Mad Forest E-Book

Caryl Churchill

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

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

Beschreibung

A play written in response to the Romanian revolution of 1989, exploring the reactions of ordinary people to events. What emerges is the dreadful damage done to people's lives by repression and the painful difficulties of lasting change. Caryl Churchill's play Mad Forest was written after she, the director Mark Wing-Davey and a group of students from London's Central School of Speech and Drama went to Romania to work with acting students there. The resulting play was first performed by students of CSSD in June 1990, only three months after their return from Romania. It was subsequently performed at the National Theatre, Bucharest, in September 1990, and opened at the Royal Court Theatre, London, in October 1990.

Leseprobe

Caryl Churchill

MAD FOREST

NICK HERN BOOKS

London

www.nickhernbooks.co.uk

Contents

Title Page

Production Note

Original Production

Mad Forest

About the Author

Copyright and Performing Rights Information

Production Note

Since the play goes from the difficulty of saying anything to everyone talking, don’t be afraid of long silences. For instance, in Scene One, the silence before Bogdan turns up the music was a good fifteen seconds in our production. Short scenes like 13 and 15 need to be given their weight. Don’t add additional dialogue (for instance in queues, party or arrival in country) except in III 6 where ‘etc’ means there can be other things shouted by the spectators.

The queue scenes and execution scene should have as many people as are available. In the execution scene it is the violence of the spectators which is the main focus rather than the execution itself.

We didn’t use a prop rat. The Vampire was not dressed as a vampire.

In Part II (December) the language of the different characters varies with how well they speak English, and this should be reflected in their accents.

In the hospital and party scenes it is particularly important that the short scenes within them are not run together and that time has clearly passed.

Music. As in the text, the music after the opening poem becomes the music on the Vladu radio. It’s not essential to do what we did with the music, but it may be helpful to know that at the end of the wedding we used a hymn to the Ceauşescus and continued the music till everyone was in place for the beginning of December; at the end of December the whole company sang a verse from ‘Wake up Romania’ in Romanian, which then merged with a recording of it; we had music at the beginning of Part III. The party music in III.8 should be western euro-pop. The dance music should be the lambada – this is not an arbitrary choice, it was the popular dance at the time. The nightmare scene and the very end of the play probably need sound.

Words for the poem at the beginning and words and music for ‘Wake up Romania’ can be got from Casarotto Ramsay.

Caryl Churchill and Mark Wing-Davey, March 1991

Mad Forest was first staged by students in their final year of training at the Central School of Speech and Drama, London, on 25 June 1990 with the cast as follows. It was subsequently performed at the National Theatre, Bucharest, from 17 September, and opened at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on 9 October 1990 with the same cast.

VLADU FAMILY BOGDAN, an electricianDavid MacCreedyIRINA, a tramdriverLucy CohuTheir children: LUCIA, a primary school teacherNicola GibsonFLORINA, a nurseVictoria AlcockGABRIEL, an engineerDavid MesteckyRODICA, Gabriel’s wifeSarah BallWAYNE, Lucia’s bridegroomGordon AndersonGRANDFATHER, Bogdan’s fatherIain HakeGRANDMOTHER, Bogdan’s motherSarah BallOLD AUNT, Bogdan’s auntIain HakeANTONESCU FAMILYMIHAI, an architectGordon AndersonFLAVIA, a teacherSarah BallRADU, an art student, their sonMark HealGRANDMOTHER, Flavia’s grandmother, who is deadLucy CohuIANOŞPhilip GlenisterSECURITATE MANIain HakeDOCTORJoseph BennettPRIESTIain HakeANGELJoseph BennettVAMPIREIain HakeDOGGordon AndersonSOMEONE WITH SORE THROATIain HakePATIENTJoseph BennettTWO SOLDIERSIain Hake, Joseph BennettTOMA, aged 8David MacCreedyGHOSTJoseph BennettWAITERJoseph BennettPAINTERPhilip GlenisterGIRL STUDENTLucy CohuTWO BOY STUDENTSJoseph Bennett, David MacCreedyTRANSLATORGordon AndersonBULLDOZER DRIVERDavid MesteckySECURITATE OFFICERMark HealSOLDIERIain HakeSTUDENT DOCTORNicola GibsonFLOWERSELLERVictoria AlcockHOUSEPAINTERSarah Ball

PEOPLE IN QUEUES AND WEDDING GUESTS

played by members of the company

Directed by  Mark Wing-DaveyDesigned by  Antony McDonaldLighting Design  Nigel H. Morgan

Bucharest Workshop Group

Victoria Alcock, Sarah Ball, Joseph Bennett, Caryl Churchill,Lucy Cohu, Nicola Gibson, Iain Hake, Mark Heal,David MacCreedy, Antony McDonald, David Mestecky,Nigel H. Morgan, Indra Ove, Mark Wing-Davey,Jason Woodford.

Special thanks to

The staff and pupils of the Institutul de Arta Teatrala si Cinematografica, I.L. Caragiale, Bucharest; and all the Romanians who helped both groups in Bucharest.

MAD FOREST

On the plain where Bucharest now stands there used to be ‘a large forest crossed by small muddy streams … It could only be crossed on foot and was impenetrable for the foreigner who did not know the paths … The horsemen of the steppe were compelled to go round it, and this difficulty, which irked them so, is shown by the name … Teleorman – Mad Forest.’

A Concise History of Romania

Otetea and MacKenzie

I LUCIA’S WEDDING

The company recite, smiling, a poem in Romanian in praise of Elena Ceauşescu.

Stirring Romanian music.

Each scene is announced by one of the company reading from a phrasebook as if an English tourist, first in Romanian, then in English, and again in Romanian.

1. Lucia are patru ouǎ Lucia has four eggs.

Music continues. BOGDAN and IRINA VLADU sit in silence, smoking Romanian cigarettes.

BOGDAN turns up the music on the radio very loud. He sits looking at IRINA.

IRINA puts her head close to BOGDAN’s and talks quickly and quietly, to convince him.

He argues back, she insists, he gets angry. We can’t hear anything they say.

They stop talking and sit with the music blaring. BOGDAN is about to speak when FLORINA and LUCIA come in, laughing.

They stop laughing and look at BOGDAN and IRINA.

IRINA turns the radio down low.

LUCIA produces four eggs with a flourish. IRINA kisses her.

BOGDAN ignores her.

LUCIA produces a packet of American cigarettes.

FLORINA laughs.

LUCIA opens the cigarettes and offers them to IRINA. She hesitates, then puts out her cigarette and takes one. FLORINA takes one.

BOGDAN ignores them.

LUCIA offers a cigarette to BOGDAN, he shakes his head.

LUCIA takes a cigarette. They sit smoking.

BOGDAN finishes his cigarette. He sits without smoking. Then he takes a cigarette.

LUCIA and FLORINA laugh.

BOGDAN picks up an egg and breaks it on the floor.

IRINA gathers the other eggs to safety.

LUCIA and FLORINA keep still.

IRINA turns the radio up loud and is about to say something.

BOGDAN turns the radio completely off. IRINA ignores him and smokes.

FLORINA gets a cup and spoon and scrapes up what she can of the egg off the floor.

LUCIA keeps still.

2. Cine are un chibrit? Who has a match?