Another Rosemary Casy won a $5,000 award for "The Velvet Gloves" before it was produced, but she was not satisfied with merely the plaudits of the Christopher prize. She approached Guthrie McClintic who agreed to produce and direct the play, Donald Ocnslager '23, who agreed to do the setting, and then she went about getting Grace George out of a seven year retirement to play the leading part.

Each one of these additions has aided a play which was basically good from the start. Miss George, whose last appearance, was with C. Aubrey Smith in "Spring Again" makes a triumphant return. As the Mother-general in a convent she is warm, intimate and personable. Regardless of whether she is talking, pacing the stage, or merely sitting in on a conversation, the audience is aware of her quiet, gracious presence.

McClintie's direction achieves maximum tension as Miss George struggles to keep a young professor with liberal ideas (James Noble) in the convent despite the protests of a misled bishop (John Williams). There are very few superfluous scenes. The ability of the director to achieve relief humor in an especially tense situation is typified at one point when Miss George must interview the resolute bishop for 20 minutes without giving him a chance to dismiss the professor.

Walter Hampden, as a monsignor who aids Miss George in her fight against the bishop, plays his entire role while seated. He can express himself only through his voice and facial expressions, and although he sometimes gives the impression of overacting, his sharp cynicism enriches the play with a subtle humor.

Replete with its discussion of academic freedom, the play moves along easily until the final scene. The professor has been accused of "agitating the mentality of his students;" Miss George claims that this is good, but the bishop is afraid. A scheme to bring pressure upon the bishop has been plotted by Miss George, and, as the results appear, she hovers over them like a mother hen. Here the important element of anxiety is overplayed.

Although both principals are well along in years, they add vitality to a play which is as fresh as its birth.