Peace in Our Time
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Noël Coward's PEACE IN OUR TIME adapted by Barry Creyton (with permission of the Noel Coward Foundation) October 2011 Bruce Ostler Bret Adams Ltd 448 West 44th Street New York NY 10036 212 765-5630 1 CHARACTERS FRED SHATTOCK Landlord of THE SHY GAZELLE, an amiable, gregarious man of fifty – South London accent. NORA SHATTOCK His wife, two years younger than Fred, grey hair, efficient manner – South London accent. DORIS SHATTOCK Fred and Nora's daughter – twenty-one – South London. LYIA VIVIAN Cabaret singer, spectacular looking, thirty-five – upper class London accent. GEORGE BOURNE Of the idle wealthy class, well dressed, late thirties – upper class London accent JANET BRAID A buyer for a London department store , plainly dressed, ordinary-looking, forty – upper middle class accent. ALMA BOUGHTON Novelist, well dressed, talkative, late thirties – upper middle class accent. MR GRAINGER MRS GRAINGER Commonplace couple in their early sixties; he works in a factory – middle class accent. CHORLEY BANNISTER An 'intellectual' magazine editor, devoid of moral integrity – upper class accent. 2 BOBBY PAXTON An actor, flamboyant in manner and dress, good-looking in a soft way, twenties – affected theatrical accent. ALBRECHT RICHTER German officer, always pleasant in manner belying ruthlessness, thirties - forties GLADYS MOTT A tart, common, twenties – East End accent. ALFIE BLAKE LILY BLAKE Working class couple, thirties, cockney accent. KURT FORSTER Good-looking young Austrian theatre director. PHYLLIS Barmaid, early twenties, gossipy, air-head – cockney accent. ARCHIE JENKINS (PIANIST) BILLY GRAINGER The Graingers' son – twenties. DOCTOR VENNING Solid, middle-aged – upper middle class accent. STEVIE The Shattocks's son – late twenties. MRS MASSITER Eccentric, late sixties – home counties accent. GERMAN SOLDIER / GESTAPO OFFICER / YOUNG GERMAN SOLDIER 3 The entire action of the play takes place in the saloon bar of a public house called The Shy Gazelle, situated somewhere between Sloane Square and Knightsbridge. The bar is on the left and stretches downstage to upstage; stools front the bar. At the back, a small alcove leading to the kitchen; a staircase is visible, which leads to the upper part of the house – a private dining room and above that living quarters for the Shattocks. At the back, right, two archways – one has two doors (visible or not) which lead respectively to the kitchen, and the back door exit to the mews; the other archway leads to the Ladies' and Gents' restrooms. Down right, a console piano. The Los Angeles production employed projected stills and newsreel clips of wartime London superimposed with the date to cover scene transitions. Alternatively, a small blackboard on an easel of the kind used for menus in London pubs might be employed. The date is written on the board at the top of each scene as an actor goes into the scene. The street door to the pub is off, down right. 4 'The Shy Gazelle' is based on a pub a few blocks from where Noël Coward lived in Gerald Road. 'The Antelope' has become gentrified in recent years, but in general, it fits the description of the Shy Gazelle – a narrow frontage, a saloon bar downstairs (once a saloon and a separate private bar, now opened into a single bar), a dining room upstairs, with accommodation above that. A mews backs the pub as in the play description. The Antelope, June 2010, 9:30 pm 5 ACT 1 scene 1 November 1940, 8:30 pm scene 2 June 1941, 2:30 pm scene 3 January 1942, 9:30 pm scene 4 February 19 1942, 9:30 pm ACT 2 scene 1 January 1945, 9 pm scene 2 February 1945, 5:30 pm scene 2a Lyia's cabaret song scene 3 three days after Scene 2, 2:30 pm scene 3a Lyia's cabaret song, reprise scene 4 May 1945, early afternoon 6 In blackout, characters adopt opening positions: The GRAINGERS are seated at a table which will be theirs throughout, the BLAKES at another which will occasionally be theirs. FRED and NORA are behind the bar. GEORGE is at downstage table – LYIA will join him after the number. CHORLEY hovers upstage of the bar. PROJECTION (OR BLACKBOARD): NOVEMBER 1940 ACT 1, Scene 1: November, 1940 - About eight-thirty in the evening . We HEAR LYIA begin LONDON PRIDE a capella: LYIA: London Pride has been handed down to us. London Pride is a flower that's free. London Pride means our own dear town to us, And our pride it for ever will be. PIANO JOINS AS LIGHTS COME UP ON LYIA standing by the piano and gradually, the rest of the pub is