House of The Gods

Martin — Mon, 16 Jul 2018 07:41:02 +0000

Mon, 07/16/2018

An excerpt from beginning of the opera

ACT ONE – PROLOGUE
DOCK STREET, OUTSIDE THE HALFWAY HOUSE PUB.

AN AUTUMN NIGHT, 1916. GAS LAMPS SPLUTTER IN THE GLOOM AS THE MIST ROLLS OFF THE RIVER AND PAST THE HALFWAY HOUSE. OUTSIDE THE DOOR IS AN ABANDONED TEA-CHEST. PEELING OFF THE SOOTY WALL IS A FADING RECRUITMENT POSTER FEATURING BELGIAN MAIDEN-IN-DISTRESS THREATENED BY BRUTISH HUN.

THE PROLOGUE IS PERFORMED DOWNSTAGE, “FRONT OF CURTAIN” STYLE, BEFORE A TRUCKED FLAT OF THE FRONT OF “THE HALFWAY HOUSE”, AN OLD GRIMY PUB WITH A PRACTICAL DOOR AND A WINDOW. A SIGN OVER THE DOOR, READS “THE HALFWAY HOUSE” IN BOLD LETTERS. BEHIND THIS, THE REST OF THE STAGE IS SET FOR SCENE ONE AND IS IN DARKNESS.

ALONG THE STREET COMES JACK O’CONNER, A SOLDIER IN HIS EARLY THIRTIES, WEARY AND THE WORSE FOR DRINK, KIT-BAG ON SHOULDER AND BOTTLE OF GIN IN THE POCKET OF HIS GREATCOAT. HE DROPS HIS KIT-BAG, UPTURNS THE TEA CHEST, SITS ON IT, AND SWIGS HIS LAST DROP OF GIN.

JACK GLARES AT THE BOTTLE IN FRUSTRATION – HE’S NOWHERE NEAR DRUNK ENOUGH YET - BUT, THEN, SEEING SOME CITIZENS OUT FOR THE NIGHT [THE AUDIENCE] HAS AN INSPIRATION. HE STUFFS THE BOTTLE BACK IN HIS POCKET, STANDS UP, AND SETS HIS SIGHTS ON A WEALTHY LOOKING PASSER BY.

JACK
Evening, sir. No -
Stop – don’t go!
[TURNING TO ANOTHER]
Out for the night, sir? No offence!
I can see you’re not short of a penny
- nor you, madam! Two pence -
Two pennies, ladies an’ gents, for a cup of tea?
All right, then - Gin!
Soldier on leave
- wants to get plastered – a sin?
Two pennies, that’s all - one for each eye.
Blind drunk! Then what I can’t see won’t hurt me!

Martin Riley - Opera

House of The Gods