It had to be didn't it? Well how can you do a Classic reading challenge and not have any Dickens on the list?
There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor
Christmas, a time to bring in the holly and ivy, put decorations on a tree, fill up on turkey and mince pies, and watch terrible TV whilst ripping garish coloured paper off numerous presents! Surely there's more to Christmas than that!
In today's overly commercial society, it does us good to curl up with a copy of A Christmas Carol, and journey with the lead character, Ebenezer Scrooge as he is visited nightly by ghosts and shown his Christmases past, present and future.
Dickens' novel contains a plethora of characters who exhibit many different qualities, some good, and some bad. The book is essentially Scrooges journey from being a self-centred miser to his awakening, where he becomes a warm-hearted, caring human being who thinks of those less fortunate than himself. It's a book that shows that there is more to Christmas (and life) than seeing who can spend the most money on each other, but that we should try and spend what precious time we have with friends and family and to think of others, not just ourselves.
A Christmas Carol is probably one of the most popular stories in the English Language. It has been reincarnated on screen over and over again, ensuring new generations get to know about the tale of Scrooge. I can remember being about 10 years old when my dad took me to the old ABC Regal cinema in Chester (now a Costa Coffee and Primark!) to watch Disney's version, Mickey's Christmas Carol. Other generations will favour The Muppets Christmas Carol, or newer generations will be familiar with Jim Carey's incarnation, but despite watching the films, or theatre productions, how many people still sit down and read the actual words of Charles Dickens?
Bah! Humbug!
The tale commences on a bitterly cold Christmas Eve, Ebenezer Scrooge is in his counting house, counting out his money. His clerk Bob Cratchit is shivering in the cold office because Scrooge refuses to pay for coal for the fire. Scrooges nephew pops in to invite his uncle to his Christmas party, and two men ask Scrooge for a charitable donation, but Scrooge responds to both with a hostile retort.
As the night draws in and Scrooge heads for bed, he is visited by an apparition of his dead work partner Jacob Marley. Marley informs Scrooge that due his greedy and self-absorbed lifestyle, he is condemned to roam the earth for eternity. He tells Scrooge he has come to help save him from the same fate. He warns Scrooge that three ghosts will visit him over the next three nights, and no sooner has Scrooge fallen asleep, than he is woken by the fist of his visitors.
The Ghost of Christmas Past descends and makes Scrooge revisit his past, to a time of childlike happiness, his school days, his apprenticeship and his engagement. The next evening Scrooge is visited by The Ghost of Christmas Present takes Scrooge on a trip through London, to Bob Cratchit's house where the family is gathered together making the most of what little they have. He is then whisked to his nephews house where fun and frivolity abounds. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is Scrooge's final visitor, and Scrooge is witness to a dead, unnamed man. He watches a poor couple in celebratory mood that the man is dead. He sees personal effects being traded for cash with no thought for any sentimental value. He then finds himself in a graveyard, and the tombstone reads "Scrooge".
Shocked at the way his life has played out, Scrooge desires redemption. He pleads with the spirit to change the course of his life. Scrooge then wakes up and decides he must turn over a new leaf. He sends a turkey to the Cratchit's so that they have a proper Christmas dinner, and extends the hand of friendship to his nephew, turning up at the Christmas party to the surprise of family and guests. As the years go by, Scrooge is a reformed character, sharing his wealth with those less fortunate, and sparing a kind word and thought for those around him.
>Dickens may have written the novel in 1843, yet over 170 years later, the novel is still seen as what the true meaning of Christmas is all about, and it can still make you stop and think about the less fortunate. The people who for whatever reason end up sleeping on the freezing cold streets, women's refuges, children's homes, the list is seemingly endless.
They think it's all over...it is now!
And so here ends my 2016 Classic Reading Challenge in aid of Box Clever Theatre Company.
I hope you've enjoyed reading my take on the novels I've chosen. As an avid reader, I actually thought this would be an easy challenge, but it's been far from it. To pick up a book and read it for enjoyment is one thing, to pick up a book knowing that you have to read it with the intention of writing about it is something different.
Books are often more complex when you start delving into what has been written. Why has the author said this? Why have they focused on that? Picking up on the subtle nuances on what is written is an artform in itself; it is very easy to miss an important passage because you're trying to speed read the book, or you're just tired when you've picked the book up at bedtime to get through a couple more chapters. These missing passages can totally transform your interpretation of the book.
We all have different life experiences which can cloud our judgement. One person's background will lead them to one viewpoint, someone else will see something entirely different. Does this make one person right and the other wrong? I don't think so. I have tried to pick a variety of books for this challenge, some I would normally choose, and some I wouldn't. This challenge has certainly been an education for me and made me want to read more by the various authors I have chosen.
My "twelve" entries in this blog are my reasons for reading these books. I have enjoyed them, but I haven't studied any of the books in depth. If I had the time and inclination I would read the books several times, and pull apart in minute detail some of the more pertinent passages. The blog entry would go on forever, and the original enjoyment of the book would be lost by writing and rewriting my arguments and points of view, (obviously backed up by relevant passages and quotations!!!) So I have just skimmed the surface of each of these books. I hope what I've written makes you want to pick the books up and read them for yourselves. Some books you will like, some you may hate, but that is the joy of reading, challenging yourself to try something different, and to come to your own conclusions.
2016 Sponsored Classics Challenge for Box Clever Theatre
January The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
February Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope
March Jailbird by Kurt Vonnegut
April 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
May The Brothers Karamazov by Fydor Dostoyevsky
June Flarepath, While the Sun Shines, The Deep Blue Sea, The Winslow Boy, The Browning Version, Harlequinade, Separate Tables, In Praise of Love and Before Dawn by Terence Rattigan.
July Three Plays ( Blood Wedding, Yerma and The House of Bernarda Alba) by Frederico Garcia Lorca
August Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
September The Cuckoo's Calling, The Silkworm & Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith
October Tarka the Otter by Henry Williamson
November The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
December A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Showing posts with label #Box Clever Theatre. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #Box Clever Theatre. Show all posts
The Hound of the Baskervilles (Box Clever Challenge - November)
Whilst reading his book, I realised that I had not read or watched many of the books and films Frayling mentioned and I thought that I needed to rectify that. Carter sounded like an inspirational and interesting woman, and at some point I need to read her work, but as I went through the book, the chapter entitled Nothing But a Hound Dog made me think about November's book challenge...here was a classic novel I hadn't read, but one that I really should.
Sherlock Holmes...the great detective
One of my memories relating to childhood was watching The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes with my mum. It was a show on Granada TV starring Jeremy Brett and David Burke, and in our house it was watched on a black and white TV! I loved that show, Brett and Burke were the perfect double act; it wasn't quite the same when David Burke was replaced by Edward Hardwicke, but it was still, for me, the ubiquitous take on Sherlock Holmes. People all around the world remember the series with such fond affection. Nowadays, Sherlock, starring Benedict Cumberbatch has given the super sleuth a fresh face, but whilst reading Frayling's book I realised that whilst I really loved Holmes and Watson, I'd never once read any of the books. I have sitting on my bookshelf The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes, it was about time I dusted it down and started reading.
Tarka the Otter by Henry Williamson (Box Clever Challenge - October)
I visited the Cotebrook Shire Horse Centre in the summer. Whilst the horses were stunning, it was the otters that held my attention. They were cheeky creatures, holding onto the wire fencing and making high pitched screeching noises. One of them just lay on his back and played with a stone; he was transfixed tossing it from one paw to another. I thought the poor creatures were bored and unhappy, but no...they were just passing the time as they knew their food was due to arrive soon. As soon as they saw their keeper, the stone was dropped and the screeching stopped, to be replaced by the hunting and satisfaction of munching fish in the long grass.
A few weeks later I was visiting the Blue Planet Aquarium. They have an outside pen of otters too, and I witnessed them playing in and out of the water; otters splashing one another, finding "toys" in the undergrowth, and so I was spurred on to find my old copy of Tarka the Otter that I have had since childhood, but never read. (You can tell it's a vintage copy of the book, it only cost 30p!)
