On the day of the famous annual fair, the town of Faldum receives an unexpected visit. A wanderer offers to grant a wish to anyone who wants one. Before long, the city is transformed. Mansions stand where mud huts once squatted, and beggars ride around in horse drawn carriages. And one man wishes to be turned into a mountain.
Written by former Glastonbury Poetry Slam Champion Toby Thompson, I Wish I Was A Mountain uses rhyme, rhythm, and just a smattering of metaphysical philosophy to boldly reimagine Hermann Hesse’s classic fairytale. Do we really need the things that we long for? What do mountains feel? How did time begin?
Ideal for reading aloud and sharing with children and family, this soul-enhancing book is the perfect read, whose words will stay with you for a lifetime. Experience a little bit of magic on every page, straight from the stage at the egg Theatre.
This is a fairytale that doesn’t so much end happily ever after as ask us how the “ever after” affects our daily lives…a short but profound show… which reveals Thompson as a star in the making. ★ ★ ★ ★ Chris Wiegland, The Guardian
I Wish I Was A Mountain is a show that combines simplicity and profundity in so appealing a manner that it simply should not be missed. Christopher Hoile, Stage Door
He shares this world so generously that it will be yours as soon as you hear it. Gill Kirk, B 24/7
Text © Toby Thompson 2018 Cover Art and Design by B. Mure
Toby Thompson has asserted his right under the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988, to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. 5 FOREWORD FROM TOBY
It was nearing the end of Autumn 2016, when I agreed to Kate Cross’s suggestion that I might have a stab at adapting some or other fairy tale into a piece of family theatre. As with all the things I’ve ever done that appear in retrospect to have been well worth doing, I didn’t have the faintest, foggiest, flimsiest notion of where to begin.
For want of being struck down by a timely lightning-bolt of inspiration (I live forever in want of that), I busied myself with scattered perusals of the various usual suspects: Hans Christian Anderson and Brothers Grimm compendiums were duly skimmed. Oscar Wilde, Angela Carter and a number of other geniuses took their rightful place on my bookshelf.
I read little to turn one’s nose up at, and lots that could only be revelled in as pitch perfect storytelling, but where was that feeling of deep affinity for which I pined? Time was passing, as time does, and I had the uncomfortable sensation that if a love at first sight type miracle didn’t prove expeditiously forthcoming, then I’d fast be entering pick-a-story-any-story-any-one-will-do territory. 5
Toby Thompson
Scene change. It’s 2017. Winter has long been dispensed with by Spring. Nonetheless does my optimism remain a dwindled, leafless thing. Goldilocks seems as good a choice asany.
But what’s this? Not a lightning bolt per se, little more than a twinkling star - a single shaft of sunlight on a grey day. As glimmers of hope go, it’s speculative to say the least. But a glimmer is a glimmer. Did Hermann Hesse ever take it into his head to write a fairy tale? That is the question. If he did then I feel quite certain, for no apparent reason, that I am saved.
Seeing as you have in your hands a copy of this script, I probably don’t need to clear up the question of Hesse’s fairy tale writing propensities. But I will tell you exactly why I fell in love with the story Faldum, later renamed I Wish I Was A Mountain, partly for marketing purposes, partly for the fun of everyone involved in the show choosing their own unique way of pronouncing the abbreviated title: IWIWAM.
Mine is the sort of nature that yearns for certainty’s company but somehow never quite manages to cross its path. Answers are to me as gods, far off and insubstantial. I’ve heard of them, yes, but their existence in my life is purely theoretical. The world I can see and touch, the world I live in, is peopled exclusively with questions.
It is perhaps for this reason that Faldum made such an immediately favourable impression on me. I found it beautiful and moving, but I couldn’t for the life of me work out what it meant. Even now, countless scrunched-up-face-inducing metaphysical discussions with the director, Lee Lyford, down the line, 50 performances in, I couldn’t really tell you what it’s about. Music? Impermanence? Transcendence? Desire?
OK, maybe I can tell you what it’s about but I can’t tell you what its angle is. There’s no prescribed takeaway, no axe being ground. Its meaning lives in the threads that join each individual listener to the story’s unfolding and is thusly an entirely unpindownable thing. Which I might add,
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by way of wrapping this up, is precisely what life is. An entirely, ineffably, ex- quisitely, deceptively, delightfully, distressingly, empirically, perplexingly unpin- downable thing.
And would that it wasn’t, I’d wish that it were.
May 2019
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I Wish I Was A Mountain was conceived and created by the egg Theatre’s Incubator - Idea Development Programme
Originally co-produced by the egg Theatre with Travelling Light Theatre Company Co-commissioned by Brighton Dome and Imaginate
Written and Performed by Toby Thompson Direction and Dramaturgy by Lee Lyford Designed by Anisha Fields
Writing was supported by The Leverhulme Trust and The Peggy Ramsay Foundation.
The production was supported using public funding from Arts Council England and crowd funded by the many friends, family and admirers of Toby Thompson.
I Wish I Was A Mountain is a product of the egg Theatre’s Incubator - Idea Development Programme. The aim of the Incubator is to deepen the quality of art that is available for young audiences, and to inspire theatre makers to think about children and their place in our society differently by giving artists space, time and support to think and conceive.
Travelling Light create outstanding theatrical experiences which move, inspire and fire young people’s imaginations. The company have produced many award-winning, well-loved shows for young audiences including Boing!, Cinderella: A Fairytale and Into The West.
