
 chestra of symphony size, or even larger, 
 can begin its work as early as possible. 
 There must be an assistant musical director, 
 and a group of accompanists for possible 
 indoor rehearsals of the dances. Or per- 
 haps a brass band may be used instead of 
 an orchestra: it depends on the size of the 
 pageant grounds. 
 
 There must also be a press agent who 
 attends to all printed matter concerned with 
 the pageant and who works with the news- 
 papers, supplying them with details. There 
 must be a director of costumes and a ward- 
 robe mistress; a master carpenter and two 
 assistant stage carpenters, head electrician 
 and assistants. All these work in connection 
 with local committees who augment the 
 pageant staff. None of the units of the 
 pageant staff should be engaged without the 
 full O.K. of the pageant author and direc-
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 81 
 
 tor, who is the supreme dictator in all that 
 concerns the artistic side of the pageant. 
 
 The organization of the pageant com- 
 mittees can be mapped out by the director, 
 as soon as he has been consulted with. Prac- 
 tical, active chairmen should be chosen for 
 each committee. These committees and their 
 chairmen include the Chairman of the Gen- 
 eral Pageant Committee, the Pageant Treas- 
 urer, the Pageant Secretary, Chairman of 
 the Pageant Site Committee, Chairman of 
 the Community Organization Committee, 
 Chairman of the Cast Committee (who helps 
 with the selecting of the casts, etc., etc.), 
 Chairman of the Pageant Grounds, whose 
 duties include looking after policing, light- 
 ing, sanitation and general arrangement, 
 Chairman of Seating Arrangement, Chair- 
 man of Printing Committee (pageant post- 
 ers, programs, books, etc.). 
 
 A pageant office should be rented over 
 which the pageant Secretary presides, with 
 a staff of stenographers. This office answers 
 and files all letters concerning the pageant;
 
 82 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 card catalogues the pageant participants; 
 keeps on hand a small library of books and 
 pamphlets on pageantry; is the general clear- 
 ing house and bureau of information for the 
 whole pageant. 
 
 A large hall must be rented for the in- 
 door pageant rehearsals, dances, etc., in a 
 convenient part of town. Several smaller 
 halls must also be rented so that several 
 rehearsals can be kept going at one and 
 the same time. 
 
 All these halls must be supplied with 
 pianos, chairs, tables, and must be well lit 
 and ventilated. One of these halls must be 
 the place where the costumes are made. 
 Seamstresses, volunteer or paid or both, 
 must be in readiness as well as machines, 
 sewing tables and chairs, and all the para- 
 phernalia for making such costumes as are 
 not rented outright. 
 
 The enlisting of the pageant players is 
 done through the pageant office. If it be a 
 local historical pageant the people taking 
 part in it as a rule play the roles of their
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 83 
 
 own ancestors; next to these, people of good 
 appearance and with acting talent are chosen; 
 dances are selected from all the dance groups 
 of the city; the pageant chorus is made up 
 of all city choirs and singing societies. 
 
 Card catalogues are made of all these 
 participants, their names and addresses and 
 the episodes in which they appear; they are 
 kept informed of rehearsal through a post- 
 card system and through the bulletins printed 
 in the daily papers. 
 
 The pageant orchestra is made up of all 
 the union orchestras in the city augmented 
 by the union orchestras of nearby towns. 
 Or if a brass band is used, it is augmented 
 for the occasion. 
 
 The city is now organized and under ex- 
 pert leadership may proceed to its pageant. 
 
 The less expensive smaller pageant can 
 be given by having a somewhat smaller cast 
 of participants and by having the pageant 
 given in the open air in the day time or 
 night time on a stage with only inexpensive 
 lighting effects in as far as lighting effects
 
 84 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 can be inexpensive. This pageant must be 
 gone about exactly in the same way as a 
 great city pageant: and a smaller sum of 
 money raised in the same manner. The 
 pageant staff is small, consisting of the 
 pageant author and director and his or 
 her assistant; a dance director with a local 
 assistant; a musical director; two accom- 
 panists, and a local director of costumes 
 and properties who may be called the art 
 director and who works under the super- 
 vision of the pageant director. 
 
 The pageant Secretary, with one assistant, 
 can run the office work for this smaller 
 pageant. There is of course a musical di- 
 rector, press agent, stage carpenter, and 
 stage electrician all local men. The cos- 
 tumes may be in charge of a local commit- 
 tee. Many of them may be hired from a 
 costumer. When they are made, the ma- 
 terials may be ordered wholesale from the 
 local shops. 
 
 Exactly the same care must be exercised 
 in all details of the smaller pageant, par-
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 85 
 
 ticularly in the detail of selecting the pageant 
 site, which must be just as perfect for a 
 small pageant as for a large one. 
 
 The forces which a small city gathers to 
 itself may aid in keeping down the gen- 
 eral cost. The foreign citizens will have 
 national costumes which can be utilized in 
 folk dances. Parks and Playgrounds chil- 
 dren will also have folk costumes which can 
 be used. The costumes of Playground fes- 
 tivals such as " Winter Driving Out Spring " 
 and the " Coming of the Spring Flowers," 
 can be utilized in some symbolic scene. 
 
 Local schools and high schools will have 
 their store of costumes to add. Often there 
 are fairy costumes which can be used in sym- 
 bolic scenes: and Puritan costumes, which 
 can be utilized. The costumes of Red Men 
 and Daughters of Pocahontas are another 
 asset. So, too, are the costumes of the Camp- 
 fire Girls and Girl Scouts. 
 
 Civil War veterans already have their 
 costumes. Daughters of Veterans are apt 
 to have many a quaint poke bonnet and hoop
 
 86 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 skirt dress tucked away in the attics. Schools 
 of classic dancing can add their quota of cos- 
 tumes, usually along Greek lines. System 
 and imagination will work wonders in this 
 field. 
 
 One of the easiest and most successful 
 ways of organizing a city or town is to 
 waken group pride and group responsibility 
 by having organizations represent their own 
 calling. Knights of Columbus can take part 
 in the scenes of discovery. Foreign citi- 
 zens in scenes of early settlement where such 
 settlement has come about through the for- 
 eign element, Scotch, Scandinavian, French- 
 Canadian, or Italian. 
 
 The Red Men and Daughters of Poca- 
 hontas, with Campfire Girls and Boy Scouts, 
 can take part in the Indian scenes. May- 
 flower societies and Pioneer societies in the 
 pioneer scenes. Colonial Sons, Colonial 
 Daughters, Sons of the Revolution, and 
 Daughters of the Revolution, as well as the 
 members of local historical societies, can take 
 part in the Colonial scenes.
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 87 
 
 In ancient times in England when me- 
 diaeval pageants were given on floats and 
 drawn through the English towns, these 
 pageants were organized in the following 
 manner. The pageant participants belonged 
 to different guilds of workers, and the parts 
 they played were identical with their occu- 
 pations. Thus the shipwrights, sailors, and 
 fishmongers played the nautical scenes; 
 shepherds and farmers played the pastoral 
 scenes; the guild of merchants, dyers, and 
 weavers played still other scenes. What held 
 good in the days of great Queen Bess still 
 holds good today. 
 
 Thus the Board of Trade in any city 
 can represent men trading with the Indians; 
 Sons of 1812 and Daughters of 1812 will 
 work up the 1812 scenes; the Society of Co- 
 lonial Wars will also be called upon to act. 
 For Civil War scenes there are the Veterans 
 and Sons of Veterans; the Women's Relief 
 Corps and Daughters of Veterans; if any 
 allusion to the Spanish War is wished, there 
 are Spanish War Veterans. And for scenes
 
 88 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 relating to the World War there will be 
 hundreds of participants ready and wait- 
 ing. 
 
 If there is a Dame School episode then 
 all school teachers and school children can 
 take part in it, most appropriately. For 
 scenes of the city's growth and commerce 
 there are the labor unions. For quaint old 
 " singing schools " there are the city choirs. 
 For scenes of dramatic intensity, elocution 
 schools and local dramatic societies can be 
 drawn on. For scenes of immigration there 
 are the foreign citizens. For battle scenes 
 militia or regular troops can be used. For 
 scenes in which marines are used, marines 
 will be lent from warships. For " churchly " 
 scenes a minister and his whole congregation 
 can volunteer. 
 
 Pictures relating to the pageant should 
 be on view wherever possible. 
 
 Essays on the pageant should form a part 
 of the local school curriculum. Story-telling 
 classes in the libraries should give a synop- 
 sis of the pageant in condensed, simplified
 
 ORGANIZING AN HISTORICAL PAGEANT 89 
 
 form so that the youngest in the audience 
 can grasp its general meaning. 
 
 To be truly and permanently successful 
 the pageant must permeate the life of the 
 city through and through. 
 
 As to the pageant budget, pageant ex- 
 perts have found that as every city and 
 town in the United States has a different 
 pageant problem, a general or approximate 
 budget is an impossibility. Each city or 
 town has to have its own special financial 
 diagnosis made for it, after all its resources 
 and lack of resources have been taken into 
 consideration. For instance, such as (1) 
 whether or not there is a grandstand al- 
 ready built; (2) whether there are costumes 
 already available which can be drawn upon. 
 Of course the number of people taking part 
 in the pageant and the size of the audience 
 exert a great influence on the pageant budget 
 also. And whether or not the pageant is a 
 free civic celebration has its bearing on the 
 case. Often for a free civic celebration 
 the audience is seated on a hillside, and thus
 
 90 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 the expense of a grandstand is done away 
 with. Then whether or not the pageant is 
 given at night is an important feature, as 
 the wiring of the grounds is expensive. 
 
 The least expensive pageant is the pageant 
 already published in book form. All local 
 pageants have to be specially written for 
 the occasion, and put into the hands of an 
 artist who can wring the most effect from 
 the historical material at hand. 
 