A few weeks later I was visiting the Blue Planet Aquarium. They have an outside pen of otters too, and I witnessed them playing in and out of the water; otters splashing one another, finding "toys" in the undergrowth, and so I was spurred on to find my old copy of Tarka the Otter that I have had since childhood, but never read. (You can tell it's a vintage copy of the book, it only cost 30p!)
Meet Old Nog, Deadlock, Halcyon and Tarka.
Henry Williamson's tale of Tarka takes us through an unsentimental journey around Devon. It is a fascinating book for both old and young, male or female, and will leave you with a new found respect for the countryside. What we have lost, how we have grown, and why hunting with dogs should never be considered sport.
The book is written from Tarka's viewpoint...that of being low on the ground, shrubs become trees, man becomes a giant. Henry Williamson begun his novel in June 1923 and finished it in February 1927. He wrote and rewrote passages to ensure he gave his reader the truest viewpoint of a wild otters life, taking in the smallest details of the river, so that armed with a map, the reader could follow Tarka's journey. You get the sense whilst reading the book that this is a true story, and that's not far off the mark.
After the First World War, Williamson was a lost soul. He left London behind him and rented a cottage in Devon, living there alone, except for the wildlife surrounding him. A stranger knocked at his door asking for help digging out some otter cubs from a hole after a farmer had killed their mother. He only found one cub alive and took it back to his cottage where he introduced it to a cat who was still nursing a kitten. After some intervention, the cat accepted the otter cub and nursed it until the cub was old enough to eat solid food. He followed Williamson everywhere, but on one walk he got caught in a rabbit trap. Writhing in fear and pain, Williamson was able to free the cub, however that was the end of their relationship. The otter fled, never to be seen again. This was where the story of Tarka began. Williamson was already at one with nature, preferring it to human contact, but in order to understand the otters life he would have to enter into the world of the huntsman. So Williamson entered the otters world, seeing it both as a carefree animal playing in the river, and that of the fearful persecuted animal, desperately fighting for his life.
A ChariTEA Party! Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Box Clever Challenge - August)
Ha ha ha...do you like what I did there?!Tom Burke is both an avid supporter of Operation Smile, a charity which helps children born with a cleft lip/palate as well as being a supporter of Box Clever Theatre. Toms fans, or Burketeers, have been showing their immense support for both of these charities, and on 17th September 2016, they're holding a tea party in London in aid of Operation Smile. To coincide with the tea party, I'm reading what will be the theme of the party for my August reading challenge...Alice In Wonderland. (So I'm kind of hoping that Alice will be raising some money for both charities...hint hint!) https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Susan-rogers3
Alice in Wonderland, a well loved children's classic, and even more so for me, because the writer Lewis Carroll was born and lived in the village of Daresbury, Cheshire...about 5 miles from where I grew up. There's a church in Daresbury where the stained glass windows show Carroll's famous characters, and I can remember going around the church looking at them whilst my dad happily recited The Walrus and the Carpenter and Jabberwocky from memory to me!
(For more information on Lewis Carroll check out this website http://lewiscarrollcentre.org.uk )
Whilst this might be a children's book, it has an enduring timeless appeal for adults too. As the name suggests, it is full of wonder, but it does tackle the complexities of life that children face when growing up. A mathematician, Carroll made the book logical, but at the same time humorous and imaginative. Much of the writing is absurd, but that is why it has stood the test of time and remains a firm favourite for readers and storytellers alike. (That's the reason why it has been made into several films over the years!)"what is the use of a book...without pictures or conversations?"
Alice in Wonderland tells the story of a young Alice, who, bored at sitting on the river bank with her sister who is reading a book without pictures, begins wondering whether she is too sleepy to go and pick daisies when she sees a white rabbit run past her. Nothing strange in that, unless you consider this white rabbit is wearing a waistcoat, and has a pocket watch, and can talk! Now Alice, being of a rather nosey bent, decides to follow the rabbit and enters Wonderland after falling down a rabbit hole after him.
What follows is a voyage into the unknown where we meet a myriad of the most fantastical characters in fiction. Whilst we are never going to come across a talking cat or caterpillar in real life, these characters symbolise some of the types of people we come across in everyday life. It is interesting to see how Alice copes and interacts with each of these different traits of human nature and how Carroll has managed to create a world where the real and unreal meet.One of the first characters she meets is a very laid back caterpillar. He is delightfully vague and contradictory and it makes for an interesting conversation with Alice, he is like a child, answering a question with a question. Fish and Frog footmen are equally confusing to poor Alice as she wends her way towards the Cheshire Cat. Now anyone who owns a cat, knows that really the cat owns them. They are intelligent creatures, and none more so than this cat who can disappear into thin air leaving his smile behind him. He has a sense of unerring logic! " you see a dog growls when it's angry, and wags its tail when it's pleased. Now I growl when I'm pleased, and wag my tail when I'm angry. Therefore I'm mad." You can't dispute logic like that!
We all know someone who is a little unconventional! I had a conversation with Tom Burke once in which someone told him we were mad. I said I'd call it eccentric, he quite agreed and said he felt he was somewhat eccentric himself! I doubt even he could compare to the Mad Hatter and The March Hare though! These characters are so full of life, they have boundless energy and a huge sense of fun, but they're also rather rude and straight to the point with their personal remarks! I do however love the Mad Hatter, not least because he seems rather partial to tea just like me! As he says, "it's always tea-time", Oh how right he is!
Not everyone in Wonderland is nice though and Alice soon gets to meet the despicable Queen of Hearts who after declaring Alice should have her head chopped off, relents and asks her to join in with a game of croquet. But this is Wonderland, so it can't be an ordinary game of croquet...no this game is played with flamingo's and hedgehogs rather than mallet and balls.
Three Plays - Frederico Garcia Lorca (Box Clever Challenge - July)
Whilst I was in Bath, my friends Julie and Nikki told me that they had booked to see a play called Yerma by Frederico Garcia Lorca. I showed my ignorance by admitting I'd never heard of him, and so Julie kindly lent me a copy of her book so that I could acquaint myself with his work.
Lorca has a distinctive way of writing, and he has managed to encapsulate drama with poetry and song in his works. Tragically his life was cut short (he was assassinated in 1936) and so we don't know what further greatness he could have achieved in later life. Having read his plays, I thought it was only fair that I should enlighten others with his work too, and it seemed a befitting set of works for July's Box Clever Theatre challenge, as this is where theatre, literature, music and poetry all combine!
In the book 'Three Plays', we enter the world of three different women who are disenchanted with what life has brought to them. They yearn for a life of equality, they crave freedom from repression, and they desire justice for the social failings around them.
Blood Wedding
"How can it be that something as small as a pistol or a knife can destroy a man who is like a bull?"
The play centres around the wedding of The Bridegroom and The Bride. These nameless characters are the main characters of the play, so it is interesting that we are not given any idea of their identity through names, it's almost like Lorca is keeping them at arms length. Their names don't matter, but their role and actions within the play do.
The matriarch of the play, The Mother is biased and selfish to the core. She insists that boys must be boys and girls must be girls. Girls should want to have children and spend their lives embroidering, playing with their children and maintaining ladies pursuits. They should not think for themselves, that is the duty of their husband. Her other son and her husband have been murdered, and she despises the Felix family who committed the atrocity. She does not want her remaining son to marry and leave her on her own in case one of the killers dies and gets buried near her husband. In her eyes, her husband could do no wrong, and throughout the play we can see that no-one compares to him, no-one could ever do any better than him. She wants the reader to suffer with her, until her worst fears are over, the death of her remaining son, and she can then live what remains of her life in peace.
"The three years he was married to me he planted ten cherry trees, three walnut trees by the mill, one whole vineyard, and a plant called Jupiter, with blood red flowers, but it died." Fitting that the flowers were blood red, as blood is the theme that flows in this play.
Her son is intent on getting married but he has chosen someone who once loved one of the Felix family as his bride. She is pure and beautiful, she is the perfect choice as a wife for him, but throughout the play you question whether she is as virtuous as she is made out to be. She was in love with Leonardo, a character who rides about at midnight. He married someone else, and now she is going to get married. Is there a purely innocent explanation why he rides around at night? Where does he go and who does he meet? Just because she loves her intended, it doesn't mean that she doesn't still love the one that got away; therefore the marriage is not something she looks forward to. It's a big step for her to take, and she doesn't want to loose her current independence, to waste away like all the other women she sees around her. She is a strong woman, she has her own mind, and this marriage will mean her husband not only gains and traps a wife, but will also gain a large amount of land. there is a lot to be considered.
