The Old Vic Company: "A Midsummer Night's Dream"

              THE PLAYBOARD
CHICAGO'S THEATRE MAGAZINE
The Old Vic Company

Figure


A Midsummer Night's Dream

Opera House
Chicago




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Across the Boards
with Clare Powers
How big is too big, in the theater?  At what point, in terms of production, does quantity jeopardize quality?  Is extravaganza, per se, a dangerous thing?

The answers, of course, have always been obvious to all but the confirmed lily-gilders, for extravaganza, after all, conflicts with art only when employed for its own sake.  There is, however, a certain luxury these days in pondering the whole question again, atypical as it is of a theatrical era marked by inflated costs and skimpily-mounted shows, and for that luxury Chicago theatergoers can thank the Old Vic, whose sumptuously-staged revival of A Midsummer Night's Dream occupies the Opera House through Dec. 5.

Sumptuous, indeed, is the word for this British import, for it utilizes 42 actors, 60 musicians, 28 dancers and a formidable 13 tons of scenery, but then who will deny that extravaganza is the very stuff of dreams?  If this be gilding the Shakespearean lily, it has, for substantiation, an impressive tradition beginning with Mendelssohn's musical setting of the fantasy in 1826 and embracing the efforts of various modern stage directors—notably the late Max Reinhardt—who have looked upon the Dream not as an excuse for grandeur but as a demand for it.

Not the least of these is the Old Vic's Michael Benthal, who conceived the present production, with its incorporation of the hour-long Mendelssohn score and a full-scale ballet as well, back in 1948 while staging the comedy at Stratford-on-Avon.  Recorded portions of the music were used as background, but, Mr. Benthal later reported, he fell in love with it and felt it brought the play marvelously alive.

Enlarging upon an initial desire for a production that would set the Dream to the full musical score, Mr. Benthal next decided on casting dancers as the sprites, in the interests of achieving a more ethereal effect.  From these two premises grew the present revival, which its director has described as more closely resembling the great court masques of the 17th and 18th centuries than anything in the straight classical theater.

If such extravagance be dangerous, clearly its biggest hazard is in the fiscal department, as proof of which consider that the Old Vic's Dream devours $55,000 worth of operating revenue each week, according to the manager of its American tour, S. Hurok.  That this play has an affinity for such spectacular treatment undoubtedly explains why, when the current production arrived on Broadway last September, it provided the first look New York theatergoers had had at the fantasy since Mr. Reinhardt arrived from Germany with mountains of scenery and a veritable army of actors for a circular stage version in 1927.

Locally A Midsummer Night's Dream has not been seen in a major production since 1934, when the same Mr. Reinhardt came on from the West Coast (but by-passed New York) with another lavish effort, this one spawned in the Hollywood Bowl and subsidized by the state of California.  Loop theatergoers with long memories may recall an ingenue named Olivia DeHavilland as its Hermia and a 13-year-old Mickey Rooney scoring a personal triumph as its Puck.

Both were on hand in 1935 when the famed German director, making a much-heralded Hollywood debut that was, ironically, to turn into his swan song, transferred this production to the screen.  This cinematic Dream (whose fantasy extended to the casting of such singular Shakespearean actors as James Cagney, Anita Louise, Dick Powell, Joe E. Brown and the late Ross Alexander) became a nightmare from which Mr. Reinhardt never was allowed to awaken.  Produced at staggering expense to the Brothers Warner, the film failed on its own mammoth terms, becoming one of the biggest boxoffice fiascos in motion picture history and, pathetically, ending the Reinhardt career.

Happily, the Old Vic spectacle shows no signs of following suit.  A brief engagement at the Metropolitan Opera House brought a tidy profit to the show, and it has subsequently breezed its tax-exempt way across the land, playing to huge audiences in such gargantuan houses as the Academy of Music, Philadelphia, the War Memorial, San Francisco, and the Shrine auditorium, Los Angeles.

Clearly the Old Vic's Dream is a big one.  But, in terms of its stated intent and the apparent condition of its balance sheet, the Dream is not too big for its own good.