 Very small simple pageants, already pre- 
 pared in book form, can sometimes, under 
 skilful direction, be given for a few hun- 
 dreds of dollars. The local pageant is more 
 expensive, costing thousands where the pre- 
 pared pageant costs hundreds. And in this 
 case it must be remembered that a well- 
 managed pageant should not only pay for 
 itself, but earn half as much again. This 
 has been the case with every well-planned 
 pageant in this country.
 
 vn 
 
 THE OUTDOOR THEATRE AND YOUR 
 TOWN 
 
 OUTDOOR theatres in America are of 
 four types. The Greek Theatre, like 
 that of Berkeley, California, and the 
 Lewisohn Stadium in New York; theatres 
 that have a natural background like that of 
 the huge open-air amphitheatre in Forest 
 Park, St. Louis, or the Sylvan National 
 Theatre at Washington that is, a theatre 
 with a grassy stage, flanked by trees, and with 
 a lagoon in the foreground. And the rustic 
 woodland theatre often found in small parks 
 in American cities. Here the auditorium, 
 usually on a hillside, has rustic benches and 
 the stage is au naturel. The fourth type, 
 less used than the others, is the formal 
 
 Italian or as it is sometimes called the Ital- 
 
 91
 
 92 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 ian Garden type of theatre with turf stage 
 and formal clipped hedges and trees. 
 
 By their type of architecture certain of 
 these theatres preclude certain kinds of plays. 
 Greek, Roman, and symbolic plays and 
 pageants as well as such Shakespearean plays 
 as Midsummer Night's Dream and some 
 of the plays of Maeterlinck can be given 
 in the Greek Theatre; but patriotic pageants 
 and patriotic American plays cannot be so 
 produced without a sense of anachronism. 
 Indian plays or plays of pioneer life are 
 absolutely impossible for this setting. 
 
 In the Italian Garden type of theatre 
 fantastic, XVIIIth century, intensely mod- 
 ern, or mediaeval plays can be given, in- 
 cluding such classics as some of Moliere's 
 comedies and Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. 
 It is impossible to give symbolic, patriotic, 
 or Greek plays in such a theatre without a 
 sense of anachronism. 
 
 Of course Indian or frontier plays or 
 plays of Puritan life are impossible in this 
 type of theatre.
 
 THE OUTDOOR THEATRE 93 
 
 The rustic theatre lends itself to rustic 
 and fairy tale plays ; to plays of the XVIIIth 
 century, to certain mediaeval plays such as 
 Shakespeare's Winter's Tale and As You 
 Like It. It is also possible for small his- 
 torical pageants. But for Greek plays or 
 for symbolic plays it does not make a par- 
 ticularly good setting. However, it is much 
 less narrow in its scope than the Greek 
 Theatre or the Italian Garden Theatre. 
 
 Of these outdoor theatres, the theatre 
 with a simple background of trees, and a 
 grassy stage, is the best because it lends it- 
 self to every kind of pageant and play. 
 With the use of pillars it can become Greek; 
 or with the use of formal pergolas and 
 clipped trees in pots it can be transformed 
 into a garden theatre. Also it can easily be 
 touched into rusticity. 
 
 Again and again in small city parks where 
 marble or wooden colonnades or pergolas 
 have been built as rest houses or as a refuge 
 for mothers and their children against the 
 glare of the sun, the pillars will be placed
 
 94 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 so that it is absolutely impossible to use 
 these colonnades as tiny outdoor theatres. 
 And yet, with only a little planning in ad- 
 vance, this could so easily be remedied. The 
 colonnade could be raised a few steps, and 
 the pillars grouped so that exits and en- 
 trances would be possible, and presto! an 
 adequate miniature theatre in the midst of 
 a congested district. Here one-act plays 
 could be given by the children of the neigh- 
 borhood. 
 
 Draped with flags these miniature park 
 theatres could become centers of patriotism 
 on all stirring national occasions: here it 
 would be possible to repeat bits of what has 
 been done in the larger outdoor theatres 
 of the city. 
 
 The porches and porticos of public build- 
 ings have possibilities as small outdoor the- 
 atres of which as yet almost no advantage 
 has been taken. Properly lit, and with 
 the downstairs windows effaced by proper 
 screening, they offer possibilities for Fourth 
 of July and Christmas celebrations.
 
 THE OUTDOOR THEATRE 95 
 
 Since cities are not planned with outdoor 
 theatres in mind, it is very hard to combine 
 accessibility, beauty, and practicality. To 
 be truly Americanizing and democratizing, 
 to be truly a great meeting place for the 
 people any city outdoor theatre should be 
 reached by not more than one car fare. But 
 when this difficulty is met others arise. Too 
 many accessible outdoor theatres have great 
 modern public buildings and sometimes even 
 gas tanks visible in the distance. Planned 
 for in advance such a theatre can have a vista 
 of trees specially planted, and immense wire 
 screens on which vines are run to a great 
 height. This will sometimes help to screen 
 an impossible background. 
 
 A partial list of cities possessing outdoor 
 community theatres may be of interest: 
 
 In California Bakersfield, Berkeley, Car- 
 mel, Claremont, Monticito, Mount Tamal- 
 pais, Ponta Loma, Redlands, Santa Cruz. 
 In District of Columbia Washington. In 
 Illinois Chicago. In Maine Bethel and 
 Blue Hill. In Massachusetts Gloucester
 
 96 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 and Sterling. In Michigan Detroit (Cran- 
 brook) and Ludington. In Minnesota 
 Anoka. In Missouri Columbia and St. 
 Louis. In New Hampshire Peterborough. 
 In New York Lake Placid, New York 
 City, and Scarborough. In North Dakota- 
 Grand Forks. In South Dakota Yankton. 
 In Virginia Harrisburg. In Washington 
 Tacoma. 
 
 This is not counting the great open-air 
 stadiums of Yale and Harvard; nor the 
 sylvan theatres of Wellesley, Vassar, and 
 Mount Holyoke; nor the beautiful Greek 
 Theatre of Pomona College, California. 
 
 All outdoor theatres vary in cost, as the 
 grounds of each one need different treat- 
 ment, as well as tree planting, etc.* And 
 the fees of architects vary greatly. Under 
 normal conditions an outdoor stage of grass, 
 banked by trees that may have to be 
 trimmed, but that do not have to be planted; 
 
 * See " Open Air Greek Theatre," page 249, in Costumes and 
 Scenery for Amateurs, published by Henry Holt and Company, 
 at $1.75.
 
 THE OUTDOOR THEATRE 97 
 
 with ground that has a small amount of level- 
 ing or landscaping ; and with a wooden grand- 
 stand that seats five hundred people can be 
 had for three thousand five hundred dollars. 
 In this case the fee of the theatre specialist 
 must be a small one. He must be one who 
 does this particular piece of work half for 
 the love of it, and for its civic significance. 
 This sum includes all expenses for a small 
 outdoor theatre.* (Larger outdoor theatres 
 vary in proportion.) Of course this small 
 sum does not include lighting the theatre, 
 which can only be used for daylight per- 
 formances until a lighting system is in- 
 stalled. 
 
 Moderate priced Greek pillars can be had 
 from the Hartwell Sanders Co., 2155 Elston 
 Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. A catalogue will 
 be sent upon receipt of three cents in stamps. 
 
 * It does not, of course, include the cost of the land.
 
 VIII 
 
 SUGGESTIONS FOR PATRIOTIC CELEBRA- 
 TIONS OF FOURTH OF JULY AND 
 OTHER NATIONAL HOLIDAYS 
 
 I. Dramatic Material Definitely Appli- 
 cable to the Great War.* 
 II. Dramatic Material for General Pa- 
 triotic Holidays* 
 III. American Plays and Pageants.* 
 
 I. DRAMATIC MATERIAL DEFINITELY APPLI- 
 CABLE TO THE GREAT WAR 
 
 (For Adults) 
 
 Pawns of the War. By Bosworth Crocker. 
 Little, Brown and Co. $1.25. Somewhat 
 
 * The books listed can be ordered through a local bookseller, 
 or if a local bookseller is not available, they can be had from 
 some large bookstore that makes a specialty of drama books, 
 such as the Drama League Book Store, Riggs Building, Wash- 
 ington, D. C., or the Drama League Book Store, 7 East Forty- 
 second Street, New York City, or Brentano's, Fifth Avenue 
 and Twenty-eighth Street, New York City, or A. C. McClurg 
 & Co., Chicago, 111.
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 99 
 
 elaborate play dealing with the great war. 
 Cast of men and women. 
 
 Rise Up, Jennie Smith. By Rachael L. 
 Field. Drama League Prize Play. Pub- 
 lished by Samuel French, 28 West Thirty- 
 eighth Street, New York City. 25 cents. 
 One-act play with a simple interior setting 
 and the scene laid in America. Deals with 
 the patriotism of a little wage-earner who 
 makes a great sacrifice for the love of her 
 country. Charming play. Could be given 
 by a small cast of women or girls. 
 
 The Drawing of the Sword. By Thomas 
 Wood Stevens. A Red Cross Pageant. Can 
 be obtained from the Drama League Book 
 Shop, 7 East Forty-second Street, New 
 York City. 50 cents. Beautiful patriotic 
 pageant. Requires a cast of at least fifty, 
 and should have more. Men and women. 
 A great chance for picturesque costumes. 
 
 The Land Where the Lost Things Go. 
 By Doris Halman. Drama League Prize 
 Play. Published by Samuel French, New 
 York City. 25 cents. This highly patriotic
 
 100 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 play requires a medium-size cast of men 
 and women. The costumes and setting are 
 simple. It is easy and effective to give. 
 
 The Unseen Host and Other War Plays. 
 By Percival Wilde. Little, Brown and Co. 
 $1.25. These stirring one-act plays have 
 been acted in many Little Theatres through- 
 out the country. All the casts are small, 
 and the settings simple. Some can be given 
 by a cast of women. Others by a cast of 
 men only. 
 