illuminated, the characters frozen until dialogue begins. LYIA: Woa, Liza, See the coster barrows, Vegetable marrows And the fruit piled high. Woa, Liza, Little London sparrows, Covent Garden Market where the costers cry. 7 Cockney feet Mark the beat of history. Every street Pins a memory down. Nothing ever can quite replace The grace of London Town. PUB INHABITANTS COME TO LIFE PIANO PLAYS INTERLUDE & FIRST 8 BARS OF REFRAIN SOLO UNDER DIALOGUE. PIANO: There's a little city flower every spring unfailing Growing in the crevices by some London railing, Though it has a Latin name, in town and country-side We in England call it London Pride.. London Pride has been handed down to us. London Pride is a flower that's free. London Pride means our own dear town to us, And our pride it for ever will be. ALMA enters and goes to the bar. FRED: Hallo, Mrs Boughton – I thought you weren't coming back until Thursday. ALMA: I got through quicker than I expected – Leeds was awful – bitterly cold, you know they've requisitioned the Queen's, Nora? NORA: Trust them – they always go for the best hotels. FRED: The usual? ALMA: Yes please – very little soda though – I'm frozen. FRED gives her a whisky and ALMA sits at the bar. 8 LYIA continues LONDON PRIDE at the bridge: LYIA: Grey city Stubbornly implanted, Taken so for granted For a thousand years. Stay, city, Smokily enchanted, Cradle of our memories and hopes and fears. Every Blitz Your resistance Toughening, From the Ritz To the Anchor and Crown, Nothing ever could override The pride of London Town. CUSTOMERS applaud; LYIA acknowledges the applause, thanks ARCHIE, then joins GEORGE at their table. She pecks him on the cheek establishing their relationship. NORA takes a beer to ARCHIE then goes to the GRAINGER's table. MR GRAINGER: Another port, dear? MRS GRAINGER: No, thank you. You have one if you want to – there's no hurry. MR GRAINGER: I think I will at that. Make it a mild and bitter, please, Mrs Shattock. NORA: (calling to FRED ) One mild and bitter. (to MR GRAINGER ) Any news of your boy? MR GRAINGER: Yes – We had a post-card from him only this morning. NORA: One of those printed ones, I suppose? 9 MR GRAINGER: Yes – it said he was well enough. NORA: Well, that's something to be thankful for, isn't it? LYIA: What's the time, George? GEORGE: (glancing at his wrist-watch) Quarter to. LYIA: Time for one more before I give my all to my fascinating public. GEORGE: Two more, please, Fred. FRED: Righto. (He pours two gins and lime.) ALMA: Show still going well? LYIA: Packed – they don't laugh much but they seem to enjoy themselves. The dinner show's the worst – they sit like stuffed carp. After midnight it's better and they relax a bit. NORA: I don't envy you and that's a fact. LYIA: I don't envy myself. JANET enters and goes to the bar. NORA: MR Grainger had a post-card from his son – he's still there – in the Isle of Wight. GEORGE: He'll probably stay there indefinitely, I should think. JANET: Have you got any cigarettes, Fred? FRED: Running a bit short, but there's always a packet for you as long as we have them – Players? 10 JANET: Yes, please. ALMA: Have you been working all day? JANET: Yes – it passes the time. ALMA: How's it going? JANET: I've got about five more chapters to do. ALMA: How wonderful to be able to do something creative – particularly in these times. JANET: The sort of nonsense I'm writing at the moment isn't creative – it just... JANET & ALMA: ...passes the time. CHORLEY ( to FRED ): You're sure MR Paxton didn't ring up or leave a message or anything? FRED: Quite sure, MR Bannister. I haven't heard of him or seen him for days. CHORLEY: If there is one thing in the world I detest it is people who make appointments and fail to keep them. JANET: There's more than one thing in the world that I detest. CHORLEY: Do you want a drink, Janet? Mrs Boughton? I've been guzzling alone for too long – it's bad for my soul. ALMA: One whisky and soda then – if it's to save your soul. JANET: No more for me. I've got to go home after the nine o'clock news and do some more work. 11 CHORLEY: I could never work after the nine o'clock news, it's so dreadfully negative. As a matter of fact, I find it increasingly difficult to work at all these days – the air is so full of rumours and tidings and implications – it's like living in a perpetual hail storm. JANET (drily) : The magazine is doing as well as ever though, isn't it – now that you've readjusted some of its opinions? CHORLEY (with a touch of asperity) : Forethought says what it thinks.