HDC Workshop Plan Will Continue in Loeb

The Harvard Dramatic Club will probably retain its function as coordinator of College workshop and training programs when the new Loeb Drama Center opens, Joel F. Henning '61, club president, declared yesterday.

In effect, the HDC will simply move its programs into the Loeb, utilizing all facilities available, particularly the experimental stage. The Faculty recognizes that they have no provision for supplying these training-oriented services themselves, Henning asserted.

Benjamin B. Page '61, president of Gilbert and Sullivan Players, concurred in Henning's prediction. Gilbert and Sullivan, like the Opera Guild, is less concerned with workshops, he explained, and will simply ask for the stage when the HDC is not using it. "As long as they're reasonable, there is no reason why they should not be in charge," Page remarked.

Henning emphasized that the proposed "constitution" for the Loeb is not final, and that there will probably be several changes to bring it more in line with the existing organizational setup. The HDC, he stated, will remain an "absolutely autonomous group."

Henning expressed his approval of the Faculty-student committee for having "the best interests of College drama in mind." Selection of plays, he noted, will not be made by a technical vote, with each student and Faculty member having one ballot. The committee will seek instead to reach a common consent.

Page sharply criticized the provision to give the Faculty effective control over play selection. With production costs in the Loeb so high, however, he conceded that such control is inevitable. "They have simply built too grandiose a theatre," he said.