Since winning the Pulitzer prize for drama in 1959, J.B. has become one of the most revered works of literature in the 20th century. Knowing this, producing J.B. is quite a daunting task. However, today we do not approach J.B. from a literary perspective but rather, an entertainment perspective. Here at Sam Houston State University we always strive to produce entertaining, historically accurate, compelling works and this show is no different. J.B. takes places exactly 50 years ago, in 1959 and since none of the cast or crew were alive during that time it took an extraordinary amount of time and effort to research the time period to make sure we were bringing a level of truth and accuracy to the work. 1959 was a tumultuous year full of historical ups and downs, New York magazine called it “A year that left its mark— many marks— on the city and the world” and our research greatly impacted the end product of the show you are about to see. What can also not be ignored is the fact that J.B. is based on the biblical story of Job and that also had a huge effect on our show. Apart from the obvious bible quotes and references that had to be researched to have a complete knowledge of the text; the cast and crew had to balance this age old story with the more modern 1959.
In the year 1959, so many things were changing. This was the year the microchip was invented, the Guggenheim museum opened, and Japanese automobiles first infiltrated the American market. Also, this was the year that the United States suffered its first casualties in the Vietnam War. This war would have a greater impact in the 60s and 70s but the fact that this is the year it all started could not be ignored. Fidel Castro made his first and only visits to the United States in 1959, a press tour where he was described as charismatic and “larger than life.” This is in stark contrast to the Castro we know today as the communist leader of Cuba who the United States has not had diplomatic relations with in over 40 years. Another reason why 1959 was a milestone is that some consider it the birth year of the civil rights movement. Mike Wallace hosted a two and a half hour documentary on Malcolm X, the minister of the New York chapter of the Nation of Islam effectively introducing him to the world. Malcolm X would go on to be one of the most polarizing figures in the civil rights movement until he was assassinated in 1965. An important year for music as well, Miles Davis released his album Kind of Blue which would go on to be the greatest selling Jazz album of all time and in film John Cassavetes’s film Shadows would mark the birth of the American “indie” film, changing the landscape of American cinema forever.
While the changing times of 1959 were the main focus of our studies the old testament parts of the script could not be ignored. In fact, the main challenge of J.B. was balancing biblical times with 1959. At several points in the show tonight you will hear direct quotations from the bible specifically the Book of Job. It is important to note that we do not approach this play from a religious standpoint although, if that is what you take away from it that is certainly valid. Rather, we tried to approach the script from the aspect of telling a story, any story not specifically a biblical one. One of the best things about J.B. is that it is an extremely human story and everyone can relate and take something away from it whether you are religious or not. J.B. is about faith, not religion and everyone’s faith has been tested at one point or another, just like J.B. This script also has several social issues that would have been pushing the boundaries in 1959 and are still relevant today. These issues include drunk driving, rape, and murder and are sure to have an impact on how you view this play, especially if you have been affected by these issues. Thank you so much for coming out tonight and enjoy the show!
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Producing the Play
The first and most obvious problem posed by the text is that the entire play is in verse. Verse although not impossible to do, makes it harder for the actors to understand and memorize. More importantly, it makes it difficult for the audience to understand and follow the play. Another problem posed by the text is the play within a play concept that the show centers around. This concept requires lots of miscellaneous actors to facilitate scene changes and set the mood for the show. It will be harder to get that many actors organized and know what everyone’s specific roles will be as opposed to a smaller show with only a few actors. Finally, the amount of physical things required by the script such as props and costumes are astronomical given the amount of roles and how long the piece is.
Problems posed by producing J.B. at Sam Houston State include the fact that all of our actors are modern 2009 students and would probably have limited, if any, familiarity with acting in verse. Finding enough actors to fill all of the roles will not be a problem given the sheer size of our department however, to keep so many actors organized is going to require a very organized and somewhat large stage management staff. Also another problem with the large cast is having enough space in the dressing room for all of the actors to get ready and do their costume changes. Having this many costumes also means the costume crew will have to be somewhat large to keep track of all the costumes and facilitate changes quickly and efficiently. Having such a large scale play means that this show will need to be produced on the main stage and that means it will be a larger set which brings about concerns about staying on budget and the man power it will require to build and maintain the set.
Other productions do not have some of the same problems we at Sam Houston have and therefore have not had to solve them. For example, most other theatres I have researched were professional and had a large pool of very experienced actors to choose from so finding actors who were proficient acting in verse was not a problem. Also, professional theatres have a much larger budget than we at Sam Houston would have and therefore do not have the same concerns about having so many props, costumes, and such a large set. It sounds simple but a larger budget would solve most of these problems. One that it might not solve is the dressing room issue, most theatres (ours included) have limited dressing room space and to accommodate so many actors they would have to find other areas that could be converted into a space for the actors. Another one that a higher budget would not solve is the problem of the play within a play concept. I have seen other productions such as the University of Michigan solve this by having a particularly long opening sequence where it is made clear to the audience by the actions of the actors that they are setting up for a performance that is about to happen.
I have not yet seen a poor critical reception to the text. It is the winner of the 1959 Pulitzer prize in Drama and widely accepted as one of the greatest pieces of 20th century dramatic literature. As to the productions themselves, most I found were critiqued positively. People seem to respond very well to the story of J.B. because it is a very human story that is familiar to so many people. I believe because of their love for the script, critics and audience members alike are more willing to forgive minor acting and/or technical problems.
Problems posed by producing J.B. at Sam Houston State include the fact that all of our actors are modern 2009 students and would probably have limited, if any, familiarity with acting in verse. Finding enough actors to fill all of the roles will not be a problem given the sheer size of our department however, to keep so many actors organized is going to require a very organized and somewhat large stage management staff. Also another problem with the large cast is having enough space in the dressing room for all of the actors to get ready and do their costume changes. Having this many costumes also means the costume crew will have to be somewhat large to keep track of all the costumes and facilitate changes quickly and efficiently. Having such a large scale play means that this show will need to be produced on the main stage and that means it will be a larger set which brings about concerns about staying on budget and the man power it will require to build and maintain the set.
Other productions do not have some of the same problems we at Sam Houston have and therefore have not had to solve them. For example, most other theatres I have researched were professional and had a large pool of very experienced actors to choose from so finding actors who were proficient acting in verse was not a problem. Also, professional theatres have a much larger budget than we at Sam Houston would have and therefore do not have the same concerns about having so many props, costumes, and such a large set. It sounds simple but a larger budget would solve most of these problems. One that it might not solve is the dressing room issue, most theatres (ours included) have limited dressing room space and to accommodate so many actors they would have to find other areas that could be converted into a space for the actors. Another one that a higher budget would not solve is the problem of the play within a play concept. I have seen other productions such as the University of Michigan solve this by having a particularly long opening sequence where it is made clear to the audience by the actions of the actors that they are setting up for a performance that is about to happen.