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CHICAGO'S THEATRE MAGAZINE
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WEEK BEGINNING SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1954
MATINEES · SATURDAY and SUNDAY

S. HUROK
presents
by arrangement with Old Vic Trust Ltd. and the Arts Council of Great Britain

THE OLD VIC COMPANY
MOIRA SHEARER
ROBERT HELPMANN   STANLEY HOLLOWAY
IN
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

by William Shakespeare
with music by Mendelssohn, arranged by Gordon Jacob




Figure

Traditionally yours … HENRICI's
• Since 1868, the greats of the Chicago stage have known … and loved … HENRICI'S.  Here, over the giant steaks of Diamond Jim Brady's era … or the lighter after-theater snacks of today … many a wonderful moment of the theater has been re-lived and re-loved.

• And that's what will be going on … at HENRICI'S … tonight!  Drop in for a meal, a sandwich, or a fancy waffle — with the world's finest cup of coffee.  See for yourself why so many folks say … The climax of an evening at the Theater — is HENRICI'S!

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S. HUROK
presents
by arrangement with Old Vic Trust Ltd. and the Arts Council of Great Britain



THE OLD VIC COMPANY
Directed by MICHAEL BENTHALL
Costumes by ROBIN and CHRISTOPHER IRONSIDE
Choreography by ROBERT HELPMANN
with
Nocturne arranged by FREDERICK ASHTON

Orchestra conducted by HUGO RIGNOLD
Guest Conductor: Arthur Lief



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The Allegro School of Ballet
will present excerpts from
THE SLEEPING BEAUTY BALLET

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The Allegro

SCHOOL of BALLEY

Arranged by
LORNA MOSSFORD

Former soloist
SADLER'S WELLS BALLET
Danced by members of the Senior school

BELINDA'S BIRTHDAY
Choreography by LORNA MOSSFORD
Danced by members of the Junior school
in
Kimball Hall
Wednesday, December 29, 2:00 P.M.

For Further Information Write or Call, Marie M. Comstock, President Jackson at Wabash Kimball Hall Bldg. Chicago 4 Telephone WA bash 2—6914



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CAST
(CHARACTERS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE)

MORTALS


THESEUS, Duke of Athens
ANTHONY NICHOLLS


HIPPOLYTA, Queen of the Amazons, betrothed to Theseus
MARGARET COURTENAY


PHILOSTRATE, master of the revels to Theseus
PETER JOHNSON


EGEUS, father to Hermia
JOHN DEARTH


HERMIA, daughter to Egeus, in love with Lysander
ANN WALFORD


DEMETRIUS, in love with Hermia
PATRICK MACNEE


LYSANDER, in love with Hermia
TERENCE LONGDON






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PRE-BALLET CLASSES FOR CHILDREN AGE 4–7

All classes carefully graded and based on the principles of the SADLER'S WELLS SCHOOL OF BALLET and personally conducted by Richard Ellis and Christine Du Boulay, formerly soloists with the Sadler's Wells Ballet Company.

For jurther information call or write
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MORTALS


HELENA, in love with Demetrius
JOAN BENHAM


QUINCE, a carpenter
ELIOT MAKEHAM


BOTTOM, a weaver
STANLEY HOLLOWAY


FLUTE, a bellows mender
PHILIP LOCKE


STARVELING, a tailor
DANIEL THORNDIKE


SNOUT, a tinker
NORMAN ROSSINGTON


SNUG, a joiner
MICHAEL REDINGTON





The Management is not responsible for personal apparel or property of patrons unless properly checked with the theatre attendant.




