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Welwyn Garden City


Welwyn Drama Festival 1939 - programme

Published: 1939 by the Welwyn Festival Association

Format: Paperback 10¾" by 8½" with 28 pages
 


(Click image to enlarge)

This is the programme for the 11th annual Welwyn Drama Festival which was held at the Welwyn Theatre in the summer 1939. There were 23 plays — four per night with three on the final night which was a Saturday. The performers were competing for the Welwyn Drama Cup plus 7 guineas prize money for first place. The Welwyn Theatre was a Shipman & King cinema, used from time to time for live theatre, in Parkway, Welwyn Garden City. The programme front cover design is by Stanley Herbert.
 
 

     
 

11th ANNUAL

Welwyn Drama Festival


 
and Competition for

THE WELWYN DRAMA CUP

(Presented by L. T. M. Gray, Esq.)


 
WELWYN THEATRE

(Licensees — SHIPMAN & KING)


 
May 15th to 20th, 1939, at 7.45 p.m.

  
     

 

     
 

THE ADJUDICATOR


Photo: Angus McBean

MR MICHAEL MACOWAN

After spending seven years as an actor, turned to production, and produced for two seasons at the Hull Repertory Theatre. Then went to the Old Vic as assistant producer to Henry Cass, and Director of the Dramatic School. After two years at the Old Vic took over the direction of the Westminster Theatre under Mr Anmer Hall. During the last three years has done fifteen productions at the Westminster Theatre-including A Month in the Country, Uncle Vanya, Mourning Becomes Electra, Volpone, You Never Can Tell, and Dangerous Corner.
 
     

 

     
 

FOREWORD

PREPARATIONS for the Eleventh Welwyn Drama Festival were started shortly after September last, and they have proceeded through the subsequent months of crisis and international tension. This disturbed atmosphere has not, however, affected the success of the week, and we have this year received more applications to take part than in any past festival. To the teams for whom we could not find room we offer our apologies and wishes for better luck next time.

Five teams are competing for the first time, and these, whom we warmly welcome are Letchworth Drama Club, Brook Green Players, The Company of Ten, the Londoners, and the Leslie Barefoot Players.

Welwyn Folk Players have now the distinction of being the only club to take part in every Welwyn Festival since 1928.

The organizers take this opportunity of thanking all those who have contributed to the success of the festival, particularly Mr C. H. Ball, Messrs Shipman & King, and the Theatre Management and Staff, Mrs M. Selley, Welwyn Stores (1929) Limited, Mr ]ohn Bourne, editor of Theatrecraft, the Advertisers, the Stewards, and Front of the House Staff, and the many other voluntary workers.

THE main conditions imposed upon competitors are: No play must take more than forty minutes to perform, and all plays must be given in a standard curtain set, with the minimum of flats. No prize will be awarded to a society for the presentation of a play with which that society has already won any prize in any competition. The marking basis is the same as the current scale in use at the Community Theatre Festival of the British Drama League, viz: Acting 40%, Production 30%, Choice of Play 10%, Stage Presentation 10%, Dramatic Achievement 10%.

Mr Michael MacOwan, the Adjudicator, will give a preliminary criticism after each evening's performances, and after his final adjudication on Saturday night, the following awards will be made:

1.
For the best representation of a play during the Festival, the L. T. M. Gray Cup (Holders, Guild of Abbey Players), to be held for one year, and £7 7s.
 
2.
For the teams placed second, the Amateur Theatre trophy (Holders, Stanley Gardens D. S.), to be held for one year, and £5 5s.
 
3.
For the team placed third, £3 3s.
 
4.
For the best unpublished play that has not been professionally performed, £3 3s. This prize is awarded on the merits of the play itself, and not upon its performance.
 
     

 

     
 

WELWYN DRAMA FESTIVAL

organized by
WELWYN FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION
(Limited by Guarantee)

CHAIRMAN
F. J. OSBORN

HON. FESTIVAL SECRETARY
R. BREWER		 HON. BUSINESS MANAGER
P. E. H. CHAMBERS
 
HON. STAGE DIRECTOR
A. J. SMITH		 HON. TREASURER
W. H. WASHINGTON

F. HERBERT      C. L. HINTON      L. T. M. GRAY, Ph.D.      ALEX REEVE
MRS HUMPHREY TOULMIN
STAGE MANAGER FOR SHIPMAN & KING
JAMES PARNABY		 HON. COMPETITORS' STEWARDS
FRANCES BREWER and C. L. HINTON

FESTIVAL REUNION

After the final adjudication on Saturday, there will be a Festival Reunion and Dance at the Cherry Tree Ballroom. Tickets 1s. from any of the Front of House Staff or Mrs Buckeridge, Welwyn Stores (1929) Limited.
 
     

 

     
 

The 23 teams and the 23 plays

In the programme, for each play, the names of the characters appearing are given, and, in addition, for most of the plays, the names of the actors expected to perform on the night. Below I have listed just the companies, the plays and the authors.

Watford Repertory Company The Pretty Toys F. Sladen Smith
Welwyn Thalians The Man Who Was Ready Richard Carol
The Harlequins Club (London) The Dark Lady of the Sonnets George Bernard Shaw
"Q" Players (Hertford) Carrion-Crow Leonard J. Hines & Frank King
Welwyn Garden City Girl Guides Tobias and The Angel James Bridie
The Charity Players (Harrow) Sordid Story J. A. S. Coppard
Stanley Gardens Dramatic Society (London) Allison's Lad B. M. Dix
Unity Theatre (London) Plant in the Sun Ben Bengal
Letchworth Drama Club One Evening at Nero's A. J. Talbot
Welwyn Drama Club Puppet Show Sydney Box
The Marylebone Dramatic Society The Fortieth Man Freda Collins
Brook Green Players (Hammersmith) The Gods at Rest Frank Carpenter
The Settlement Players (Letchworth) Solomon's Folly Sydney Box
Rodney Dramatic Club Bring Me my Bow Sydney Box
Welwyn Stores Staff Association 9 10-Late Dorothy Carr
The British Drama League (Harpenden Group) White Queen, Red Queen T. B. Morris
Bedford Dramatic Club Hands Across The Sea Noel Coward
Beckenham Stagers Vassals Departing Stuart Ready
The Company of Ten (St Albans) The Sword is Double-Edged Arthur H. Swinson
The Londoners Her Affairs in Order Mada Gage Bolton
Guild of Abbey Players (Abingdon) Foreign Body Geoffrey Trease
Leslie Barefoot Players (Ipswich) The Hands of Hardouin Jean Sartène
Welwyn Folk Players The Time is Not Ripe D. Hart-Davidson
 
     

 

     
 

Some 1939 advertisements from the programme

(Click on the images to enlarge)