I have not yet seen a poor critical reception to the text. It is the winner of the 1959 Pulitzer prize in Drama and widely accepted as one of the greatest pieces of 20th century dramatic literature. As to the productions themselves, most I found were critiqued positively. People seem to respond very well to the story of J.B. because it is a very human story that is familiar to so many people. I believe because of their love for the script, critics and audience members alike are more willing to forgive minor acting and/or technical problems.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Production History
University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre, and Dance
Power Center
Ann Arbor, Michigan
December 6-9, 2007
Director: Philip Kerr
Scenic Design: Vincent Mountain
Costume Design: Jessica Hahn
Lighting Design: Rob Murphy
Sound Design: Henry Reynolds
"Rob Murphy's lighting design effectively sets the right mood for each scene, draining what little color appears on stage as J.B. continues his descent into the void. And in the show's visually stunning finale, Murphy and director Philip Kerr give the audience the kind of emotionally stirring and magical moment that is only possible in live theater." -Jenn McKee, The Ann Arbor News http://blog.mlive.com/encorea2/2007/12/review_jb.html
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Production History
The NOLA Project
Nims Blackbox Theatre, NOCCA/Riverfront
New Orleans, LA
November - December, 2007
Director: Andrew Larimer
Lighting Designer: Davis Barron
Costume Designer: Evan Prizant
Nims Blackbox Theatre, NOCCA/Riverfront
New Orleans, LA
November - December, 2007
Director: Andrew Larimer
Lighting Designer: Davis Barron
Costume Designer: Evan Prizant
"It is easy to see why The NOLA Project chose Archibald MacLeish's "J.B.," a modern-day verse play based on the Job story. Director Andrew Larimer has substituted a flood for MacLeish's nuclear wasteland as a local parallel and the text refers to a "murdered, broken city." The ending MacLeish gives his play, that to be human is to suffer "and what suffers, loves" and determinedly goes on, resonates as well." -David Cuthbert, The Times-Picayune
http://blog.nola.com/davidcuthbert/2007/11/jb_at_nocca_when_bad_things_ha.html#more
http://blog.nola.com/davidcuthbert/2007/11/jb_at_nocca_when_bad_things_ha.html#more
Monday, July 27, 2009
Production History
Rorschach Theatre Company
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
September 15 – October 7, 2001
Director: Randy Baker
Scene Design: Beth Baldwin
Costume Design: Rebecca Breed
Lighting Design: Adam Magazine
Sound Design: Michelle DeCesare
"MacLeish called for a sideshow in a circus tent, but this abandoned auditorium works as well. It's decked out with a ton of junk that looks like it's been there awhile, though it must have been accumulated by set designer Beth Baldwin. Baker leaves open one of the tall windows onto K Street, as if to keep the real world part of the airy discussions. Buses clatter by and sirens howl in the distance; a scene or two is even illuminated solely by the streetlight."
-Nelson Pressley, The Washington Post September 19, 2001
"Rorschach's set and light designers take advantage of the spooky vastness of the dilapidated former junior-high auditorium, including an inventive use of shadow puppetry, but its sound designer fails to meet the challenge: Poor acoustics often make the dialogue difficult to hear."
-Elissa Silverman, Washington City Paper
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Statement
While some view the 1950’s as the frumpiest decade of the twentieth century, 1959 in particular was anything but. The last year of the 50’s saw some of the most important changes to our world, on a global, national, and local level. These changes are scientific, political, social, and cultural in nature.The invention of the microchip by Texas Instruments is one of the most significant scientific contributions. This invention led to huge advancements in lots of devices including, but not limited to, radios, televisions, telephones, rockets, missiles, and satellites. This is also when Japanese and other international automakers began to give the Detroit auto industry some competition by offering superior cars at lower prices; forcing American automakers to change their game plan to continue to compete. With the start of the cold war between the United States and the U.S.S.R. it was only a matter of time before the technology of weapons, both offensive and defensive, advanced as each country tried to one up each other.
Politically, 1959 was one the most eventful years ever. At the beginning of the year the United States officially recognized the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro. Later that year, Castro would embark on a whirlwind tour of America focusing mainly on New York. The charismatic Cuban leader captivated the nation by speaking to more than 30,000 people in Central Park and feeding a tiger at the Bronx Zoo, prompting many news outlets to proclaim him, “larger than life.” 1959 is also when the U.S. suffered the first fatalities in the Vietnam War. This war would captivate the world for the next 16 years until it ended in 1975. At this time the United States also increased their global land mass by adding Alaska and Hawaii, the only two states outside of the continental 48.
This year was also landmark for civil rights; the nation was first introduced to Malcolm X the young minister of the New York chapter of the Nation of Islam. Malcolm X’s opinion on gaining civil rights was in stark contrast to other civil rights leaders of the time by suggesting that militant separatism was a better way to bring about equality than civil disobedience. This difference of opinion would dominate the fight for racial equality for the rest of the 20th century. Even leading entertainment figures were not immune to racial inequality as Miles Davis found out on August 25, 1959. Davis was performing a two-week engagement at Birdland Jazz Club in New York City to celebrate the release of his new album, Kind of Blue when a misunderstanding with a plain clothes police officer led to the musician’s arrest. The officer beat Miles Davis with his tom-tom requiring five stitches on his head. Mr. Davis was later released on $1,000 bail.
Perhaps the most progressive changes in 1959 were cultural. This year saw the opening of the Guggenheim museum designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, which many believe to be the most important architectural feat of the twentieth century. Earlier that year the uncensored text of D.H. Lawrence’s 1928 novel Lady Chatterley’s Lover was released sparking a debate in this country about literature vs. obscenity. When the case went to trial in a Manhattan court it was determined that no work can be deemed obscene if it contained “ideas of even the slightest social importance.” Two new important genres were invented in 1959; in literature Norman Mailer’s Advertisements for Myself created the New Journalism and in film, Shadows was released which was hailed by Martin Scorsese as America’s first “indie” film. Popular music saw the release of Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue which would go on to be the most popular jazz album of all time and the invention of “Free Jazz” by Ornette Coleman a new style of music that had no apparent structure but was full of passion and raw human emotion. Also of note in the world of music was the tragic plane crash that caused the death of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper; three of the most popular musicians of the time. Of special interest to children of the time was that this was the year the Barbie doll was first released, becoming one of the most popular toys of all time and Walt Disney released his 16th animated film Sleeping Beauty on January 29th.
1959 was a tumultuous year that saw changes in virtually every aspect of life. One thing was clear, after 1959 nothing would ever be the same as the frumpy 50’s were certainly a thing of the past.
Politically, 1959 was one the most eventful years ever. At the beginning of the year the United States officially recognized the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro. Later that year, Castro would embark on a whirlwind tour of America focusing mainly on New York. The charismatic Cuban leader captivated the nation by speaking to more than 30,000 people in Central Park and feeding a tiger at the Bronx Zoo, prompting many news outlets to proclaim him, “larger than life.” 1959 is also when the U.S. suffered the first fatalities in the Vietnam War. This war would captivate the world for the next 16 years until it ended in 1975. At this time the United States also increased their global land mass by adding Alaska and Hawaii, the only two states outside of the continental 48.
This year was also landmark for civil rights; the nation was first introduced to Malcolm X the young minister of the New York chapter of the Nation of Islam. Malcolm X’s opinion on gaining civil rights was in stark contrast to other civil rights leaders of the time by suggesting that militant separatism was a better way to bring about equality than civil disobedience. This difference of opinion would dominate the fight for racial equality for the rest of the 20th century. Even leading entertainment figures were not immune to racial inequality as Miles Davis found out on August 25, 1959. Davis was performing a two-week engagement at Birdland Jazz Club in New York City to celebrate the release of his new album, Kind of Blue when a misunderstanding with a plain clothes police officer led to the musician’s arrest. The officer beat Miles Davis with his tom-tom requiring five stitches on his head. Mr. Davis was later released on $1,000 bail.
Perhaps the most progressive changes in 1959 were cultural. This year saw the opening of the Guggenheim museum designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, which many believe to be the most important architectural feat of the twentieth century. Earlier that year the uncensored text of D.H. Lawrence’s 1928 novel Lady Chatterley’s Lover was released sparking a debate in this country about literature vs. obscenity. When the case went to trial in a Manhattan court it was determined that no work can be deemed obscene if it contained “ideas of even the slightest social importance.” Two new important genres were invented in 1959; in literature Norman Mailer’s Advertisements for Myself created the New Journalism and in film, Shadows was released which was hailed by Martin Scorsese as America’s first “indie” film. Popular music saw the release of Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue which would go on to be the most popular jazz album of all time and the invention of “Free Jazz” by Ornette Coleman a new style of music that had no apparent structure but was full of passion and raw human emotion. Also of note in the world of music was the tragic plane crash that caused the death of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper; three of the most popular musicians of the time. Of special interest to children of the time was that this was the year the Barbie doll was first released, becoming one of the most popular toys of all time and Walt Disney released his 16th animated film Sleeping Beauty on January 29th.
1959 was a tumultuous year that saw changes in virtually every aspect of life. One thing was clear, after 1959 nothing would ever be the same as the frumpy 50’s were certainly a thing of the past.
Sounds and Images
Poster for "Shadows" America's first indie film.