8 9 I Wish I Was A Mountain
PROLOGUE - I Found This Story In A Book
Hey, how is everyone? My name’s Toby, I’m a poet And there’s a story I wanna share with you
I found this story in a book, on a bench, by a pond In a park in Bath where I’m from Alice Park, it’s my favourite park
I got to the bench about three o’clock in the afternoon Saw the book, was kind of intrigued, but also really hungry So I had my sandwich Avocado, cucumber and humous, in a pita pocket It was a poet’s sandwich
And then I was gonna go into town to see some friends But I wasn’t in a rush so I thought, why not… Why not have a quick flick through the pages of the book Just in case it’s any good It’s probably not, it’s probably rubbish But hey, you never know, I’ll just take a little look
Fairy tales! It’s a book of fairy tales I love fairy tales.
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Most of these ones were pretty standard There was one about a load of goblins who kidnapped a princess One about some villagers who killed a dragon Because he kept eating their horses for breakfast
It was all the usual stuff Damsels in distress, jealous stepmothers All of them ended happily ever after
But then there was this one story, this one story I was literally just about to go home when I found it The sky was getting dark, I could hardly see the words on the page I had to use the torch on my phone I was cold. I was late for dinner. My legs were aching. I’d spent the whole day sat on this bench. But this story, I wouldn’t have stopped reading it if you’d payed me a hundred pounds And I couldn’t believe someone had just left it on the bench Who left it there? And why was I the one who found it?
Anyway, the thing is…
There were lots of lovely stories in this book that I found But none of the others were even slightly so profound So intriguing, so perplexing, so deliciously astounding As the one about the gentleman, who wished he was… A mountain
So that’s the story I’m gonna tell you It’s called: I Wish I Was A Mountain
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EVER SEEN A RECORD? Ever seen one of these before? It’s amazing. It’s got music inside This is what people had before iPods They’re beautiful things But they don’t make any sense Where does the music come from? Look, you put it on here And then it spins round and round And then this tiny little needle touches the surface of the record And then the music, which is just…vibrations Gets sent through the needle And then it goes through all these wires, and into the speakers And then it travels out, through the air And all the way into everyone’s different ears And everyone’s different brains And that all happens…instantly It’s magic!
Okay, we’re actually gonna start now.
(Bill Evans vinyl)
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Toby Thompson ONCE UPON A TIME
Faraway, in a distant land And long ago in an ancient world There once was a city named Faldum... Faldum Starts with F and rhymes with Malcolm... FAL-DUM What was the city’s name? That’s right, it’s name was Faldum
Now Faldum was an altogether ordinary city And the people who lived there were ordinary people Who liked, very much, to do ordinary things with their ordinary lives For they were… What type of people were they?
Ordinary, yes The same as you and me Almost exactly the same Of course, they didn’t have televisions back then So they weren’t quite the same as us None of them had ever seen the Simpsons None of them had ever heard of Star Wars None of them had ever been in a plane, or even a train They didn’t have records, they didn’t have phones They didn’t have Facebook Back then, they just had faces, and books
In spite of all this, their lives were almost exactly the same as ours For at night when they gazed at the naked stars They felt the same feelings that we feel Lapping like flames at their aching hearts
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And when they cried, they cried for the same reasons we cry Because they’d fallen over, or because their dog was dead Or because someone had broken their heart in two
And when they wondered They wondered the same things that we do
Where does music come from? Why don’t animals talk using words? How does my face know to smile when I’m happy? Who was I before I was born? Who am I now? Am I my body? Am I my brain? Am I my voice? Am I my name?
And when the people of Faldum wanted When they wanted, they wanted the same things that we want
They wanted the summer to last They wanted more, they wanted less Always to win, never to lose Beautiful bracelets, elegant shoes
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Right, so the people of Faldum Were ordinary people in an ordinary place But, here’s the thing Today was not an ordinary day, far from it Today was the last day of August And you know what that means? That means today is the day of the Fair The famous annual Fair of Faldum
Everyone’s going… The poets the painters The plumbers, the butchers, the blacksmiths the bakers The dancers, the doctors, the fishermen, the authors The carpenters, the cobblers, the rich men and the paupers
Everyone’s going. Everyone’s going to the festival of Faldum And everyone’s very, very, very excited
(Horace Silver vinyl)
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THE ROAD TO FALDUM
Okay, so right now it’s morning, the skies are clear Right, so the people of Faldum And the day of the Fair has arrived, it’s here Were ordinary people in an ordinary place Already the road that leads to Faldum is filling with people But, here’s the thing All cheerfully chatting and clapping and smiling and whistling tunes Today was not an ordinary day, far from it Look at them all Today was the last day of August They’re as happy as brides are when kissing their grooms And you know what that means? That means today is the day of the Fair Everyone’s dressed in their loveliest clothes The famous annual Fair of Faldum The young men wear lilacs in their lapels, and wide brimmed hats And patterned kerchiefs and colourful brogues Everyone’s going… The poets the painters The plumbers, the butchers, the blacksmiths the bakers The young women wear lilies in their hair The dancers, the doctors, the fishermen, the authors And summery dresses and delicate brooches The carpenters, the cobblers, the rich men and the paupers And lipstick as red as the petals of roses Lipstick as red as the colour of blood Everyone’s going. Everyone’s going to the festival of Faldum The children play games as they walk And everyone’s very, very, very excited Eye spy and tag and stuck in the mud
(Horace Silver vinyl) Alright, so the road that leads to Faldum Is heaving with people, seething with people Of all different sizes and colours and types There’s people in trousers, there’s others in tights There’s people with polkadot spots on their t shirts There’s others with stripes
And all of these people have so many things That are different about them, from one to the next Different jackets and hairdos and names Different jewels in the necklaces hung round their necks
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But really these people aren’t so very different Really these people are almost exactly the same as each other And here’s why…
They all want something Every single one of these people wants something They all want one thing, two things, three things They all think they need things
Take this girl, she thinks that she needs a siamese cat And he wishes he had a little black pony, but it has to be black And she just wishes the boy that she fancies Would do the decent thing and fancy her back
And he wishes he had more muscular arms And she wishes she had the courage To dance to the Fair, she hardly can bear All this slow walking, it’s so boring!
