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MAROON AND GOLD
FRIDAY. JANUARY 31, 1969
MAROON and gold Dramatics At Elon
Began Over Fifty Years Ago
Dedicated to the best Interests of Elon College and
its students and faculty, the Maroon and Gold Is pub
lished weekly during the college year with the excep
tion of holiday and examination periods at Elon College,
N.C. (Zip Code 27244), publication being in coopera-
lion with the Journalism departmsnt.
REPORTORIAL STAFF
John Andrews, Landy Blackwell, Don Bowers, Edna
Brantley, Richard Bray, Rebecca Burgess, Chester
Burgess, Bruce Cohen. Dean Coleman, Dillard Dye,
Joe Fowler, Don Goldberg, Joe Goldberg, Tom Hardee,
Wally Hardwick, William Hartley, Joe Jessup, Spndra
Jones, Bobby King, Bob Klingel, John McNeill, Sam
Massey, Jerry Midkiff, Denny Moore, Robert Nash,
Ned Poole, Elizabeth Sanders, Kay Savage, Jerry
Schumm, Ronnie Sink, Mike Spillane, Mike Straka,
Archie Taylor, Joe Teague, Bill Walker, Ronnie Wick
er, Jerry Woodlief, George Watts, Frank Webster.
PLAYER GROUP WILL MAKE TOUR
(Continued from page 1)
This Theatre Arts
Seminar, which began on
January 14th, has featur
ed special study of Mol-
iere himself, of “Tar-
tuffe” and of the theatre
today, along with the cast
ing of the play, building
of the stage sets, making
of costumes and gather
ing props.
These technical as
pects of the “Tartuffe”
production will be pre
sented to the high school
students in each school,
for the Elon Player group
will arrive at each school
by mid-morning and will
conduct a seminar from
10 until 11:30 o’clock each
morning, with each semi
nar featuring acting, di
rection and stage tech
nical work. This will be
followed by lunch period
from 11:30 until 12:30,
followed in turn by the
performance of the play
from 12:30 until 2:30 o’
clock.
The entire “Mini-
Term” seminar project
taken for one course cre
dit, attracted a group of
fifteen students. The
class roll listed Glenda
Condon, McLean, Va.;
Jack Cotton, Fuquay-Va-
rina; Tom Edwards,
Washington, D.C.; Jim
Gillespie, Taftville,
Conn.; Dale Kaufman,
Charlotte; Sam Roberson,
Burlington;
Larry Sage, Lisbon,
Conn.; Paula Schmidt,
North Caldwell, N. J.; Da
vid Scudder, Eclipse,
Va.; Bill Shaver, Char
lotte; John Swain, Fair
fax, Va.; Janet Sylves
ter, Virginia Beach, Va.;
Donna Thomas, Mebane;
Jay Wilkinson, Massape-
que, N. Y.; andDyce Wyl-
lie. Mount Holly, N.J.
Wilkinson Student Leader
For Two Drama Groups
Jay Wilkinson, Elon
senior from Massapequa,
N.Y., holds the double
presidency of both the
Elon Players and the Al
pha Psi Omega, which is
the honorary dramatic
fraternity on the Elon
campus, so he is truly
the' student leader of the
Elon dramatic activities.
The Alpha Psi Omega
chapter on the Elon cam
pus, which is part of a
national honorary dra
matics organization, of
fers membership as a
special honor for those
who play outstanding
roles in the Elon College
stage plays, whether
those outstanding roles
be on the stage or behind
the scenes. The Elon
JAY WILKINSON
Double President
chapter was founded more
than twenty-five years a-
go.
In addition to Jay Wil
kinson as president, other
officers of Alpha Psi O-
mega are Jeff Taylor, of
Bloomingdale, N. J,, as
vice-president; and Kathy
Copeland, of Norfolk, Va.,
secretary - treasurer.
Other active members
this year are Sam Ro
berson, of Burlington;
Denny Kopik, of Edison,
N.J.; and Nancy Boone,
of Orefield, Pa.
The Elon Player group
is somewhat larger than
is the Alpha Psi Omega,
and other officers of the
Player group this year in
addition to President Wil
kinson are Sam Roberson,
of Burlington, vice-pres
ident; Sherri Wyllie, of
Mount Holly, N.J., secre
tary; and Larry Sage, of
Lisbon, Conn., historian.
CHAPTER ONE
This is the first chap
ter of a history of the
Elon dramatic activities
and the Elon Players,dat
ing back for more than
fifty years and prepared
on the basis of research
by a former Maroon and
Gold editor. This chap
ter is part of this special
“Elon Player Edition”
and will be followed by
later chapters to bring
the story to the present
time^
Love of make-believe
and of plays and acting
has been a human cha-
acteristic since ancient
times, and that love of
plays and things dramatic
made its appearance very
early on the Elon College
campus, although dra
matics at Elon in early
days was sometimes car
ried out under the archia-
ic name of “Expression”
and not “Dramatics.”