Mother: The Wedding vows weigh heavily
Bride: like lead
How hard it is for her to carry out this duplicity, to marry and be a faithful wife, but to stop having a life of her own, to forfeit her feelings and accept second best. The wedding night has a twist that is both expected and unexpected, ultimately ending with the knowledge that the importance of the orange blossom in her wedding crown was a truly significant part of the play.
It is a beautifully written piece. The interspersion of poetry throughout lifts it, creating a haunted atmosphere on a dark and deeply thought provoking subject.
Yerma
There's a different feel to this play, it isn't as poetic, but there is still a plaintive, soul-searching tone to it. Yerma is desperate for a child. Nothing else matters. Nothing else plays on her mind. She wants a child, and whilst younger couples manage to have children as soon as they are married, Yerma continues to have no success year after year.
The play cleverly travels through her life. We feel her torment at seeing children all around her, as her friend becomes pregnant after five months of marriage but Yerma has to cover up her disappointment that after two years of marriage there is no sign of children. Her husband works away tending sheep, he does not share her feeling of misery that there are no children, he just wants her to fulfill her other home bound duties. She is trapped, both physically and mentally. Her husband does not like her to leave the house, and she can not stop thinking about her sterile environment.
Mothers have to suffer for children to grow up. "Every woman has enough blood for four or five children, if she doesn't have them, it turns to poison, as it will with me." We share Yerma's suffering as another year passes and we hear how easy it was for an old woman to have borne so many children. She loved her husband, but Yerma does not love hers. Perhaps this was the reason that she was forced to remain childless. The old woman tells Yerma to stop accepting her husband, to love him, if she loves him the children will come. She is empty, empty of feelings, so how can she bear children? But Yerma is not empty, she is full of hate, and the hate continues to grow inside her.
Again, as a woman, she is not allowed her freedom. She takes food to her husband in the hills and he does not appreciate it, he wants her to stop at home, to remain within the four walls doing things she doesn't want to do. But she is obliged to do these chores, she is his wife, it is her duty.
It is hard to understand why the women in these stories should be locked up, but them we learn about Victor, Yerma's first true love. Again the woman at the heart of the story has been obliged to marry someone she does not care about, she has been forced into a marriage that is beneficial for the families concerned, not for herself. Her husband by now does not trust her, he still wants her to stay indoors, so he decides that he will invite his two sisters to come and live with him and Yerma. Two women who he trusts to keep an eye on Yerma; two women who Yerma has to stay and clean the house with until it sparkles. That is what her life should be, a life full of cleaning. "I shouldn't say 'Forgive me'. I should force you, lock you up, because that's what a husband is for!"
There is melodious undertone to the gossipy chat of the washer women as they go about their work, some on Yerma's side, whilst others proclaim her barrenness is Yerma's fault. "Spoilt, weak, lazy women don't have children...they wear a sprig of Oleander in pursuit of a man who is not their husband." I like the way Garcia Lorca interweaves the symbolism of flowers into his writing. Oleander is a poison, it's destructive, and no more so in the continuance of Yerma's life. If she had stayed at home and loved her husband she would have the thing she most yearns, but she won't behave, she has her own mind and she speaks it and so she must pay the ultimate price, or so we must believe.
A further five years on in this drudgerous life and Yerma is still childless. She is trapped, her house has become a tomb, her husband does not even wish her to leave the house to go to the well for fresh water. He is unhappy and works hard and takes his frustrations out on Yerma, and it is clear that neither party loves one another. Yerma's anguish for a child has reached epic proportions, she is not envious of those around her, she makes that point clear, but she does feel deprived of the life that she wanted as a mother.
Victor has sold his sheep to Juan and comes to bid goodbye to Yerma. In a last bid of desperation she is helped to escape the confines of her home to visit Dolores the Conjurer. In a churchyard at night spells are cast for Yerma to bear a child, but the truth is that Yerma will never have a child with her husband; she needed to have married another to have had the life she so desired.
Yerma (spanish for barren) is a moving tale of the taboo subject of childlessness. Whilst at times it is harrowing to hear how Yerma is entombed in a life she does not want, it is also powerful in how much someone will strive for the thing that they hold so dear. It conveys the impact of how this tunnel vision can effect someone, madness takes over, and the obsessiveness becomes destructive rather than beneficial. It is also poignant that the character of Victor shows that had she taken a different path, if she had married Victor rather than her husband, she could possibly have had that thing she most craved.
The House of Bernardo Alba
Bernardo's husband has died, and she is now in charge of an all female household. You would think that the tight grip on a woman's freedom and inequality would be released, but instead, it seems to tighten in this bitter tragedy. Bernardo is adamant that the eight year mourning period will be observed by her daughters, and they will not have any further contact with the outside world. "We will brick up the doors and board up the windows". The only person who will be allowed any freedom is Augustias, she has a large inheritance which has attracted a local man, but whilst he loves Augustias' money, his passion is ignited by her pretty sister.
As times passes, Bernardo finds it difficult to maintain her suffocating grip on her daughters. They are full of venom and hatred for each other, and a jealous woman is a dangerous woman. This play shows just how a woman, desperate to leave the jaws of hell can tear a family apart in the worst possible way. "A daughter who disobeys stops being a daughter and becomes an enemy". This is a drama which takes place from within Barnarda's home, but Lorca creates this powerfully repressive atmosphere from start to finish, ending in a crescendo. But even when events take their most dramatic turn, Bernardo is still more concerned about keeping up appearances. It is more important to her that the village think her daughter has died a virgin, rather than mourning the loss of her child or showing any emotional outburst.
The main focus of the play is repression. The women are repressed, both by their sex and sexuality. They are second class citizens. Sexuality is a natural phenomenon to both men and women, but in Lorca's play women are not allowed to give into their desires. Those who do are considered harlots, women of the night, and nothing good will become of them. This is clearly shown when there is a commotion in the village, and it turns out that an unmarried woman has killed her baby. Rather than the women sticking together and showing empathy to their kin, they are baying for this woman's blood. They don't stick up for each other, they are intent on punishing each other, at whatever cost.
It is desire that ultimately leads to tragedy, showing how lust can lead to a terrible ending. Bernarda is perfectly aware of her daughter's yearnings, even her elderly mother cries out that she wants to be married in order to be able to live a happy life, but despite this, she refuses to allow her daughters to express their feelings. Barnardo believes she knows best, but this suffocation of their natural desires only incites bitterness and hatred between the sisters. This is more noticeable because there is only one male character to focus on, Pepe. Because he is the only male allowed near this closed off house, all of the sisters pour their focus on him, hence why their bitterness grows and makes all of the characters rather ugly and not worth our sympathy.
Adela's character fights against this repressive regime and shows the reader that she believes she has a free soul. She has her own idea about what real love is about, but she is still somewhat confused. She thinks Pepe is in love with her, but knows he will marry her sister Augustias for her money. Adela is happy therefore to be Pepe's mistress, but it is difficult to know whether she really loves Pepe, or whether she thinks a relationship with him will bring her freedom from her mother. What is it she really craves, love or freedom? Is there a difference? This leads to an interesting question about a persons life and how it should be lived. Should a person succumb to leading a dull life, living by other peoples moral attitudes, or should they bid for freedom, live their own life as they want whatever the consequences? Sadly, we see throughout the play, that despite Adela's attempts to remain an individual, wearing a green dress whilst everyone is still in mourning black, she becomes increasingly more and more bitter throughout. In some ways she becomes a victim fighting against a lost cause.
As within Lorca's other plays, there are tell tale signs throughout that tragedy will strike. As we head towards the finale, we finally read that Augustias' engagement ring is not one of diamonds, but pearls. Pearls, symbolic of tears to be shed. Tears that the marriage will not lead to the freedom that Augustias thinks will happen."I'll soon be getting out of this hell". "Last night I was so hot I couldn't sleep". They are acutely aware that they live in a constant hell living at home under the stifling control of their mother, but in reality even if they marry they move from one controlling force to another "Her fiance won't let her go out, not even to the front door. She used to be full of fun; now she doesn't even powder her face!" The pearls can also be seen as a symbol of the plays ending too, and a woman's desperate bid for freedom which will end in tears.