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PHILOSOPHICAL ASIDE
Anyway, the point is… All of these people have hopes in their hearts, and wishes on their tongues And that’s no bad thing, it’s what makes them people
We all have ambitions, desires and dreams We all have yearnings and longings and cravings and hungers We all have wishes
Like me, I have wishes I wish I was better at the piano If someone offered me a wish right now I’d wish that the rest of this performance would go well And that I wouldn’t forget any of my words
But sometimes I wonder What would it feel like to not want anything? How would that feel? Just imagine, if my greatest wish in all of the world… Was this, just this
Imagine if all I wanted was this
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So that, if somebody offered me a wish right now I’d say to them
Thanks, that’s very kind… but why do I need a wish? Nothing needs to change. Everything’s perfectly fine as it is! All of my wishes have already come true… I wish for this!
I wish I was called Toby I wish it was Thursday I wish I had blue trousers and blonde hair I wish I was standing on stage feeling a bit nervous I wish there were clouds in the sky outside I wish it was the year 2019 I wish I was here, right now I wish I was alive I wish I was me
Imagine if those were my only wishes in all the world Imagine how happy I’d be
But we’re gonna miss the Fair, we should go! I’ll just put a song on for the journey It’s about a twenty minute walk
(Walter Wanderley Vinyl)
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20 MINUTE STROLL
Alright, Faldum, we’ll be with you in 20 minutes!
What a glorious day 19 minutes It’s quite far isn’t it Shall we play a game of Eye Spy?
Eye spy with my little eye, something beginning with S… (Sun) Eye spy with my little eye, something beginning with F… (Field) Eye spy with my little eye, something beginning with C… (Cow)
Well, that was fun.
I’m tired, are we there yet!? 18 minutes? Faldum! Why are you so far away!? If only we could get there really fast…
(presses speed up button on the record player)
5 minutes! 4 minutes! 3minutes! 2 minutes!
1 minute, half a minute, quarter of a minute No more minutes, we’ve arrived
Good, that was easy
(Birdsong tape cassette)
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20 21 I Wish I Was A Mountain ENTER THE STRANGER
By twelve o’clock midday The road that leads to Faldum is empty Everyone who’s interested in going to the festival has entered it already
Steadily and gently a silence descends And so do some sparrows Perpetually peckish they peck at the debris Not a human in sight, it’s incredibly peaceful
But what’s this? A lone figure Casually emerging from the forest, who’s he? I don’t know quite why but I like him instantly
When he hums The bass in his voice is as deep as the bottom of the blue sea And when he whistles in unison with the sparrows The music is as beauteous as blossom on a fruit tree
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Who is this dreamer who appears to have The whole world contained in his smile? Maybe he’s a wizard? Hmmm, yes, I think there must be magic in his blood Just look at those eyes! Mischievously gazing out from the woodland like fire flies He’s a righteous rascal if ever I’ve seen one
Oh sinless ruffian, oh virtuous trickster! What on earth’s your story? Where did you come from? Who are your kinsfolk? What are you planning?
I ask him these questions But he doesn’t seem to hear me
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STEPPING THROUGH THE CITY GATES Stepping through the city’s gates The stranger from the forest stands still for a moment Every way he looks, the streets are filled with commotion
Once he’s done with watching, the whimsical drifter The one who resembles a wizard, the trickster Still whistling his wise and benevolent song Quickly and quietly enters the throng
With a little graceful lunge The drifter takes the plunge And, like a man smoothly gliding on skis He strides through the streets
Appearing somehow dignified and at peace like an elegant swan Despite being ceaselessly pushed and joggled And jostled and shoved and shouldered and elbowed along
(Jessica Lauren Four tape cassette)
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SO THIS IS THE FESTIVAL
So this is the festival! Pretty cool right? There’s a lot going on Lots to do, lots to buy Shall we buy something? What shall we buy?
What’s she selling? She’s selling sweet smelling candles ‘Aah thanks but no thanks, I’m alright for candles’
And he’s selling trainers and wellingtons and sandals And she’s selling bracelets and necklaces and bangles
And he’s letting people take rides on his elephants and camels! How much? 20? 5. 15? 10 - it’s my last offer! 12? It’s outrageous! That gentleman’s a crook What else is there to see? Let’s have a little look
Ooh, there’s a man selling lettuces and cabbages And over there’s a doctor flogging stethoscopes and bandages And she must be a gypsy! Look, she’s selling crystals made of emerald and amethyst
There’s so much to see here So many stalls, owned by so many people All selling so many things, shouting so many slogans… Vying for the attention of so many punters
“Wet fish! Wet fish! Fresh off this morning’s boat” That’s the fishmongers
24 25 I Wish I Was A Mountain
“Pure cotton, rare silk! Lovely thick jumpers” I guess that’s the woman to go to for garments
Here’s the fruit and veg man, roaring out numbers “3 for 2! 3 for 2! Gorgeous cucumbers Wanna pound of cherries love? Go on they’re scrumptious! 2 for 1! 2 for 1! You, sonny, look like a man who loves a juicy plum Have it, it’s on me, tell your friends where you got it”
Well he was lovely, wasn’t he? Very kind, a kind man. But what now?
