This is a test
- 300 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
In the Heart of America and Other Plays
Book details
Book preview
Table of contents
Citations
About This Book
* First collection of her works in trade * Naomi Wallace's plays have been done all over the country, including The Public Theatre in New York and The Actors Theatre of Louisville.
Frequently asked questions
At the moment all of our mobile-responsive ePub books are available to download via the app. Most of our PDFs are also available to download and we're working on making the final remaining ones downloadable now. Learn more here.
Both plans give you full access to the library and all of Perlegoās features. The only differences are the price and subscription period: With the annual plan youāll save around 30% compared to 12 months on the monthly plan.
We are an online textbook subscription service, where you can get access to an entire online library for less than the price of a single book per month. With over 1 million books across 1000+ topics, weāve got you covered! Learn more here.
Look out for the read-aloud symbol on your next book to see if you can listen to it. The read-aloud tool reads text aloud for you, highlighting the text as it is being read. You can pause it, speed it up and slow it down. Learn more here.
Yes, you can access In the Heart of America and Other Plays by Naomi Wallace in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literature & American Drama. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
SLAUGHTER CITY
1996
dp n="206" folio="198" ?For my father, Henry French Wallace
dp n="207" folio="199" ?PRODUCTION HISTORY
Slaughter City had its first performance on January 17, 1996, at the Royal Shakespeare Company. The director was Ron Daniels, design was by Ashley Martin-Davies, lighting design was by Hugh Vanstone, sound score was by Glyn Perrin, sound was by Monkey and Tony Brand, movement was by Struan Leslie, fights were by Terry King, dialect coach was Charmian Hoare, company voice work was by Barbara Houseman and Andrew Wade, the stage manager was Michele Enright, the deputy stage manager was Nick Chesterfield and the assistant stage manager was Lucy Bovington. The cast was as follows:
ROACH | Lisa Gaye Dixon |
MAGGOT | Sophie Stanton |
BRANDON | Alexis Daniel |
COD | Olwen FouƩrƩ |
TUCK | Rudolph Walker |
TEXTILE WORKER | Mairead Carty |
SAUSAGE MAN | Robert Langdon Lloyd |
BAQUIN | Linal Haft |
In March 1996, Slaughter City was produced by American Repertory Theatre, Cambridge, MA. The director was Ron Daniels. Set and costume design were by Ashley Martin-Davies, lighting design was by John Ambrosone, sound design was by Christopher Walker, original music was by Glyn Perrin and the stage manager was Jay McLeod. The cast was as follows:
ROACH | Starla Benford |
MAGGOT | Judith Hawking |
BRANDON | Jay Boyer |
COD | S. J. Scruggs |
TUCK | Terry Alexander |
TEXTILE WORKER | Phoebe Jonas |
SAUSAGE MAN | Alvin Epstein |
BAQUIN | Remo Airaldi |
CHARACTERS
ROACH, an African-American worker, mid-thirties
MAGGOT, a white worker, mid-thirties
BRANDON, a white worker, early twenties
COD, a white worker of Irish descent, mid-thirties
TUCK, an African-American, mid-forties
TEXTILE WORKER, a woman, twenties
SAUSAGE MAN, a white man, energetic, somewhat elderly
BAQUIN, a white company manager, fifties
TIME
Now and then.
PLACE
Slaughter City, USA.
SETTING
Should be minimal and not ārealistic.ā
dp n="210" folio="202" ?I came to the cities in a time of disorder
When hunger ruled.
I came among men in a time of uprising
And I revolted with them.
So the time passed away
Which on earth was given me.
When hunger ruled.
I came among men in a time of uprising
And I revolted with them.
So the time passed away
Which on earth was given me.
I ate my food between massacres.
The shadow of murder lay upon my sleep.
And when I loved, I loved with indifference.
I looked upon nature with impatience.
So the time passed away
Which on earth was given me.
The shadow of murder lay upon my sleep.
And when I loved, I loved with indifference.
I looked upon nature with impatience.
So the time passed away
Which on earth was given me.
In my time streets led to the quicksand.
Speech betrayed me to the slaughterer.
There was little I could do. But without me
The rulers would have been more secure.
This was my hope.
Speech betrayed me to the slaughterer.
There was little I could do. But without me
The rulers would have been more secure.
This was my hope.
āBertolt Brecht
āTo Those Born Laterā
dp n="211" folio="203" ? āTo Those Born Laterā
ACT I
PRELUDE
The stage is empty but for a woman textile worker, her back to us, working over her cloth. She speaks as if in a trance. Cod is elsewhere on stage, watching her work. We are in a textile factory setting, āsomewhereā in the past.
TEXTILE WORKER: Pull the cloth, punch it down, cut three out, and trace. Hurry, hurry, donāt slow down, keep your cheer and grace.