Lorca's three plays are all interesting insights into the lives of women and full of atmosphere and poetry. They make interesting reading, but poetry should be heard, and having read these plays it would be interesting to see how they appear on stage.
Yerma is currently playing at The Old Vic in London until 24th September. It has received a number of rave reviews and is sold out. Whilst it has a modern twist, it shows that Lorca's writing still has a presence in today's world.
The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester has a production of The House of Bernardo Alba from 02/02/2017-25/02/2017
https://www.royalexchange.co.uk/whats-on-and-tickets/the-house-of-bernarda-alba
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Terence Rattigan - various plays (Box Clever Challange - June)
I watched Flare Path earlier this year, plus I had tickets booked to watch Tom Burke in The Deep Blue Sea, and then someone mentioned to me that Alison Dowling and Tamla Kari from The Musketeers were starring in another Rattigan play, While The Sun Shines. I had read Flarepath, and was about to read The Deep Blue Sea, and thought that instead of reading just one novel this month, I would try and read a number of Terence Rattigan's plays instead.
The thing that I find I most like about reading Rattigan's plays is that they are very much like reading an ordinary book. Rattigan does not have characters speaking over each other, and his pages are filled with descriptions that allow you as a reader to visualise what is going on, and so rather than ending up feeling confused (as happens with some plays when you read them) with Rattigan you know what is happening, therefore you are given the opportunity to think more deeply about the context of the play and the depth of the characters.
Flare Path (1942)
The play is set during WWII and centres on the lives of Bomber Command, a group of Lancaster Bomber pilots and gunners. The play touches on the difficulties brought on by WWII and the effects that the war wrought on both the pilots and their wives. It is a play that will tear at your heartstrings. The scenes take place in a hotel lobby, where wives have either come to stay for the weekend, or in some cases, the duration of the war. During the weekend that the play is set, a famous actor, Peter Kyle, turns up to stay, it transpires that he has come to visit his former sweetheart, Patricia, and he wants her to leave her pilot husband Teddy. It is a shock for her to see Peter, but it seems that she maybe swayed into leaving her husband; that is until an emergency bombing raid is announced. The atmosphere of the play suddenly changes as we witness the fragility of human life, and the reality of what pilots and their loved ones endured.
We see the calling up of the men, and we spend the evening with one of the wives, Doris, and the squadron commander, Swanson, as they watch the flare path (the lights on the runway) as it is lit and the bombers take off. As each plane slowly soars into the sky, the relief felt by those watching can be felt. Swanson: "It's all right. He's off. I thought he wasn't going to make it. He must have cleared that fence by inches." The charged atmosphere changes from relief to fear as the lights on the flare path are suddenly switched off. The aerodrome is being bombed by the Germans, a ploy of theirs was to wait until a flare path was lit before flying in and bombing the aerodromes. The fear of the onlookers is felt as they watch helplessly, knowing what is about to happen but knowing that there is nothing they can do. Swanson: "Brakes, you idiot, brakes! Don't take off!" "An aircraft crashed or was shot down, taking off." Just reading these lines sends a shiver down the spine as your mind visualises what would have happened.
It is apparent from this scene the stalwarts, Doris and Swanson, have witnessed this countless times. The matter of fact tone that Doris uses belies her fears. She maintains her stiff British upper lip, and to the rest of the the group it is almost as if she doesn't care, that she doesn't have the same fears as they do. Earlier in the play Peter and Patricia even mention that Doris' marriage to the Count is false, and that it would be of benefit to Doris if the war continued. It is when Doris confronts them on what she has heard that she lets her guard down and we see the real Doris, not the brave woman putting on a show. Doris: "I know what you meant. You meant my Johnny's going to leave me flat the minute the war's over. That's what you meant. I'm only all right for him as long as the war goes on, and as soon as it's over and he gets back home he'll realise he's made an awful muck-up in marrying me and he'll - he'll- (Chokes and turns her back quickly). "I don't know it isn't true. I wish I did. I think it is true. (Turns round. Defiantly.) But I don't want the war to go on - just because of that."
The play touches on the stoical courage and high spirits of the RAF bomber squadron and the duty that they have to perform, and it focuses on human relationships. The relationship and trust of the gunners towards the pilots; the passionate romances between a husband and wife; and the difference between having love for a person, and actually being in love with a person. It is a play to amuse, to reflect and to question the lives of those who lived through the war years.
While The Sun Shines (1943)
This was a difficult play to obtain. I couldn't find a new version of the play, however, diligent searching found me an early edition, costing slightly more than the 4 schillings advertised! The play is an upbeat farce, and as the only thing I had previously known Rattigan for was Flare Path, it was a delightful surprise and escape to read. I was physically laughing out loud at the more ludicrous moments of the playQA and also in eager anticipation of what was yet to come!
Central to the play is the marriage of Lady Elizabeth Randell (an airforce corporal during WWII) to The Earl of Harpenden (Bobby). Bobby hears of the plight of an American Lieutenant, Joe Mulvaney, he has no where to stay, so Bobby offers him his flat as it will be empty following his wedding the next day. Bobby has been having a romantic liaison with Mabel Crum, which he has acknowledged will have to end once he is married to Elizabeth, and so he decides that he will arrange for Mabel to keep Joe company. Bobby leaves Joe in the flat alone, during his absence Elizabeth arrives, but Joe mistakes her for Mabel and gets her rather tipsy so that he can try out his best lines of seduction.
Elizabeth is rather taken by this American, but to add further to the complications, she has found herself being a good Samaritan to a Frenchman, Colbert, who resides in England. He mistakes her kindness for something more and tries to woo her in typical French style. Matters become increasingly complicated because whilst Elisabeth is not the brightest of women, she does realise that both her marriage and military career could be put in jeopardy. The Earl is rather a buffoon too. He has had countless interviews with the Admiralty to make him an officer, but he has ballsed up each one and remains an able seaman in the Navy instead. "In the first place I was a quarter of an hour late, then I found myself overdoing the free, frank, open boyish manner and got the jitters and became far too servile and cringing, and my hair was too long and I hadn't shaved and I didn't know how many twopenny-halfpenny stamps I could buy fir half a crown. In short, for the fourth time in this war, I proved conclusively both to the Admiralty and to myself that I am not the officer type."
The play's characters become more and more confused as they get more and more at cross purposes with one another. Of course, because the audience is aware who is who, they can watch this drama unfold and enjoy the entertainment of the witless characters trying to make sense of it all! It is an enjoyable and entertaining read and guaranteed to make you laugh. The original play ran for over 1000 performances when it was first released, which shows just how well written and enjoyable it was.
The Deep Blue Sea (1952)
Like Flarepath, WWII forms a backdrop to this play and it shows what the effect of war had on people and their relationships. It is perhaps one of Rattigan's most emotionally charged plays and continuously pulls the reader apart as you battle with your conscience deciding whether you should side with Freddie or Hester.
Tom Burke is currently starring alongside Helen McCrory in a run at The National Theatre, London, and so I have added my thoughts about the play to my summations of plays that Tom Burke has appeared in. To read just click on the link below.
http://imblatheringnow.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/the-deep-blue-sea.html
The Winslow Boy (1946)
This is a particularly interesting play because it is based on a historical event and shows Rattigan's interest in the Law. His family had been lawyers and solicitors, and he found sitting in court an ideal place to find material for his plays. In reality, a young cadet had been asked to leave the Royal Naval College at Osbourne because he had been accused of allegedly stealing a postal order. The cadet was called George Archer-Shee, and whilst Rattigan created his own characters for the dramatisation of the play, he did stick with the most relevant parts of the actual case.
Master Ronnie Winslow arrives back at his middle-class home in pre-war (1914-1918) Britain. He is not expected by his family for a few more days. The maid, Violet, is the only one to see his arrival. When he hears the rest of his family return home, he hides in the rain in the garden, but later reveals himself to the confidence of his older sister. He has been thrown out of naval college for allegedly stealing a five -schilling postal order and he is a young and scared little boy as to what the family reaction will be to the news. It is a comforting part of the play that when he does tell his father, his father knows his son well enough to know whether he is lying or not, and so starts the begging of a long fight for justice.