The cover of "Advertisements for Myself" by: Norman Mailer which started a new literary genre - The New Journalism.
Calculator containing the world's first microchip made by Texas Instruments.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index1.html
Malcolm X - The minister of the New York chapter of the Nation of Islam.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index3.html
Cuban leader Fidel Castro on his first trip to the United States.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index2.html
The Guggenheim Museum in New York City designed by world-renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright.http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index5.html
The cover of "Lady Chatterly's Lover" by: D.H. Lawrence. This book started a huge debate in America about where literature ends and obscenity begins.
The cover of "Lady Chatterly's Lover" by: D.H. Lawrence. This book started a huge debate in America about where literature ends and obscenity begins.Audio of Ornette Coleman performing "Free Jazz" a style of music that is credited to him.
Video of Bobby Darin performing "Dream Lover" one of the most popular singles of 1959.
Short film explaining the significance of Miles Davis's "Kind of Blue," the most popular jazz album of all time.
Micro View
Micro View
Setting: New York City, New York 1959
1) Barney Rosset, hell-raising proprietor of Grove Press, declared war on anti-obscenity laws by announcing on March 18 that he was publishing the uncensored text of Lady Chatterley’s Lover, D. H. Lawrence’s 1928 novel, banned by the U.S. Post Office for its graphic sex scenes. Rosset’s battle seemed doomed. The Supreme Court had condemned as “obscene” any work whose “dominant theme … appeals to prurient interests.” But at the Manhattan trial, Rosset’s lawyer, Charles Rembar (also Norman Mailer’s cousin), put forth the creative argument that no work can be deemed obscene if it contains “ideas of even the slightest social importance.” U.S. District Judge Frederick van Pelt Bryan found that reasoning persuasive, distribution restrictions were lifted, and the Grove edition of Lady Chatterley went on to sell 2 million copies, sating—and further unleashing— a pent-up hunger for once-forbidden fruit.
A landmark case that helped define the argument between obscenity and freedom of speech. The fact that it took place in a Manhattan courtroom means that it would have been especially relevant in J.B. and Sarah's household. Also, with five children in the home an obscenity trial would have been watched very closely by their parents.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index1.html
2) At the Institute of Radio Engineers’ March 24 trade show in the New York Coliseum, Texas Instruments introduced a new device that would change the world as profoundly as any invention of the century—the solid integrated circuit, a.k.a. the microchip. At a press conference, the inventor, Jack St. Clair Kilby, a self-described “tinkerer,” held up the match-head-size prototype while TI’s executives presciently boasted that it would revolutionize not only rockets, missiles, and satellites but also TVs, radios, telephones, and medical instruments.
Though they may not have realized it at the time this invention would have a profound effect on J.B. and Sarah's life, mainly in the future. Especially towards the end of the play when all of their children have died and they are own their own. Radios, TV's, and telephones would be a larger part of their life.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index1.html
3) On April 15, Fidel Castro, the new leader of Cuba, launched a whirlwind U.S. tour, enthralling millions with a spectacle unseen in their lifetimes: a revolutionary, claiming to be neither communist nor capitalist, who rose to power without the aid of Moscow or Washington and who therefore seemed like he might be the one to carve a new path, a breakout from the Cold War’s grinding duel. In New York, he lunched with bankers on Wall Street, fed a Bengal tiger at the Bronx Zoo, and spoke to 30,000 people in Central Park. A New York Times editorial exclaimed, “The young man is larger than life.” By the time of Castro’s next trip, for a meeting at the U.N. General Assembly a year and a half later—after he nationalized U.S. companies, executed even more opponents, and purchased arms from the Soviet Union—the euphoria had died down.
In the coming months and years Fidel Castro would become a polarizing political figure on the national and world stage. The fact that Castro decide to make his first trip to the U.S. in New York City means that he would be a figure that J.B., Sarah, and the entire family would be familiar with.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index2.html
4) Also in April, the New York Coliseum hosted the International Auto Show, which took up one-third more floor space than the previous year’s edition and featured cars made by 65 companies in nine foreign countries, many of them sporting, as the Times reported, “sleeker styling and more powerful engines.” For the first time, cars from Japan were on display, including Datsuns and Toyotas. Coinciding with the tanking of the Edsel—Ford Motor would halt its production seven months later—it was the first sign that Detroit could no more dominate its market than Washington could dictate to the world.
Being a wealthy businessman, J.B. would have been interested in the finer things in life including luxury automobiles. It is very possible that J.B. would have attended the auto show and even purchased one of the cars he saw there.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index2.html
5) In July, Mike Wallace hosted a two-and-a-half-hour nationally syndicated documentary called The Hate That Hate Produced—the first mass-media report about, as Wallace put it, “a call for black supremacy among a small but growing segment of the American Negro population,” led by Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam and especially the charismatic minister of its New York chapter, Malcolm X. Their words, about the coming race war between the “divine” black man and the “evil” white man, terrified millions of white viewers but delighted a large number of black ones. Malcolm X emerged as a national leader, offering a radical alternative to the mainstream civil-rights figures of the day, including Martin Luther King Jr., who a few months earlier had traveled to India, where he embraced the tactics of civil disobedience. The tension between these two strands—militant separatism versus nonviolent protest for integration—would define racial politics in late-twentieth-century America.
This documentary would set into motion the fight between the two different factions of the civil rights movement. Malcom X, the minister of the New York chapter of of the Nation of Islam would surely have made several appearances and given several speeches in and around New York City. This would make him a figure that J.B. and Sarah (and probably the children too) would have been aware of.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index3.html
6) Just before midnight on August 25, Miles Davis was nearing the end of a two-week gig at Birdland to celebrate the release of his new album, Kind of Blue. It would become the best-selling jazz album of all time—and the spearhead of an artistic revolution. Mainstream modern jazz had been structured on chord progressions; Davis’s new music was built around scales instead of chords: You could do anything as long as you stayed in key. On this night, between sets, Davis escorted a young white woman to a taxi and paused on the sidewalk to light a cigarette. A cop told him to move along. Davis replied, in his defiant hoarse voice, “I work here” and, pointing to the club’s marquee, “That’s my name up there.” A plainclothes cop, misreading the exchange, rushed over and beat the trumpeter over the head with his blackjack—“like a tom-tom,” as Davis later put it. The two cops cuffed and jailed him; he was released on $1,000 bail, and doctors had to sew five stitches in his head. That summer, Miles Davis was rich and famous, the dark prince of cool. But to a couple of white cops—not in the Deep South but in midtown Manhattan—he was just another uppity Negro.
A perfect example of race relations in New York City at the time. Miles Davis's best-selling album Kind of Blue may have been heard in J.B. and Sarah's household. Even if they did not listen to Miles Davis' music they would surely have heard of this incident via news outlets in the city.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index4.html
7) On October 21, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum opened, looking like nothing else around it, and maybe nothing else in the world. Frank Lloyd Wright modeled the building after the ancient ziggurats of Mesopotamia. Critics likened it to an upside-down cupcake. But visitors flocked to the place as they had to no other art museum. The design might never have gone beyond blueprints were it not for Robert Moses, Wright’s distant cousin. “Damn it,” he told the Buildings Department, “get a permit for Frank, I don’t care how many laws you have to break.” Sol Guggenheim had collected Old Masters until he fell for the Baroness Hildegard Rebay von Ehrenwiesen, a surrealist artist half his age who turned his head to “nonobjective art”—paintings by Kandinsky, Klee, Léger, and herself. A museum of these works, she told Sol, would serve as “a temple to the spirit.” Wright also wanted to create a temple, but to the primacy of architecture—“the Mother-art,” he once said, “of which Painting is but a daughter.” Ada Louise Huxtable called it “less a museum than it is a monument to Frank Lloyd Wright,” and it spawned the age of the superstar architect.
