Butterworth The Hills of California

1. Auflage 2024
ISBN: 978-1-78850-766-0
Verlag: Nick Hern Books
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 6 - ePub Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 128 Seiten

Reihe: NHB Modern Plays

'This house. It's called 'Sea View'. It's just I've looked out of every window, and you can't. You can't see the sea.' Blackpool, 1976. The driest summer in two hundred years. The beaches are packed. The hotels are heaving. In the sweltering backstreets, far from the choc ices and donkey rides, the Webb Sisters are returning to their mother's run-down guest house, as she lies dying upstairs. Jez Butterworth's play The Hills of California was first performed at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London's West End in 2024, directed by Sam Mendes, and produced by Sonia Friedman Productions and Neal Street.

Jez Butterworth is one of the UK's leading playwrights. His plays include: Mojo (Royal Court Theatre, London, 1995; West End, 2013); The Night Heron (Royal Court, 2002); The Winterling (Royal Court, 2006); Parlour Song (Atlantic Theater, New York, 2008; Almeida Theatre, London, 2009); Jerusalem (Royal Court, 2009; West End, 2010; New York, 2011); The River (Royal Court, 2012); The Ferryman (Royal Court and West End, 2017) and The Hills of California (West End, 2024). Mojo won the George Devine Award, the Olivier Award for Best Comedy and the Writers' Guild, Critics' Circle and Evening Standard Awards for Most Promising Playwright. Jerusalem won the Best Play Award at the Critics' Circle, Evening Standard and WhatsOnStage.com Awards, and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. The Ferryman won the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Play, and the Critics' Circle, Olivier and WhatsOnStage Awards for Best New Play, as well as the 2019 Tony Award for Best Play. His screenwriting credits include Fair Game (2010), Get On Up (2014), Edge of Tomorrow (2014), Black Mass (2015), Spectre (2015), Ford v Ferrari (2019), and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023). For TV, he created and wrote the comedy series Mammals for Amazon Studios, and created the historical fantasy drama Britannia for Sky and Amazon Prime. In 2007, he won the E.M. Forster Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 2019 he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Author photo by Steve Schofield

Autoren/Hrsg.

Butterworth, Jez

Leseproben

ACT ONE

()

JILLIAN

JILLIAN. Mother?

PENNY

PENNY. She’s sleeping.

JILLIAN. Is she on her left or her right side?

PENNY. Her back.

JILLIAN. Her feet are purple.

PENNY. It’s normal.

JILLIAN. Normal?

PENNY. When they haven’t been up and about.

JILLIAN. Are you sure?

PENNY. Sure what?

JILLIAN. That she’s asleep.

PENNY. Dr Groves gave her half a grain of morphine. She’s very peaceful.

JILLIAN. Well that’s something.

I’m Jill by the way.

PENNY. Penny.

JILLIAN. Where’s Alice?

PENNY. Scarborough. For the weekend. Her anniversary.

JILLIAN. Right. Well, I’ll show you around.

PENNY. There’s no need.

JILLIAN. Nonsense.

PENNY. Honest. I’ve got my bearings.

JILLIAN. Nonsense.

PENNY. Really it’s fine.

JILLIAN. Let me show you.

PENNY. You showed me yesterday.

Sit down.

JILLIAN. I’m fine.

PENNY

PENNY. I’m just going to check your blood pressure. You pop it on your arm. Like so.

PENNY JILLIAN

Now just relax.

JILLIAN

This house. It’s called ‘Seaview’.

JILLIAN (). Hmm?

PENNY. The Seaview Hotel.

JILLIAN. Aye.

PENNY. It’s just… I’ve looked out of every window, and you can’t.

.

You can’t see the sea. Even on the top floor. You can see the car park. The bingo. If you lean right out you can see the Tower –

JILLIAN. I believe they call it poetic licence.

Anyway, it’s not the Seaview Hotel. It the Seaview Guest House. Then the Seaview Luxury Guest House. Then the Seaview Luxury Guest House and Spa. Then the Seaview Luxury Guest House. The Seaview Guest House… Now it’s just Seaview.

PENNY. Sounds like this house has been on quite a journey.

JILLIAN. May I ask a question? My sister Joan. The one in America.

PENNY. California.

JILLIAN. Exactly. () Wait. How –

PENNY. You told me. Yesterday.

JILLIAN. Right. Well. She’s stuck. In California. Her aeroplane was cancelled. Or postponed. Anyroad, she won’t arrive till tomorrow at the earliest.