Hold on…this one looks interesting Look at all those mirrors all glittering and glistening And sparkling and shimmering
And who’s that beautiful woman? What’s she wearing? She must be mad!
(Tibetan Bells vinyl)
24 25
27 I Wish I Was A Mountain MIMI’S MIRROR WORLD
Mirrors, Ladies! The cheapest in Faldum! Magnificent mirrors of all shapes and sizes! Come, get your mirrors, Madams and Messieurs The finest in Faldum, the truest reflections
Welcome to Mimi’s Mirror World That’s my name… Mimi People go mad for the mirrors I make Yes they do, yes indeedy
Hello, who are youyou? Would you like a mirror? Of course you would! Here you go, toodalooloo
Do you like mirrors? Of course you do, everybody does, everybody loves…
Mirrors, Ladies! The finest you’ll find! Open your purses, they’ll open your mind Come get your mirrors, Madams and Messieurs The finest in Faldum, the truest reflections
27
Toby Thompson THE 3 WISHES
Arriving at the mirror booth Our friend from the forest stops in his tracks With rapt attention he watches the people, all watching themselves Neatening their eyebrows And adjusting their sun hats and ruffling their fringes
To the right of the stall, three young girls stand Each with a mirror in hand Each with a hope in her heart Each with a wish on her tongue
For what would you wish?
Our friend from the forest observes them with interest Moves a little closer and listens as the first girl softly says this
“I wish… I wish I had long hair I wish I had long shiny golden red locks, hanging down to my knees”
The first girl falls silent, the second girl sighs And then, as the wanderer studies her closely with questioning eyes She suddenly throws up her arms to the heavens and desperately cries
“I wish… I wish I had elegant, dexterous hands! With long nimble fingers, like those of a princess”
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Upon hearing both of these wishes confessed The third girl reproachfully giggles and says
“If I could ask for anything, anything at all Sure, I wouldn’t mind having beautiful hands Or luscious red locks, hanging down past my tummy But what I’d much prefer Much more than good looks or nice hands or money… Would be to be the best dancer in Faldum The best of the best in the whole of this gigantic country”
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FOR WHAT WOULD YOU WISH?
What would you wish for? For what would you wish? If nothing whatsoever was forbidden If you could wish for one thing and one thing only If you could ask for anything, anything at all
If somebody promised to grant you a wish Do you think you’d know what to ask for straight away? Perhaps the best thing would be to spend forever deciding That way you’d always have your wish to look forward to
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POTTED HISTORY 1
But I haven’t got time for wishing, where was I? Mirrors, dancing, beautiful hands, luscious red locks Ah yes, I remember… The wanderer
He grants the three girls their wishes Staring back into their respective mirrors The girls weep with joy to find themselves transformed Onlookers witnessing the miracle are stunned But soon their surprise gives way to desire And a frenzy of wishing ensues
Everyone, it seems, is entitled to a single wish To begin with, the wishes people make are fairly small Women wish for ball gowns, and men for tuxedos But then it all goes mental And pretty soon there’s kids requesting cauldrons full of sweets And parents demanding
Sacks of gold coins And new roofs for their houses
When sick people hear about the wishes They flock to the little booth of mirrors Diseases are healed, broken bones are fixed Blind eyes are miraculously gifted clear vision And lame people leap from their wheelchairs and dance
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The time comes When only two people In the whole town of Faldum Have not made wishes
These are the two youths The violinist and his friend
Utterly oblivious to the frenzy of desire Which has swept the whole rest of the city The two young dreamers Contentedly share In their mutual love of music
(Tsegué-Maryam Guébrou vinyl)
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THE TWO YOUTHS
The attic they inhabit is more or less bare The violinist stands here, his friend sits there On a table in the corner, a tall candle burns
Every time the violinist finishes a song, silence fills the room Then he lifts the violin back up to his chin And starts playing the next song
His friend sits bewitched, in a trance, transfixed Tenderly he listens as the melodies create themselves before his very ears So enthralled with the sound of the violin is he That he’s almost moved to tears
Time passes strangely in this place The minutes seem to pass as fast as seconds Whilst the seconds seem for all the world like years
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ENTER THE LANDLORD
But what’s that sound?
A quick pitter pattering of footsteps The front door slamming A fast and heavy pounding of feet on the stairs
Suddenly, the door to the attic is wrenched open
Without so much as a sorry to disturb you, a man barges in It’s the owner of the house
He’s laughing and shouting and waving And flapping his arms like a madman “You fools!” He cries
“Why do you waste your time with music? Come and make a wish! There’s a man, a man at the mirror booth He’s giving everyone wishes Even I’ve become a rich man today Hurry up! Leave the violin! Come on! Come onnnn!”
And he keeps on pestering them like this So that in the end the two friends agree to Follow him to the famous booth of mirrors
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FALDUM TRANSFORMED
Outside, the city of Faldum appears as if clad in a masterful disguise Nothing looks the way it did Nothing but the puffy clouds carpeting the skies They can hardly believe their eyes Homeless men are driving round in horse drawn carriages And bungalows have been replaced by four storey palaces Dazed and confused, amazed and bemused The two friends drift along the cobblestone streets of their hometown As if in a dream
(Tibetan Bells Vinyl)
34 35
Toby Thompson I WISH I HAD A VIOLIN
In due course, they arrive at the mirror booth Eyeing them with interest, the wanderer from the forest Remarks with a hint of rebuke in his voice
“You’re not in much of a hurry to make your wishes I was just about to leave. Very well then, tell me What is it that each of you desires to receive?”