The play takes place over a period of nearly two years, and it shows the struggles the family faced to win justice in the name of their son. The play also shows the divides within the family, from those who believed they should fight at all costs, with those who wanted to give in gracefully. The British justice system did not allow the Admiralty to be taken to court, not without its own consent, so the family faced a long battle to get the case to court before justice could even begin to be considered.
All inquiries into complaints were done in-house, and whilst it does not state this in the play, in real life the Archer-Shee family were Irish Catholics and there was an anti-Catholic prejudice at Osbourne Royal Naval College, and therefore it was unlikely the boy would have been given a fair hearing. In Rattigan's dramatisation, the family has engaged the most prolific barrister they can find, and he subjects poor Ronnie to a heart rending interrogation before agreeing to take on the case. We don't however get to witness the drama of the courtroom, instead, the play concentrates on the family home and how the constant strain on trying to clear Ronnie's names takes it toll on his father.
It is a powerful drama, and shows that despite the odds, David can take on Goliath if he has faith that the truth will out. Sadly, whilst the real George Archer-Shay was cleared of his crimes, he died in the trenches in 1914 at Ypres aged 19.
The Browning Version (1948)
The first in two short one act plays.
This is a simple but poignant play to read. It takes place in a boys public school in the south of England. The schoolmaster Crocker-Harris (or Crock as the boys preferred to call him) is on the point of retirement. He is a strict housemaster who plays by the rules and demands the respect of the boys under his tutelage, this means that some of the boys feel they are hard done by, especially as some of the housemasters show more leniency of the rules than Crock does. But whilst Crock has this hard outer shell, one of the boys, Taplow, can see through him. Despite having fun mimicking Crocker-Harris behind his back, Taplow feels sorry for him and gives him a small parting gift.
Crocker-Harris' wife is younger than her husband, and evidently bored by him. She has fallen for one of the other teachers, Frank Hunter, and has had the tenacity to tell her husband of her affair. She does not care how much she hurts her husband by her betrayal, even though she is aware that Andrew does not love her the way she loves him; it also becomes evident that this is not the first affair she has had. Frank can not believe that Crocker-Harris has continued to live with such secrets, so in a particularly poignant scene he explains matters to Frank "I know that in both of us, the love that we should have borne each other has turned to bitter hatred. That's all the problem is. Not a very unusual one, I venture to think - nor nearly as tragic as you seem to imagine. Merely the problem of an unsatisfied wife and a henpecked husband. You'll find it all over the world."
As the play develops we get a sense of who Crocker-Harris is, and whilst outwardly we may wish to condemn him, when he lets his mask slip, and we see the real man,we can not help but have empathy for him, as Taplow and Frank appear to do. The simple gift Taplow gives to Crocker-Harris is the catalyst to make him reflect and evaluate the rest of his life, and give a sense of hope for his future.
Harlequinade (1948)
The second in two short one act plays.
Just like While The Sun shines, this is another laugh out loud play. It focuses on the world of the theatre, and if that is what an actors life is like, I really feel like I have missed out. The main actors in the play are a married couple, Arthur Gosport and Edna Selby. They are playing the rolls of Romeo and Juliet, who are 17 and 13, but it is clear that the actors are actually both middle aged and doyens of the theatre and oblivious to what happens in the real world. It is just before opening night and Arthur is tweaking the performance, amidst Romeo's most famous speech, he suddenly decides to add in a theatrical leap, to add to the boyishness of the part. This unexpected manouvre causes Edna to laugh at him, and a conversation ensuing about whether or not it is a ridiculous notion to be leaping about the stage.
Arthur: Does it look awfully silly? I won't do it again.
Edna: Oh no - you must do it. Come on. Let's try again.
Arthur: No. I won't do it if it's as funny as all that. I only thought it might help the boyishness of the line, that's all.
Edna: And it does. It looks very boyish. (To prompt corner.) Doesn't it look boyish, Johnny?
Rattigan throughout the play builds layer upon layer of comic elegance to the play. From the old dame who refuses to retire, to the elder mediocre actor who is not sure why he has spent his life in the theatre, to the stage manager who needs to escape the madness of the theatre, it is all piled into this one act play. Even the characters who are not part of the theatrical production add a lightness and air of confused bewilderment to the piece. The woman wandering around the stage requesting to meet Arthur (who Arthur believes to be an actress wanting a part in The Winter's Tale) turns out to be his daughter. Johnny (the assistant stage manager) is given an ultimatum by his fiancee, but as the play goes on you know he can not succeed to her demands, and so his fiancee delivers a fine speech towards the end, making the confused Arthur believe she is an actress and he wants to cast her in his next production.
But despite all of the comedy, Rattigan of course has a message to deliver, and there are some poignant moments amidst all of this mirth. Arthur, who lives in this confused world of his own, finds out that he has a grown up daughter, a baby grandson, and that he is still married to his first wife and has committed bigamy. The fact that he has committed this act washes over him. He is completely oblivious as to the seriousness of his crime. "You mean, I might have to pay a fine - or something like that?" ... "Imprisonment - for life."
The actors in this play live for the theatre, not in the real world and they have a one track mind, "But why, when I'm playing Romeo of all parts? Why couldn't it have turned up when I was playing Lear?" They are sealed off from the reality of life by their entourage of staff who look after the day to day running of the actors lives. It is this which gives the play it's over the top comic edge, despite the catastrophe potentially awaiting Arthur, nothing matters, except that the show must go on. A great play to read if you should ever need cheering up.
Separate Tables (1954)
Both plays are connected by the fact that they are both set in the same Bournemouth residential hotel; each play focusing on a different set of characters and exploring the different facets of love. The plays are set about 18 months apart. Rattigan is an observer of people and no-where is this more noticeable than at The Beauregard Private Hotel in Bournemouth. Individuals with their secrets to tell sit, mainly alone, at their own tables, living their lives, and the audience ventures into their worlds. Whilst both plays take place in the same venue, each play concentrates on a different guest, and the secrets uncovered will leave you sad, amused and reflective.
Table by the Window
John Malcolm is a journalist. A former politician. A drunkard. A wife beater. An ex-husband.
He lives a quiet life at the hotel, until one day his ex-wife walks in and announces she is now engaged. He confirms he is engaged, but does not confirm that it is to the hotel owner Miss Cooper. There is a lot of tension and animosity between the couple. When they were married, Anne provoked John into a violent act which caused him to be sent to prison which ultimately destroyed his career. John claims that it is his fault his life fell apart, but when he hears that Anne is talking to his publisher, and he realises that it is no coincidence that she has tracked him down to the hotel, he confronts her and says she is now too old and ugly to manipulate men as she once did in her halcyon days of being a model. Anne has a breakdown and confesses everything to Miss Cooper, including her addiction to sleeping pills and Miss Cooper acts as the go between to help reconcile this emotionally fraught pair.
Table Number Seven
This play follows the downfall of the self-styled "Major" Pollock who has tried to conceal a local newspaper article which reported him of sexually harassing women at a local cinema. The guests at the hotel believe that the Major is an upright citizen who has served his country, however, Mrs Railton-Bell uncovers the Major's dark secrets and she tries to lead a rebellion with the other hotel guests against him. She is a formidable and domineering character, and her grown up daughter lives in fear of her, never questioning her mother. Sybil, despite being painfully shy has been able to strike up an awkward relationship with the Major, and therefore finds it particularly difficult to agree to her mother's demands against him, and so it is with relief that we stand by Sybil as she eventually finds the courage and determination to rebel against her mother. As in Table by the Window, the hotel owner Miss Cooper is the voice of reason
In Praise of Love (1973)
This is a very tender play, based in part on the real life tragedy of Rex Harrison's wife, Kay Kendall, who was dying of cancer.
A wife, from Estonia, who has manged against all odds to survive the horrors of war and escape from the holocaust is now dying of an illness brought on by malnutrition in her earlier life. She bravely carries on going to doctor's appointments where the news is increasingly worse, yet she puts on a brave face and tells her husband than the news is positive, that she is getting better, in order that she may save him from the hurt of knowing that she is dying.