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AFTER THEATER MIDNIGHT SHOW also Nightly at 8:30

the INCOMPARABLE
Hildspards and Jack Whiting
With
Howard Fenton • Gene Bone
Robert Norris Violin Accompanist
EMPIRE EIGHT
CHARLIE FISK and his orchestra
Call FRITZ RA.6 7722 Empire Room
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PUCK, or ROBIN GOODFELLOW
PHILIP GUARD


A FAIRY
JOCELYN BRITTON


OBERON
ROBERT HELPMANN


TITANIA
MOIRA SHEARER


PEASEBLOSSOM
JOCELYN BRITTON






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TANIA d'AVRAY


MOTH
SHEILA WRIGHT


MUSTARDSEED
JOAN KING


INDIAN BOY
RUDOLFO CORNEJO





Court Attendants, Pages, Musicians, Wedding Guests, etc.: Phyllis Harcourt, Vivienne Hetzel, Barbara Leigh-Hunt, Rosemary Moore, Gillian Neason, Jane Shore, Suzanne Steele, Betty Shale, Elisabeth Wade, Anne Wilson Ivan Baptie, Jeremy Geidt, David Hurst, David Harding, Michael Hayes, William Martin, Kenneth Melville, David Reynolds, David Rose, David Stevens, Sven van Zyl

Corps de Ballet: Valerie Adams, Jocelyn Britton, Mary Brookes, Louise Carley, Tania d'Avray, Nadia de Lichtenberg, Juliet Ellice, Mary Fenwick, Phyllis Harcourt, Vivienne Hetzel, Joan King, Margaret Knoesen, Lana Kassinova, Rosemary Moore, Joanne Nisbet, Jane Shore, Josephine Spaull, Sheila Wright Ivan Baptie, David Harding, David Hurst, William Martin, Kenneth Melville, Henry Naughton, David Reynolds, Seven van Zyl

Singers: Gillian Neason, Suzanne Steele, Elisabeth Wade, Anne Wilson



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Intermission
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SYNOPSIS

PART I.

THE PROLOGUE
The Terrace of Theseus' Palace, Athens. Quince's shop, Athens.

THE OVERTURE

THE DREAM

A Wood near Athens.

INTERMISSION




PART II.

THE DREAM
Other parts of the wood.

INTERMISSION




PART III.

THE WEDDING
The Palace of Theseus.





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Figure

Role Call for the cast

MOIRA SHEARER
It was some six years ago that Moira Shearer's spell first began to exert itself beyond England's borders in her famous movie The Red Shoes.  Already known to English audiences as a ballerina with the Sadler's Wells Ballet, it was in 1949 and again in 1950 that American audiences caught up with their London counterparts.  Since then Miss Shearer's only appearances on this side of the Atlantic have been in the films The Tales of Hoffmann and The Story of Three Loves.  Born in Dunfermline, Fifeshire, Scotland, the actress-ballerina was educated at Dunfermline High School; Ndola, Rhodesia, and Bearsden Academy near Glasgow.  She studied dramatics at Flora M. Fairbairn's Theatre School and took ballet lessons with Mme.  Nadine Legat.  When she was 15, Miss Shearer made her first appearance on the stage at the Alhambra Theatre, Glasgow, with the International Ballet under Mona Inglesby, and later that year made her London debut with the same company.  One year later, the Sadler's Wells Ballet beckoned, and, a few weeks after joining that noted organization, she danced her first roles in Les Sylphides and The Gods Go A-Begging.  She appeared regularly with Sadler's Wells during the remainder of the war and in 1945 she was elevated to ballerina status, performing major roles in The Nutcracker and Spectre de la Rose.  Since then her repertoire has included the ballerina roles in Swan Lake, Coppelia, Giselle, Cinderella, and with Roland Petit, Carmen.  She has also created important roles in Frederick Ashton's Symphonic Variations, Ninette de Valois' Promenade and in Robert Helpmann's Miracle in the Gorbals.  Miss Shearer completed a new movie in June of this year, The Man Who Loved Redheads, based on a story by Terence Rattigan.  In private life she is the wife of Ludovic Kennedy, the writer, and is the mother of a two-year-old girl, Ailsa Margaret.