 They the Crucified, and Comrades. By 
 Florence Taber Holt. Houghton Mifflin. 
 $1.00. These two one-act plays of France 
 and Belgium have just appeared. They are 
 stirring and practical, and should be widely 
 acted. 
 
 (For Young People) 
 
 Girls Over Here. A one-act play for girls 
 by Marie Doran. Published by Samuel 
 French, New York. $1.25. Pleasing pa- 
 triotic play with an all-girl cast. Can be 
 very simply given. Is useful for schools.
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 101 
 
 Patriotic Pageants of Today. By Jose- 
 phine Thorp and Rosamund Kimball. Con- 
 tains four pageants of the World War, 
 graphically written, picturesquely costumed, 
 and easy to give. Each pageant has a defi- 
 nite idea behind it. The cast in each pageant 
 is of medium size, or can be made large, 
 as desired. They can be given by casts 
 composed of all girls, or of boys and girls. 
 They can be given indoors or outdoors. 
 They have already been widely acted. The 
 pageants contained in the book are the 
 following: The Torch, The Answer, When 
 Liberty Calls, and The Call to the Youth 
 of America. 
 
 Patriotic Plays for Children. By Virginia 
 Olcott. Dodd, Mead & Co. $1.00. Plays 
 for little children. These brief plays deal 
 with such subjects as Thrift, Red Cross 
 Work, Food Saving, etc. They can be easily 
 given by casts of all girls or by boys and 
 girls. The settings are simple and adapted 
 for schoolrooms. 
 
 The Maid of Orleans. Play on the life of
 
 102 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Jeanne D'Arc, by Augusta Stevenson. In 
 Children's Classics in Dramatic Form. 
 Houghton Mifflin. $1.00. Simple setting, 
 easily managed. The play requires a rather 
 large cast of young people. It could be 
 made beautiful and effective. There are 
 several acts; but the changes of scenery are 
 not difficult. 
 
 The Man Without a Country. A play 
 for boys by Augusta Stevenson. In Chil- 
 dren's Classics in Dramatic Form. Hough- 
 ton Mifflin. $1.00 net. Excellent play. 
 Very patriotic. Not difficult to give. Could 
 be produced by large cast of boys. 
 
 Festivals dealing with the World War 
 in which the different countries of the Allies 
 appear can readily be put together from 
 material already published, both songs and 
 poems. Descriptions of how such material 
 can be put together are given on page 112 
 of this chapter. The books in which such 
 songs and poems and dialogues can be found 
 are the following: 
 
 American Patriotic Prose and Verse, pub-
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 103 
 
 lished by A. C. McClurg & Co., Chicago, 111., 
 selected and edited by Ruth Davis Stevens 
 and David Harrison Stevens. This contains 
 " Liberty Enlightening the World," by Ed- 
 mund Clarence Stedman, page 155 in this 
 volume. (This poem can be found in his 
 Complete Poetical Works, published by 
 Houghton Mifflin & Co. Also " The Flower 
 of Liberty," by Oliver Wendell Holmes, 
 page 154 of this volume. (Or in his Com- 
 plete Works, published by Houghton Mifflin 
 & Co. 
 
 Very valuable for poetic interpretation of 
 the World War is The Battle Line of De- 
 mocracy, published by the Committee on 
 Public Information, 10 Jackson Place, 
 Washington, D. C. 15 cents. Every Allied 
 country in the World War is represented by 
 a stirring poem. Belgium is represented by 
 two poems, one of them " In Flanders 
 Fields." On page 99 there is a fine poem 
 on Jeanne D'Arc representing France. A 
 Festival of the English-speaking Race could 
 easily be devised along the lines suggested
 
 104 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 on page 112 of this present chapter by using 
 the noble poems on America, England, Ire- 
 land, Scotland, Canada, and India that appear 
 in this excellent handbook. 
 
 Also filled with patriotic material easily 
 convertible into patriotic festivals is America 
 at War: A Handbook of Patriotic Educa- 
 tion,, published for the National Security 
 League by George H. Doran, New York. 
 $1.50. (The National Security League, 19 
 West Forty-fourth Street, New York City.) 
 
 A Book of Verse of the World War. Edi- 
 ted by W. R. Wheeler. Yale University 
 Press, New Haven, Conn. $2.00 net. Con- 
 tains a wonderfully dramatic poem on Bel- 
 gium, " The Refugees," by Hermann Hage- 
 dorn. And a poem by Katherine Tynan, 
 page 167, called " High Summer," that can- 
 not fail to win a patriotic response. 
 
 There is also Poems of the World War, 
 by J. W. Cuncliffe, published by the Mac- 
 millan Company, New York. $1.50 net. 
 
 For ways of combining these patriotic 
 songs and recitations so that they will make
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 105 
 
 festivals pertaining to the World War, see 
 specimen celebration on page 117 of this 
 present chapter. 
 
 America, Belgium, France, England,* 
 Italy, and the rest of the Allies wearing 
 symbolic costumes, can each speak a poem 
 taken from any of these sources. And in 
 between the recitations of these poems the 
 national airs of the Allied countries can be 
 played, or the national songs sung.f 
 
 Belgium, for instance, may be a tragic- 
 looking figure in black, wearing a long 
 transparent black veil over her face and 
 hair. She may recite " The Refugees," by 
 Hermann Hagedorn. Then the stage and 
 auditorium may grow absolutely dark while 
 a man's voice recites the poignant " In Flan- 
 ders Fields." Then the stage may lighten, 
 and Jeanne D'Arc, either in coat of mail or 
 as a peasant maid, may appear to speak for 
 
 * Where words are not needed " Rule Britannia " or 
 Elgar's " Pomp and Circumstance " should be used for the 
 entrance of Britain. 
 
 t National Hymns of the A lliet, published by G. Schirmer, 
 New York, 50 cents net.
 
 106 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 France. Then the " Marseillaise " is played, 
 and so on. This celebration may be given 
 out of doors against a background of trees 
 or indoors in a hall on a stage against sim- 
 ply hung curtains, with the flags of the 
 Allies draped in the center. Those direct- 
 ing the celebration will find poems in 
 magazines that will prove dramatically ap- 
 plicable. 
 
 II. DRAMATIC MATERIAL FOR GENERAL PA- 
 TRIOTIC HOLIDAYS 
 
 (Dramatic Material Available in Book Form) 
 A Pageant of Independence Day. By 
 Thomas Wood Stevens. Published by the 
 Stage Guild, Railway Exchange Building, 
 Chicago, 111. 50 cents. Outdoor pageant. 
 Very patriotic. Adaptable to any part of 
 the country. Requires a cast of men, women, 
 and children. 
 
 Nathan Hale. Play in four acts by Clyde 
 Fitch. Published by Samuel French, New 
 York. 50 cents net. Rather a large cast 
 of men, women, and children. Colonial cos-
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 107 
 
 tumes. Simple sets. A thrillingly patriotic 
 play. It must be emphasized in this play 
 that the British are under the domination 
 of a German king. 
 
 Sam Average. One-act play from Yankee 
 Fantasies of Percy Mackaye. Published by 
 Duffield & Co. $1.25 net. Poetic play. 
 Deeply imbued with patriotism. Easy set- 
 ting and few characters. Men and women 
 in cast. 
 
 The First Lady in the Land. By Charles 
 Nirdlinger. Published by Samuel French, 
 New York. 50 cents. Patriotic play of the 
 life and times of Dolly Madison. Medium- 
 sized cast of men and women. Picturesque 
 setting. Simple sets. 
 
 (For Young People) 
 
 Little Plays from American History. By 
 Alice Johnson Walker. Published by Henry 
 Holt and Company. $1.20. This book con- 
 tains interesting, easily produced scenes from 
 the life of Lincoln, scenes from early New 
 England life, and a three-act play of the
 
 108 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Revolution, in which Washington appears. 
 Medium-sized cast of boys and girls. Has 
 been widely acted. 
 
 Lafayette, Columbus, and The Long 
 Knives in Illinois. Three plays for young 
 folks by Alice Johnson Walker. (Probable 
 price, $1.40 net. Ready February, 1919. 
 Henry Holt and Company.) Picturesque 
 plays for medium-sized casts of boys and 
 girls. They can be easily given. 
 
 Patriotic Plays and Pageants. By Con- 
 stance D'Arcy Mackay. Published by 
 Holt and Company. $1.35. This book con- 
 tains indoor and outdoor patriotic material 
 dealing with American heroes such as Frank- 
 lin, Lincoln, Washington; and such heroines 
 as Pocahontas, Priscilla Mullins, etc. 
 
 Independence Day, Memorial Day, and 
 Flag Day. Edited by Robert Haven Schauf- 
 fler in Our American Holiday Series, pub- 
 lished by Moffat, Yard & Co. $1.00. In 
 this series, in the book called Flag Day, 
 there is a celebration, " Building of the Stars 
 and Stripes," on page 209, that is splendid
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 109 
 
 for little boys and girls. Also for very little 
 people is the Flag Play, on page 218 of the 
 same volume. 
 
 In STORY AND PLAY READERS, Vol. Ill, by 
 Anna N. Lutkenhaus and Margaret Knox, 
 published by The Century Company (60 
 cents net) , can be found Little Citizens Mak- 
 ing a New America, adapted from The New 
 Citizenship, by Percy Mackaye. Owing to 
 the changes wrought by the World War 
 there may have to be several excisions in 
 this. 
 
 III. AMERICAN PLAYS AND PAGEANTS 
 
 All the plays of Augustus Thomas deal- 
 ing with States, such as Arizona, Alabama, 
 etc., are being published, with most inter- 
 esting and illuminating prefaces, by Samuel 
 French, New York, at 50 cents in paper 
 covers. Secret Service and Held by the 
 Enemy, Civil War plays by William Gil- 
 lette, can be had from the same firm at 
 the same price. They are full-length plays, 
 the latter requiring special scenery.
 