Her husband is a writer, he works from home as a critic, and he appears to the outside world as harsh and unfeeling, and the early conversations between the two seems harsh and critical. It is only as we proceed through the play that we realise that he adores his wife and has been secretly trying to find the best medics available in order to ensure she has the best chance at survival. Both parties in love with each other, both parties keeping a secret from each other.
The couple have a son, he wishes to write plays and become a member of the Liberal party, however his political leanings are met with derision from his parents. Whilst his mother tries to encourage him in his dreams, his father seems distant and cold, but perhaps he has other things playing on his mind that he cannot discuss with his son or his wife. In this threesome, we see another form of love evolving, and that when things are said, it is only because each person cares so deeply about the other that the words appear so uncaring.
In Praise of Love is a moving story of three people who obviously love each other very much, but they are unable to articulate their feelings, that is until an old American friend drops by. It is clear that he has always felt more than friendly affection towards Lydia, but his relationship with her husband and son is close enough for him to allow a channel of communication between all of the parties. An American visitor, who is not as repressed as his British counterparts, allows each character to unburden themselves. as they face their own future and the difficult road ahead.
Before Dawn (1973)
This short play was written as a curtain raiser in conjunction with In Praise of Love. It is a comical reworking about the opera Tosca. In it we have the villain of the piece, Scarpia; a confused captain, Schiarrone, and the diva at the centre of everything, Tosca.
Scarpia has imprisoned Tosca's lover, and tells her that her lover will be released if she succumbs to Scarpia's amorous advances. Tosca eventually agrees, only to find Scarpia impotent. Of course Scarpia does not want this to be known, and tries to enlist the help of the unwitting Schiarrone, by concocting a plan about whether Tosca's lover should or should not be executed. The confusion that arises is exquisitely written, and it is a light ending to some of Rattigan's harder and more emotional plays.
Schiarrone: (After searching Scarpia's face carefully) Yes. The Signora is to be taken down to the platform where she is to bid adieu to her lover -
Scarpia: (Murmuring) No Schiarrone -
Schiarrone: (Undeterred) While the firing squad level their muskets at them both -
Scarpia: (Murmuring again) Not exactly, Schiarrone -
Schiarrone: And the muskets of course, are to be loaded with blanks, not balls. Never fear, Excellency. I have the whole thing pat.
He looks pleased with himself. Scarpia does not look pleased with him.
Rattigan has written many more plays, and at some point I will eventually get around to reading and watching them too. I have really fallen for his style of writing. He has taken note of human behaviour and he is not afraid to show the destructive nature of the human condition nor take on the social challenges of his day. He wrote about depression, suicide, politics, homosexuality; but whilst he tackled the difficult issues of his era, he did it in a manner which was entertaining and quite subtle. He was not afraid to make his characters flawed, unlikable, even violent and unkind. I think that is why he is able to still strike a resonance with readers today. Despite his plays being written in the 1940's/1950's, they still hold true to a modern world. Yes the language has evolved over the years, we don't speak with the clipped tones of the quintessential Englishman anymore, but the messages and meaning of the plays still hold true, and still strike a resonance with the reader.
Flare Path (1942)
The play is set during WWII and centres on the lives of Bomber Command, a group of Lancaster Bomber pilots and gunners. The play touches on the difficulties brought on by WWII and the effects that the war wrought on both the pilots and their wives. It is a play that will tear at your heartstrings. The scenes take place in a hotel lobby, where wives have either come to stay for the weekend, or in some cases, the duration of the war. During the weekend that the play is set, a famous actor, Peter Kyle, turns up to stay, it transpires that he has come to visit his former sweetheart, Patricia, and he wants her to leave her pilot husband Teddy. It is a shock for her to see Peter, but it seems that she maybe swayed into leaving her husband; that is until an emergency bombing raid is announced. The atmosphere of the play suddenly changes as we witness the fragility of human life, and the reality of what pilots and their loved ones endured.
We see the calling up of the men, and we spend the evening with one of the wives, Doris, and the squadron commander, Swanson, as they watch the flare path (the lights on the runway) as it is lit and the bombers take off. As each plane slowly soars into the sky, the relief felt by those watching can be felt. Swanson: "It's all right. He's off. I thought he wasn't going to make it. He must have cleared that fence by inches." The charged atmosphere changes from relief to fear as the lights on the flare path are suddenly switched off. The aerodrome is being bombed by the Germans, a ploy of theirs was to wait until a flare path was lit before flying in and bombing the aerodromes. The fear of the onlookers is felt as they watch helplessly, knowing what is about to happen but knowing that there is nothing they can do. Swanson: "Brakes, you idiot, brakes! Don't take off!" "An aircraft crashed or was shot down, taking off." Just reading these lines sends a shiver down the spine as your mind visualises what would have happened.
It is apparent from this scene the stalwarts, Doris and Swanson, have witnessed this countless times. The matter of fact tone that Doris uses belies her fears. She maintains her stiff British upper lip, and to the rest of the the group it is almost as if she doesn't care, that she doesn't have the same fears as they do. Earlier in the play Peter and Patricia even mention that Doris' marriage to the Count is false, and that it would be of benefit to Doris if the war continued. It is when Doris confronts them on what she has heard that she lets her guard down and we see the real Doris, not the brave woman putting on a show. Doris: "I know what you meant. You meant my Johnny's going to leave me flat the minute the war's over. That's what you meant. I'm only all right for him as long as the war goes on, and as soon as it's over and he gets back home he'll realise he's made an awful muck-up in marrying me and he'll - he'll- (Chokes and turns her back quickly). "I don't know it isn't true. I wish I did. I think it is true. (Turns round. Defiantly.) But I don't want the war to go on - just because of that."
The play touches on the stoical courage and high spirits of the RAF bomber squadron and the duty that they have to perform, and it focuses on human relationships. The relationship and trust of the gunners towards the pilots; the passionate romances between a husband and wife; and the difference between having love for a person, and actually being in love with a person. It is a play to amuse, to reflect and to question the lives of those who lived through the war years.
While The Sun Shines (1943)
This was a difficult play to obtain. I couldn't find a new version of the play, however, diligent searching found me an early edition, costing slightly more than the 4 schillings advertised! The play is an upbeat farce, and as the only thing I had previously known Rattigan for was Flare Path, it was a delightful surprise and escape to read. I was physically laughing out loud at the more ludicrous moments of the playQA and also in eager anticipation of what was yet to come!
Central to the play is the marriage of Lady Elizabeth Randell (an airforce corporal during WWII) to The Earl of Harpenden (Bobby). Bobby hears of the plight of an American Lieutenant, Joe Mulvaney, he has no where to stay, so Bobby offers him his flat as it will be empty following his wedding the next day. Bobby has been having a romantic liaison with Mabel Crum, which he has acknowledged will have to end once he is married to Elizabeth, and so he decides that he will arrange for Mabel to keep Joe company. Bobby leaves Joe in the flat alone, during his absence Elizabeth arrives, but Joe mistakes her for Mabel and gets her rather tipsy so that he can try out his best lines of seduction.
Elizabeth is rather taken by this American, but to add further to the complications, she has found herself being a good Samaritan to a Frenchman, Colbert, who resides in England. He mistakes her kindness for something more and tries to woo her in typical French style. Matters become increasingly complicated because whilst Elisabeth is not the brightest of women, she does realise that both her marriage and military career could be put in jeopardy. The Earl is rather a buffoon too. He has had countless interviews with the Admiralty to make him an officer, but he has ballsed up each one and remains an able seaman in the Navy instead. "In the first place I was a quarter of an hour late, then I found myself overdoing the free, frank, open boyish manner and got the jitters and became far too servile and cringing, and my hair was too long and I hadn't shaved and I didn't know how many twopenny-halfpenny stamps I could buy fir half a crown. In short, for the fourth time in this war, I proved conclusively both to the Admiralty and to myself that I am not the officer type."
The play's characters become more and more confused as they get more and more at cross purposes with one another. Of course, because the audience is aware who is who, they can watch this drama unfold and enjoy the entertainment of the witless characters trying to make sense of it all! It is an enjoyable and entertaining read and guaranteed to make you laugh. The original play ran for over 1000 performances when it was first released, which shows just how well written and enjoyable it was.