This modern architectural marvel was all the talk in New York City at the time of it's debut. J.B.and Sarah who are wealthy, sophisticated New Yorkers would have visited the Guggenheim museum and relayed it's contents to their children.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index5.html
8) On October 30, Norman Mailer’s Advertisements for Myself hit bookstores, marking a bold new step in the author’s career and a new literary genre—the New Journalism—that would transform American writing: a compilation of his short stories, essays, and blunt commentaries, interspersed with prefaces on how he came to write the pieces and retrospective appraisals of their merits, often reprinting the most blistering judgments by others. It had been a dozen years since Mailer wrote The Naked and the Dead, hailed as the finest novel to come out of World War II. In the interim, he’d written two novels that didn’t fare so well, fallen into a fit of depression, discovered the magical combo of jazz and marijuana, and reemerged, keen to cultivate an image as a “psychic outlaw” of his time, the “philosopher of Hip.” He wrote that he detected “the hints, the clues, the whispers of a new time coming … a universal rebellion in the air,” in which “the frantic search for potent Change may break into the open with all its violence, its confusion, its ugliness and horror, and yet … there is a beauty beneath.” This book—with its links between nihilistic hipsters and the omnipresent A-bomb—lit the fuse.
Again, J.B. and Sarah were sophisticated, well-educated New Yorkers and the formation of a new literary genre would be something that they were aware of and had researched. This would be a topic of conversation at cocktail parties and other events that they attended.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index5.html
9) On November 11, Amos Vogel’s Cinema 16 club screened Shadows, a new film by John Cassavetes. Inspired by the Italian neorealists, Cassavetes used a semi-improvised script about an interracial romance and a group of young men who talk in jazz lingo and carouse around the city (a sort of Beat version of Fellini’s I Vitelloni) and filmed it in Times Square, Central Park, and the MoMA sculpture garden—all without permits. It was, in effect, the first American “indie” film. When Martin Scorsese saw it at NYU, it made him realize that “cinema could be made anywhere.”
America's first indie film would usher in a new era of American cinema. Again, J.B. and Sarah are sophisticated, culturally aware New Yorkers who would have seen this movie and realized it's potential to change the landscape of American filmmaking.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index6.html
10) On November 17, hundreds of New Yorkers lined up in the cold outside the Five Spot, a small, dank jazz club in the Bowery, to hear an alto saxophonist who had been hyped for months as the harbinger of a new wave, the next Charlie “Bird” Parker, a 29-year-old with the strange name of Ornette Coleman. If Miles Davis had caused a stir with an album built on scales instead of chord changes, Coleman’s music—which he played on a white plastic horn in a tone that struck many as a yelp or a moan—had no apparent structure. Yet it was exhilarating, emotionally intense, ripe with a haunting beauty. Each player in his pianoless quartet seemed to go in separate ways, but they all shifted on cue, it all held together. That night marked the birth of “free jazz,” or, as the album that would come out soon after was called, The Shape of Jazz to Come. Charles Mingus, who would run hot and cold on Coleman for the next twenty years, came away with this key insight: “I’m not saying that everybody’s going to have to play like Coleman, but they’re going to have to stop copying Bird.”
After this performance Jazz and music in general would never be the same. This shift in popular American music would be heard by J.B. and Sarah when they listened to the radio alone and with their five children.
http://nymag.com/news/features/57058/index6.html
Monday, July 20, 2009
Macro View
Macro View
Setting: New York City, New York 1959.
1) January 3 – Alaska is admitted as the 49th U.S. state.
As the landscape of America was changing, so were the attitudes of its citizens. J.B. and Sarah surely would have been filled with a sense of pride that America was extending its claim to other lands and increasing the natural resources of the United States.
2) January 7 - The United States recognizes the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro.
A pivotal moment in the relations between the U.S. and Cuba. This would have dominated the news and with relations with Russia already strained, all eyes would be on Cuba including J.B. and Sarah.
3) January 29 - Walt Disney releases his 16th animated film, Sleeping Beauty in Beverly Hills.
This would be of particualr interest to J.B. and Sarah's five children especially the three girls who surely would have seen the film in theatres.
4) February 3 – A chartered plane transporting musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper goes down in foggy conditions near Clear Lake, Iowa, killing all 4 occupants on board, including pilot Roger Peterson. The tragedy is later termed "The Day the Music Died", popularized in Don McLean's 1972 song "American Pie".
One of the biggest events in modern music history this would have had an impact on the music the family listened to, specifically the teenagers Jonathan and Mary as well as J.B. and Sarah.
5) March 9 – The Barbie doll debuts.
J.B. and Sarah's younger daughters Ruth and Rebecca would surely have played with Barbie dolls at the start of the play when the family was together and well off.
6) April 9 – NASA announces its selection of 7 military pilots to become the first U.S. astronauts.
The unofficial start of the space race that captivated the nation and the whole world, the whole family surely would have been keeping up with the latest developments.
7) June 9 – The USS George Washington is launched as the first submarine to carry ballistic missiles.A direct product of the cold war, this submarine carrying ballistic missles is a sign of the times in 1959 and directly correlates to the atomic bomb that goes off in J.B. killing thousands.
8) August 21 – Hawaii is admitted as the 50th U.S. state.
As the landscape of America was changing, so were the attitudes of its citizens. J.B. and Sarah surely would have been filled with a sense of pride that America was extending its claim to other lands and increasing the natural resources of the United States.
9) December 1 – Cold War – Antarctic Treaty: 12 countries, including the United States and the Soviet Union, sign a landmark treaty, which sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and bans military activity on that continent (the first arms control agreement established during the Cold War).Another development in the cold war this would have dominated the news in 1959 and the whole world would have known about it.
Ongoing:
10) Vietnam War (1959 - 1975)
Though most of the Vietnam war would not have happened until the after the setting of this play, all of the build up of the U.S. entering the war would have been felt by American citizens and some troops were actually sent in '59. J.B. and Sarah who had teenage boys would definitley have been paying attention to this.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1959
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Statement on Non-Traditional Casting
When J.B. was written in the late 1950's non-traditional casting was an unknown term and all actors in the original production would have been Caucasian and the same gender as they were written. But given that J.B. is a modern day retelling of the book of Job, most audience members would be at least a vaguely familiar with the plot. This familiarity with the subject of the play makes it possible to be a little different or non-traditional in casting.
J.B., our modern day Job would benefit from having a man cast in the role as opposed to a woman. Although not specifically stated in the script, this needs to be done to be true to the original biblical story and allow the audience to concentrate on the plot and not the casting. However, the role of J.B. could be played by an actor of any racial or ethnic background, in fact the original Job would have not been Caucasian but a Middle Eastern man. The actor playing the role of J.B.'s wife Sarah would also need to stay true to her gender but could be of any racial or ethnic background. J.B. and Sarah don't necessarily have to be of the same race or ethnicity, an interracial marriage is certainly a possibility. Given the possible racial ambiguity of the two main characters, the roles of their five children (David, Jonathan, Mary, Ruth, and Rebecca) could certainly also be of any racial or ethnic background. These five roles are a great opportunity to cast a lot of younger looking actors that have large variety in their shape, size, and color.
Mr. Zuss who takes on the role of God and Nickles who plays Satan are more open to being cast as differnt genders than J.B. and Sarah. In most productions I have researched they were both played by men but I have also found some instances of Mr. Zuss being played by a woman. They are of course open to being played by non-caucasian actors. The three comforters (Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar) are also open to being played by anyone except for Zophar. Zophar is a Catholic priest and therefore must be played by a man as the Catholic church does not allow women to become priests, only men. The distant voice (the voice of God) is just a voice who speaks biblical verses and is never seen onstage so it is open to being played by anyone. The distant voice could even be another member of the company who records all of the lines as opposed to a live actor saying the lines into a microphone. The chorus of townspeople (Mrs. Adams, Mrs. Murphy, Jolly, Mrs. Lesure, and Mrs. Botticelli) is another great opportunity to cast actors of different genders and backgrounds than may have been originally thought.
This show does have limitations that make it unable to be cast with a completely blind eye. However, the vast majority of roles could have anyone play them without regard to their gender or racial and ethnic backgrounds. That in combination with the sheer number of roles makes it possible for anyone to audition because this is definitley a show that could be enhanced with a non-traditional approach to casting.