 110 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 The Clod, by Lewis Beach, one of the 
 Washington Square Players' successes, can 
 be had in ' Washington Square Plays " 
 (Doubleday Page & Co., Garden City, N. Y., 
 75 cents). This is a powerful one-act play 
 of Civil War times with a small cast. The 
 setting is a simple interior. 
 
 The Scarecrow. By Percy Mackaye. 
 Published by Macmillan. $1.25 net. New 
 England fantasy of XVIIIth-century life. 
 Interior settings. Colonial costumes. Med- 
 ium-size cast of men and women. Requires 
 fine acting, especially in the difficult part of 
 the Scarecrow. 
 
 Trifles, by Susan Glaspell, is a one-act 
 play of farm life in the Middle West. 
 Tragic and intense. Small cast of men and 
 women. Simple interior setting. Has been 
 widely played. Address Miss Susan Glas- 
 pell, care The Provincetown Players, Mac- 
 dougal Street, near Washington Square, 
 New York. 
 
 Polly of Pogue's Run. Played at The In- 
 dianapolis Little Theatre, Indianapolis, In-
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 111 
 
 diana. This is an historical patriotic comedy 
 of Indiana in Civil War days. It requires 
 a large cast of men and women; but the set- 
 tings are not difficult. (Drama League 
 Book Shop, 7 East 42nd Street, New York. 
 35 cents.) 
 
 Wisconsin Plays. Published by Heubsch. 
 $1.25 net. Contains three American one- 
 act plays by American authors. Small casts 
 of men and women. Simple settings. The 
 plays in the volume are Zona Gale's Neigh- 
 bors; In Hospital,, by Thomas Dickinson ; and 
 Glory of the Morning, by William Ellery 
 Leonard. 
 
 Yankee Fantasies. By Percy Mackaye. 
 Published by Duffield. $1.25 net. One-act 
 plays dealing with New England life. Small 
 casts of men and women. Very easy to give. 
 Well adapted to small stages. 
 
 The Bird's Christmas Carol. By Kate 
 Douglas Wiggin. Houghton Mifflin. $1.00. 
 Play of American home life. Medium-sized 
 cast of men, women, and children. Simple in- 
 terior settings. Easy and delightful to give.
 
 112 
 
 Joint Owners in Spain. By Alice Brown. 
 Address Miss Alice Brown, care of Hough- 
 ton Mifflin, Boston, Mass. Whimsical one-act 
 play with small cast composed entirely of 
 women. Easy interior set. Has been very 
 widely acted. 
 
 SUGGESTIONS FOR A PATRIOTIC CELEBRATION 
 
 Very simple yet effective celebrations for 
 national holidays can be made through 
 combining poetic recitation and chorus. 
 Here and there, mainly through the work 
 of Vachel Lindsay, we are catching 
 glimpses of what might be done along these 
 lines. 
 
 With such a celebration use a city park 
 with a lovely background vista or the colon- 
 nade or Greek portico of any public build- 
 ing that is led up to by a flight of steps. Or 
 if a city park lacking a fine vista must 
 be used, then make a solid background of 
 trees and shrubs sent for the occasion from 
 a florist. In these celebrations a flat back- 
 ground is necessary in order that the partici-
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS US 
 
 pants may stand out clearly. Do not be 
 afraid of simplicity. 
 
 Say that this background of green is 
 twenty-five feet long. Let it have a middle 
 entrance carefully screened with trees or 
 shrubs. On each side of this middle en- 
 trance place a Greek seat or a long white 
 bench representing a marble bench. These 
 seats must be devoid of ornamentation. 
 
 If there is to be a chorus let the chorus 
 sit at each end of this green background, in 
 simple easy groups on the grass. (Or on 
 the steps, if the celebration be staged in 
 front of a public building.) Let them wear 
 simple Greek costumes of white with per- 
 haps a band of red, white, and blue crossed 
 on the shoulders. The seats are used for 
 those who recite. Whether a park or pub- 
 lic building is used the green background is 
 the same. 
 
 It is perfectly easy to have figures sym- 
 bolically robed enter one at a time from the 
 center entrance, speak directly and clearly 
 what they have to say, and then seat them-
 
 114 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 selves on the benches at right or left. In 
 between these recitations the chorus may 
 chant or sing if desired. 
 
 Do not be afraid that such a celebration 
 will be static. The color of the robes of 
 the symbolic figures, purple and orchid, rich 
 crimson, blue and gold and white, will hold 
 the attention of an audience. Cheesecloth 
 and canton flannel may be used for the 
 materials, but the lines of the robe and the 
 color scheme must be as nearly perfect as 
 it is possible for them to have them. 
 
 The symbolic figures may be America, 
 Liberty, the Old World and the New World, 
 Democracy, Tyranny, or any one of a dozen 
 others. Any foreign country can be sym- 
 bolized through a figure wearing a white 
 Greek robe with a mantle in that country's 
 color. And the flag of the country may be 
 carried. On no account can national flags 
 be used as robes or draperies. A flag is a 
 sacred symbol. It can be carried, but it 
 cannot be worn. 
 
 Each symbolic figure can recite appro-
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 115 
 
 priate lines which must be brief in order to 
 convey their full effect. In between these 
 recitations the chorus sings lines that fit in 
 with the general scheme. 
 
 An idea of such a festival more fully 
 worked out follows here: 
 
 THE NEW PILGRIMS 
 (A IJTANY OF LIBERTY) 
 
 (A Patriotic Celebration for Foreign-born 
 and American Citizens) 
 
 Note. The following suggestions are given as a 
 basis for an Americanization Festival, or cele- 
 bration in which audience and players partici- 
 pate. 
 
 The stage is set as described on page 112. 
 The chorus, in Greek robes, seated at right 
 and left, begin the celebration by singing 
 Arthur Farwell's "Hymn to Liberty."* 
 
 " Arise, ye nations ; man is free ! 
 Hail to Dawn-crowned Liberty ! " 
 
 * This stirring Hymn to Liberty, words and music by Arthur 
 Farwell, is published by G. Schirmer, 3 East Forty-third 
 Street, New York City, at 10 cents a copy.
 
 116 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Enter from background Liberty sym- 
 bolically costumed. She wears a white robe 
 and a crown of silver stars. In one hand 
 she carries a torch, in the other the Stars 
 and Stripes. She stands at left, and re- 
 cites " Liberty Enlightening the World," by 
 Edmund Clarence Stedman. 
 
 Liberty 
 
 My name is Liberty! 
 From out a mighty land 
 I face the ancient sea, 
 I lift to God my hand: 
 By day in heaven's light 
 A pillar of fire by night 
 At ocean's gate I stand 
 Nor bend the knee. 
 
 O ye whose broken spars 
 Tell of the storms ye met, 
 Enter! Fear not the bars 
 Across your pathway set. 
 Enter at Freedom's porch 
 For you I lift my torch, 
 For you my coronet 
 Is rayed with stars. 
 
 But ye that hither draw- 
 To desecrate my fee,
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 
 
 Nor yet have held in awe 
 The justice that makes free 
 Avaunt, ye darkling brood ! 
 By right my house hath stood; 
 My name is Liberty, 
 My throne is Law. 
 
 117 
 
 Audience 
 
 O wonderful and bright, 
 Immortal freedom, hail! 
 Front, in thy fiery might, 
 The midnight and the gale; 
 Undaunted on this base 
 Guard well thy dwelling place. 
 Till the last sun will pale 
 Let there be Light! 
 
 Enter a group of Pilgrims from back- 
 ground. They pause by Liberty, and com- 
 ing down from the stage take up positions 
 in the front row of the audience. The audi- 
 ence sings " America the Beautiful " by 
 Katharine Lee Bates : * Enter America. 
 
 * Words and music can be had from Cressy & Allen, 534 
 Congress Street, Portland, Me. 5 cents a copy, or $3.00 a 
 hundred.
 
 118 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 O beautiful for spacious skies, 
 For amber waves of grain, 
 For purple mountain majesties 
 Above the fruited plain! 
 America! America! 
 God shed His grace on thee 
 And crown thy good with brotherhood 
 From sea to shining sea! 
 
 O beautiful for pilgrim feet, 
 Whose stern, impassioned stress 
 A thoroughfare for freedom beat 
 Across the wilderness ! 
 
 America ! America ! 
 God mend thine every flaw, 
 Confirm thy soul in self-control, 
 Thy liberty in law. 
 
 O beautiful for heroes proved 
 
 In liberating strife, 
 
 Who more than self .their country loved, 
 
 And mercy more than life! 
 
 America ! America ! 
 May God thy gold refine 
 Till all success be nobleness 
 And every gain divine! 
 
 O beautiful for patriot dream 
 [That sees beyond the years
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 119 
 
 Thine alabaster cities gleam 
 Undiramed by human tears! 
 
 America ! America ! 
 God shed His grace on thee 
 And crown thy good with brotherhood 
 From sea to shining sea! 
 
 Enter from background the New Pilgrims 
 wearing their native immigrant costumes. 
 Each New Pilgrim carries the flag of his 
 or her country. They place these flags at 
 the feet of America and each receives 
 from her in return an American flag, 
 which they unfurl and carry down with 
 them to the first rows of the audi- 
 ence. 
 
 Liberty then crosses, and gives to America 
 the large flag which she (Liberty) has been 
 holding. Then Liberty returns to her place, 
 at left. 
 
 All the people in the audience carry small 
 American flags. 
 
 America raises her flag; all the people in 
 the audience, as if in reply, raise their flags 
 also.
 
 120 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 The chorus repeats the chorus of " America 
 the Beautiful": 
 
 " America ! America ! 
 God shed His grace on thee 
 And crown thy good with brotherhood 
 From shining sea to sea." 
 