“But we don’t need anything! The violinist says with an exasperated groan Oh, if only everyone had left us alone”
The eyes of the wanderer sparkle with amusement
“Is that so?” he replies, “fair enough, as you wish But think carefully now, is there nothing you desire? It’s quite an opportunity, you’ll never have this chance again Apply your ingenuity and speak what’s in your heart, my friend”
The violinist grows thoughtful He looks at his hands, then he looks at the sky And then he peers into the sparkling eyes of the wanderer And says, in a quiet voice…
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“Well alright, if I must have a wish Then listen to the words I speak and conjure me this
I want a violin. But not just any old common violin I want this violin to be imbued with magic I want this violin to be capable of producing Incommunicably fantastic music A hundred times as lovely as the sound of the ocean And a thousand times as beautiful as bird song”
And no sooner had his rosy lips spoken this noble wish Than in his hands he held the magic instrument he’d asked for
It would be hopeless for me to attempt to describe using language the music that sprang from the strings of that priceless violin. It was lovelier than any sound that you or I have ever heard. And all of the people who were near enough to listen fell silent. And some of them laughed, and some of them wept. And all of them forgot themselves and wanted nothing. All they wanted was to stand there, forever, just listening. But nothing lasts forever. Everything ends. Silence is the destiny of music.
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THE VIOLINIST DISAPPEARS But wait, this is where the story really gets fierce As the violinist plays with more and more intensity He disappears… He completely disappears! But not all of a sudden, it happens real gradual
You know in Harry Potter when people disapparate? It’s kind of like that but slower, it’s like he’s dissolving Maybe if I show you like this…
Imagine that this is the violinist (holds up a fizzy tablet) And this is the music he’s playing (holds up a glass of water)
Normally when someone plays a song on an instrument A part of themselves remains separate from the music But in this case, possessing as he does an enchanted violin As the tips of his nimble fingers dance around the strings He becomes the music (drops tablet into the water)
The particles that make up his flesh disassemble His whole body flutters and quivers and trembles And by the time the song has ended The young violinist is nowhere to be seen
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I WISH I WAS A MOUNTAIN The wanderer from the forest is the first to break the silence Turning his face to the other youth, he asks him “And you? What is it that you desire?”
With pain in his eyes, the remaining man replies
“I can’t believe he never even said goodbye My best friend has left me, with nothing but an echo I miss him already, I’m grieving, I’m mourning My limbs are like jelly, I feel like I’m falling I’m tired of being a person, it’s boring It’s unfair, it’s cruel, it’s obscene, it’s exhausting!
All we ever seem to do is want this and want that And as soon as we get what we want, we don’t want it anymore! We want something else! We all want tomorrow, and tomorrow never comes I don’t want to want what never comes
I want to be as peaceful as the moon and the sun And the rivers and the streams and the stars and the oceans I don’t want to feel all these ghastly emotions I want to be at peace with the passing of moments.
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So here’s what I really want, give to me this If it isn’t too much to ask, then this is my wish
I wish I was a mountain, I wish I was a mountain! As tall as the sky and as wide as the countryside of Faldum Make me a mountain, I want to be a mountain I wish I was a mountain!”
40 41 I Wish I Was A Mountain
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POTTED HISTORY 2
But I’m being too descriptive, I haven’t got time!
Alright. So. First things first The mountain… comes into being I’m not gonna tell you all the gory details You’re just going to have to trust me, it happens.
Jump forward 50 years, and many of the people who wished themselves rich, when they met with the wanderer, have now become poor once more… The hair of the girl who requested the golden red locks is now grey, but it’s still long and luscious… The girl who desired to know how to dance is a girl no longer, she’s a grandma now. But she still dances better than most twenty somethings… The girl with the beautiful hands is a favourite of the children in the village. She tells them fairy tales and stories. And it’s from her lips that they learn about the Fair, and about how the poor became rich, and about how the countryside of Faldum became a mountain.
The mountain, for his part, is happy Being a mountain suits his temperament Silent and vast, he towers above the city With snow covered summits and tall jagged cliffs
Each day he sees the sun rise From the ocean in the east, and pass across the sky And each night he watches the stars make the same silent journey In the foothills of the mountain there’s a beautiful valley Where youngsters in love go for picnics
42 43 I Wish I Was A Mountain THE MOUNTAIN GROWS OLD Time flies by The centuries pass like seasons of the year, and the years like hours Millennia evaporate like pots of boiling water
There aren’t any people in Faldum any more Only the mountain remains Proud and majestic, he stands all alone
But nothing lasts forever, everything ends And just as silence is the destiny of music Old age is the destiny of youth
The mountain no longer feels as peaceful as the sun and the moon And the rivers and the streams and the stars and the oceans
He feels sleepy and feeble and lonesome and frail He’s an old, old mountain, with his whole life behind him And he hasn’t got a friend in all the world
Disenchanted with the present The mountain’s thoughts turn to the past
“Where have all the people gone? Why don’t they climb me anymore? Who was I before I was a mountain? What does music sound like? I’ve forgotten”
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The valley of love is now filled up with boulders And the mountain’s blue lakes have all turned into swamps And his caves keep collapsing like houses of cards As he quivers with the effort of trying to remember Who was I? Who was I before I was a mountain?
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The valley of love is now filled up with boulders THE FINAL WISH And the mountain’s blue lakes have all turned into swamps And his caves keep collapsing like houses of cards As he quivers with the effort of trying to remember Then, one day, he hears a sound Who was I? Who was I before I was a mountain? A sound he hasn’t heard for thousands and thousands of years It’s music. It’s a song. A human song!