J.B., our modern day Job would benefit from having a man cast in the role as opposed to a woman. Although not specifically stated in the script, this needs to be done to be true to the original biblical story and allow the audience to concentrate on the plot and not the casting. However, the role of J.B. could be played by an actor of any racial or ethnic background, in fact the original Job would have not been Caucasian but a Middle Eastern man. The actor playing the role of J.B.'s wife Sarah would also need to stay true to her gender but could be of any racial or ethnic background. J.B. and Sarah don't necessarily have to be of the same race or ethnicity, an interracial marriage is certainly a possibility. Given the possible racial ambiguity of the two main characters, the roles of their five children (David, Jonathan, Mary, Ruth, and Rebecca) could certainly also be of any racial or ethnic background. These five roles are a great opportunity to cast a lot of younger looking actors that have large variety in their shape, size, and color.
Mr. Zuss who takes on the role of God and Nickles who plays Satan are more open to being cast as differnt genders than J.B. and Sarah. In most productions I have researched they were both played by men but I have also found some instances of Mr. Zuss being played by a woman. They are of course open to being played by non-caucasian actors. The three comforters (Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar) are also open to being played by anyone except for Zophar. Zophar is a Catholic priest and therefore must be played by a man as the Catholic church does not allow women to become priests, only men. The distant voice (the voice of God) is just a voice who speaks biblical verses and is never seen onstage so it is open to being played by anyone. The distant voice could even be another member of the company who records all of the lines as opposed to a live actor saying the lines into a microphone. The chorus of townspeople (Mrs. Adams, Mrs. Murphy, Jolly, Mrs. Lesure, and Mrs. Botticelli) is another great opportunity to cast actors of different genders and backgrounds than may have been originally thought.
This show does have limitations that make it unable to be cast with a completely blind eye. However, the vast majority of roles could have anyone play them without regard to their gender or racial and ethnic backgrounds. That in combination with the sheer number of roles makes it possible for anyone to audition because this is definitley a show that could be enhanced with a non-traditional approach to casting.
Characters
Cast of Characters
J.B. - A millionaire New England banker, our modern day Job.
Sarah - Wife of J.B.
David - Oldest son of J.B. and Sarah, killed as a young man when he is a soldier.
Jonathan - The younger son of J.B. and Sarah, killed by a drunk driver with his sister Mary.
Mary - The oldest daughter of J.B. and Sarah, killed by a drunk driver with her brother Jonathan.
Ruth - The middle daughter of J.B. and Sarah, killed in the nuclear blast along with thousands of others.
Rebecca - The youngest daughter of J.B. and Sarah, raped and murdered by a teenage drug user.
Mr. Zuss - A failed actor who now sells balloons at a run down circus, takes on the role of God.
Nickles - Another failed actor who sells popcorn at the circus, takes on the role of Satan.
Bildad - The first of three comforters to J.B., a Marxist.
Eliphaz - The second of the three comforters to J.B., a Psychiatrist.
Zophar - The third of the three comforters to J.B., a Catholic Priest.
Distant Voice - The literal voice of God, speaks only in Bible verses.
Mrs. Adams, Mrs. Murphy, Jolly, Mrs. Lesure, Mrs. Botticelli - A chorus of townspeople who comment on the action of the play.
The Girl - Distracts J.B. and Sarah until a news crew arrives to interview them about the death of their two children in a drunk driving accident.
Various circus workers, maids, and messengers. - Facilitate scene changes and help the play within a play concept materialize.
J.B. - A millionaire New England banker, our modern day Job.
Sarah - Wife of J.B.
David - Oldest son of J.B. and Sarah, killed as a young man when he is a soldier.
Jonathan - The younger son of J.B. and Sarah, killed by a drunk driver with his sister Mary.
Mary - The oldest daughter of J.B. and Sarah, killed by a drunk driver with her brother Jonathan.
Ruth - The middle daughter of J.B. and Sarah, killed in the nuclear blast along with thousands of others.
Rebecca - The youngest daughter of J.B. and Sarah, raped and murdered by a teenage drug user.
Mr. Zuss - A failed actor who now sells balloons at a run down circus, takes on the role of God.
Nickles - Another failed actor who sells popcorn at the circus, takes on the role of Satan.
Bildad - The first of three comforters to J.B., a Marxist.
Eliphaz - The second of the three comforters to J.B., a Psychiatrist.
Zophar - The third of the three comforters to J.B., a Catholic Priest.
Distant Voice - The literal voice of God, speaks only in Bible verses.
Mrs. Adams, Mrs. Murphy, Jolly, Mrs. Lesure, Mrs. Botticelli - A chorus of townspeople who comment on the action of the play.
The Girl - Distracts J.B. and Sarah until a news crew arrives to interview them about the death of their two children in a drunk driving accident.
Various circus workers, maids, and messengers. - Facilitate scene changes and help the play within a play concept materialize.
Fable and Plot Summary
Fable
The play starts out with Nickles and Mr. Zuss who are vendors in a run down circus. You learn very quickly that Nickles and Mr. Zuss will represent Satan and God, respectively and that they will be retelling the story of Job from the Bible. Three different platforms on stage represent Heaven, Earth, and Hell to distinguish what action is happening where. When Mr. Zuss and Nickles are speaking directly as God and Satan and not the circus vendors, they wear specific masks to make this distinction. Next, we meet J.B, his wife Sarah, and their five children having dinner at their home. During this dinner J.B. and Sarah talk about how God has blessed their lives and how the children should be more grateful to God for all the things that they have. The focus shifts back to Nickles and Mr. Zuss having an argument about J.B. and whether or not he is truly devoted to God. They make a bet, Nickles thinks if he takes everything away from J.B. he will curse God and denounce him; Mr. Zuss knows that J.B. is a good man and will stay obedient to God no matter what. With the plan in effect, the first thing that J.B. loses is his son David. Two soldiers who are in the same regiment as David come to J.B. and Sarah's house and tell them that David has died. Next, two more of J.B. and Sarah's children die, this time in a car accident that was caused by a drunk driver. J.B. and Sarah's youngest child Rebecca is then murdered. The only remaining child, Ruth also dies and then J.B.'s bank is destroyed taking his vast fortune away. A nuclear bomb kills thousands and J.B. is wounded, Sarah believes that this is the final straw and that J.B. must denounce God but he will not. Due to this Sarah leaves to go kill herself and J.B. is left completely alone. Zophar, Bildad, and Eliphaz play the role of the three comforters just like in the bible. However, the three comforters do anything but comfort and just leave J.B. in more pain. J.B. then asks God to show him why he is making him suffer, God demands that J.B. repent and pledge devotion to him and he does. On his way home, J.B. sees Sarah sitting on the porch, she has not killed herself and they embrace grateful that they have not lost everything because they still have each other.
Plot Summary*
Prologue
The first characters to appear on stage in J. B. are Mr. Zuss and Nickles, a balloon seller and a popcorn seller in a run-down circus. They approach and then mount a sideshow stage in the corner of a circus tent to play out the story of Job from the Bible, with the stage as Heaven, the ground as Earth, and the lights as the stars. Zuss (whose name sounds like “Zeus,” the god of Greek mythology) will play God. From the beginning, he is as arrogant as one might expect a man who believes he is right for the role to be, and he is indignant at the idea that Job would dare to demand justice.
Nickles, on the other hand, understands Job’s suffering and does not accept that God would cause that suffering just to prove his authority and power. Nickles sings a song that includes the play’s central paradox: “If God is God He is not good,/If God is good, He is not God.” Nickles, whose name is a variation of “Old Nick,” a slang term for the devil, will play Satan. As the two men point out, there is always someone to play Job.
Zuss and Nickles don masks that they find in a pile of costumes. The Godmask is white, with closed eyes, showing his indifference. The Satanmask is dark, with open eyes, because “Satan sees.” They review their lines, which will come from the King James Bible. When the lights go down for the play to begin, a Distant Voice speaks the first line: “Whence comest thou?” It is not Zuss who speaks but, apparently, God. Zuss and Nickles take over, and the lights dim.