The Deep Blue Sea (1952)
Like Flarepath, WWII forms a backdrop to this play and it shows what the effect of war had on people and their relationships. It is perhaps one of Rattigan's most emotionally charged plays and continuously pulls the reader apart as you battle with your conscience deciding whether you should side with Freddie or Hester.
Tom Burke is currently starring alongside Helen McCrory in a run at The National Theatre, London, and so I have added my thoughts about the play to my summations of plays that Tom Burke has appeared in. To read just click on the link below.
http://imblatheringnow.blogspot.co.uk/2016/06/the-deep-blue-sea.html
The Winslow Boy (1946)
This is a particularly interesting play because it is based on a historical event and shows Rattigan's interest in the Law. His family had been lawyers and solicitors, and he found sitting in court an ideal place to find material for his plays. In reality, a young cadet had been asked to leave the Royal Naval College at Osbourne because he had been accused of allegedly stealing a postal order. The cadet was called George Archer-Shee, and whilst Rattigan created his own characters for the dramatisation of the play, he did stick with the most relevant parts of the actual case.
Master Ronnie Winslow arrives back at his middle-class home in pre-war (1914-1918) Britain. He is not expected by his family for a few more days. The maid, Violet, is the only one to see his arrival. When he hears the rest of his family return home, he hides in the rain in the garden, but later reveals himself to the confidence of his older sister. He has been thrown out of naval college for allegedly stealing a five -schilling postal order and he is a young and scared little boy as to what the family reaction will be to the news. It is a comforting part of the play that when he does tell his father, his father knows his son well enough to know whether he is lying or not, and so starts the begging of a long fight for justice.
The play takes place over a period of nearly two years, and it shows the struggles the family faced to win justice in the name of their son. The play also shows the divides within the family, from those who believed they should fight at all costs, with those who wanted to give in gracefully. The British justice system did not allow the Admiralty to be taken to court, not without its own consent, so the family faced a long battle to get the case to court before justice could even begin to be considered.
All inquiries into complaints were done in-house, and whilst it does not state this in the play, in real life the Archer-Shee family were Irish Catholics and there was an anti-Catholic prejudice at Osbourne Royal Naval College, and therefore it was unlikely the boy would have been given a fair hearing. In Rattigan's dramatisation, the family has engaged the most prolific barrister they can find, and he subjects poor Ronnie to a heart rending interrogation before agreeing to take on the case. We don't however get to witness the drama of the courtroom, instead, the play concentrates on the family home and how the constant strain on trying to clear Ronnie's names takes it toll on his father.
It is a powerful drama, and shows that despite the odds, David can take on Goliath if he has faith that the truth will out. Sadly, whilst the real George Archer-Shay was cleared of his crimes, he died in the trenches in 1914 at Ypres aged 19.
The Browning Version (1948)
The first in two short one act plays.
This is a simple but poignant play to read. It takes place in a boys public school in the south of England. The schoolmaster Crocker-Harris (or Crock as the boys preferred to call him) is on the point of retirement. He is a strict housemaster who plays by the rules and demands the respect of the boys under his tutelage, this means that some of the boys feel they are hard done by, especially as some of the housemasters show more leniency of the rules than Crock does. But whilst Crock has this hard outer shell, one of the boys, Taplow, can see through him. Despite having fun mimicking Crocker-Harris behind his back, Taplow feels sorry for him and gives him a small parting gift.
Crocker-Harris' wife is younger than her husband, and evidently bored by him. She has fallen for one of the other teachers, Frank Hunter, and has had the tenacity to tell her husband of her affair. She does not care how much she hurts her husband by her betrayal, even though she is aware that Andrew does not love her the way she loves him; it also becomes evident that this is not the first affair she has had. Frank can not believe that Crocker-Harris has continued to live with such secrets, so in a particularly poignant scene he explains matters to Frank "I know that in both of us, the love that we should have borne each other has turned to bitter hatred. That's all the problem is. Not a very unusual one, I venture to think - nor nearly as tragic as you seem to imagine. Merely the problem of an unsatisfied wife and a henpecked husband. You'll find it all over the world."
As the play develops we get a sense of who Crocker-Harris is, and whilst outwardly we may wish to condemn him, when he lets his mask slip, and we see the real man,we can not help but have empathy for him, as Taplow and Frank appear to do. The simple gift Taplow gives to Crocker-Harris is the catalyst to make him reflect and evaluate the rest of his life, and give a sense of hope for his future.
Harlequinade (1948)
The second in two short one act plays.
Just like While The Sun shines, this is another laugh out loud play. It focuses on the world of the theatre, and if that is what an actors life is like, I really feel like I have missed out. The main actors in the play are a married couple, Arthur Gosport and Edna Selby. They are playing the rolls of Romeo and Juliet, who are 17 and 13, but it is clear that the actors are actually both middle aged and doyens of the theatre and oblivious to what happens in the real world. It is just before opening night and Arthur is tweaking the performance, amidst Romeo's most famous speech, he suddenly decides to add in a theatrical leap, to add to the boyishness of the part. This unexpected manouvre causes Edna to laugh at him, and a conversation ensuing about whether or not it is a ridiculous notion to be leaping about the stage.
Arthur: Does it look awfully silly? I won't do it again.
Edna: Oh no - you must do it. Come on. Let's try again.
Arthur: No. I won't do it if it's as funny as all that. I only thought it might help the boyishness of the line, that's all.
Edna: And it does. It looks very boyish. (To prompt corner.) Doesn't it look boyish, Johnny?
Rattigan throughout the play builds layer upon layer of comic elegance to the play. From the old dame who refuses to retire, to the elder mediocre actor who is not sure why he has spent his life in the theatre, to the stage manager who needs to escape the madness of the theatre, it is all piled into this one act play. Even the characters who are not part of the theatrical production add a lightness and air of confused bewilderment to the piece. The woman wandering around the stage requesting to meet Arthur (who Arthur believes to be an actress wanting a part in The Winter's Tale) turns out to be his daughter. Johnny (the assistant stage manager) is given an ultimatum by his fiancee, but as the play goes on you know he can not succeed to her demands, and so his fiancee delivers a fine speech towards the end, making the confused Arthur believe she is an actress and he wants to cast her in his next production.
But despite all of the comedy, Rattigan of course has a message to deliver, and there are some poignant moments amidst all of this mirth. Arthur, who lives in this confused world of his own, finds out that he has a grown up daughter, a baby grandson, and that he is still married to his first wife and has committed bigamy. The fact that he has committed this act washes over him. He is completely oblivious as to the seriousness of his crime. "You mean, I might have to pay a fine - or something like that?" ... "Imprisonment - for life."
The actors in this play live for the theatre, not in the real world and they have a one track mind, "But why, when I'm playing Romeo of all parts? Why couldn't it have turned up when I was playing Lear?" They are sealed off from the reality of life by their entourage of staff who look after the day to day running of the actors lives. It is this which gives the play it's over the top comic edge, despite the catastrophe potentially awaiting Arthur, nothing matters, except that the show must go on. A great play to read if you should ever need cheering up.
Separate Tables (1954)
Both plays are connected by the fact that they are both set in the same Bournemouth residential hotel; each play focusing on a different set of characters and exploring the different facets of love. The plays are set about 18 months apart. Rattigan is an observer of people and no-where is this more noticeable than at The Beauregard Private Hotel in Bournemouth. Individuals with their secrets to tell sit, mainly alone, at their own tables, living their lives, and the audience ventures into their worlds. Whilst both plays take place in the same venue, each play concentrates on a different guest, and the secrets uncovered will leave you sad, amused and reflective.
Table by the Window
John Malcolm is a journalist. A former politician. A drunkard. A wife beater. An ex-husband.
