Folk (NHB Modern Plays) E-Book

Tom Wells

• Herausgeber: Nick Hern Books
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Seitenzahl: 64

Beschreibung

Winnie's no ordinary nun. She swears, she smokes, she drinks Guinness, and she loves a sing-song with Stephen. But soon everything's going to change. Stephen's lost his way. Finding solace in music, he knows he must start again… if only he knew how. Kayleigh is a teenager, unsure of herself. But when unexpected circumstances lead her to Winnie and Stephen, she starts to find her voice. Surprising and poignant, Folk is a hilarious and not-so-holy story of hope, coming together and finding your feet when your world is turned upside down. It was co-produced in 2016 by Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Hull Truck Theatre and Watford Palace Theatre.

Leseprobe

Tom Wells

FOLK

NICK HERN BOOKSLondonwww.nickhernbooks.co.uk

Contents

Title Page

Original Production

Dedication

Characters

Folk

Also by Tom Wells

About the Author

Copyright and Performing Rights Information

Folk was produced by Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Hull Truck Theatre and Watford Palace Theatre and was first performed at The STUDIO at Birmingham Repertory Theatre on 14 April 2016. The cast was as follows:

STEPHEN

Patrick Bridgman

KAYLEIGH

Chloe Harris

WINNIE

Connie Walker

Director

Tessa Walker

Designer

Bob Bailey

Lighting Designer

Simon Bond

Composer and Musical Director

James Frewer

Sound Designer

Clive Meldrum

Assistant Director

Jo Gleave

Stage Manager

Michael Ramsay

Deputy Stage Manager

Amber Curtis

This one’s for you, Tessa Walker,with love.

Characters

KAYLEIGH, fifteenSTEPHEN, fiftiesSISTER WINNIE, a nun, Irish, fifties

This ebook was created before the end of rehearsals and so may differ slightly from the play as performed

1.

SISTER WINNIE’s front room.

WINNIE lives in an old Victorian terraced house on Bannister Street, Withernsea.

It’s decorated simply, clean and warm and a bit shabby, with a big bay window, some religious pictures, a few lamps, a sofa and a chair. There’s a staircase coming down into the room, a door through to the kitchen, and a door at the back to a yard where Winnie goes to smoke. Sometimes. She sometimes just smokes out of the window.

Friday night.

STEPHEN sits. He’s got an old Aldi bag at his feet, full of handwritten music and tin whistles. Some of the tin whistles are home-made. He is holding a very battered guitar, tuning it, listening to the strings.

WINNIE sticks her head out from the kitchen, grinning.

WINNIE. Cheer me up, Stephen. Sing something.

STEPHEN. Something, um, holy or…?

WINNIE nods.

WINNIE. Something wholly inappropriate.

WINNIE disappears again.

STEPHEN smiles and starts to play. ‘The Holy Ground’.

He is all fingers and thumbs, but he bashes it out alright, and sings, quietly:

STEPHEN.

Adieu to you my Dinah

Ten thousand times adieu

For we’re going away from the Holy Ground

And the girls that we love true.

We will sail the salt seas over

And then return for shore

To see again the girls we love

And the Holy Ground once more –

WINNIE dances in.

WINNIE. FINE GIRL YOU ARE!

WINNIE has two pints of Guinness. She puts the glasses down on a little table. She is jiggling along to the music.

STEPHEN.

You’re the girl I do adore

And still I live in hopes to see

The Holy Ground once more.

STEPHEN stops singing, but carries on strumming his guitar.

Less holy than I thought. Sorry.

WINNIE. Spot on. Just the ticket.

WINNIE takes the second verse herself.

And now the storm is raging

And we are far from shore

And the good old ship is tossing about

And the rigging is all tore

WINNIE picks up a statue of the Virgin Mary, and sings to it.

And the secret of my life, my dear,

You’re the girl I do adore

She uses it as a microphone.

But still I live in hope to see

The Holy Ground once more.

STEPHENandWINNIE.

FINE GIRL YOU ARE!

WINNIE.

You’re the girl I do adore

But still I live in hope to see

The Holy Ground once more

A moment.

Oh. Ah.

STEPHEN. And now…

WINNIE pulls a face at STEPHEN. She has forgotten the words. STEPHEN starts the next verse himself.

And now the storm is over

And we are safe and well

We’ll go into a public house –

WINNIE’s remembered the words.

STEPHENandWINNIE.

And we’ll sit and drink like hell!

STEPHEN.

We will drink strong ale and porter

STEPHENandWINNIE.

