Patriotic Plays and Pageants for Young PeopleMackay, Constance D'Arcy
History
Patriotic Plays and Pageants for Young People
Mackay, Constance D'Arcy
Pageants; Patriotic plays, American
In the final procession (if the players choose to have a procession),
The Spirit of Patriotism should march first, and behind her should
follow the other players in the order of their scenes. This preserves
the order of the epochs also, and makes an excellent color scheme--the
tawny yellows and reds of the Indian garb, the dark Puritan costumes,
the pinks and blues of the Colonial period as against the more somber
colors of the settler's homespun, etc., etc. In order to give such a
procession its full effect it should not seem too stiff and
premeditated. Let some of the players march two and two, and then have
some important character walking alone. Sometimes it may be possible to
have a group of three, or a tall young player with two smaller and
younger players, following her. Or again a line of Indians single file.
The properties should be carried in the procession to add to its
effectiveness. The canoe, as if it were still a matter of portage; the
sedan chair of the Duchess of Bourbon; the Indian war-drum used in
"Princess Pocahontas," etc., etc. Needless to say these properties are
carried in the group and epoch in which they belong. If the pageant is
given on a very large scale which includes the Liberty Dance at the
end, all those who took part in the dance should form the end of the
procession. There should be a space between them and the last of the
settlers, as there is between the past and the present. In this space
should walk a figure symbolizing Hope and Joy--a young girl in
draperies of the palest green, and hair bound with a Greek fillet. In
her hands she carries a great laurel wreath.
When the Pageant of Patriots had its first production in Prospect Park,
Brooklyn, the youthful players marched around the great oval outside
which the audience sat, and having circled it once, marched off the
scene. If, however, the future producers of this pageant wish to
reverse this order, it can easily be done, by having the march end in
the final tableau. It is merely a matter of choice.
In the Final Tableau The Spirit of Patriotism should stand on the stage
in the middle foreground, center, and grouped about her should be the
young folk of the various centuries. This scene should be well mapped
out and rehearsed beforehand, so that the ensemble will be splendidly
significant and glowing in its effect, and there should be no clashes
in the color scheme. The notes of "America" should be sung with
tremendous fervor and power.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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