TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, Five O'clock Theater Opens Seas&tiWoday When the chimes in the tower pf Old Main, strike five every Tuesday during the spring semester, the curtain, will be rising promptly on another original one-act play being “premiered” in the basement at the Five O’clock Theater. : Aspiring playwrights do mental - flips in the wings and go through the same agonizing “first night jitters” experienced by their professional brothers, while actors wander abo u t the stage with 'script in hand writhing in over whelming tragedy or exchanging a barrage of wit. ■With today's performance, of "Three; Men in a Tub," by 'George Anderson, Five O'clock Theater will celebrate its fifth consecutive season. The brain child of Warren S. Smith, as ■ sociate professor of dramatics, ; the 'theater was founded in 1949 as a- testing ground for begin ;:nihg, playwrights. Smith conceived the venture while reading over the one-act play scripts prepared in his Dram 421 class. “A good play cannot be fullyitested until it is produced and judged .by an audience,” Smith said. The five o’clock hour was selected for curtain time so students could “catch a bit of the .theater on their way home from classes.” Most plays run only 20 or 30 minutes and axf over in time for . students to eat before the College dining halls close. ■ 'Opening audiences were recep tive and word-of-mouth publicity soon brought out the “Standing Room Only” sign to the 125-seat Little Theater. Plays were pre sented only during the spring semester because good scripts were usually limited to 12 or 14 plays turned out by the play wrighting class. “When spring fever overcomes the majority of students, audiences usually de cline,” Smith said, “but the pur pose of the theater is not a full house, but a small, objective audi ence to test the public’s reaction to a play.” Three plays produced ai ihe Five O'clock Theater have won. honors in the University of North Carolina's Play-Likers contest and have been presented there at the annual drama fes- . livals in March. Another play, "For Old Times' Sake," by Man uel Herbert has been published by Samuel French, Inc. Performances are open to every one interested in ~ experimental, theater, Smith said. “Plays, are not,always Pulitzer prize material, and-Five O’clock companies do not pretend they are, but. they, have some dramatic value. Five O’clock is an experimental lab oratory to develop this value.” Authors are introduced after each performance, and the audience, is invited to discuss the merits or demerits of a play with them. ■ Formerly Five O’clock was run by a volunteer “stock company” of Dram 421 students. This year the Drama department has . ex panded the theater into a work shop in stagecraft. When -a play is selected for production a direc tor is chosen from the direction classes of Professors Kelly ; Yea r -ton and Robert D. Reifsneider. Actors from acting technique classes are selected for the cast. A technician is assigned from an advanced lighting class, and a de signer is conscribed from a class in theatrical setting. This season Five O'clock hopes to include simple, sets and costumes. Perhaps if'lime per mits some plays will be recited from memory instead of read scripl-in-hand. Smith said. As general manager, Arch Rugh keeps the aspirin bottle handy to meet the headaches of all the “be hind the scenes” jobs in show i business. On Tuesdays he dashes .around like.an automaton seeing that the theater is cleaned, all the last minute details are straightened out, and the show is ready to open. In addition he handles publicity for the theater and introduces the author to the audience critics. Today’s bill, “Three Men on a Tub,” will star A 1 Kalson. as an earthman who encounters two Martians, Jack Kutz and Ed Rue, aboard a flying saucer. Jolly Os walt will direct the farce. Setting is by Cam Iseman, and George Jason is in charge of lights. Meeting Date Changed The Centre. County Association fon r -Health r and Physical Educa tidfiy’Scheduled to meet tomorrow, By CHIZ MATHIAS Players Hold 2 Wofkshops At/ Tonight Players workshops for two stage crews will begin tonight. Students interested in managing lights will meet at 7 p.m. in the light cage in the basement of Schwab to receive instructions from George Jason, senior manager of light ing. The advertising workshop will be held-' at 7 p.m. in the loft of Schwab under the direction" of Ruth McSparran. Joyce Lupton will be in charge of the props workshop at 7 p.m. tomorrow in the basement of Schwab. Applicants for makeup crews will meet with Prim Die fenderfer and Allen Adair at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow in the makeup room. Frank Baxter will