Professional Level Theatricals
Staged By The Chowan Players
Page 6. September 9, 1966
Chowan College Section
Robinson Hopes Drama To
Aid Ministerial Career
MURFREESBORO - The Cho
wan Players, Chowan College’s
dramatists, brlngtheatrlcalper-
lormances cl professional stature
to their campus and the entire
Roanoke-Chowan area.
Last year, 3,047 people wit
nessed six performances in the
Columns Building’s auditorium.
During the fall semester, the
musical comedy “Annie Get Your
Gun” was produced by the Cho
wan Players and during the spring
semester 'Our Town” was pre-
CHOWAN PLAYERS' STAR
Jim Robinson of Hickory
who is enthusiastic about
drama os a method of
teaching religious truth will
be performing his third
leading role when the Cho
wan Players present "Magic
Supreme" during the
Drama Festival March 31-
April 2 at Chapel Hill.
sented. More than 200 Chowan
College students competed for
roles in “Annie Get Your Gun.”
In addition to campus audi
ences, the Chowan Players per
formed at public schools throu^-
out the Roanoke-Chowan area and
also took a production of ‘Magic
Supreme,” an original drama
written by a member of Chowan
College’s Creative Writing class,
to the Carolina Drama Festival
at Chapel Hill. Their perform
ance of the play written by Miss
Elizabeth Harris of Seaboard
earned a rating of “Excellent”
from some of the outstanding dra-
LEADERSHIP
(Continued from Page 3)
ed years of growth and develop
ment, both in quality and quantity,
as a Christian college.
Growth, under Dr. Whitaker’s
leadership, has seen Chowan set
records during one five - year
period for havingthe largest per
centage of increase in enroll
ment of any North Carolina col
lege, public or private. When he
became president, 235 students
were enrolled. Now there are
1,200. Total assets have in
creased from less than $1,000,-
000 to approximately $5,000,000
and, when the new library-fine
arts facility takes its place on
the campus scene, it will be the
tenth new and modern building
to rise among Chowan’s ancient
pines and majestic, towering oaks
since Dr. Whitaker became pres
ident.
Dedication and devotion to the
task keeps Dr. Whitaker on the
move. He averages 35,000 miles
a year by car, traveling In the
interest of Chowan, not counting
many more miles of airplane
travel to make long - distance
contacts and attend professional
ma critics in the nation.
Mrs. Edith Larson, professor
In Chowan’s Department of Eng
lish and teacher of dramatics, is
director and producer for the
Chowan Players. Assisting her is
Professor Robert Mulder, also
of the Department of English.
In addition to the three large-
scale dramatic productions stag
ed throughout the year, they pro
duced a number of other pro
grams. “Were You There?” a
choral recitation by the Drama
and Speech Departments was
among cultural hl^lights of the
year for Chowan College and sur
rounding areas.
meetings and meetings of otoer
organizations. He speaks ire-
quently to civic organizations,
professional groups and church-
^%r. Whitaker believes his ad
ministrative responsiblUty in
volves indirect services, which
he contributed as the first pres
ident of the Choanoke Area De
velopment Association (serving
a four-county area) and con
tinues contributing as president
of the North CarollnaConference
for Social Service. Among multi
tudes of other services are those
contributed as advisor for the
North Carolina State Board of
Higher Education and the State
Commission on Higher Educa
tion FaciUtles. He was also a
member of the committee which
drew up plans for this commis
sion and Its work. He is now
serving on the Board of Mental
Health for the state of North
Carolina.
Chowan’s president holds fre
quent staff meetings and keeps
information before an active
Long-Range Planning Commit
tee, which recommends projects
for Chowan’s future development.
He maintains a voluminous cor
respondence, dictating more than
MURFREESBORO - Jim Rob
inson, popular and talented Cho
wan College sophomore, per
formed the leading role in “Magic
Supreme,” original one-act play
by a member of Chowan Col
lege’s Creative Writing class,
during the Drama Festival at
Chapel Hill.
This was his third leading role
for the Chowan Players, In
spite of a football Injury when
one of these productions was
being presented. Suffering a near
brain concussion, he displayed
show business enthusiasm of “the
show must go on.” Attendance
was reported at 3,047 for per
formances in the Chowan Play
ers’ “Annie Get Your Gun” and
‘Our Town.”
Son of Rev. and Mrs. Frank
B. Robinson of Hickory where
his father serves as pastor of
Temple Baptist Church, he is
a member of Delta Psl Omega
national honorary dramatic so-
clety and the Chowan College
Ministerial Alliance. A pre-mln-
Isterlal student, he hopes to use
drama in religious work. “Drama
Is a good way to present relig
ious truth,” he says. “Cloaking
truth in characters people can
see performing makes truth more
real and meaningful.”
Although he has had little pre
vious experience in dramatics,
he is enthusiastic about using
drama In the future. “I learn
more every day,” he says, “and
hope to teach others, getting
them as deeply involved and en
thusiastic as I am.”
a hundred letters each week, and
is constantly on the telephone,
sending and receiving long-dls-
tance calls. More often than not,
Dr. Whitaker is In his office
through the late night hours and
often into early morning, hard
at work. The Virginia Electric
and Power Company, in national
advertising, calls what has hap
pened at Chowan College under
Dr. Whitaker’s leadership the
"Educational Renaissance in
Northeastern North Carolina.”
Claude F. Gaddy of Raleigh,
a member of Chowan’s newly-
organized Board of Advisors,
reports that Dr. Bernard W.
Spllman once told the Baptist
State Convention of North Caro
lina that ‘Chowan College has
never had anyone give his life to
it.” His statement Is now con
tradicted by the new life being
pumped into Chowan’s blood-
(See LEADERSHIP, Page 11)
DRAMATIST READY for
another yeor with the Cho
wan Players is Sue Howard,
sophomore drawotist whose
years of experience os o tal
ented performer started
long before she begon grac
ing Chowan's campus as o
student.
WELCOME
CHOWAtt STCBEMTS
LUX I
IVERITAS
. from the
VERITAS
EVANS COMPANY
208 E. MAIN STREET
MURFREESBORO
"The Small Store with the BIG Values'
CLOTHING & SHOES
for the
ENTIRE FAMILY
...welcome
CHOWAN STUDENTS
. . . you are invited to use our
CONVENIENT DOWNTOWN LOCATION
while in school—
MURFREESBORO
UUNDROMAT
COIN OPERATED
ON MAIN STREET IN MURFREESBORO