Scene 1
As scene 1 begins, the raised stage where Zuss and Nickels stand is in darkness, while gathered around a table in the light are the wealthy banker J. B., his wife Sarah, and their five children. They are a wealthy New England family, celebrating Thanksgiving. Sarah would like the children to be more thankful for the bounty they enjoy. She believes that there is a kind of bargain with God: “If we do our part He does His.” Our “part” is to thank God; if we forget God, He will punish. J. B. believes that God has chosen him for success and that his duty is to appreciate the gift, to enjoy his life.
Scene 2
The focus shifts again to Zuss and Nickles, whose first impulse is to belittle J. B.’s acting ability. Still, he is their “pigeon,” the man who will play Job. Nickles believes that once J. B. is stripped of his wealth, as Job was, he will lose his piety, but Zuss insists that J. B. will praise God no matter how much he suffers. Why then, asks Nickles, must Job be made to suffer at all? If God knows Job will pass the test, then why administer the test? Because, Zuss answers, Job needs to see God clearly. The two actors put their masks on and speak lines from the Bible. Satan challenges God to a bet: he will take everything away from Job, to demonstrate that even an upright man will curse God if pushed hard enough. God accepts.
Scene 3
Six or seven years have passed. Two drunken soldiers come to J. B.’s house, comrades in arms of David, J. B.’s oldest son. In a bumbling fashion, they reveal that David has been killed — not heroically in the war but accidentally and stupidly by his own men after the hostilities. As Sarah tries to understand that God has really taken her son, J. B. denies that David is really dead. Nickles encourages them to challenge God, but they do not hear him.
Scene 4
On the sidewalk, two reporters talk to a “Girl,” a young woman perhaps in her twenties. They persuade her to approach a couple who will come by soon and to catch their attention so they will be facing the camera when the reporters tell them that two of their children have died in a car accident. The couple, of course, are J. B. and Sarah. The dead teenagers are their children, Mary and Jonathan, killed by a drunk driver when their car crashed into a viaduct. Sarah despairs and asks why God would do this. Nickles, who is visible, grins appreciatively. But J. B. insists that they cannot “Take the good and not the evil.” He tries to embrace Sarah, but she flinches.
Scene 5
J. B. and Sarah talk to two men. The biblical story includes two messengers, and here they are played by police officers. Rebecca, the youngest child, is missing. J. B. did not call the police right away because he imagined that he could find her by himself. Sarah explains bitterly, “We believe in our luck in this house!” The luck again is bad, however. Rebecca has been raped and murdered by a teenaged drug user. “The Lord giveth,” J. B. says, “The Lord taketh away.” But he does not say the end of the line, which Nickels, Zuss, and the audience are expecting: “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Scene 6
Two messengers enter carrying Sarah. She has been rescued from a collapsed building after a bombing destroyed a whole city block. J. B.’s bank is destroyed, and his last remaining child, Ruth, is dead. J. B. urges Sarah not to despair, urges her to say with him, “The Lord giveth. The Lord taketh away.” While Sarah shouts, “Kills! Kills! Kills! Kills! Kills!” J. B. completes the famous line, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Scene 7
Zuss and Nickles discuss J. B. Zuss is pleased with J. B.’s responses so far, but Nickles is disgusted. Although they are playing out a story that both know well, Nickles believes that this time the story will end differently, that J. B. will stop praising God once he experiences physical pain himself. When their argument delays the progress of the story, the Distant Voice begins to speak God’s lines. Zuss and Nickles understand that they are to continue.
Scene 8
J. B. lies on a table, clothed only in rags, with Sarah, also in rags, by his side weeping. An atomic blast has killed thousands, and J. B. is wounded. Women standing nearby comment on the sores covering J. B.’s body and on how far the two have fallen. Sarah is bitter and angry, but J. B. is puzzled. He knows there must be a reason for God’s punishment, but he cannot fathom what the reason is. Nickles observes that if J. B. knew the reason — if he knew that God was making the innocent J. B. suffer simply to demonstrate His own power — J. B. would despair. Sarah cannot accept J. B.’s theory that the family has deserved this suffering. She turns her back on J. B., urging him to “curse God and die,” and she runs out to kill herself. Now completely alone, J. B. begs God to “Show me my guilt.” Nickles sneers at Zuss.
Scene 9
In the biblical story, three comforters come to Job to scold him for questioning God and to “justify the ways of God to man.” Here, the three comforters are Zophar, a Catholic priest, Eliphaz, a psychiatrist, and Bildad, a Marxist. The three spout empty rhetoric and jargon to explain J. B.’s suffering, and they only add to J. B.’s despair. Finally, J. B. cries out, “God, my God, my God, answer me!” In response, the Distant Voice speaks God’s words from the Bible, asserting his power and authority, demanding that J. B./Job repent for daring to ask questions of God. J. B. does, also speaking a line from the Bible, “I abhor myself and repent.”
Scene 10
Nickles acknowledges that Zuss has won the bet, but Zuss is uneasy with his victory. He sees that for Job to forgive God is a sign of Job’s goodness and strength, not God’s. He loses all enthusiasm for playing his role and starts to climb down from the stage, but Nickles reminds him that there is one more scene to play. In the biblical story, God restores everything Job has lost. Nickles is sure that this time J. B./Job will refuse God’s offering, that he will not risk losing everything again. To make sure, he goes to J. B., tells him God’s plan, and begs him to kill himself instead. But J. B. hears someone at the door and goes to meet his future.
Scene 11
Typically, in a play-within-a-play, the outer play “frames” the other, taking the first and last words. But J. B. and Sarah have the last scene to themselves, without the commentary of Nickles and Zuss. Sarah sits on the doorstep, holding a forsythia branch in bloom. She discovered it on her way to drown herself in the river, found hope in it, and came back to J. B. She explains to her husband, “You wanted justice and there was none — / Only love.” People will not find illumination or love from God, but in their own hearts. Sarah and J. B. embrace and then set to work tidying up the stage.
*This plot summary comes from the academic edition of the text, not the acting edition.
http://www.answers.com/topic/j-b-play-2
The play starts out with Nickles and Mr. Zuss who are vendors in a run down circus. You learn very quickly that Nickles and Mr. Zuss will represent Satan and God, respectively and that they will be retelling the story of Job from the Bible. Three different platforms on stage represent Heaven, Earth, and Hell to distinguish what action is happening where. When Mr. Zuss and Nickles are speaking directly as God and Satan and not the circus vendors, they wear specific masks to make this distinction. Next, we meet J.B, his wife Sarah, and their five children having dinner at their home. During this dinner J.B. and Sarah talk about how God has blessed their lives and how the children should be more grateful to God for all the things that they have. The focus shifts back to Nickles and Mr. Zuss having an argument about J.B. and whether or not he is truly devoted to God. They make a bet, Nickles thinks if he takes everything away from J.B. he will curse God and denounce him; Mr. Zuss knows that J.B. is a good man and will stay obedient to God no matter what. With the plan in effect, the first thing that J.B. loses is his son David. Two soldiers who are in the same regiment as David come to J.B. and Sarah's house and tell them that David has died. Next, two more of J.B. and Sarah's children die, this time in a car accident that was caused by a drunk driver. J.B. and Sarah's youngest child Rebecca is then murdered. The only remaining child, Ruth also dies and then J.B.'s bank is destroyed taking his vast fortune away. A nuclear bomb kills thousands and J.B. is wounded, Sarah believes that this is the final straw and that J.B. must denounce God but he will not. Due to this Sarah leaves to go kill herself and J.B. is left completely alone. Zophar, Bildad, and Eliphaz play the role of the three comforters just like in the bible. However, the three comforters do anything but comfort and just leave J.B. in more pain. J.B. then asks God to show him why he is making him suffer, God demands that J.B. repent and pledge devotion to him and he does. On his way home, J.B. sees Sarah sitting on the porch, she has not killed herself and they embrace grateful that they have not lost everything because they still have each other.