ROBERT HELPMANN
As dancer, actor, choreographer and director, Robert Helpmann occupies a unique position in the English theatre.  American ballet audiences welcomed him in his appearances here with the Sadler's Wells Ballet in 1949 and 1950.  Broadway has admired his acting opposite Katharine Hepburn in The Millionairess and with Sir Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh in Michael Benthall's productions of Caesar and Cleopatra and Antony and Cleopatra.  The films The Red Shoes, Tales of Hoffmann, One of Our Aircraft Is Missing, Caravan, and Henry V have featured him in prominent roles.  Born in South Australia and educated at Prince Alfred's College, Adelaide, Mr. Helpmann made his stage debut at the Theatre Royal, Adelaide, as a solo dancer, later appearing as an actor in This Year of Grace and The Barretts of Wimpole Street.  He came to London in 1931 and, with his performance as Satan in the ballet Job, established himself as the principal male dancer - of the Sadler's Wells Ballet.  In addition to his heavy schedule of dance performances, he created such ballets as Hamlet, Miracle in the Gorbals, Adam Zero, and Comus for the Wells.  Meanwhile, Mr. Helpmann was not neglecting the theatre.  He first played Oberon with the Old Vic in 1937.  He performed the title part in Hamlet, one of his most famous roles, at the New Theatre in 1944 and played the part again at the Stratford Festival in 1948, at which time he also played King John and Shylock.  In 1947, in association with Michael Benthall, he undertook the artistic direction of the Duchess Theatre, performing in The White Devil and He Who Gets Slapped.  Recently Mr. Helpmann has staged Le Coq d'Or and Madame Butterfly for London's Royal Opera, Murder in the Cathedral for the Old Vic, and, last spring, Noel Coward's new musical, After the Ball.





OPERA HOUSE · DEC. 25 to JAN. 2
Triumphant Return Of The Greatest Name In Ballet!

Figure



THE ONE AND ONLY
Ballet Russe de Monte Carla
SERGEI DENHAM, Director
World's Greatest Bevy of Ballerinas

TALLCHIEF · NOVAK · TYVEN · CHOUTEAU · BOROWSKA

FREDERIC FRANKLIN · LEON DANIELIAN


Figure


New Stars!  New Ballets!



REPERTOIRE


SAT. EVE., DEC. 25:
Swan Lake, *The Mikado Pas de Deux, Gaite Parisienne.


SUN. MAT., DEC. 26:
Les Sylphides, Don Quixote Pas de Deux, The Nutcracker.


SUN. EVE., DEC. 26:
*The Mikado, Ballet Imperial, Don Quixote Pas de Deux, Le Beau Danube.


MON. EVE., DEC. 27:
Les Sylphides Pas de Deux, The Mute Wife, Gaite Parisienne.


TUE. EVE., DEC. 28:
Swan Lake, Don Quixote Pas de Deux, *Harold in Italy, *Raymonda.


WED. EVE., DEC. 29:
Coppelia, Black Swan Pas de Deux, Gaite Parisienne.


THUR. EVE., DEC. 30:
*Harold in Italy, Ballet Imperial, Capriccio Espagnol.


NEW YEAR'S EVE:
*The Mikado, Cirque de Deux, Madronos, Gaite Parisienne.


SAT. EVE., JAN. 1:
*Harold in Italy Pas de Deux, Scheherazade, *The Mikado


SUN. MAT., JAN. 2:
Cppelia, Cirque de Deux, Madronos.


SUN. EVE., JAN. 2:
*The Mikado Pas de Deux, *Harold in Italy, Gaite Parisienne.



*New   Programs Subject to Change.




TICKETS NOW BY MAIL ONLY — BOX OFFICE SALE STARTS DEC. 1

OPENING NIGHT PRICES—DEC. 25
Main Floor: 5.00, 4.00, 3.00; First Balc. 3.50, 3.00, 2.50; Upper Balc. 2.00 & 1.50.



EVES. (Exc. Opening & New Year's Eve): Main Floor 4.00, 3.50, 3.00; First Balc. 3.50, 3.00, 2.50; Upper Balc. 2.00 & 1.50.  MATINEES (Dec. 26 & Jan. 2) Main Floor 3.50, 3.00, 2.50; First Balc. 3.00, 2.50, 2.00; Upper Balc. 2.00 & 1.50.  Make Check Payable to OPERA HOUSE, 20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago 6, Ill., and enclose stamped and self-addressed envelope.