 A soldier and sailor in modern uniform 
 enter and stand at right and left of America. 
 
 Liberty 
 
 They love her best who to themselves are true,* 
 And what they dare to dream of dare to do ; 
 They followed her and found her 
 With danger's sweetness round her; 
 They saw her, plumed and mailed, 
 With stern, sweet face unveiled. 
 
 Many in sad faith sought for her, 
 Many with crossed hands sighed for her, 
 But these our brothers fought for her, 
 At life's dear peril wrought for her, 
 So loved her that they died for her. 
 
 Foreign-born Citizens (in the audience) 
 
 We sit here in the promised land 
 That flows with freedom's honey and milk, 
 But 'twas they won it, sword in hand, 
 Making the nettle danger for us soft as silk. 
 * From Lowell's " Ode."
 
 PATRIOTIC CELEBRATIONS 121 
 
 American and Foreign-born Citizens (in audience) 
 
 Oh, beautiful! my country! ours once more 
 Smoothing thy gold of war-disheveled hair 
 O'er such sweet brows as never other wore. 
 Amongst the nations bright beyond compare! 
 
 What are our lives without thee? 
 What are our lives to save thee? 
 We wreck not what we gave thee, 
 We will not dare to doubt thee, 
 But ask whatever else and we will dare! 
 
 America 
 
 " This flag which we honor and under which we 
 serve is the emblem of our unity, our power, our 
 thought and purpose in the nation. It has no other 
 character than that which we give it from genera- 
 tion to generation." 
 
 Audience 
 
 " I pledge allegiance to my flag and the Republic 
 for which it stands one nation, indivisible, with 
 liberty and justice for all." 
 
 Liberty 
 
 " Love your country it is your name, your 
 glory, your sign among the peoples."
 
 122 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Audience 
 " Where Liberty dwells, there is my country." 
 
 The Foreign-born 
 
 " Flag of our nation, guardian of our homes, 
 whose stars and stripes stand for bravery, purity, 
 truth, and union, we salute thee. 
 
 We, the natives of distant lands who find rest 
 under thy folds, do pledge our hearts, our lives, 
 our sacred honor, to love and protect thee, our 
 Country, and the liberty of the American people 
 forever." 
 
 Players and audience join in singing the 
 National Anthem. 
 
 The orchestra plays John Philip Sousa's 
 ' The Stars and Stripes Forever " as the 
 crowd disperses.
 
 IX 
 
 SUGGESTIONS FOR CHRISTMAS COMMUN- 
 ITY CELEBRATIONS AROUND THE 
 TREE OF LIGHT 
 
 ALL the celebrations given here are de- 
 signed for outdoor production round 
 the Community Christmas Tree. But 
 it will be perfectly possible to transfer them 
 indoors to a hall, and have the Christmas 
 Tree on the stage of the hall, with the carol 
 singers marching up the aisles of the hall, 
 and from thence up a flight of steps to the 
 stage. 
 
 For other Patriotic and American cele- 
 brations, see pages 112-116 of this 
 volume. 
 
 THE STAB IN THE EAST 
 
 (A Christmas Community Celebration for For- 
 eign-born and American Citizens, to be given in a 
 city park around the Tree of Light.) 
 
 128
 
 124 PARIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 For this celebration the Tree of Light will 
 have to be raised some six feet higher than it 
 ordinarily is by means of iron stanchions. 
 About the tree in a circle should run four 
 wooden tiers or steps very firmly built and 
 painted dark pine-green. 
 
 If possible, the electric lighting of the Tree 
 should be arranged so that it can be turned 
 off and on. At the top of the Tree should 
 be a great star of electric light. 
 
 Four pathways leading from the Tree 
 should be roped off, North, South, East, 
 West, so that the Christmas crowd cannot 
 break into them. These pathways should be 
 well lit by electric light. The rest of the 
 ground surrounding the Tree should be in 
 semi-darkness, so that all the light is focused 
 on the Tree and the pathways. 
 
 Before the celebration begins the lights 
 on the Tree are turned out. Christmas carol 
 singers scattered about through the audience 
 sing " The Christ Child's Christmas Tree "; * 
 
 * By Arthur Farwell, words by Jean Dwight Franklin, pub- 
 lished by G. Schirmer, 3 East Forty-third Street, New York, 
 at 10 cents a copy.
 
 CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS 125 
 
 Come, gather. Rich and poor are one, 
 Parent and child, and the strange lone, 
 For the heart of the City goes out tonight 
 In a burst of music, a flood of light; 
 And the Christ-Child spirit, divinely fair, 
 That illumined the manger cold and bare 
 Is born again in the City square! 
 
 Next the carol singers give " Oh, Little 
 Town of Bethlehem," by Phillips Brooks. 
 
 Then the great star at the top of the Tree 
 is lit, the rest of the Tree being dark. 
 
 From the West, one group in white and 
 one group in pale blue and gold and crim- 
 son like the colors of stained glass win- 
 dows come the Christmas angels. The little 
 angels all in white with gold disk halos walk 
 first. They carry garlands of Christmas 
 roses. Next to them in costumes copied after 
 Botticelli come the taller angels carrying 
 long silver candlesticks bound with Christmas 
 roses. They sing " Angels from the Realms 
 of Glory,"* by Frederick Bullard. 
 
 The angels take their places on the top 
 
 'Published by Charles Ditson & Co., New York. Price 12 
 cents.
 
 126 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 of the tier of steps around the Christmas 
 Tree. Their costumes are worn over warmer 
 clothes. These costumes can be made of 
 canton flannel and of silesia with gilded bur- 
 laps for cloth of gold. They must hang well, 
 and the colors must be tried out by electric 
 light before they are used. Special care 
 should be given to the footgear, which should 
 consist of heavy white stockings worn over 
 everyday shoes. Wings should not be used 
 unless they are managed in a very skilful 
 manner. Care should be taken to have these 
 groups well spaced and not " set." They 
 must not walk two and two. 
 
 From the North come the shepherds sing- 
 ing "While Shepherds Watched Their 
 Flocks by Night," by Gerrit Smith.* They 
 wear brown tunics, with sheepskins over them 
 in some cases. Long brown stockings; dark- 
 brown sandals, laced to the knee with leather 
 straps. These straps may be of brown bur- 
 lap or oilcloth. The tunics may be made 
 
 * Published by G. Schirmer, 3 But Forty-third Street, New 
 York. Price 12 cents.
 
 CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS 1ST 
 
 of canton flannel or burlap. There should 
 be sheepskin caps and each shepherd should 
 carry a staff or crook. One of the shepherds 
 carries a lamb in his arms. Their hair falls 
 loose about their ears. Still singing they 
 group themselves about the Tree on the step 
 next to the angels. 
 
 From the East come the Three Kings in 
 brilliant, gorgeous costumes of the East, 
 bearing gold and frankincense and myrrh. 
 Their progress must be stately, and they 
 should approach single file with plenty of 
 space between them. The carol singers sing 
 the " Three Kings," by Longfellow, set to 
 music by Gerrit Smith,* or Horatio Parker's 
 " Come, Gentles, Rise," f also dealing with 
 the Three Kings. 
 
 Next from the North come the children of 
 Bethlehem in quaint Syrian costumes sugges- 
 tive of Tissot's Life of Christ. They take 
 their places on the last step, singing " The 
 Guiding Star," by Frederic Field Bullard. 
 
 * Published by G. Schirmer, 3 Eat Forty-third Street, New 
 York. Price 12 cents, 
 t Published by G. Schirmer, New York. Price 6 cents.
 
 128 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 Then all the groups in costume surrounding 
 the Tree sing " Christians, Sing Out with 
 Exultation," by Will MacFarlane.* 
 
 The lights come up, dazzlingly, and the cos- 
 tumed group sings " Love of All the Ages," 
 by Frederic Field Bullard.f 
 
 Then the costumed groups about the Tree, 
 and the carol singers in the audience sing to- 
 gether, " Carol, Carol, Christians," by Edith 
 R. Noyes, or " Everywhere Christmas, 
 Christmas Tonight," by Phillips Brooks.J 
 
 Then the lights die out, only the great star 
 remaining, and the celebration is over. 
 
 AN AJLLIED CHRISTMAS 
 
 Note. An Allied Christmas can be given 
 by having the National Hymns of the Allies 
 sung about the Community Christmas Tree. 
 The leader of each carol-singing group 
 should carry one of the national flags of the 
 
 Published by Charles Ditson Co., New York. Price 15 
 
 cents. 
 
 f Published by Charles Ditson Co., New York, at 10 cents, 
 t Published by Charles Ditson Co., New York, at 10 cents.
 
 CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS 129 
 
 Allies English, French, Italian, Belgian, 
 etc. 
 
 The members of each group should, if 
 practicable, wear the characteristic costumes 
 of the nation they represent; possibly, if the 
 idea does not jar too much with that of 
 Christmas, each group might contain men 
 in the uniforms of soldiers of each nation. 
 
 The National Hymns of the Allies can be 
 had from G. Schirmer, music publisher, New 
 York City, for 50 cents net. 
 
 A YOUNG PEOPLE'S COMMUNITY CHRISTMAS 
 
 A bugle blows three times, and under the 
 Community Christmas Tree, which is already 
 lit, Uncle Sam appears, wearing his tra- 
 ditional costume, and over it a long blue 
 cloak. He should not be a comic figure, 
 but a genial figure who can on occasion be 
 grave. 
 
 Again the bugle sounds three times, and 
 St. Nicholas appears, and is greeted by 
 Uncle Sam. St. Nicholas wears the tradi- 
 tional mediaeval costume, long scarlet pointed-
 
 130 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 sleeve tunic to his ankles, scarlet pointed 
 shoes, a golden miter on his white hair. He 
 carries a golden crozier in his hand. 
 