And make the rafters roar

And when our money is all spent

We’ll go to sea once more

FINE GIRL –

A lump of muddy brick crashes through the window. Glass goes everywhere. STEPHEN stops playing.

WINNIE. Shitting hell! Are you alright?

STEPHEN. Fine, I think. Are you?

WINNIE has opened the door.

WINNIE. Who’s there? Who was that? You there, you! Stop, please. Did you see anything? You must’ve. Well, someone’s just lobbed a filthy great bastarding brick through… Hang on. Show me your hands. Would you mind, I mean. Listen, we can call the police now, you can get in all sorts of trouble, seven shades of, or you can come in here where it’s light, I can see your hands.

A moment. WINNIE is quieter.

Come in here, poppet. Come on now.

WINNIE holds the door open. She’s calm again.

KAYLEIGH peeps through the doorway.

It’s Kayleigh, isn’t it? Is it? I used to do you an assembly on a Thursday, in juniors. Sister Winnie. Probably don’t remember – you’ve grown, I’ve shrunk.

KAYLEIGH comes in.

This is Stephen, he won’t bite.

STEPHEN nods hello. He’s not keen.

Now then. Hold these out a sec.

WINNIE looks at KAYLEIGH’s hands. She also picks up the muddy brick. The same mud is on both.

She looks at KAYLEIGH.

KAYLEIGH. I’m properly, properly sorry.

WINNIE. It’s a good start, Kayleigh. It’s a good start.

KAYLEIGH. Dunno what I was thinking.

WINNIE. I hope to goodness you do know what you were thinking, Kayleigh. It’s a bit of a big thing to have done if you didn’t know what you were thinking.

KAYLEIGH. I mean, I wasn’t aiming for you. Is what I mean.

WINNIE. I should hope not.

KAYLEIGH (quietly). Well I wasn’t.

WINNIE. You missed, anyway. Phew. Thank you, St Scholastica, the patron saint of nuns. Or possibly St Spyridon who could be said to be the patron saint of bricks, at a push, which I for one would say this is.

A push, I mean – it’s definitely a brick.

WINNIE smiles. KAYLEIGH looks down.

Now: would you mind filling me in a bit, what’s going on?

KAYLEIGH shrugs.

Come on, Kayleigh. Why are you chucking bricks at us for?

KAYLEIGH. Not at you.

WINNIE. Chucking bricks then. In general. Not at us.

Silence.

I tell you what: you just have a think, I’ll fish the shards of window out of Stephen’s Guinness.

WINNIE sits down, peers into the Guinness.

KAYLEIGH. Did you ring the police?

WINNIE. I didn’t, Kayleigh.

KAYLEIGH. Really though?

WINNIE offers KAYLEIGH her phone.

WINNIE. Check if you like – call history. I’m fairly sure it’s Npower, the Bish, and a very unhelpful young man at Domino’s Pizza.

KAYLEIGH. They won’t deliver, not round here.

WINNIE. I know, it’s outrageous.

KAYLEIGH smiles a tiny smile.

What?

KAYLEIGH. Your phone’s old.

WINNIE. You look after it a bit, eh? Then we definitely can’t be snitching on you.

STEPHEN. Sister.

WINNIE. What?

STEPHEN looks horrified that WINNIE is giving KAYLEIGH her phone. WINNIE’s not fussed.

KAYLEIGH. What about…?

KAYLEIGH gestures towards STEPHEN.

WINNIE. Stephen’s not got a mobile. He’s anti-technology.

STEPHEN. I’ve got a radio.

WINNIE. Exactly.

Oh.

WINNIE fishes a big sharp chunk of glass out of the Guinness. She looks at STEPHEN.

STEPHEN’s annoyed.

STEPHEN. Fresh start?

WINNIEnods.

WINNIE. That was the last of the Guinness, sadly. Sorry. But there’s tea in the cupboard and milk in the fridge and I reckon we could all do with a couple of sugars, for the shock. Kayleigh, you up for a tea?

KAYLEIGH. Um.

WINNIE. Three teas then, Stephen, if you don’t mind.

STEPHEN goes through to the kitchen.

There. Now we’ve got rid of Stephen for a minute, hogging the conversation, as per, do you want to tell me what brings you to this end of Bannister Street of a Friday night? Is it your love of the bus depot?

KAYLEIGH shakes her head.

Are you sure now? It’s a lovely bus depot.

KAYLEIGH. Positive.

KAYLEIGH smiles. She’s sad though.

WINNIE. If something’s the matter, Kayleigh, you can tell me. That’s what nuns are for.

WINNIE considers this.

Also, comedy.

KAYLEIGH.