M'Mi- m * IW^** f* V m as MSB iJufMwj»i.. '•.<--'r' ULU*- h in\ It -fi i-Hl;"" - > 3!^<( --V *t ■1 ■llli Si" , l>". 'tum •■tts IV uw ItSff H msm it ,t w*B>« ''t tr »» ». iHiibJbtii'.rt {«■< "■» , - A- ?S * ■ ^ J*** : : '- 'A .•fc »♦* lir;h* ft >« ?y ' :I ^i ' mm If:. '• '"••Mi «♦ 41 « i. *■# - *** « > 11^ tJjT ** * fc* ^ ^ **<. «•« * *««■«»' "^rr •i 13- '1 i'i'S"" It' Mr J. Harper and members of the orchestra for 'Tom Sawyer'. "ADVENTURE STORY" The Dramatic Society's second offering of the year was Mr Phil Taylor's lavish production of the Terence Rattigan play "Adventure Story". The action of the play extends over a period roughly from B.C. 336 to B.C. 323, and deals with the rise and fall of Alexander the Great. The play deals with the boundless energy, the turmoil, the compassion, the despotism and the megalomania of a general who was born a millennium before his time, who conquered and civilised the entire 'known' world, and who was instrumental in bringing the once tiny Macedonia into the forefront of history. So grand a subject cannot be treated skimpily, and Rattigan's script requires a lavish set reflecting the opulence of the period. It contains no fewer than eight major set changes during the course of the play. The set for the Kearsney production exceeded all expectations. Cleverly constructed by Mr Mike Griffithsand his team, painstakingly painted by Mrs Carol Tullidge and her team of 'helpers' and sumptuously decorated by Mrs Pat van Loggerenberg and Mr Carel van Loggerenberg, this set must be classified as the best Kearsney has produced. Minute attention was paid to detail and hundreds of authentic looking props were con structed or borrowed to add to the overall stunning effect. Mr Taylor, a producer of no mean talent, managed to mould the production into a unified whole, working forthe most part with inexperienced actors. Rowan Thompson as Alexander was excellent, and perfectly cast for the part. Other noteworthy performances were given by Carol Taylor as the Pythia, Shirley Zerf as the Queen Mother of Persia, James Dee as Philotas, Michael Gritten as Cleitus and Jonathan Burns (who is in Form 3) as Hephaestien. The rest of the cast varied in effectiveness. It is unfortunate, perhaps, that the play was staged so late in the year, because the production on this scale demands the full dedication of the cast, an enormous amount of work by the producer and backstage workers (about sixty people in all were involved in some way or another), and, above all, deserves larger audiences than the time of the year allowed with the matric examination loom ing not faron the horizon. B. TUCKER m m Rowan Thompson (Alexander) and Michael Gritten (Cleitus) in a scene from 'Adventure Story'. 19
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