NEW YEAR'S EVE
Main Floor: 6.00, 5.00, 4.00; First Balc. 5.00, 4.00, 3.00; Upper Balc. 2.50 & 2.00.




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INTERMISSION
Everything Known in Music, a slogan which is familiar in connection with the name Lyon & Healy to this day.

After several catastrophies, including the great Chicago fire in 1871, the company went on to patent and produce the Lyon & Healy harp in 1889.  This was the first harp that was really acceptable to the music profession, and to the present day the world comes to Chicago for the harp, as Lyon & Healy is the only manufacturer of this glorious voiced instrument.

Lyon & Healy was also the first music store to introduce the upright piano, but pianola (player piano) and Edison's gramaphone which they not only displayed but widely advertised as well.  They were one of the first to sponsor a radio program and in 1922 the following ad appeared in a Chicago paper Duo-Art and Orchestra Radio Program presented by Lyon & Healy, weather conditions permitting.  In 1935



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Figure





ROLE CALL

STANLEY HOLLOWAY
Although Stanley Holloway's performance as Bottom marks his debut on the American stage, the popular actor's portrayals in a number of memorable British motion pictures have won him a legion of admirers in the U.S. Among the many film productions in which he has appeared prominently are The Lavender Hill Mob, Caesar and Cleopatra, Brief Encounter, Hamlet, This Happy Breed, Passport to Pimlico and Nicholas Nickelby.  He returned to the English stage last season to play Captain Hook in Peter Pan.  Mr. Holloway originally intended to become an opera singer and on the way to realizing this objective became a choir boy and then a soloist on the stage.  He still has the original playbill announcing him as the Boy Soprano.  When his voice broke, he went into Concert Parties, singing straight songs but introducing humor to vary the act.  His big break came in 1921 when he joined the famous Co-Optimists as a baritone vocalist.  When he emerged from that phenomenally successful show six years later, it was as an established comedian.  He returned to the Co-Optimist for its revival in 1929 and made his motion picture bow when the show was filmed.  It was in this film that Sam Small made his movie debut.  Sam Small is the character created by Mr. Holloway to express his famous monologues.  Sam has appeared on the stage, in films, on television, radio and records and before royalty.



MICHAEL BENTHALL
Michael Benthall, as Director of the Old Vic, is responsible for the policy and artistic direction of the organization.  His first connection with the Old Vic was in 1944 when he directed a production of Hamlet jointly with Tyrone Guthrie.  During that year and the following he was responsible for the scenarios of two ballets for the Sadler's Wells Ballet—Miracle in the Gorbals and Adam Zero.  He has had considerable experience in the field of Opera production, having directed Turandot, Aida and The Queen of Spades at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and Don Pasquale at the Cambridge Theatre, London.  At the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-on-Avon, he has been responsible for many productions including The Merchant of Venice (1947), King John, Hamlet and The Taming of the Shrew (1948), A Midsummer Night's Dream and Cymbeline (1949) and The Tempest (1951).  In 1952 he directed The Millionairess with Katharine Hepburn in London and later in New York; other plays which he has directed include The White Devil, Master of Arts, She Stoops To Conquer (for the Old Vic Company in 1949), As You Like It in New York in 1950, and that same year, Golden City, a musical play which was presented in London.  In 1951 he directed Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra and Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh.  He became director of the Old Vic in 1953 and launched the plan to perform within five years all the thirty-six plays in the First Folio of Shakespeare.  Last season he was personally responsible for the direction of Hamlet, All's Well That Ends Well and Coriolanus.  This year's repertoire was launched with Macbeth.





Figure

Town & Country
COCKTAIL LOUNGE
Your favorite cocktails in an atmosphere combining city sophistication and country charm

PALMER HOUSE
CHICAGO




INTERMISSION
they went on to introduce the spinet piano and the Hammond Organ both of which have become America's favorite instruments.  Today Lyon & Healy displays every dependable instrument made and has truly earned the right to the now world-famous slogan, Everything Known in Music.