And his innermost crevices shudder and shake With the painful pleasure of recognition And as he savours and revels in the beauty and the splendour Of the harmonies and melodies and rhythms He see’s a man, a handsome youth, completely wrapped in music Swaying through the air in the sunny sky
And a hundred buried memories begin to stir. It all comes back He remembers the music, the attic, the mirrors He even remembers the bothersome landlord But, most of all, he remembers his friend… His best friend, the violinist
But wait that’s not the end! Now the mountain sees another man swaying in the sky An old man with kindly yet mischievous eyes Eyes that seem to ask him with a rascalish twinkle “Don’t you want to make a wish?”
And he does make a wish, a silent wish And as he does this, all of the pain he’s been feeling is settled All of his worries desert him Each of his sorrows depart on the wind
And at long last he learns what it means to be Utterly, ceaselessly, perfectly, seamlessly Completely, dreamily, totally, blissfully Wondrously, gleefully… free 44 45
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(Nina Simone Vinyl)
The mountain and the country collapse together And the sea comes rushing in
And still to this day, where Faldum once stood There’s nothing but the endless ocean stretching out in all directions
Nothing, that is, but the sun and the stars Who still, to this day Take turns appearing above it all
And that’s the end of the story But one last thing Do you want to know what the wish was that the mountain made? The silent wish?
He wished he knew… How it would feel… To be free
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FULL TRACKLIST
Much of this script is set to records, selected and spun by Toby during the show.
In order of appearance…
King Britt - Season’s Change (pre-show) Bill Evans - Peace Piece Horace Silver - The African Queen Walter Wanderley - The Girl From Ipanema Jessica Lauren Four - The Name Of Fela Will Always Stand For Freedom Henry Wolff & Nancy Hennings - Tibetan Bells Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou - The Homeless Wanderer Nina Simone - I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free
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INTERVIEW BETWEEN TOBY THOMPSON AND MELISSA BLEASE, JUNE 2018 IN THE BEGINNING I wrote a lot of short stories when I was at school, and started writing poetry when I was around 14 years old. I’d been writing lyrics for songs since I was about 12, and then started rapping when I was 14. Rapping moves quite quickly into poetry, and then I discovered the beauty of spoken word as a stand alone format. For many years, Kate Cross and all the people involved with the egg have been my biggest inspiration, and my support. I had a Front of House job at the egg for more than 10 years, (I’m 24 now); it’s a very comfortable space for me, it feels like my second home.
THE FOOTHILLS OF THE MOUNTAIN I Wish I Was A Mountain is based on a fairy tale by the German writer Hermann Hesse, called Faldum. Hesse’s themes often explore the individual’s search for self-awareness, which really appeals to me. I like quite sophisticated stuff; I like to feel like I’m not only getting the story or being entertained, but also learning, and that’s one of the things that drew me to Hesse’s work.
Every now and then, I’ll be chatting to someone and they’ll ask me what I Wish I Was A Mountain is about. I start off intending to offer a three-sentence snapshot, but end up going on about it for 15 minutes, and suddenly it becomes this really fresh thing all over again, even though I know it so intimately. I love that, though; I love finding new ways to describe it. Put simply, it’s about time passing, and human de- sire: what do we want, why do we want it, do we need to want it, and can we be human without wanting? There are no direct answers here except that, in the grand scheme of things, it’s all okay. I think it’s a very moving, beautiful story. 48 49 I Wish I Was A Mountain
Initially, I Wish I Was A Mountain was an experiment for me. Because I’d never written for children before, I had to consider how – or if – my writing needed to be simplified for a younger audience. As I was writing, I just kept on imagining having some children in the room with me, listening to my thoughts. I felt as though I had a relatively reliable sense of whether or not they would get what I was doing, and a certain amount of faith that they would. BASE CAMP In 2017, the egg invited me to be a part of their idea development programme, The Incubator. Our idea was for me to reinvent some kind of a fairy tale and feed it through the prism of my way of writing, and The Incubator helped me make my creative dream come true. I had to put a lot of additional thinking and writing time into the process, right from the start - I was very lucky too to have been awarded a grant by the Peggy Ramsay Foundation to support me through this time.
I Wish I Was A Mountain was alive in The Incubator for around five months before I took it to an audience. Initially, itwasa speculative idea, presented as a showcase (a ‘scratch’ performance) to Incubator delegates and industry professionals. It was really well received. The egg decided that they wanted to develop the show further, and produce it. In February 2018, we instigated a crowdfunding appeal, aiming to raise £5000 to allow me to finish writing the piece and help finance production costs. In 42 days, we’d raised £5150 from 109 supporters, and our application for a Grant for the Arts from Arts Council England was successful.
PREPARING FOR THE ASCENT: THE MOUNTAIN Because the first half of I Wish I Was A Mountain takes place on a single day and the second half takes place over millions of years, the story is kinda weird. The show’s director Lee Lyford has helped me massively in untangling it all – working with him has been an amazing experience. So much of our process was based around long, long 48 49
Toby Thompson discussions trying to work out why I chose this story, and what the story is trying to tell, and what it means. Lee has made loads of work for young people - he gets it, and he gets us, and the whole process we went through makes perfect sense to me now. I can physically feel all of Lee’s instincts when I perform the show today.
The show’s designer Anisha Fields has bought a tangible sense of magic and beauty to the story. Initially it was going to be a really simple show, but now it’s quite technical. I love how it looks, it’s beautiful; Anisha has done an amazing job.
Kate Cross said an interesting thing that really kept my confidence up while I was writing the show. She said that children are so used to not knowing what’s going on, it’s kind of like their standard mode: everything’s a bit of a mystery when you’re very young, so you have to assume that everything that’s going on has some kind of a reason. That really made sense to me. In a way, children are the best audience for something that’s a bit confusing, because they’re prepared to make sense of it all.
