From Issue #8 Spring 2005
PREPARING STAGED READER'S THEATRE FROM A STANDARD SCRIPT by Irving Zimmer
Island Players first productions were mounted in a large room in the Mercer Island City Center. Flats, furniture, and lighting equipment and controls were very limited. The organization, newly organized, agreed that selecting a production style that would enhance performance without limiting our selection by the need for sets would be wise. Our first choices were Reader’s Theatre with tall stools and music stands. As our experience and growing audiences suggested, Staged Readings were successfully produced later. For Reader’s Theatre, some actors memorized their lines, but everyone read from the scripts placed on the music stands.
Staged Reader’s Theatre permitted stools or chairs, hand held scripts, props, and minimal furniture. Lines were memorized. Lighted areas were employed in the traditional style as equipment was purchased or borrowed. Actors moved through the playing area, reading from hand held scripts, which were sometimes placed on furniture as props were used. Since the actors were presenting a ‘reading’, the limited movement, the lack of sets, suggested doors and windows were accepted as conventions of the style.Ed. Note: The play "The Subject Was Roses" is protected by copyright and excerpts are used here only for the purpose of demonstrating certain readers theatre adaptation techniques.
NOTE: Original standard script is in BLACK
RT Adaptation is in BLUETHE SUBJECT WAS ROSES, BY FRANK D. GILROY
Act I, scene 1
The kitchen and living room of a middle class apartment in the West Bronx. A doorway links the two rooms. The living room is furnished with heavy upholstered pieces. A party the night before: a beer keg, camp chairs, a banner, Welcome Home, Timmy are visible
(The scripts are openly held, and apparently consulted. But the actors have memorized their dialogue. As a staged reading, the limited blocking requires few props and minimal set furniture beyond the chairs. Where directions in italics require movement, the direction is usually employed and noted in parenthesis).
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Time: Saturday morning, May of 1946
At rise: A man stands alone in the kitchen, contemplating an army jacket hanging from the door. The jacket indicates a corporal, presidential citations, a recent discharge emblem. The man is about 50 years old. He touches the jacket, feeling the material, dons the jacket furtively, hears a key turn in the door, quickly returns the jacket to the door. Sits at the kitchen table and appears engrossed in the newspaper. His wife, Nettie, forty five, enters with a bundle of groceries.
(Three comfortable chairs are lined up in an open row three or four feet upstage of the edge of the platform. The banner, WELCOME HOME TIMMY, stands upstage. A small, low table is center stage below the chairs. At right stage, a coat rack holds the Army jacket. Lights up finds JOHN CLEARY standing near the jacket. He holds a script. He touches the jacket, tenderly touches a citation on the jacket. At the sound of a key in the door he hurries to stage right chair, removes the newspaper from the seat, and after placing the script on the table, sits to read the paper. NETTIE enters from stage left with a bag of groceries that she places on the Center table, she then sits in Center chair. She carries a script).
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The script illustrated below skips through the dialogue to lines that include directions for movement. The accompanying directions in blue are designed for a staged reading.
Act One++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
JOHN: He and I got along better yesterday than we ever did before and you're jealous She turns away(Nettie turns away) Well, well, well. He finishes the last of his coffee. Rises to leave. (John remains seated)
JOHN: And the convention---don't leave that out. He starts from the room. (JOHN remains seated.)
JOHN: What's the matter with the old ones? Timmy…emerges from his room, starts toward the kitchen, is arrested by their voices. He stops to listen. (Timmy steps right a few steps, hold Left stage)
NETTIE: Are you going to give me the money? JOHN extracts a bill from his wallet, slaps it on the table. (JOHN takes a bill from his wallet, slaps it on the table)
+++++++++++++++++++
JOHN: Did I say I wasn't? He takes another bill from his wallet and puts it down (JOHN takes another bill from his wallet and slams it on the table) There!
TIMMY: …slams the door…NETTIE and JOHN compose themselves cheerfully as TIMMY equally cheerful, enters (TIMMY coughs, smiles and crosses above to John's right) Good morning. TIMMY shakes hands with his father, TIMMY crosses above mother, kisses his mother on the cheek. (Timmy sits center chair)
++++++++++++++++++
TIMMY: Right. JOHN moves toward the door, stops before the army jacket, indicates one of the ribbons (JOHN crosses to the army jacket, indicates one of the ribbons.) What did you say this one was for?
TIMMY: It's a combat infantry badge.
JOHN: I'm stopping off at St. Francis this morning to offer a prayer of thanks…See you later.
TIMMY: Right JOHN exits from the apartment. (JOHN exits right, TIMMY looks after him.)
+++++++++++
TIMMY: Want to pinch me? He holds out his hand (Timmy holds out his hand) Go on. She takes his hand (She takes his hand) Believe it now? Oblivious to his resistance, she still clings to his hand. He jerks free of her. (TIMMY pulls away
NETTIE stares at him for a moment, folds her hands in her lap, and begins to cry.)
+++++++++
TIMMY: (Puts his script on table). Goes to the radio, dials to a band playing a slow fox trot. (TIMMY returns to NETTIE, gestures her to stand. She puts her script on the table. TIMMY puts his arm around her They move smoothly, gracefully).
NETTIE: I guess it's one of those things you never forget.
TIMMY Remember this? (They dance smoothly).
+++++++++++
ANNOUNCER'S VOICE That's all the time we have on Dance Parade this morning. I hope---(TIMMY goes to the radio, dials, picks up a polka band going full blast)
TIMMY: What do you say?
NETTIE: The spirit's willing (They dance briskly)
+++++++++
TIMMY: You alright?
NETTIE: I think so. (Their laughter subsides. He crosses to the radio, turns it o off. They both cross to sit in their respective chairs)
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NETTIE: When we told him you were coming home. He began to sing. It's the first time he's done that in months.
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TIMMY: All right. The door opens and JOHN enters (JOHN ENTERS, holds at right)
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TIMMY: We'll grab something on the way. He exits (TIMMY exits left)
JOHN: Bless us and save us (TIMMY cross to jacket, takes tie off hanger, salutes JOHN)
TIMMY: Corporal Cleary reporting for duty
JOHN: Kiss your mother goodbye.
TIMMY: That's not a duty (TIMMY kisses NETTIE on the cheek)
JOHN: We wont be late. (JOHN and TIMMY exit left)