Plot Summary*
Prologue
The first characters to appear on stage in J. B. are Mr. Zuss and Nickles, a balloon seller and a popcorn seller in a run-down circus. They approach and then mount a sideshow stage in the corner of a circus tent to play out the story of Job from the Bible, with the stage as Heaven, the ground as Earth, and the lights as the stars. Zuss (whose name sounds like “Zeus,” the god of Greek mythology) will play God. From the beginning, he is as arrogant as one might expect a man who believes he is right for the role to be, and he is indignant at the idea that Job would dare to demand justice.
Nickles, on the other hand, understands Job’s suffering and does not accept that God would cause that suffering just to prove his authority and power. Nickles sings a song that includes the play’s central paradox: “If God is God He is not good,/If God is good, He is not God.” Nickles, whose name is a variation of “Old Nick,” a slang term for the devil, will play Satan. As the two men point out, there is always someone to play Job.
Zuss and Nickles don masks that they find in a pile of costumes. The Godmask is white, with closed eyes, showing his indifference. The Satanmask is dark, with open eyes, because “Satan sees.” They review their lines, which will come from the King James Bible. When the lights go down for the play to begin, a Distant Voice speaks the first line: “Whence comest thou?” It is not Zuss who speaks but, apparently, God. Zuss and Nickles take over, and the lights dim.
Scene 1
As scene 1 begins, the raised stage where Zuss and Nickels stand is in darkness, while gathered around a table in the light are the wealthy banker J. B., his wife Sarah, and their five children. They are a wealthy New England family, celebrating Thanksgiving. Sarah would like the children to be more thankful for the bounty they enjoy. She believes that there is a kind of bargain with God: “If we do our part He does His.” Our “part” is to thank God; if we forget God, He will punish. J. B. believes that God has chosen him for success and that his duty is to appreciate the gift, to enjoy his life.
Scene 2
The focus shifts again to Zuss and Nickles, whose first impulse is to belittle J. B.’s acting ability. Still, he is their “pigeon,” the man who will play Job. Nickles believes that once J. B. is stripped of his wealth, as Job was, he will lose his piety, but Zuss insists that J. B. will praise God no matter how much he suffers. Why then, asks Nickles, must Job be made to suffer at all? If God knows Job will pass the test, then why administer the test? Because, Zuss answers, Job needs to see God clearly. The two actors put their masks on and speak lines from the Bible. Satan challenges God to a bet: he will take everything away from Job, to demonstrate that even an upright man will curse God if pushed hard enough. God accepts.
Scene 3
Six or seven years have passed. Two drunken soldiers come to J. B.’s house, comrades in arms of David, J. B.’s oldest son. In a bumbling fashion, they reveal that David has been killed — not heroically in the war but accidentally and stupidly by his own men after the hostilities. As Sarah tries to understand that God has really taken her son, J. B. denies that David is really dead. Nickles encourages them to challenge God, but they do not hear him.
Scene 4
On the sidewalk, two reporters talk to a “Girl,” a young woman perhaps in her twenties. They persuade her to approach a couple who will come by soon and to catch their attention so they will be facing the camera when the reporters tell them that two of their children have died in a car accident. The couple, of course, are J. B. and Sarah. The dead teenagers are their children, Mary and Jonathan, killed by a drunk driver when their car crashed into a viaduct. Sarah despairs and asks why God would do this. Nickles, who is visible, grins appreciatively. But J. B. insists that they cannot “Take the good and not the evil.” He tries to embrace Sarah, but she flinches.
Scene 5
J. B. and Sarah talk to two men. The biblical story includes two messengers, and here they are played by police officers. Rebecca, the youngest child, is missing. J. B. did not call the police right away because he imagined that he could find her by himself. Sarah explains bitterly, “We believe in our luck in this house!” The luck again is bad, however. Rebecca has been raped and murdered by a teenaged drug user. “The Lord giveth,” J. B. says, “The Lord taketh away.” But he does not say the end of the line, which Nickels, Zuss, and the audience are expecting: “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Scene 6
Two messengers enter carrying Sarah. She has been rescued from a collapsed building after a bombing destroyed a whole city block. J. B.’s bank is destroyed, and his last remaining child, Ruth, is dead. J. B. urges Sarah not to despair, urges her to say with him, “The Lord giveth. The Lord taketh away.” While Sarah shouts, “Kills! Kills! Kills! Kills! Kills!” J. B. completes the famous line, “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Scene 7
Zuss and Nickles discuss J. B. Zuss is pleased with J. B.’s responses so far, but Nickles is disgusted. Although they are playing out a story that both know well, Nickles believes that this time the story will end differently, that J. B. will stop praising God once he experiences physical pain himself. When their argument delays the progress of the story, the Distant Voice begins to speak God’s lines. Zuss and Nickles understand that they are to continue.
Scene 8
J. B. lies on a table, clothed only in rags, with Sarah, also in rags, by his side weeping. An atomic blast has killed thousands, and J. B. is wounded. Women standing nearby comment on the sores covering J. B.’s body and on how far the two have fallen. Sarah is bitter and angry, but J. B. is puzzled. He knows there must be a reason for God’s punishment, but he cannot fathom what the reason is. Nickles observes that if J. B. knew the reason — if he knew that God was making the innocent J. B. suffer simply to demonstrate His own power — J. B. would despair. Sarah cannot accept J. B.’s theory that the family has deserved this suffering. She turns her back on J. B., urging him to “curse God and die,” and she runs out to kill herself. Now completely alone, J. B. begs God to “Show me my guilt.” Nickles sneers at Zuss.
Scene 9
In the biblical story, three comforters come to Job to scold him for questioning God and to “justify the ways of God to man.” Here, the three comforters are Zophar, a Catholic priest, Eliphaz, a psychiatrist, and Bildad, a Marxist. The three spout empty rhetoric and jargon to explain J. B.’s suffering, and they only add to J. B.’s despair. Finally, J. B. cries out, “God, my God, my God, answer me!” In response, the Distant Voice speaks God’s words from the Bible, asserting his power and authority, demanding that J. B./Job repent for daring to ask questions of God. J. B. does, also speaking a line from the Bible, “I abhor myself and repent.”
Scene 10
Nickles acknowledges that Zuss has won the bet, but Zuss is uneasy with his victory. He sees that for Job to forgive God is a sign of Job’s goodness and strength, not God’s. He loses all enthusiasm for playing his role and starts to climb down from the stage, but Nickles reminds him that there is one more scene to play. In the biblical story, God restores everything Job has lost. Nickles is sure that this time J. B./Job will refuse God’s offering, that he will not risk losing everything again. To make sure, he goes to J. B., tells him God’s plan, and begs him to kill himself instead. But J. B. hears someone at the door and goes to meet his future.
Scene 11
Typically, in a play-within-a-play, the outer play “frames” the other, taking the first and last words. But J. B. and Sarah have the last scene to themselves, without the commentary of Nickles and Zuss. Sarah sits on the doorstep, holding a forsythia branch in bloom. She discovered it on her way to drown herself in the river, found hope in it, and came back to J. B. She explains to her husband, “You wanted justice and there was none — / Only love.” People will not find illumination or love from God, but in their own hearts. Sarah and J. B. embrace and then set to work tidying up the stage.
*This plot summary comes from the academic edition of the text, not the acting edition.
http://www.answers.com/topic/j-b-play-2
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Exegesis (Selective)
1) Mr. Zuss. WHATSOEVER IS UNDER THE WHOLE HEAVEN IS MINE!
Job 41:11
I. God's sovereign dominion and independency laid down, v. 11.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/41-11.htm
2) Mask, he said. No mask... Costumes... Vestures... centuries of vestures... Prophets' mantles... High priests' ephods... Copes... and surplices... and stoles...
Vesture
2. Archaic.
a. clothing; garments.
b. something that covers like a garment; covering.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/vestures
Mantle
1. a loose, sleeveless cloak or cape
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mantle
Ephod
Judaism.
a richly embroidered, apronlike vestment having two shoulder straps and ornamental attachments for securing the breastplate, worn with a waistband by the high priest. Ex. 28:6, 7, 25–28
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ephod
Copes
1. a long mantle, esp. of silk, worn by ecclesiastics over the alb or surplice in processions and on other occasions.
