Six Undergraduates Form Committee To Represent Student Theatre Drive

A group of undergraduates yesterday initiated a new committee to serve as the voice of student interest in the recently-accelerated drive for a Harvard theatre.

Entitled the Harvard College Theatre Committee, the new group will seek to "broadcast and demonstrate the widespread student interest in a new theatre both within and outside the Harvard community," chairman Peter H. Judd '53 said yesterday.

Planning for the group was begun late last week following President Pusey's announcement of his support of an active though unofficial campaign for the theatre. Its formation was spurred by the interest of Dean Bundy and John Mason Brown '23, one of the leaders of the drive, in having a student committee to work with the alumni and faculty on this problem.

Judd said the group planned to hold regular meetings with alumni, faculty and members of the governing boards concerned with the theatre drive in order to communicate to them the student concern with this drive.

The group's other plans include a written report on the need for a theatre, a report on undergraduate dramatic activity here during the last few years, and some sort of exhibit and performance at Commencement.

Judd said the group would direct the committee's work particularly towards potential contributors to the theatre. "It seems to me," he said, "that contributions for the theater would come much more rapidly if it is apparent that there is widespread undergraduate interest. We shall try to represent not only the interest of the dramatic clubs, but also that of the community itself, which demands a theatre for the richer fulfillment of its life. We speak not only for the actors and producers, but for the far larger number of local spectators, potential and actual, in advocating the theatre construction."

"The committee will also have suggestions for the technical plans for the theatre and part of its report will be concerned with this aspect."

Members of the committee besides Judd, are: John Martindale '54, vice-president of the Harvard Dramatic Club, Neil Smith '54, HDC president, Richard Heffron '54, Anthony Herrey '54, Michael Maccoby '54 and Benjamin LaFarge '54. Lyon Phelps '51, president of the Poots' Theatre, is an observer on the committee.