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- 36 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
Edgar & Annabel (NHB Modern Plays)
Book details
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About This Book
A young couple prepare dinner - but something isn't right. In a city not so different from our own capital, a group of freedom fighters attempts to stand up to an Orwellian establishment in increasingly perilous circumstances. The story that unfolds brings into question relationships, identities and the nature of reality itself'
'Holcroft plunges us into an Orwellian near-future dystopia, where governmental aural surveillance is rife and, for political dissenters, everyday life is a carefully maintained lie. It's as theatrically playful as it is disturbing' - The Times
'not just a drama of political resistance set in some parallel British dystopia, but also a cute sendup of theatre acting and writing... keeps us guessing throughout' - Guardian
'startlingly imaginative... Clever, funny and disturbing, it's a blend of conceptual prank and dystopian satire' - Evening Standard
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Yes, you can access Edgar & Annabel (NHB Modern Plays) by Sam Holcroft in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literatur & Drama. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
EDGAR & ANNABEL
Sam Holcroft
Characters
NICK, male, late twenties
MARIANNE, female, late twenties
MILLER, male, older than Nick and Marianne
TARA, female, late twenties
MARC, male, late twenties
ANTHONY, male, late twenties, similar in appearance to Nick
CLAIRE, female, late twenties, similar in appearance to Marianne
Setting
The action moves between Edgar and Annabelās kitchen and various meeting places.
Note on Text
Dialogue in [square brackets] is unspoken.
Scene One
EDGAR and ANNABELās kitchen.
Someone has gone to great lengths to artfully blend old with new. Clear signs of affluence sit next to bohemia. There is a recycling bin. A kitchen table with chairs stands in the centre of the room.
MARIANNE stands at the countertop mixing fresh herbs into a decanter of salad dressing. She licks her fingers. She hums contentedly to herself.
A key is heard in the lock. MARIANNE smiles and whisks her dressing. The door opens and NICK enters wearing a raincoat. He carries a heavy shoulder bag, an umbrella and a plastic shopping bag.
NICK. Hi, honey, Iām home.
MARIANNE. Hi, darling.
On seeing him she stops short. He meets her gaze. They stare in startled silence. Eventually NICK tries to break the silence.
NICK. Something smells good.
Beat.
Is that fish?
Beat.
Is that fish?
Pause.
Is thatā¦?
MARIANNE. Chicken.
NICK. Fish?
MARIANNE. Chicken.
NICK. Fish.
MARIANNE. Fish.
NICK. I thought so. Smells delicious. No, donāt kiss me, Iām soaking wet. Itās raining cats and dogs out there.
NICK retrieves two bound documents from his bag and offers one to MARIANNE. She stares at it.
(With emphasis.) Iām sorry Iām late. But I had to stand in a doorway for fifteen minutes.
MARIANNE takes the document. It is a script. Unless stated otherwise, from hereon in they both read from the scripts.
My umbrella blew inside out.
MARIANNE doesnāt say her line and so NICK continues with his.
You know how that always makes you feel like a right idiot? (Beat.) I know, itās so embarrassing. (Beat.) Yeah, I did.
MARIANNE. Didā¦ did you get the salad?
NICK (relieved). Yeah, I did.
MARIANNE. You remembered?
NICK. Yes, of course.
NICK hands her the plastic bag. She takes it.
The checkout is a nightmare during rush hour; the queue stretched all the way down the aisle.
On opening the plastic bag MARIANNE appears confused. She then scans her script and, understanding, she reads on.
MARIANNE. I asked for salad.
NICK. Yeah, I know. I bought a bag of salad.
MARIANNE. These are stir-fry vegetables.
NICK (feigning surprise). What? Noā¦?
MARIANNE. This is a bag of stir-fry vegetables.
NICK. It canāt be, it looks like salad.
MARIANNE. Itās a bag of stir-fry vegetables. Here, it says on the front, āShredded vegetables for stir-fryingā. Did you read the front?
NICK. Iā¦ Iā¦
MARIANNE. Did you even look at what you were buying or did you just grab the first bag that you saw?
NICK. Iā¦ I was in a hurry.
MARIANNE. Edgar, can you look at what youāre buying?
NICK. Yes.
MARIANNE. Can you please look at what youāre buying, Edgar?
NICK. Yes.
MARIANNE. Can you?
NICK. Yes, Annabel.
MARIANNE. Thank you.
MARIANNE opens the oven and removes the roasting dish inside. They both turn the page; NICK fails to do this quietly.
I have a job too.
NICK. Yes, I know.
MARIANNE. I work just as hard.
NICK. You do.
MARIANNE walks the roasting dish to the table. NICK follows, helping her to hold her script and read.
Iām sorry.
MARIANNE. But I still find time to read the labels on your food.
MARIANNE places the roasting dish on the table; in it sits a large roasted chicken.
NICK. Delicious. Is thatā¦?
MARIANNE. Salmon.
NICK. Delicious.
Pause.
So. How was your day?
MARIANNE. I got some more recycling bags.
NICK. Great.
MARIANNE. I hate having to throw all that plastic away. I donāt know how people do it.
NICK. Is there any mayonnaise?
MARIANNE. Itās such a waste.
NICK. Mayonnaise?
MARIANNE. It only takes two minutes. It makes me so angry.
NICK. In the fridge?
MARIANNE. Yes, but itās not home-made. Iāll get it. (Approaching with an electric carving knife.) Would you please carveā¦ the salmon?
NICK. Sure. The news today must have had you spitting?
MARIANNE slows to a stop.
MARIANNE. What, in the papers?
NICK. No, on the news.
MARIANNE. I didnāt see it.
NICK. Theyāre saying the level of plastic in the ocean is killing a million seabirds a year.
MARIANNE. A million?
NICK. Every year.
MARIANNE. Thatās awful.
NICK. Isnāt it? And just this afternoon the police arrested five more people on charges of anti-government conspiracy. (With emphasis.) Thatās right, five of them.
MARIANNE stares in alarm.
But donāt worry, if itās anti-government charges we wonāt be seeing them again. Not a single one. I expect they were conspiring to scare us out of our own city. Well, Iām never leaving this neighbourhood, this is my house now and Iām here to defend it. Against troublemakers.
NICK switches on the carving knife. The sound rings out. NICK motions to urgently make haste. Covered by the sound, he passes her the shoulder bag and a set of documents. He mouths the words āHide them. Hide them now. Where do they go?ā MARIANNE is paralysed.
(Unscrip...
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Contents
- Original Production
- Edgar & Annabel
- About the Author
- Copyright and Performing Rights Information