 With this staff he touches a bell that is 
 hung on the Christmas Tree and in answer 
 to its summons the figures in the Christmas 
 pageant begin to appear. A way must be 
 kept clear for them, so they can circle about 
 the Tree, and so they can make varied en- 
 trances. All those taking part in the Christ- 
 mas celebration wear costumes made of 
 silesia or canton flannel or like material 
 worn over their everyday clothes in case the 
 weather is cold. In milder climates this will 
 not be necessary. For this reason care 
 should be taken with the lines of the cos- 
 tumes so that they will not appear bunched 
 or bundlelike. 
 
 First comes the Christmas Tree Fairy, as 
 beautiful as possible, in white, with silver 
 tinsel, and shimmering wings and carrying 
 a wand. 
 
 At her summons the Frost Fairies enter, 
 clad in white and silver, both little boys and
 
 CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS 131 
 
 little girls. They make obeisance to St. 
 Nicholas, and sing " Jolly Old St. Nicholas," 
 which can be found in any school singing 
 book or school reader. 
 
 Next, in answer to summons, a stately pro- 
 cession appears, The Mistletoe Maidens, 
 wearing white Greek robes, with pastel-green 
 cloaks the color of mistletoe leaves. They 
 carry tall white wands. They sing the 
 first verse of " In the Bleak Midwinter," 
 by Lucina Jewell, repeating it twice. (No. 
 13,055, Six Christmas Carols, Eighth Series. 
 Charles H. Ditson Co., New York City. 
 Price 5 cents.) 
 
 Again the Christmas Tree Fairy summons 
 the next group, and the Evergreen Elves 
 appear, little boys in dark green elfin suits, 
 with tall peaked caps, carrying ropes of ever- 
 green. They sing Phillips Brooks' " Every- 
 where Christmas, Christmas Tonight," the 
 first verse only. 
 
 The Fairy summons the next group, the 
 Snow Flakes, all in white. They are led by 
 a grotesque Snow Man, with jolly antics.
 
 132 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 They sing " Hark to the Merry Christmas 
 Bells!"* all the verses, but not the chorus. 
 
 Last of all the Fairy summons the Holly 
 Berries, children in gay scarlet suits, with 
 scarlet caps wreathed with holly leaves. They 
 sing the first verse and chorus of " Merry 
 Christmas." f 
 
 All the costumed singers then stand 
 grouped about the Tree, and everyone sings 
 " The Star-Spangled Banner." { If possible, 
 the white electric lights that light the Tree 
 should at this point be reinforced by blue 
 and red electric lights. 
 
 With the singing of " The Star-Spangled 
 Banner " the festival ends. 
 
 For other celebrations interesting material 
 may be found in the following, all of which 
 is by American writers or composers: 
 
 * This carol is in No. 13,213, Six Christmas Carols, Ninth 
 Series. Charles H. Ditson Co., New York. Price 5 cents. 
 
 f No. 12,842 in Six Christmas Carols, Seventh Series. Charles 
 H. Ditson Co., New York. Price 5 cents. 
 
 J " America " is not used here because its antecedents are 
 the German " Heil Dir Im Siegerkranz " and the English " God 
 Save the King," so it is better to use the "Star Spangled 
 Banner " or " Hail Columbia " when referring to America in 
 festivals and plays.
 
 CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS 133 
 
 Tryste Noel. By Frederic Field Bullard. 
 Published by Charles H. Ditson Co., New 
 York. Price 12 cents. 
 
 Six Christmas Carols (Third Series). By 
 Arthur Foote. Charles H. Ditson Co., New 
 York. (No. 11,982.) Price 5 cents. 
 
 It Came upon the Midnight Clear. By 
 Horatio W. Parker. Charles H. Ditson Co., 
 New York. Price 20 cents. 
 
 Christmas Songs and Carols. By Kate 
 Douglas Wiggin. Charles H. Ditson Co., 
 New York. Price 10 cents. 
 
 Night of the Star. A Cycle. By Mar- 
 garet Ruthven Lang. Charles H. Ditson 
 Co., New York. Price 40 cents. 
 
 OTHER AMERICAN DRAMATIC MATERIAL FOR 
 OUTDOOR CELEBRATIONS 
 
 The Evergreen Tree. A Christmas Com- 
 munity Masque by Percy Mackaye. Music 
 by Arthur Farwell. Published by Apple- 
 ton & Co., New York. $2.00 net. Can be 
 given either in a long or a short version. 
 
 The Seven Gifts. By Stuart Walker.
 
 Given out of doors in Madison Square, New 
 York, in connection with the Tree of Light 
 celebration. Can be found in McCall's Maga- 
 zine for Christmas, 1915, or can be had by 
 addressing Stuart Walker, Portmanteau 
 Theatre Office, Carnegie Hall, New York. 
 
 The Pageant of Months. By Longfellow. 
 Found in any complete selection of his works. 
 Can be acted out of doors at the Christmas 
 Tree. 
 
 The Gift of Time. A Christmas Masque, 
 from The Forest Princess and Other 
 Masques. By Constance D'Arcy Mackay. 
 Published by Henry Holt and Company. 
 $1.35 net. Is also adaptable for indoor use 
 at Christmas. 
 
 FOR INDOOR USE 
 
 The material given above may be adapted 
 for indoor use. Also practical for indoor 
 use is A Christmas Masque, by Constance 
 D'Arcy Mackay, from The Forest Princess 
 and Other Masques. Published by Henry 
 Holt and Company. $1.35 net.
 
 CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS 185 
 
 For Young People 
 
 Christmas Candles. A book of Christmas 
 Plays, by Elsie Hobart Carter. Henry Holt 
 and Company. $1.50 net. 
 
 Christmas Eve with Charles Dickens, from 
 Little Plays About Famous Authors, by 
 Maude Morrison Franck. Henry Holt and 
 Company. $1.00 net. 
 
 The Christmas Guest and On Christmas 
 Eve, from The House of the Heart, by Con- 
 stance D'Arcy Mackay. Henry Holt and 
 Company. $1.20 net.
 
 BY CONSTANCE D'ARCY MACKAY 
 
 THE LITTLE THEATRE IN THE UNITED STATES 
 
 Illustrated. With index. Large izmo. $2.00 net. 
 COSTUMES AND SCENERY FOR AMATEURS 
 
 With numerous illustrations and index. Large izmo. $1.75 
 net. 
 
 HOW TO PRODUCE CHILDREN'S PLAYS 
 
 I2mo. $1.30 net. 
 
 PLAYS 
 
 THE BEAU OF BATH and Other One- Act Play* 
 The Silver Lining, Ashes of Roses, Gretna Green, Counsel 
 Retained, The Prince of Court Painters. Plays for amateurs 
 and for Little Theatres. With illustrations after Reynolds, 
 Humphrey and Romney. izmo. $1.30 net. 
 
 THE FOREST PRINCESS and Other Masque* 
 
 The Gift of Time (a Christmas Masque), A Masque of Con- 
 servation, The Masque of Pomona, A Christmas Masque, The 
 Sun Goddess, A Masque of Old Japan, The Revival of the 
 Masque, supplemented by papers on Costumes for Masques and 
 Music for Masques, izmo. $1.35 net. 
 
 PATRIOTIC PLAYS AND OTHER PAGEANTS 
 
 The Pageant of Patriotism and The Havjthorne Pageant. 
 Both are given in versions for outdoor and for indoor per- 
 formance, and arranged so that they can be split up into short 
 plays, izmo. $1.35 net. 
 
 THE HOUSE OF THE HEART 
 
 Short plays in verse for children of fourteen or younger: 
 The House of the Heart (Morality Play), The Enchanted Gar- 
 den (Flower Play), ,4 Little Pilgrim's Progress (Morality Play), 
 A Pageant of Hours (to be given out of doors), On Christmas 
 Eve, The Princess and the Pixies, The Christmas Guest 
 .(Miracle Play), etc. i6mo. $1.20 net. 
 
 THE SILVER THREAD and Other Folk Play* 
 
 The Silver Thread (Cornish), The Forest Spring (Italian), 
 The Foam Maiden (Celtic), Troll Magic (Norwegian), The 
 Three Wishes (French), A Brewing of Brains (English), 
 Siegfried (German), The Snoiu Witch (Russian). i6mo. $1.20 
 net. 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 TWO BOOKS BY CONSTANCE D'ARCY MACKAY 
 
 COSTUMES AND SCENERY FOR AMATEURS 
 
 A Practical Working Handbook with over 70 illustrations and 
 full index. 258 pp. izmo. $1.75 net. 
 
 A book that has long been needed. It concludes chap- 
 ters on Amateurs and the New Stage Art, Costumes, and 
 Scenery, but consists mainly of simple outline designs for 
 costumes for historical plays, particularly American 
 Pageants, folk, fairy, and romantic plays also of scenes, 
 including interiors, exteriors, and a scheme for a Greek 
 Theatre, all drawn to scale. Throughout the book color 
 schemes, economy, and simplicity are kept constantly in 
 view, and ingenious ways are given to adapt the same 
 costumes or scenes to several different uses. 
 
 HOW TO PRODUCE CHILDREN'S PLAYS 
 
 The author is a recognized authority on the production 
 of plays and pageants in the public schools, and combines 
 enthusiastic sympathy with sound, practical instructions. 
 She tells both how to inspire and care for the young actor, 
 how to make costumes, properties, scenery, where to find 
 designs for them, what music to use, etc., etc. She pre- 
 faces it all with an interesting historical sketch of the 
 plays-for-children movement, includes elaborate detailed 
 analyses of performances of Browning's Pied Piper and 
 Rosetti's Pageant of the Months, and concludes with 
 numerous valuable analytical lists of plays for various 
 grades and occasions. $\.y^net. 
 
 New York Times Review: "It will be useful . . . practical 
 advice." 
 