THE SUMMIT All the way along, throughout the whole process of putting I Wish I Was A Mountain together, both its story and mine grew and grew but nobody, apart from the people who were working on it with me, had seen it. We took the production to Leicester, Brighton, Grimsby, Ipswich, and Sheffield over the summer, still partly as a work-in-progress. I had no idea whether people who came to see it were really going to like it, but they did; the response has been amazing – it’s a really joyful thing to be able to go out and do the show, and know that it’s actually going to work.
Even though the show is ready for audiences now, I still feel as though I’m living with I Wish I Was A Mountain, and finding out where the experience goes. There have been so many first times, for me, in this wonderful process, and I still don’t really know where it’ll lead me. But I’m taking people on that journey with me, which is really exciting. 50 51 I Wish I Was A Mountain
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Toby Thompson MEETING YOUR EDUCATIONAL NEEDS
I Wish I Was A Mountain will provoke a multitude of enquiries that you might want to pursue with your students. Toby’s work covers themes as varied, pertinent and profound as time, wanting and transformation. The show will inspire the telling and writing of stories to develop skills in oracy and literacy; the theme of wishes will provide the opportunity for philosophical conversation about desire and necessity; and the show supports a mindful approach to learning, with a focus on wellbeing.
The play explores the following themes:
• Storytelling • Oracy and literacy • Mindfulness and wellbeing • Time • Wanting versus necessity • Transformation
“I came along to the show with my two children. We’re home educating fairly recently due to extreme anxiety in my eldest. And actually she found it pretty therapeutic. They both loved the music, the set and really liked Toby. So important when connecting with kids! They were very relaxed throughout. It was gentle, powerful and completely non-patronising.”
– comment from parent
“We’ve had lots of chats about, ‘if you had one wish’... lots of avenues explored. It made my children think.”
52 – comment from parent 53 I Wish I Was A Mountain
Here are some provocations or discussion points to help frame students’ understanding before experiencing the piece and to encourage them to come to their own conclusions:
• Are there any parts in the show that make you think about your own life and experiences? • What happens when the people of the town start making wishes? • What is the mountain like? • What does freedom look like to you?
The workshop (see plan below) explores the potential for contemplation, imagination and wonder.
Let this plan guide you on a journey of your own. Using techniques developed to explore philosophy and mindfulness for children, Toby’s unique form of theatrical storytelling will encourage participants to consider what it might mean to be utterly, ceaselessly, perfectly, seamlessly, completely, dreamily, totally, blissfully, wondrously, gleefully free.
AIMS FOR THE SESSION:
• To explore and encourage free thought • To develop skills in mindfulness & philosophy
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Toby Thompson WORKSHOP PLAN This workshop is designed to last between 1.5hrs – 2hrs depending on the age range of your group and the number of participants. With more participants involved, you may want to leave longer for the sections in which the children share back to the group. Since the workshop is about slowing down and thinking mindfully, allow yourself enough time to move through the activities at a gentle pace without feeling rushed.
INTRODUCTION
• Practitioner(s) introduce themselves to the group and explain the concept of the play. Participants seated in a circle.
• Participants are invited to write their names on the front of blank, empty envelopes.
• As a way of introducing themselves, participants walk to the centre of the space, and add their envelope to the Mindful Jar, whilst stating their name: “I am [name]”
Notes/Resources: envelopes, pens, a ‘mindful’ jar
MINDFULNESS
• Noticing the Breath: participants find a space in the room and lie down on their backs if comfortable. Use the body scan script to focus breath.
• Hand Meditation: make a starfish with one hand {fingers spread out wide}. Using the pointer finger from their other hand, gently trace the outline of the starfish hand, slowly going up and down each finger. Breath can be focused on going in on the upwards touch and out on the downwards touch.
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• Mindful Thinking: explain that being mindful is a way to calm your busy thoughts and sit, like a mountain, being patient and still. It is okay to think thoughts, but the goal is to allow thoughts to drift into your mind, notice them and then let them drift by like clouds in the sky, cars in front of a window, or logs on a river. Each one can (and should) be noticed but not dwelled on.
Notes/Resources: body scan script (see Appendix 1)
PHILOSOPHY
• Introduce participants to the picture and the thinking behind philosophy by suggesting example of questions, below.
• Explore the difference between ‘big’ and ‘small’ questions. Hold out your hand. The first question [small] is ‘what is this?’ – students answer. Answers tend to be simple, for instance: ‘a hand’, ‘four fingers and a thumb’, ‘a part of your body’. Recognise that there are limited answers to this question.
• Then ask the second question [big], ‘what is it for?’ Answers are much more varied and broad. E.g. ‘for writing’, ‘for holding things’, ‘for stroking my pet’, ‘for holding my brother’s hand’, ‘for getting work done’, ‘for opening doors’ etc. Draw participants’ attention to the difference in the big and small questions. Think about how the big questions open out conversations, and often lead to more questions – ‘why do we write?’, ‘why is holding and touch important?’ etc.
• Present the group with your abstract image of choice (further details below). Repeat the same small and big questions, as above, applying them to the image. There are no wrong answers and no wrong questions. If defining ‘what is it?’ is tricky, try ‘where is it?’, ‘what is it made of ?’ as starting points, before moving on to the big question, what is it for?
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• Allow time for participants to write their own questions.
• Collect questions and group them into broad themes.
• Discuss the importance of voting. A democratic decision will be made, based on voting, about which big question you will be exploring.
• Read out the themes of the big questions. Vote for the question type to explore.
• Create the focus question.
• Discuss the question. Allow for different opinions to sit in the same space. This isn’t a debate; it’s just an offering up of different angles.