He lives a quiet life at the hotel, until one day his ex-wife walks in and announces she is now engaged. He confirms he is engaged, but does not confirm that it is to the hotel owner Miss Cooper. There is a lot of tension and animosity between the couple. When they were married, Anne provoked John into a violent act which caused him to be sent to prison which ultimately destroyed his career. John claims that it is his fault his life fell apart, but when he hears that Anne is talking to his publisher, and he realises that it is no coincidence that she has tracked him down to the hotel, he confronts her and says she is now too old and ugly to manipulate men as she once did in her halcyon days of being a model. Anne has a breakdown and confesses everything to Miss Cooper, including her addiction to sleeping pills and Miss Cooper acts as the go between to help reconcile this emotionally fraught pair.
Table Number Seven
This play follows the downfall of the self-styled "Major" Pollock who has tried to conceal a local newspaper article which reported him of sexually harassing women at a local cinema. The guests at the hotel believe that the Major is an upright citizen who has served his country, however, Mrs Railton-Bell uncovers the Major's dark secrets and she tries to lead a rebellion with the other hotel guests against him. She is a formidable and domineering character, and her grown up daughter lives in fear of her, never questioning her mother. Sybil, despite being painfully shy has been able to strike up an awkward relationship with the Major, and therefore finds it particularly difficult to agree to her mother's demands against him, and so it is with relief that we stand by Sybil as she eventually finds the courage and determination to rebel against her mother. As in Table by the Window, the hotel owner Miss Cooper is the voice of reason
In Praise of Love (1973)
This is a very tender play, based in part on the real life tragedy of Rex Harrison's wife, Kay Kendall, who was dying of cancer.
A wife, from Estonia, who has manged against all odds to survive the horrors of war and escape from the holocaust is now dying of an illness brought on by malnutrition in her earlier life. She bravely carries on going to doctor's appointments where the news is increasingly worse, yet she puts on a brave face and tells her husband than the news is positive, that she is getting better, in order that she may save him from the hurt of knowing that she is dying.
Her husband is a writer, he works from home as a critic, and he appears to the outside world as harsh and unfeeling, and the early conversations between the two seems harsh and critical. It is only as we proceed through the play that we realise that he adores his wife and has been secretly trying to find the best medics available in order to ensure she has the best chance at survival. Both parties in love with each other, both parties keeping a secret from each other.
The couple have a son, he wishes to write plays and become a member of the Liberal party, however his political leanings are met with derision from his parents. Whilst his mother tries to encourage him in his dreams, his father seems distant and cold, but perhaps he has other things playing on his mind that he cannot discuss with his son or his wife. In this threesome, we see another form of love evolving, and that when things are said, it is only because each person cares so deeply about the other that the words appear so uncaring.
In Praise of Love is a moving story of three people who obviously love each other very much, but they are unable to articulate their feelings, that is until an old American friend drops by. It is clear that he has always felt more than friendly affection towards Lydia, but his relationship with her husband and son is close enough for him to allow a channel of communication between all of the parties. An American visitor, who is not as repressed as his British counterparts, allows each character to unburden themselves. as they face their own future and the difficult road ahead.
Before Dawn (1973)
This short play was written as a curtain raiser in conjunction with In Praise of Love. It is a comical reworking about the opera Tosca. In it we have the villain of the piece, Scarpia; a confused captain, Schiarrone, and the diva at the centre of everything, Tosca.
Scarpia has imprisoned Tosca's lover, and tells her that her lover will be released if she succumbs to Scarpia's amorous advances. Tosca eventually agrees, only to find Scarpia impotent. Of course Scarpia does not want this to be known, and tries to enlist the help of the unwitting Schiarrone, by concocting a plan about whether Tosca's lover should or should not be executed. The confusion that arises is exquisitely written, and it is a light ending to some of Rattigan's harder and more emotional plays.
Schiarrone: (After searching Scarpia's face carefully) Yes. The Signora is to be taken down to the platform where she is to bid adieu to her lover -
Scarpia: (Murmuring) No Schiarrone -
Schiarrone: (Undeterred) While the firing squad level their muskets at them both -
Scarpia: (Murmuring again) Not exactly, Schiarrone -
Schiarrone: And the muskets of course, are to be loaded with blanks, not balls. Never fear, Excellency. I have the whole thing pat.
He looks pleased with himself. Scarpia does not look pleased with him.
Rattigan has written many more plays, and at some point I will eventually get around to reading and watching them too. I have really fallen for his style of writing. He has taken note of human behaviour and he is not afraid to show the destructive nature of the human condition nor take on the social challenges of his day. He wrote about depression, suicide, politics, homosexuality; but whilst he tackled the difficult issues of his era, he did it in a manner which was entertaining and quite subtle. He was not afraid to make his characters flawed, unlikable, even violent and unkind. I think that is why he is able to still strike a resonance with readers today. Despite his plays being written in the 1940's/1950's, they still hold true to a modern world. Yes the language has evolved over the years, we don't speak with the clipped tones of the quintessential Englishman anymore, but the messages and meaning of the plays still hold true, and still strike a resonance with the reader.
Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope (Box Clever Challenge - February)
My friends were discussing the outstanding performance of the late Alan Rickman in his portrayal of Obadiah Slope in The Barchester Chronicles. I was only 9 years old when it was broadcast, so I don't remember it, although I imagine it was probably a firm favourite with my late mother! Curiosity got the better of me, and as I knew there was a copy of Barchester Towers in my bookcase, I decided it should be my second novel for the 2016 Classics Challenge.
Anthony Trollope published Barchester Towers in 1857; could a novel written nearly 160 years ago still have resonance with its audience today? I must admit I was disappointed when I first started reading the book. I found it tough going if I'm honest, the characters, of which there are many, were introduced at the start, but they were valueless introductions. The start is as if you were at a party and introduced to twenty people and you can't remember who is who or what they do because you haven't had a chance to have a meaningful conversation, therefore the person hasn't registered in your mind. It also didn't help that as you ventured through the novel, each character was known by a myriad of names!
The story is very simple, A new bishop arrives in Barchester with his wife, and a new chaplain. They liven up this quiet town, showing the two sides of ecclesiastical life, the old fashioned view of the church versus new ideas. Essentially this is a book about clerical warfare interspersed with a good old-fashioned love story! Who will have the strength and courage to battle it out with some very strong and fiery characters?
"I like everything old-fashioned...old-fashioned things are so much the honestest."
Trollope's style within the novel is to ramble on. The author of the story narrates his way through the lives of the various inhabitants of Barchester. It feels like you are sitting with a grandparent who is telling you a story of the village he lives in, but he keeps going off on a tangent before coming back to the main story! The book is therefore more character driven than plot based, in fact I'm not sure there really is a plot, so far as to say there are two questions to be answered. Who will win in the warring factions of the clergy, and who will win the hand of the delightful Mrs Bold? There is very little action but it is a peak through the windows of Victorian society. It shows how the society back then was of a nicety culture, you didn't voice your opinions, you would smile and be polite and keep your thoughts to yourself.
Anthony Trollope published Barchester Towers in 1857; could a novel written nearly 160 years ago still have resonance with its audience today? I must admit I was disappointed when I first started reading the book. I found it tough going if I'm honest, the characters, of which there are many, were introduced at the start, but they were valueless introductions. The start is as if you were at a party and introduced to twenty people and you can't remember who is who or what they do because you haven't had a chance to have a meaningful conversation, therefore the person hasn't registered in your mind. It also didn't help that as you ventured through the novel, each character was known by a myriad of names!The story is very simple, A new bishop arrives in Barchester with his wife, and a new chaplain. They liven up this quiet town, showing the two sides of ecclesiastical life, the old fashioned view of the church versus new ideas. Essentially this is a book about clerical warfare interspersed with a good old-fashioned love story! Who will have the strength and courage to battle it out with some very strong and fiery characters?
"I like everything old-fashioned...old-fashioned things are so much the honestest."
Trollope's style within the novel is to ramble on. The author of the story narrates his way through the lives of the various inhabitants of Barchester. It feels like you are sitting with a grandparent who is telling you a story of the village he lives in, but he keeps going off on a tangent before coming back to the main story! The book is therefore more character driven than plot based, in fact I'm not sure there really is a plot, so far as to say there are two questions to be answered. Who will win in the warring factions of the clergy, and who will win the hand of the delightful Mrs Bold? There is very little action but it is a peak through the windows of Victorian society. It shows how the society back then was of a nicety culture, you didn't voice your opinions, you would smile and be polite and keep your thoughts to yourself.
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