Although CARVEN perfume is now a very treasured fragrance with fastidious American women, it originated, not so very long ago, in France.  In 1946, to be exact, and its brief history is an interesting one.  Just after the war French-women were marking time … still prizing the part good clothes and perfumes had played in their lives and hoping for something new and exciting to happen in the world of fashion.  It did.

Mme. Carven, galvanic dress designer, already noted for her fresh approach to clothes, decided to break further with the past and create perfumes that were neither heavy nor light girlish florals.  ma griffe, loosely translated as my signature, was first.  Teasing, haunting, at once young and sophisticated, it clung to the memory as it did to the body.  Returning travelers, falling in love with it abroad, were the ones who were responsible for its debut in this country.  They predicted it would set a new trend—that it was like nothing else they had ever used.  If you have never had it … try it!  Wear ma griffe night and day; it is always in good taste.  Splash on the long lasting cologne in the morning and trust it to stay with you all through the day.  The perfume is for special effects.  As stirring on furs as on the skin, ma griffe has a way of becoming part of you—en effet, your signature.

Next came Mme. Carven's subtle robe d'un soir (gown of one evening).  Drier, more formal than ma griffe, it is frankly for the discriminating.  Enhancing you even at your loveliest.  Its enigmatic fragrance will set you apart, for there is no other perfume resembling it.  Even its name, robe d'un soir, is different, a conversation piece.  Its meaning delightfully illustrated on the box.  The train of a woman's evening gown is being stepped on and torn by her escort.  A gay and vibrant Frenchwoman's idea of the joy of pursuit—even at the expense of a beautiful dress!  The cologne is concentrated.  Wear it alone or to cleverly supplement the perfume.

Both ma griffe and robe d'un soir, bottled and packaged in France, are strikingly decorated with diagonal stripes of fresh mint green and white.  Purse flacons in tiny hand-sewn taffeta bags, striped to match.  Perfect for gifts.



THE PLAYBOARD
VOLUME 2   NUMBER 9
NOVEMBER 25, 1954



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Figure


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ALLIED ARTS CORPORATION
HARRY ZELZER, Managing Director, Presents AT ORCHESTRA HALL

Saturday Evening, Dec. 4—8:30 P.M.

The ROBERT SHAW CHORALE and ORCHESTRA ROBERT SHAW, Conductor


I do not know his equal in the Choral field today.
Virgil Thomson—N. Y. Herald-Tribune

Tickets: $1.90, $4.40



Sunday Afternoon, Dec. 5—3:30 P.M.

MARIAN ANDERSON America's Great Contralto

Tickets: $1.90, $2.50, $3.75, $5.00



Friday Evening, Dec. 10—8:30 P.M.

YMA SUMAC
and Her Company of INCAN Dancers-Musicians

Tickets: $1.75, $2.50, $3.75, $4.40



Sun. Afternoon, Dec. 19—3:30 P.M.

ARTUR RUBINSTEIN World Famous Pianist

Tickets: $1.90, $3.75, $5.00



Sunday Afternoon, Jan. 2—3:30 P.M.

RICHARD TUCKER Leading Tenor
Metropolitan Opera Company

Tickets: $1.75, $2.50, $3.75, $5.00



Sunday Afternoon, Jan. 9—3:30 P.M.

IGOR GORIN World Famous Baritone

Tickets: $1.75, $2.50, $3.00, $3.75



Saturday Evening, Jan. 15—8:30 P.M.

I MUSICI

Bravi, Bravissimi, a perfect orchestra!

—Arturo Toscanini

Tickets: $1.75, $2.50, $3.00, $3.75



Sun. Afternoon, Jan. 16—3:30 P.M.

LEON FLEISHER Outstanding Pianist

Tickets: $1.75, $2.50, $3.00, $3.75



Tickets go on sale at Box Office three weeks before each attraction
FOR GOOD SEATS MAIL YOUR ORDERS NOW TO:
ALLIED ARTS CORPORATION
20 N. Wacker Drive, Chicago 6, Illinois   Phone: FR anklin 2-0566
Please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope with mail orders.