PENNY. Oh yes…

JILLIAN. Joan’s Mum’s favourite. Not favourite.

Mum always used to say, ‘Gloria’s Gran… You’re your dad, Ruby’s Ruby. But Joan is me.’ I just need advice. Not advice. Your opinion. You’ve been here before.

PENNY. If you’re asking me what you’re asking me, the answer is I don’t know.

JILLIAN. Understood.

PENNY. It could be today. Could be tomorrow.

JILLIAN. Understood.

PENNY. How long’s a piece of string?

JILLIAN. It’s just Joan has to be here. It’s imperative.

PENNY. All I know –

JILLIAN. You don’t understand. I promised Mum. I promised her Joan would be here.

PENNY. All I can tell you… It’s in God’s hands now.

JILLIAN. Understood.

PENNY. But I’ll say this. I’ve seen miracles before.

Your blood pressure is high. Do you smoke?

JILLIAN. Me? No.

PENNY. Have you ever smoked?

JILLIAN. Never. Filthy habit. Mother won’t abide it.

PENNY. Are you on any medication?

JILLIAN. Ventolin for my asthma. Betnovate for my eczema. Pepto-Bismol.

PENNY. Personal question. Are you on the pill?

JILLIAN. No.

PENNY. Are you pregnant?

JILLIAN. No fear.

PENNY. Planning to get pregnant?

JILLIAN

I’m sorry.

JILLIAN

Guess what they said this morning? I’m having my cuppa, they said this is the longest drought since 1864.

JILLIAN. Oh aye.

PENNY. It feels long, doesn’t it? July went on forever. March was brisk. April. May was dandelions. Ladybirds. Then it went June. July… July. July. July…

.

August. Land cracked. Hosepipes. Five inches in the tub. My next-door neighbour’s brother-in-law was caught in the dead of night watering his hollyhocks. They carted him away. He hasn’t been seen since.

Here.

PENNY

JILLIAN. What’s this?

PENNY. It’s a leaflet.

JILLIAN (). ‘The Process of Bereavement.’

PENNY. Don’t read it now, but you might want to pop it somewhere safe.

JILLIAN PENNY

JILLIAN. I’ll pop it somewhere safe.

PENNY. Hello. We’re making progress…! Do you play?

JILLIAN. Me? No fear. Mum used to. But not for ages.

PENNY. Then who plays?

JILLIAN. Joan. Joan plays.

PENNY. I didn’t tell you this.

JILLIAN. Sorry?

PENNY. Moreover, if anyone asks I will flat deny it.

JILLIAN. Sorry, what –

PENNY. You’re right. I have been here before. At this stage. And at this point. This juncture. There’s things they can do.

JILLIAN. Who?

PENNY. Dr Groves. Or failing that, Dr Onions.

When the time comes. If you feel she has suffered enough. If you call him. Then Dr Groves, or failing that, Dr Onions. Dr Onions calls Dr Rose. And Dr Rose comes.

JILLIAN. Do you mean.

PENNY. Dr Onions calls Dr Rose.

JILLIAN. So. Dr Groves.

PENNY. Or Dr Onions.

JILLIAN. Calls Dr Rose.

PENNY. Dr Rose comes over. Ups the morphine dose. And your mother drifts off peacefully to heaven.

JILLIAN. I see.

Or… Dr Groves or Dr Onions calls Dr Rose. Dr Rose comes over. Ups the dose. And my mother drifts peacefully to hell.

I’m just saying. If you buy all that. If you do then it stands to reason some people. Not just Adolf Hitler and Kendo Nagasaki. Normal folk. Folk from Blackpool who’ve raised four girls alone. If they didn’t find time to go to church and worship God, the same God what torpedoed their husband’s destroyer. Then – (.) My point is. Any minute now, Mum could be travelling from ninety-one Penny Avenue, Blackpool F-Y-five-one-D-U, from a life of misery and suffering, to hell. In which case, if it’s all the same I won’t join Dr Groves and Dr Onions burning in a fiery pit for all eternity.

PENNY

Wait. What are you doing? Where are you going?

PENNY. Home. My shift is finished.

JILLIAN. But –

PENNY. I’ll be back this evening to give her her salts.

PENNY

JILLIAN. What’s that?

PENNY. A telephone number. Dr Groves. And failing that… (.) Dr Onions.

Discuss it with your sisters. And in the meantime. Get some rest.

I’m a mother too, Miss Webb. Six boys. And I’ll let you into a secret. Mothers don’t have favourites. We love you all the same.

PENNY

JILLIAN...