head the workshop in stage sound effects at 7 p.m. tomorrow in the Little Theater, basement of Old Main. ‘ Technical workshops will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday in the loft by Bill Nudorf. Patricia Jen kins will instruct the workshop for costumes at 7 p.m. Thursday in the basement of Schwab. According to Fran Stridinger, Players president, volunteers will be required to attend workshop sessions for a three week period to participate on crews for “Aria de Copa” and “A Phoenix.. .Too Frequent,” beginning at Ceinter Stage Feb. 27, and the next "Sch wab productions, “Lute-Song,” to be given March 12, 13, and 14. ■THE DAILY COLLEGIAN. STATE COLLEGE. PENNSYLVANIA Leonides to Meet Leonides will hold a special meeting at 6:30 tonightin the second floor lounge of Me- Elwain Hall. Vivian Peterson, president, has requested all representatives to be present. Former Society, Wire Editors Wed Saturday Virginia Opoczenski, former society editor of the Daily" Col legian, and Leonard Kolasinski, last year’s wire editor, were mar ried Saturday morning at St. Hilary’s Roman Catholic Church, Washington, Pa. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Opoczenski of Washington, and the groom, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Kola sinski of Shamokin. Given in marriage by her fath er, the bride wore a gown of im ported French chantilly lace over satin. She carried an arm bouquet of white Easter lilies, centered with white orchids. The bride’s sister, Mrs. Quintir Toews, an alumna of the College, was matron, of honor. Constance Melvin, eighth semester dramatics major, was maid of honor. Edward Kolasinski, brother of the groom, was best man, and Albert- Sherdon, alumnus of the College, was an usher. Mrs. Kolasinski was graduated with honors last month. She ma jored in Spanish and was a mem ber of Mortar Board, senior women’s honorary society; Phi Kappa Phi, scholastic honorary society; and Phi Sigma lota, Ro mance language honorary society. Mr. Kolasinski was graduated in _ June in journalism. He was editor of “Who’s in the News' at Penn State,” managing editor of the Student Handbook, and a member of Sigma Delta Chi, men’s professional journalism fraternity. The couple will reside in New Castle, where Mr. Kolasinski works as a reporter. Students to Interpret Literature Tonight The works of Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Irvin Shaw, and Terence Rattigan will be featured in the Reading Hour to be held at 8 tonight in Simmons Hall lounge. Jerome Feinberg, a sixth semester arts and letters major, will read Charles Dickens’ “The Madman’s Story.” A madman reflects on his life in the Dickens’ short story. Twain’s “The Glorious White washer,” the story of Tom Saw yer’s psychology in obtaining his friends’ help in white-washing a fence, will be read by La Rue Fritz, an eighth semester speech major. Excerpts from the play “Bury the Dead,” by Irwin Shaw, will be read by Sally Lowry, eighth sem ester speech major. The plot deals with six soldiers who refuse to be buried. Arthur Rosberg, eighth semes ter political science major, will read excerpts from Terence "Rat tigan’s “O Mistress Mine,” a Broadway hit which starred Al fred Lunt and Lynn Fontaine. Nancy White, a sixth semester home economics major will be chairman for the reading hour. The reading hours, sponsored t ■ the Department of Speech, have oeen held monthly at the College since 1948. The purpose of the reading hours is to provide an outside opportunity for students of Speech 280 and 285 classes to demonstrate their ability in oral interpretation. Participating students are chosen by the members of the speech classes,. and selections are chosen by the students themselves. The reading hours are open to the public. The amount of lipstick used each year by American women would paint 40,000 barns bright red. sew smart... go smart... when the pi are part of the fabric! ABC SCALAPLEET* How wonderful! Here’s a fabric with the fashion built right in! Scalloped pleats are woven into ABC's fabulous cotton ' Scalapleet, and they’ll never disappear! So hand-wash as often as you like! Scalapleet’s Tebiiized to resist wrinkles ... cool and airy as a spring breeze ... in lilting paint-box pastels and deep-toned hues. $1.98 a yard. Egolfs’ Fashions in Fabrics Tickets Now on Sale For Sweetheart Dance Tickets are now on -sale for the Women’s Recreation Associa tion Sweetheart Dance, to be held from 9 -to midnight Saturday in White Hall. Tickets, priced at $1.50 per couple, will be available at the Student Union until noon Saturday. Jack Jenkins will provide the music for the semi-formal girl ask-boy dance. PAGE FIVE
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