Five original radio broadcasts produced at Arkansas Tech University have been selected by the Kipling Society in Hertfordshire, U.K., for inclusion in its library of materials dedicated to the work of Rudyard Kipling.
ATU students, faculty and staff adapted, directed and performed five Kipling short stories — “Children of the Zodiac” and “Mary Postgate” in 2012; “Mrs. Bathurst” in 2015; “The Brushwood Boy” in 2016; and “The Maltese Cat” in 2018 — that are now available for download and listening through the Kipling Society Library at Haileybury and Imperial Service College.
The recordings were performed under the auspices of Arkansas Radio Theatre, an initiative founded in 2007 by Dr. David J. Eshelman, professor of communication and director of the ATU theatre program. The program is housed in the ATU Department of Communication and Journalism.
“The great thing about producing theatre for (audio) is that these broadcasts last forever and can be used in a variety of ways,” said Eshelman. “When we were recording our Kipling shows, I did not foresee this collaborative venture. (Kipling’s) stories are like Sherlock Holmes stories…they contain interesting characters and a lot of dialogue, making them ideal for audio adaptation.”
Born in 1865, Kipling captured the Nobel Prize for literature in 1907. He was a poet, children’s author, novelist, short story writer and journalist.
Arkansas Radio Theatre will debut Kipling’s “William the Conqueror” on KXRJ 91.9 FM and www.atu.edu/broadcast at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 2. Once complete, the archived broadcast will be provided to the Kipling Society as a continuation of the newly-established relationship.
“The Kipling Society Library has been built up over more than 90 years as a resource for researchers of all kinds,” said John Walker, honorary librarian with the Kipling Society. “Radio and TV dramas are, unfortunately, often regarded as ephemeral. We consider them important because they reflect changing interest and attitude, reinterpret themes and explore new aspects of well-known work. The medium may well have technical limitations for storage, but it is important that scholars, and the public, are able to access this material in the future.”
Visit www.kiplingsociety.co.uk to learn more about the Kipling Society.
Visit blogs.atu.edu/radiotheatre to learn more about Arkansas Radio Theatre.