CREDITS
Costumes made in the Old Vic Wardrobe, under the direction of Dinah Greet, by Morgan Rendell, Joanna Banks and Sonia Fory.  Other costumes made by Scott Gray, Carl Bonn, Annette Ingold.  Helmets and accessories by Jean Davis and Eric Gates.  Painting by Jennifer Leycester and Peter Hampton.  Shoes by Anello and Davide.  Ballet shoes by Frederick Freed.  Nylon supplied by Frymann and Fleicher Ltd. Wigs by Nathanwigs.  Wings for Miss Shearer and Mr. Helpmann by Hugh Skillen.  Flowers by Windrams and Burt Bros.  Scenery made by Brunskill and Loveday and Old Vic, painted by Alick Johnstone, Harker Bros. and John Collins.  Props made by Helen Thomas, Brian H. Jackson, Stanley Morris and Pat Paxon.  Flying equipment by Joseph Kirby.  Draperies by W. W. Turner & Co. Ltd.  Make-up by Max Factor Ltd.



FOR A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM COMPANY


Business Manager
Douglas Morris


Stage Director
Mick Orr


Stage Manager
David Turnbull


Assistant Stage Manager
Michael Bell


Ballet Mistress
Barbara Fewster


Master Carpenter & Prop Master
Alan Wilkinson


Chief Electrician
Bill McGee


Wardrobe Mistress
Rudolfine Nerepka





FOR THE OLD VIC, LONDON


Production Manager
J. A. Titcombe


Publicity Manager
Patrick Ide





UNDERSTUDIES
When understudies perform, announcement will be made from the stage prior to the performance.

For Miss Shearer: Jane Shore; For Mr. Helpmann: David Reynolds; For Mr. Holloway: Michael Hayes; For Mr. Makeham: Jeremy Geidt; For Mr. Guard: David Stevens; For Miss Benham: Barbara Leigh-Hunt; For Miss Walford: Gillian Neason; For Mr. Longdon: David Rose; For Mr. Johnson: Michael Bell; For Miss Britton: Louise Carley



STAFF FOR S. HUROK


Administrators
Mae Frohman and Walter Prude


Company Manager
Edward Haas


General Press Representative
Martin Feinstein


Advance Representative
Gertrude Bromberg


Ticket Coordinator
Molle Regan


Executive Secretary
Anne Opperman


Promotion Assistant
Michael Sweeley


Master Carpenter
Ronald King


Assistant Carpenter
George H. Lonkey


Master Electrician
Louis E. Baer


Property Master
William Downing


Assistant Property Master
Frank Snyder


Wardrobe Mistress
Augusta Besand





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… all the story of the night, told over in the 1954 original cast performance by the Old Vic Company on RCA Victor New Orthophonic High Fidelity Records

what masque?  Now A Midsummer Night's Dream truly performed as the fond pageant Shakespeare intended it to be in the Old Vic Company 1954 production with Moira Shearer—Robert Helpmann—Stanley Holloway.  Directed by Michael Benthall.

what music?  Enchanting, bewitching music … Mendelssohn's complete score played by BBC orchestra, Sir Malcolm Sargent, conducting.

COMPLETE PLAY WITH MUSIC

3 Record Long Play New Orthophonic High Fidelity Album $17.85

HIGHLIGHTS OF DRAMA AND MUSIC

1 Record Long Play New Orthophonic High Fidelity Album … $5.95

EXCERPTS OF DRAMA AND MUSIC

2 Record 45 EP New Orthophonic High Fidelity Album … $2.99

William Shakespeare's
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM


Figure


Prices suggested list, including Federal Excise tax.  Add local tax.

RCA VICTOR
FIRST IN RECORDED MUSIC

RCA ®


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ALLIED PRINTING
TRADES UNION LABEL COUNCIL


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As the curtain rises…

Figure


Lights dim … the orchestra strikes up the overture … suddenly, we are witness to the purest form of human expression—the dance.  No less an art than the dance itself, is the design and manufacture of footwear and dress for the performer.  Trademark of perfection is the Leo label chosen by so many stars and teachers of stars-to-be.  To those who dance, Leo is the symbol of craftsmanship and unending improvement earned through thirty-three years of creative leadership in the art of making dance apparel.

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