 Magazine of General Federation of Women's Clubs: "There 
 seems to be nothing she has forgotten to mention. Every club 
 program chairman should have it." 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 NOTEWORTHY DRAMA BOOKS 
 
 Clayton Hamilton'. PROBLEMS OF THE PLAYWRIGHT 
 
 This is probably even more interesting than the author's 
 popular Theory of the Theatre or than his Studies in Stagecraft 
 and is somewhat longer and more varied than either of its 
 predecessors. It represents the best of his work for several 
 recent years. $i.6onet. 
 
 Constance d'Arcy Mackay's THE LITTLE THEATRE IN THE 
 UNITED STATES 
 
 An intensely interesting book on the most promising develop- 
 ment in The American Theatre, by a high authority. She tells 
 of nearly sixty of these little theatres, including something of 
 their repertory, and has interesting supplementary discussions 
 of The New Theatre, The Northampton Municipal Theatre, 
 Repertory, etc. With illustrations of buildings, scenery, etc., 
 and full index. Uniform with the author's "Costumes and 
 Scenery for Amateurs." $2.00 net. 
 
 Arthur E. Kro ws's PLAY PRODUCTION IN AMERICA 
 
 With numerous and unusual illustrations and full index. 
 $2.25 net. 
 
 Dramatic Mirror: "Any would-be playwright or actor 
 should not proceed until he has read and 'carefully digested' 
 this book. There is not a detail in the realm of writing a 
 play or in the art of acting that is not made plain and valuable 
 . . . full of vital information. 
 Richard Burton's BERNARD SHAW: The Man and the Mask 
 
 By the author of "How to See a Play," etc. With Index. 
 $1.60 net. 
 
 Archibald Henderson, author of the standard biography of 
 Shaw, calls Dr. Burton's book "The best introduction to 
 Bernard Shaw in print. Nootherbook gives an analysis and 
 study of each play . . . genius of simplicity of expression 
 and effectiveness in interpretation." 
 
 Fanny Cannon's WRITING AND SELLING A PLAY 
 
 Probably the most common-sense and practical book on its 
 subject, which the author knows from the inside as actress, 
 manageress, playwright, and " play-doctor." She warns the 
 writer of the many " breaks " that cause rejection, gives de- 
 tailed constructive advice, tells him how to look out for his 
 rights, includes a model contract, two detailed scenarios, and a 
 bibliography of reference books and plays. I2mo. With full 
 index. $1.50 net. 
 
 Hartford Cottrant: ". . . this rare book . . . the author has the 
 lessons she would convey at tongue's end and in orderly brain arrange- 
 ment. . . . She teaches so lucidly and with person fascination. ..." 
 83^-The Publishers will send free on application their DESCRIP- 
 TIVE LEAFLET OF DRAMA BOOKS 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 Josephine Thorp and Rosamond Kimball's 
 
 PATRIOTIC PAGEANTS OF TODAY 
 
 By Miss Thorp: THE ANSWER, A Patriotic Festival. WHEN 
 LIBERTY CALLS, A Pageant of The Allies. THE TORCH, A 
 Pageant of Democracy. 
 
 By Miss Kiraball: THE CALL OF THE YOUTH OF AMERICA, A 
 Patriotic Exercise for Boys and Girls of all ages. 
 
 These pageants have had repeated and successful perform- 
 ance. Full directions for their simple staging, costuming and 
 music are given. 12mo. $1.00 net. 
 Constance D'Arcy Mackay's 
 
 PATRIOTIC DRAMA IN YOUR TOWN 
 
 By the author of "The Little Theatre in The United States," 
 "Costumes and Scenery for Amateurs," etc. 16mo. $1.35 net. 
 (October, 1918.) 
 
 Miss Mackay sketches the main essentials -with which any 
 fair-sized town may have .pageants, A Little Theatre, or an 
 Outdoor Theatre. She also gives detailed suggestions for com- 
 munity Fourth of July and Christmas Celebrations, and shows 
 how such celebrations bring a community into closer relation 
 and make better Americans. 
 Alice Johnston Walker's 
 
 LAFAYETTE, COLUMBUS and THE LONG KNIVES 
 IN ILLINOIS. Plays for Young Folk. 
 
 By the author of "Little Plays from American History. 16mo. 
 Probable price, $1.50 net (February, 1919.) 
 
 These plays take from an hour to an hour and a half, and 
 have been tested by performance. Each contains a number of 
 very picturesque, tho easily made settings. f George Rogers 
 Clark the frontiersman is the leading character in the last. 
 Louis Calvert's PROBLEMS OF THE ACTOR 
 
 With Introduction by Clayton Hamilton and index. $1.60 net. 
 
 Mr. Hamilton says this books shows "the great love for a. 
 great thing that has been felt by a great man," and Mr. John 
 Corbin in The Times calls it, "The best book on acting in 
 English . . . teems with happy anecdotes." 
 Romain Rolland's 
 
 THE FOURTEENTH OF JULY AND DANTON 
 
 Plays of the French Revolution for a People's Theatre. 
 Authorized edition translated by BARRETT H. CLARK. 12mo. 
 $1.50 net (August, 1918.) 
 Romain Rolland's THE PEOPLE'S THEATRE 
 
 Authorized edition translated by BARRETT H. CLARK. 12mo. 
 Probable price, $1.35 net. (In Press.) 
 
 The author here touches on many vital aspects of such a play- 
 house of which Americans have but very recently become 
 conscious. While not hesitating to shatter idols, he has a 
 constructive program too, and ends up "Everything remains 
 to be done." 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 19 West 44th Street (viii '18) New York
 
 By GEORGE MIDDLETON 
 
 Co-author of ' ' Polly with a Past ' ' 
 
 THE ROAD TOGETHER 
 
 An American Drama in Four Acts. $1.20 net. 
 
 New York Sun: " Of all American dramatists, acted and unacted, few 
 have a better right to serious consideration than jGeorge Middleton 
 . . . four acts of cleverly contrived situations, adroit dialogue and 
 cumulative interest . . . worked out with a clear purpose and a fine 
 sense of dramatic values. . . ." 
 
 POSSESSION 
 
 With THE GROOVE, THE BLACK TIE, A GOOD WOMAN, CIRCLES 
 and THE UNBORN. One-act American Plays. $1.35. 
 
 New York Times: " Brief, tense, filled with an understanding sym 
 pathy for woman ... a striking presentation of the stuff that life 
 is made of." 
 
 EMBERS 
 
 With THE FAILURES, THE GARGOYLE, IN His HOUSE, MA- 
 DONNA and THE MAN MASTERFUL. One-act American 
 Plays. $1.35. 
 
 PROF. WILLIAM LYON PHELPS of Yale: " The plays are admirable; 
 the conversations have the true style of human speech, and show first- 
 rate economy of words, every syllable advancing the plot. The little 
 dramas are full of cerebration, and I shall recommend them in my 
 public lectures." 
 
 TRADITION 
 
 With ON BAIL, MOTHERS, WAITING, THEIR WIFE and THE 
 CHEAT OF PITY. One-act American Plays. $1.35. 
 
 New York Times: " Mr. Middleton's plays furnish interesting read- 
 ing. . . . The author deserves praise for his skill and workmanship 
 . . . succeeds admirably as a chronicler of striking events and as an 
 interpreter of exceptional people in exceptional circumstances." 
 
 NOWADAYS 
 
 A three-act comedy of American Life. $1.20. 
 
 The Nation: " Without a shock or a thrill in it, but steadily interest- 
 ing and entirely human. All the characters are depicted with fidelity 
 and consistency; the dialogue is good and the plot logical." 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 SHORT PLAYS ABOUT FAMOUS AUTHORS 
 
 (Goldsmith, Dickens, Heine, Fannie Burney, Shakespeare) 
 
 BY MAUDE MORRISON FRANK. #1.35 net. 
 
 THE MISTAKE AT THE MANOR shows the fifteen-year-old 
 Goldsmith in the midst of the humorous incident in his life which 
 later formed the basis of "She Stoops to Conquer." 
 
 A CHRISTMAS EVE WITH CHARLES DICKENS reveals the author 
 as a poor factory boy in a lodging-house, dreaming of an old- 
 time family Christmas. 
 
 WHEN HEINE WAS TWENTY-ONE dramatizes the early disobe- 
 dience of the author in writing poetry against his uncle's orders. 
 
 Miss BURNEY AT COURT deals with an interesting incident in 
 the life of the author of "Evelina" when she was at the Court 
 of George III. 
 
 THE FAIRIES' PLEA, which is an adaptation of Thomas Hood's 
 poem, shows Shakespeare intervening to save the fairies from 
 the scythe of Time. 
 
 Designed in general for young people near enough to the 
 college age to feel an interest in the personal and human as- 
 pects of literature, but the last two could easily be handled by 
 younger actors. They can successfully be given by groups or 
 societies of young people without the aid of a professional coach. 
 
 LITTLE PLAYS FROM AMERICAN HISTORY 
 
 FOR YOUNG FOLKS 
 BY ALICE JOHNSTONE WALKER. $1.20 net. 
 
 HIDING THE REGICIDES, a number of brief and stirring episodes, 
 concerning the pursuit of Colonels Whalley and Goff by the 
 officers of Charles II at New Haven in old colony days. 
 
 MRS. MURRAY'S DINNER PARTY, in three acts, is a lively comedy 
 about a Patriot hostess and British Officers in Revolutionary 
 Days. 
 
 SCENES FROM LINCOLN'S TIME; the martyred President does not 
 himself appear. They cover Lincoln's helping a little girl with 
 her trunk, women preparing lint for the wounded, a visit to the 
 White House of an important delegation from New York, and 
 of the mother of a soldier boy sentenced to death and the com- 
 ing of the army of liberation to the darkies. 
 
 Tho big events are touched upon, the mounting of all these 
 little plays is simplicity itself, and they have stood the test of 
 frequent school performance. 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND (COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NBW YORK
 
 BY CLAYTON HAMILTON 
 
 Each book fully indexed. 12mo. $1.60 net. 
 