As early as 1913 the
Elon faculty listed Miss
Ethel Clements “Direct
or of Physical Culture
and Expression,” and she
had ten students in her
expression class. Two
years later Miss Bessie
Urquhart held the same
position, and she formed
a Dramatic Club that had
thirty-three members.
One of those members
was Mrs. Oma Johnson,
long-time Elon College
librarian, who is now re
tired.
There is no record of
that club presenting
plays, but there were
three literary societies
on the Elon campus in
those early years, and
those societies gave the
first plays on the cam
pus. The Philologian So
ciety presented “She
Stoops To Conquer,” the
Psiphelian presented
“The Princess,” and the
Clio Society gave “Nathan
Hale” in 1920.
The next recorded
plays were given in 1922-
23, again by the literary
societies, including per
formances entitled “Bet
ty’s Last Bet,” given by
Psiphelian; “Over Here,”
a drama of American pa
triotism, by Clio; and
“Driftwood,” given by
Philologian.
A new literary group,
called Psykalean, was
formed in 1924 and pre
sented “Am I Intruding”
that year. During the
same year the Psiphel-
ians gave “The Lady of
the Library,” the Clios
presented “The Hut,” and
the Philologians present
ed a variety show, which
was probably Elon’s first
attempt at musical plays.
In 1925 the plays offer
ings included “The
Charm School,” by the
Psykaleans; “Come Out
of the Kitchen,” by Psi
phelian; “A Regular
Scream,” by Clio; and
“Dulcy,” by the Philo
logians. It is interesting
that William B. Terrell,
recently retired as Elon’s
alumni secretary, was in
the cast of the “Dulcy”
performance.
The season of 1925-26
brought four new plays,
all by the literary groups.
The Philologians gave ‘A
Marriage of Conven
ience,” the Psykaleans
presented “The Whole
Town Talking,” the Clios
gave “The Dust of the
Earth,” and the Psiphel-
ians gave “The New
Poor” to close the stage
season in April that year.
During the 1926-27
term the four literary so
cieties gave programs,
but they were apparently
no plays, and the Maroon
WHEN PLAYERS OFFERED ^MEDEA’
Pictures are lacking for the earliest productions
of the Elon Players and other cam pus dramatic groups,
but the above picture recalls one of the greatest
and finest of all the Elon Players shows, the pro
duction of the great Greek tragedy of “Medea,”
presented in the early 1950’s under the direction of
Mrs, Elizabeth R. Smith, who was faculty director
of campus dramatic activities for ten years in the
1940’s and 1950’s. The picture shows Mrs. Smith
herself, who had the title role of Medea in addition
to directing the show. Several of the finest student
actors in Elon stage annals had roles in the pre
sentation of “Medea.”
and Gold that year re
veals that Miss Emily
Johnston was head of the
Department of Dramatic
Expression at that time,
with the only plays given
during a two year per
iod being “The Patsy”
and “Second Childhood,”
with large crowds wit
nessing both performan
ces, These plays were
apparently given in Whit
ley Auditorium.
Records are scarce for
the years of 1929, 1930,
1931 and 1932, only rec
ord of any play being of
the presentation of ‘^he
Boomerang” by the Ex
pression Department on
March 1, 1929, It would
seem that the Thespian
spirit was at a low ebb
during those years.
A newly organized dra
matic club, called the
Playmakers of Elon Col
lege appeared in 1932 and
presented “You And 1”
in December under di
rection of Miss Virginia
Fitzhugh. Other shows
that year included three
one-act plays, “The Del
icate Child,” “Lima
Beans” and “The Return
of Buck Gavin.” Also giv
en was a longer play en
titled “Polly With A
Past,”
The Playmakers did not
remain active, and in the
fall of 1934 the Maroon
and Gold told of the re
organization of the dra
matic club, with the name
being changed to the Elon
Players. That was the be
ginning in September of
1934 of the student group
that is still active in dra
matics on the Elon cam
pus today.
The first officers of the
Elon Players back in 1934
were headed by Rebecca
Smith, daughter of Dr.
L. E. Smith, at that time
president of the college.
She was president of the
Players, with Dick Kim
ball, of Manson, vice-
president; and Marcell
Ackenhausen. of Cin
cinnati, Ohio, secretary.
Miss Floyd Childs was
faculty director.
The first play ever giv
en by the E.lon Playe^^s
was “Her Husband ^
Wife,” given in Whitley
on November 22, 1934,an
the next program featurea
three one-act pl^ys
March 31, 1935. They
were “Susan,” Christo
pher Morley’s
day Evening” and
Valiant,” the great one-
act tragedy by Hall an
Middlemass. The Players
also gave a commence
ment play in 1934, pre
senting Sidney Howard ^
“The Late Christopher
Bean.”
(Continued on page