COD: Could you look up for a second? Hey.
TEXTILE WORKER: Pull the cloth, punch it down, cut three out, and trace.
COD (Calls): Is anybody out there?
TEXTILE WORKER: Hurry, hurry, donāt slow down, keep your cheer and grace.
COD: The doors are locked. (To Textile Worker) Iām talking to you.
TEXTILE WORKER: When I daydream, my hands sweep the clothā
COD: What floor are we on?
TEXTILE WORKER:ālike water over the keys of a piano.
(We hear the distorted sound of a siren in the distance.)
COD: Weāve got to get out of here.
TEXTILE WORKER (Touches his face gently): Oh, what eyes you have. Black eyes. Like my eyes.
dp n="212" folio="204" ?COD: I havenāt got any eyes. Iām not even born yet.
(The woman turns back to her cloth to work. Transfixed, Cod watches her.)
SCENE ONE
Lights up on Maggot, Roach and Brandon working. They are hosing down the heads of carcasses which are suspended above them, and slicing off bits of gristle from the bone. When the workers work, the feeling should be one of the intensity of industrial labor here on earth and perhaps also in hell.
ROACH: Maggot? (No answer) Maggot? Come on, sweetie. I said I was sorry. It was just a joke, wasnāt it, Brandon?
BRANDON: A masterstroke, an okeydoke joke.
MAGGOT: A just plain you-havenāt-got-any-brains-left-for-God-to-suck-out-of-your-skull joke.
ROACH: Did you eat it?
BRANDON: Didnāt even pause till she got to the claws.
ROACH: Maggot? Come on.
MAGGOT: Not unless you buy me three packs of brand name smokes and on third shift you snap guts and let me scale.
ROACH: You know I wonāt snap guts.
MAGGOT: Iāve been snappinā guts since I was seventeen.
BRANDON: Princess of Excrementis.
MAGGOT: Just because I turned you down three years ago for a Dairy Queen date . . .
BRANDON: That was before I realized that what you need is a dull blade, baby, a blade that wonāt cut meat.
(Bell sounds, which means a short break for the workers. At the moment the bell sounds, all work/assembly line movement stops. Maggot flexes her hands, which are hurting her.)
ROACH: Two packs of generics, and Iāll go third shift on the night you want off, ācept Saturdayā
dp n="213" folio="205" ?BRANDON (Interrupts): Hey! Here it comes: Iām startinā to itch.
(Cod enters, headed for the kill floor. He is a slim, young Irishman, who is stronger than he looks. Brandon jumps in front of Cod and pretends to sword fight.)
Unsheathe from your scabbard, you scoundrel, you fleabane, you scabrous snake.
(Cod does not respond.)
Look at this, ladies. Not a peep. Why, theyāre no fun, these bacterial spots. And, Lord, how theyā
MAGGOT AND ROACH: Itch, itch, itch.
BRANDON (Like a commercial): Are you covered with raised, roughened or unwholesome patches?
MAGGOT AND ROACH: Scratch, scratch, scratch.
BRANDON: Do you sometimes feel a little down, like a crust of hard blood and serum over a wound?
(The three workers circle Cod.)
MAGGOT AND ROACH: Are you characterized by crustaceous spots?
BRANDON: Then you need Local 226.
MAGGOT: Only Local 226ā
ROACH, MAGGOT AND BRANDON: Donāt need you.
(They stand in a circle around Cod.)
You know what Scab stands for?
MAGGOT, BRANDON AND ROACH: Stupid Cunts And Bastards.
(Cod spits on the ground at their feet.)
ROACH (Speaks): Itās raining, itās pouring . . .
MAGGOT AND ROACH: The scabās gone a-whoring!
MAGGOT: Watch you donāt bump your head.
BRANDON: Or you wonāt be back in the morning!
dp n="214" folio="206" ?(Maggot begins to sharpen her knife, the others do the same. Roach hums a tune and then the three workers sing the following. When one of them sings, the others hum.)
Iām gonna cut you, Scabby, gonna cut you deep with my sweet, blue kisses, gonna send you off to sleep.
MAGGOT:
Iām gonna slice you, sweetheart, gonna slice you wideā
ROACH:
āwith my hot, fast lips Iām gonna take you for a ride.
(Bell sounds again. The workers move back to their jobs. Cod stands silently, watching them.)
SCENE TWO
Baquin in his office, with Tuck, a supervi...
Table of contents
- Title Page
- Acknowledgments
- ONE FLEA SPARE - 1995
- IN THE HEART OF AMERICA - 1994
- THE WAR BOYS - 1993
- SLAUGHTER CITY - 1996
- THE TRESTLE AT POPE LICK CREEK - 1998
- Copyright Page