• Advocate for respectful listening during the sharing of ideas.
• Map the thinking by drawing a mind-map of which questions led to other questions and how the conversation expanded.
• Reflect on children’s thinking.
• Discuss story ideas inspired by picture. Did the seeds of any narrative ideas come out of the conversations you had? Emphasise how a single stimulus can be interpreted in many different ways.
Notes/Resources: ambiguous and abstract picture of your choice (e.g. an explo- sion of colour, an ink drop in water making an interesting shape), paper & pens
Questions to be altered for group/new picture
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CREATING
• Using the picture as stimulus, participants are to create something very brief to share. This could be a piece of a story, a performed scene, a poem… this could also be an opportunity for free writing, responding to the same stimulus. Ask them, ‘what has just happened?’ before the mo- ment they see in the picture, or, ‘what is about to happen?’
• Share these back. Acknowledge the variety of stories/creations that came from asking a few questions about a single image. We all have different instincts, different questions, and different ways of expressing ourselves.
CLOSING
• A revisit to the mindfulness exercises from the start of the session, to refocus minds.
• Participants are invited to write a wish on a piece of paper. It could be a wish for them, or someone close to them. If they don’t want to wish, they can write something they are grateful for. They are then called up individually to place the wish into the envelope with their name on (this can either be placed back in the jar to be returned at a later date, or given to the participants.
The wishes are not shared.
Notes/Resources: music if desirable; mindfulness jar, envelopes from earlier in ses- sion
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Toby Thompson APPENDIX 1 BODY SCAN SCRIPT 1) Lie down on your back. Let your legs and your arms relax and fall to the sides. Settle yourself in a comfortable position and close your eyes.
2) Start by taking two or three gentle, large breaths. Pay attention to how that feels. Your belly rises and falls. Air moves in and out of your body. If you like, place a hand on your belly and feel it move with each breath.
3) Now we’re going to pay attention to the other parts of the body. Start with your feet. They might feel warm or cold, wet or dry, relaxed or restless. It’s also okay if you feel nothing at all. If you can, relax your feet now. If that’s hard to do, that’s fine. Take a moment and notice how that feels too.
4) For these few minutes, let yourself be still. There’s nothing to do. Pay attention as best you can. You might feel the floor, socks on your feet, or you might feel them pressing against the floor. When your mind gets busy, gently bring your attention back to your feet again.
5) Now move your attention to your lower legs, noticing whatever is there. Do they feel heavy, light, warm, cold, or something else? Let go of frustration and trying to do anything. Just do your best and give yourself a few moments of rest. Next, move your attention to your knees and relax them. Feel the front, back, and sides of your knees.
6) After a few more breaths, move your attention to your upper legs. Whatever you feel, or don’t feel, is fine. Notice your legs and let them relax. If you feel restless or wiggly, that’s okay too. That happens.
7) Now move your attention to your belly. It always moves when you breathe, rising and falling, like waves on the sea. You might feel something on the inside, 58 59 I Wish I Was A Mountain
like full or hungry. You might notice the touch of your clothing or a blanket. You might even feel emotions in your belly, like happiness or sadness.
8) Next, bring your attention to your chest. Notice it rising and falling as you breathe. If you feel that it’s hard to focus, that’s normal. Gently practice coming back again and again to how your chest feels when you breathe.
9) Now turn your attention to your hands. There is no need to move them or do anything with them. They may be touching the bed, or the floor, or somewhere on your body. Relax them if you can.
10) Move your attention up into your arms. Maybe notice if you can find a moment of stillness inside you, like the pause at the end of each breath.
11) Next, move your attention around to your back. How does it feel against the floor? Notice how it rocks with each breath. When your mind gets busy or angry or scared, you can always come back to how your body feels in this way for a moment.
12) Now move attention your to your neck and shoulders, letting go and relaxing them. If your mind wanders, that’s fine. No one can pay attention all the time. Just keep returning to noticing your body whenever you find yourself thinking of something else.
13) And now feel your face and head. What expression do you have right now? What would it feel like to smile? What else do you notice in your face, your head, and in your mind?
14) Finally, spend a few moments paying attention to your whole body. If it is easier, continue to pay attention to your breath. If it’s time for sleep, let that happen, remaining still and continuing to pay attetion to your breath or feelings in your body.
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Performance poet Toby Thompson’s unique brand of densely rhythmic, richly philosophical, sumptuously cerebral whimsy has seen him fast become a favourite of the UK spoken word scene.
Aged 25, Toby has shared his work at festivals and venues including Glastonbury (Poetry Slam Champion), Shambala, Cheltenham Literature Festival, Wilderness, Latitude, Leipzig Book Fair, Harare International Festival Of The Arts, The Natural History Museum, The Swan at Stratford (RSC), The Photographers Gallery, the British Library and the Royal Albert Hall. Toby’s one man show For The Record, directed by Jesse Jones (The National, Bristol Old Vic, Wardrobe Ensemble), received numerous five star reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe 2018, also winning the Indie Award for Best Pleasance Theatre Show.
I Wish I Was A Mountain, Toby’s latest show, was originally conceived and developed as part of the egg Theatre’s Incubator programme which supports the writing of new theatre for young audiences. Directed by Lee Lyford (Theatre Royal Bath, Unicorn, Bristol Old Vic, Theatr Iolo), the show is an adaptation of Hermann Hesse’s story Faldum and is currently touring the UK, 2019.
‘Toby Thompson is the future.’ Kate Tempest
‘Entrancing… the words tumble out of him like an extended jazz solo.’ The Guardian
‘A wonderful gift for language, a deep sensibility and a penetrating sense of perspective.’ Sir Ken Robinson