Daphne Greengrass

It's been quite a tumultuous week, with each day bringing more news, both good and bad. I was very sorry to hear that the Sisters and Brothers programmes will no longer be a part of the YPL for the time being, but even more sorry to hear of Mr Gibbon's passing (I should add, since some people have asked: no, he's not related to my voice teacher - her name is Mrs Gibbons). He clearly did much important work for both the YPL and our Lord's Council, and will be missed.

Things have been particularly fraught here in Slytherin, with so many students having loved ones and family friends who are on the Council, and who have been called to quelle the situation in Ireland. Now that it looks as if the worst of it has passed, we can finally begin to rest easy and reflect on these events. We are so fortunate to have such skilled witches and wizards looking out for us, and - in the case of Professors Lestrange and Dolohov, and Headmistress McGonagall - even luckier to be under their tutelage!

With that said, I do have a bit of good news I'd like to share with you. Planning is well under way for a Spring Revue of Hogwarts Through the Ages: a theatrical showcase of music, song, dance, and comedy. Under the guidance of co-directors Professor Carpenter and Mr Gerald Krumgold (from the West End's Society of New London Theatre), auditions for singing, dancing, and speaking parts will take place before we break for Christmas hols. More information to come on that in the very near future!

Meanwhile, I would like to ask for volunteers for a student-led planning committee. In particular, there is a need for people who are interested in set design, costuming and makeup, music arrangement, historical and theatrical research, effects charms, script writing, and other such backstage happenings. Keep in mind that being on the planning committee will not prevent you from auditioning for a part! But for those of you who would rather make your mark off-stage, but still be involved, this is a perfect opportunity. If you're interested, please meet with us in Professor Carpenter's classroom on Sunday at 2pm. (If that time doesn't work for you, just let either Professor Carpenter or myself know that you're interested and you can come to the next meeting we hold!)

Greetings to you both,

First things first: Weasley, I'm not worried at all that you and Finnigan will cross wands during this activity. I know that I, for one, am sure that you have no intention of being an instigator, and I think Draco is counting on family connections between the Malfoys and the Rosiers to keep Finnigan on his best behaviour. In fact, I think we shall all have a terribly grand time - especially when we WIN!

As for recruitment plans, I suspect that Harry's team is planning to go for Krum, Lovegood, Zimmerman, and Goshal, and possibly Longbottom and Lovegood's Yule Ball date, JP.

Padma's team will, I think, have Teddy, and most likely Corey, Sandoval, and Durand. Possibly Thompson or that other thirdie, Rhys-Meyers, too.

I've also been hearing that everyone wants Hydra, but they're all more or less letting us have her. That's kind of them! It also means we could try to get F-F, and an English-speaking Beauxbaton's person would be a huge bonus. You've become mates with him, too, haven't you Weasley? Finnigan's friend Evgeni is a good Durmstrang possibility.

My own personal suggestion is that we do whatever we can to go for Goyle. Believe me, I know what you're probably thinking, but we won't regret it!

What suggestions do you two have?

Remember that just because the other teams are planning to go for the people above doesn't mean WE can't try to get them, too.

I'm ever so excited for this, aren't you?

Dear Miss Belby,

As a member of the Young Protectors League applying for the summer programme, I write to you as one whose profession I deeply admire and aspire to. I also write to you as a sincere and avid admirer of your operatic performances. Two Christmases ago I saw you perform as Brünnhilde in Götterdämmerung, and I was both mesmerised and moved to tears. Though my own talents are aligned more to dance and dramatics than opera, I feel that you are the premiere embodiment of how a performance artist can serve our Protectorate.

I can think of a few uncultured souls who might question the significance of the artist to our Protectorate. To convince them otherwise, I would tell them to look to wizarding communities elsewhere who still must keep their art, performance, and sport underground and away from the eyes of Muggles. My own grandmother, Alexandra Greengrass, did a three-year run as lead in The Isle of Circe. It played at The Seraphim, which at the time was hidden somewhere between the New London Pavillion and the Criterion Theatre. The star of the show had to get into the theater via a disguised "red telephone box," under the shadow of marquees announcing shows about "Salad Days." Indeed, the strength of our Protectorate rests firmly on the foundation of New London, which would not exist without the cultural contributions of artists and performers such as yourself. Never before has there been a land of witches and wizards with so firm a grasp on their own history, and so much confidence for their own future, and that is because we can now speak, sing, and dance our history our in the open as never before, all thanks to artists like you, who lift our spirits and morale!

I myself aspire to be a stage actress like my grandmother. Since the age of four I have studied dance and dramatics with Mr Gerald Krumgold, and since the age of eight I have studied song and voice with Mrs Hortence Gibbons. I played the role of Auror Crouch in Hogwarts' recent dramatic production, and while the role was not a leading one, I took it on as seriously as I would a leading role at the Palladium. I understand how important such productions are to the vibrant, still-growing culture of the Protectorate, and I shall see to it that I continue to play my part for that culture.

Sincerely yours,
Daphne G. Greengrass