 PROBLEMS OF THE PLAYWRIGHT 
 
 Building a Play Backward ; Surprise in the Drama ; The 
 Troublesome Last Act; High Comedy in America; The George 
 M. Cohan School of Playrights; Middle Class Opinion; Criti- 
 cism and Creation in the Drama; Dramatic Talent and Theat- 
 rical Talent; The Plays of Lord Dunsany; Romance and 
 Realism in the Drama; Scenic Settings in America; The New 
 Stagecraft; The Non-Commercial Drama; A Democratic Insur- 
 rection in the Theatre ; A Scheme for a Stock Company ; What's 
 Wrong with the American Drama, etc., etc. 
 
 Prof. Brander Matthews, in the Bookman: . . .Mr. Hamilton and 
 Mr. Archer like Lessing and like Sarcey have a broad background of 
 culture. . . . They never stray into the dusty paths of pedantry. . . . 
 Consistently interesting because it has the support of knowledge and 
 the savour of individuality." 
 
 STUDIES IN STAGECRAFT 
 
 The New Art of Making Plays, The Pictorial Stage, The 
 Modern Art of Stage Direction, A Plea for a New Type of 
 Play, The Undramatic Drama, The Supernatural Drama, The, 
 Irish National Theatre, Where to Begin a Play, A New Defense 
 of Melodrama, The Art of the Moving-Picture Play, The One- 
 Act Play in America, Organizing an Audience, etc., etc. 
 
 Nation: "Information, alertness, coolness, sanity and the command 
 of a forceful and pointed English. ... A good book, in spite of 
 all deductions." 
 
 Prof. Archibald Henderson, in The Drama: "University excellent in 
 quality. . . . Continually interesting in presentation ... uniform for 
 high excellence and elevated standards. ..." 
 
 THE THEORY OF THE THEATRE 
 
 What is a Play? The Psychology of Theatre Audiences. 
 The Actor and the Dramatist. Stage Conventions in Modern 
 Times. The Four Leading Types of Drama. The Modern 
 Social Drama, and Other Principles of Dramatic Criticism. 
 The Public and the Dramatist. Dramatic Art and the Theatre 
 Business. Dramatic Literature and Theatric Journalism. 
 Pleasant and Unpleasant Plays. Themes in the Theatre. The 
 Function of Imagination, etc., etc. 
 
 Bookman: "Presents coherently a more substantial body of idea on 
 the subject than perhaps elsewhere accessible. 
 
 Boston Transcript: "At every moment of his discussion he has a 
 firm grasp upon every phase of the subject." 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 BY BARRETT H. CLARK 
 
 THE CONTINENTAL DRAMA OF TO-DAY 
 
 Outlines for Its Study 
 
 Suggestions, questions, biographies, and bibliographies 
 with outlines, of half a dozen pages or less each, of the 
 more important plays of twenty-four Continental dram- 
 atists. While intended to be used in connection with a 
 reading of the plays themselves, the book has an inde- 
 pendent interest. 12mo. $1.75 net. 
 
 Prof. William Lyon P helps, of Yale: ". . . One of the most 
 useful works on the contemporary drama. . . . Extremely prac- 
 tical, full of valuable hints and suggestions. . . ." 
 
 BRITISH &f AMERICAN DRAMA OF TO-DAY 
 
 Outlines for Its Study 
 
 Suggestions, biographies and bibliographies, together 
 with historical sketches, for use in connection with the 
 important plays of Pinero, Jones, Wilde, Shaw, Barker, 
 Hankin, Chambers, Davies, Galsworthy, Masefield, 
 Houghton, Bennett, Phillips, Barrie, Yeats, Boyle, Baker, 
 Sowerby, Francis, Lady Gregory, Synge, Murray, Ervine, 
 Howard, Herne, Thomas, Gillette, Fitch, Moody, 
 Mackaye, Sheldon, Kenyon, Walters, Cohan, etc. I2mo. 
 $1.75 net. 
 
 THREE MODERN PLAYS FROM THE FRENCH 
 
 Lemaitre's The Pardon and Lavedan's Prince D'Aurec, 
 translated by Barrett H. Clark, with Donnay's The 
 Other Danger, translated by Charlotte Tenney David, 
 with an Introduction to each author by Barrett H. Clark 
 and a Preface by Clayton Hamilton. One volume. 
 Unto. $1.75 net. 
 
 Springfield Republican: "'The Prince d'Aurec* is one of his 
 best and most representative plays. It is a fine character crea- 
 tion. . . . 'The Pardon' must draw admiration for its remark- 
 able technical efficiency. . . . 'The Other Danger' is a work 
 of remarkable craftsmanship." 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 PLAYS BY THREE AMERICANS 
 
 Beulah M. Dix's ACROSS THE BORDER 
 
 A dream play suggested by the present war. $1.00 net. 
 
 Clayton Hamilton: "The best of all recent plays inspired 
 by the European War . . . highly imaginative, powerful and 
 touching." 
 
 Beulah M. Dix's ALLISON'S LAD and Other Martial 
 Interludes 
 
 These one-act episodes of olden wars include Allison's Lad, 
 The Hundredth Trick, The Weakest Link, The Snare and the 
 Fowler, The Captain of the Gate, The Dark of the Dawn. 
 All the characters are men or boys. $1.35 net. 
 
 Percival Wilde's DAWN and Other One-Act Plays 
 
 Dawn, The Noble Lord, The Traitor, A House of Cards, 
 Playing with Fire and The Finger of God. 2nd printing. 
 $1.35 net. 
 
 Percival Wilde's CONFESSIONAL and Other Short Plays 
 
 Confessional, The Villain in the Piece, According to Darwin 
 (2 acts), A Question of Morality and The Beautiful Story. 
 
 $1-35 net. 
 
 The Independent: "The subjects are those of most interest today, the 
 treatment is fresh and sincere, and the author shows a keen sense of 
 dramatic values." 
 
 PLAYS BY GEORGE MIDDLETON 
 EMBERS and Other One-Act Plays 
 
 Including The Failures, The Gargoyle, In His House, The 
 Man Masterful and Madonna. 3rd printing. $1.35 net. 
 TRADITION and Other One-Act Plays 
 
 Including On Bail, Mothers, Waiting, Their Wife and The 
 Cheat of Pity. 3rd printing. $1.35 net 
 
 POSSESSION and Other One-Act Play* 
 Including The Groove, The Black Tie, A Good Woman, 
 Circles and The Unborn. 2nd printing. $1.35 net. 
 
 NOWADAYS 
 
 A Comedy of American Life To-day. 4th printing. $1.20 net. 
 THE ROAD TOGETHER 
 
 A four-act play of married life. $1.20 net. 
 
 New York Tribune: "He is America's only serious contribution to the 
 international drama of the period . . . one constantly reflects how much 
 better it acts than it reads, and it reads exceedingly well " 
 
 J@?"For fuller information send for the publisher's DESCRIP- 
 TIVE LIST OF DRAMA BOOKS to 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS IX '17 NEW YORK
 
 CALVIN THOMAS'S GOETHE 
 
 A short biography and chapters on The Philosopher, The 
 Evolutionist, The Believer, The Poet, The Dramatist, The 
 Novelist, The Critic, Faust. 368 pp. 12mo. $2.00 net. 
 
 Boston Transcript: "An entertaining account of the family life . . . 
 a rather fine and noble picture of Goethe himself human and to the 
 life. . . . He does not err on the side of over-adulation ... an 
 admirable summary of Goethe's services as a scientist. . . . His account 
 of 'Faust/ especially of the second part, is highly enlighting. . . . Just 
 what any student of Goethe and of German literature would desire; 
 clear, fair and entertaining." 
 
 CALVIN THOMAS'S THE LIFE AND WORKS 
 OF SCHILLER 
 
 481 pp. 12mo. $1.75 net 
 
 New York Evening Post: "An eminently sympathetic study, which 
 will commend itself to the general reader for its avoidance of the minor 
 pedantries into which writers on German subjects not excluding 
 Carlyle are prone to fall." 
 
 LESSING'S MINNA VON BARNHELM 
 
 Translated with an introduction by PROP. OTTO HELLER of 
 Washington University. $1.00 net. 
 
 Reedy's Mirror: "Dear MINNA might have stepped out of a Bernard 
 Shaw book out of 'Man and Superman.' She is as modern as 
 modernity clever, frank, free, sweet and womanly. The Major is 
 more real than Major Pendennis and as adorably stupid in his almost 
 Roman virtue. ... A comedy from which the cult of the new and little 
 theatres may still learn. . . . From the quality revealed in Professor 
 Heller's translation, I can well believe that this is the most perfect 
 comedy in the German language." 
 
 LESSING'S NATHAN THE WISE 
 
 Translated by ELLEN FROTHINGHAM. Preceded by a brief 
 account of the Poet and his Works and followed by Kuno 
 Fischer's Essay on the Play. $1.50. 
 North American Review: "We heartily commend the volume as an 
 
 admirable version of a work which after lapse of a century, still 
 
 remains the unsurpassed model of a didactic drama." 
 
 THE GERMAN DRAMA OF THE 
 NINETEENTH CENTURY 
 
 By GEORG WITKOWSKI. Translated by PROF. L. E. HORNING. 
 12mo. $1.00 net. 
 
 Niw York Times Review: "The translation of this brief, clear and 
 logical account was an extremely happy idea. Nothing at the same time 
 so comprehensive and terse has appeared on the subject." 
 
 HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 
 
 PUBLISHERS NEW YORK
 
 Date Due 
 
 IN 1 <J 
 
 JUN ^ 1972 
 
 PRINTED IN U.S.*. CAT. NO. 24 161
 
 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 A 000 790 703 3
 
 SK 
 
 HR