2. any cloaklike or canopylike covering.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/copes
Surplices
1. a loose-fitting, broad-sleeved white vestment, worn over the cassock by clergy and choristers.
2. a garment in which the two halves of the front cross diagonally.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/surplices
3) Godmask. WHENCE COMEST THOU?
Satanmask. (Offstage) FROM GOING TO AND FRO IN THE EARTH... AND FROM WALKING UP AND DOWN IN IT...
Job 1:7
II. His examination, how he came thither (v. 7): The Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? He knew very well whence he came, and with what design he came thither, that as the good angels came to do good he came for a permission to do hurt; but he would, by calling him to an account, show him that he was under check and control.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-7.htm
4) The feel the alder twig twist down...
Alder belongs to the same family as Birch (Betulaceae). It rarely grows to more than 20 metres or lives longer than 150 years. It grows quickly and is short lived – typical of pioneer species. It fixes nitrogen and generally improves the soil.
It is found across most of Europe, into Russia; also the Caucasus, Turkey and Iran. It is typically found in wet areas and alongside streams and rivers, in wet woodland it is sometimes referred to as alder carr. Wood (from coppiced trees) was used for clog making at one time and is said to be good for charcoal making.
http://www.woodlands.co.uk/owning-a-wood/tree-identification/alder.php
5) Distant Voice. HAST THOU CONSIDERED MY SERVANT, JOB...
Godmask. HAST THOU CONSIDERED MY SERVANT JOB THAT THERE IS NONE LIKE HIM ON THE EARTH, A PERFECT AND AN UPRIGHT MAN, ONE THAT FEARETH GOD AND ESCHEWETH EVIL?
Satanmask. DOTH JOB FEAR GOD FOR NAUGHT? HAST THOU NOT MADE AN HEDGE ABOUT HIM AND ABOUT HIS HOUSE AND ABOUT ALL THAT HE HATH ON EVERY SIDE? THOU HAST BLESSED THE WORK OF HIS HANDS AND HIS SUBSTANCE IS INCREASED. BUT PUT FORTH THINE HAND NOW AND TOUCH ALL THAT HE HATH... AND HE WILL CURSE THEE TO THY FACE!
Godmask. BEHOLD! ALL THAT HE HATH IS IN THY POWER!
Distant Voice. ONLY... UPON HIMSELF... PUT NOT FORTH THY HAND!
Godmask. ONLY... UPON HIMSELF... PUT NOT FORTH THY HAND!
Fandango is a lively folk and flamenco couple-dance usually in triple metre, traditionally accompanied by guitars and castanets or hand-clapping (palmas in Spanish). Fandango can both be sung and danced. The sung fandango is usually bipartite: it has an instrumental introduction followed by "variaciones". Sung fandango usually follows the structure of "cante" that consist of four or five octosyllabic verses (coplas) or musical phrases (tercios). Occasionally the first copla is repeated...
The metre of fandango is similar to that of the bolero and seguidilla. It was originally notated in 6/8 time, but later in 3/8 or 3/4.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fandango
7) Second Reporter. I who have understood nothing... have known Nothing... have been answered nothing... I ONLY AM ESCAPED ALONE...
Job 1:15
III. They took from him all that he had, and made a full end of his enjoyments. The detail of his losses answers to the foregoing inventory of his possessions.
1. He had 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 she-asses, and a competent number of servants to attend them; and all these he lost at once, v. 14, 15.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-15.htm
8) Mr. Zuss. SHALL WE TAKE THE GOOD AND NOT THE EVIL?
J.B. SHALL WE TAKE THE GOOD AND NOT THE EVIL? We have to take the evil- Evil with good. It doesn't mean there Is no good.
Job 2:10
III. He bravely resists and overcomes the temptation, v. 10. He soon gave her an answer (for Satan spared him the use of his tongue, in hopes he would curse God with it), which showed his constant resolution to cleave to God, to keep his good thoughts of him, and not to let go his integrity.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/2-10.htm
9) J.B. THE LORD GIVETH... THE LORD TAKETH AWAY...
Mr. Zuss. Finish it! BLESSED BE THE...
Job 1:21
[1.] He blesses God for what was given, though now it was taken away. When our comforts are removed from us we must thank God that ever we had them and had them so much longer than we deserved. Nay, [2.] He adores God even in taking away, and gives him honour by a willing submission; nay, he gives him thanks for good designed him by his afflictions, for gracious supports under his afflictions, and the believing hopes he had of a happy issue at last.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-21.htm
10) Adams. Even the Liggetts is gone.
Liggett Tobacco, or the Liggett Group, was formerly known as the Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company, and is the smallest major U.S. tobacco company. Liggett was the maker of L&M, Chesterfield, Lark and Eve brand cigarettes.
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Liggett
Job 41:11
I. God's sovereign dominion and independency laid down, v. 11.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/41-11.htm
2) Mask, he said. No mask... Costumes... Vestures... centuries of vestures... Prophets' mantles... High priests' ephods... Copes... and surplices... and stoles...
Vesture
2. Archaic.
a. clothing; garments.
b. something that covers like a garment; covering.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/vestures
Mantle
1. a loose, sleeveless cloak or cape
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mantle
Ephod
Judaism.
a richly embroidered, apronlike vestment having two shoulder straps and ornamental attachments for securing the breastplate, worn with a waistband by the high priest. Ex. 28:6, 7, 25–28
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ephod
Copes
1. a long mantle, esp. of silk, worn by ecclesiastics over the alb or surplice in processions and on other occasions.
2. any cloaklike or canopylike covering.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/copes
Surplices
1. a loose-fitting, broad-sleeved white vestment, worn over the cassock by clergy and choristers.
2. a garment in which the two halves of the front cross diagonally.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/surplices
3) Godmask. WHENCE COMEST THOU?
Satanmask. (Offstage) FROM GOING TO AND FRO IN THE EARTH... AND FROM WALKING UP AND DOWN IN IT...
Job 1:7
II. His examination, how he came thither (v. 7): The Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? He knew very well whence he came, and with what design he came thither, that as the good angels came to do good he came for a permission to do hurt; but he would, by calling him to an account, show him that he was under check and control.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-7.htm
4) The feel the alder twig twist down...
Alder belongs to the same family as Birch (Betulaceae). It rarely grows to more than 20 metres or lives longer than 150 years. It grows quickly and is short lived – typical of pioneer species. It fixes nitrogen and generally improves the soil.
It is found across most of Europe, into Russia; also the Caucasus, Turkey and Iran. It is typically found in wet areas and alongside streams and rivers, in wet woodland it is sometimes referred to as alder carr. Wood (from coppiced trees) was used for clog making at one time and is said to be good for charcoal making.
http://www.woodlands.co.uk/owning-a-wood/tree-identification/alder.php
5) Distant Voice. HAST THOU CONSIDERED MY SERVANT, JOB...
Godmask. HAST THOU CONSIDERED MY SERVANT JOB THAT THERE IS NONE LIKE HIM ON THE EARTH, A PERFECT AND AN UPRIGHT MAN, ONE THAT FEARETH GOD AND ESCHEWETH EVIL?
Satanmask. DOTH JOB FEAR GOD FOR NAUGHT? HAST THOU NOT MADE AN HEDGE ABOUT HIM AND ABOUT HIS HOUSE AND ABOUT ALL THAT HE HATH ON EVERY SIDE? THOU HAST BLESSED THE WORK OF HIS HANDS AND HIS SUBSTANCE IS INCREASED. BUT PUT FORTH THINE HAND NOW AND TOUCH ALL THAT HE HATH... AND HE WILL CURSE THEE TO THY FACE!
Godmask. BEHOLD! ALL THAT HE HATH IS IN THY POWER!
Distant Voice. ONLY... UPON HIMSELF... PUT NOT FORTH THY HAND!
Godmask. ONLY... UPON HIMSELF... PUT NOT FORTH THY HAND!
Job 1:8 - 12
IV. The question God puts to him concerning Job (v. 8): Hast thou considered my servant Job? As when we meet with one that has been in a distant place, where we have a friend we dearly love, we are ready to ask, "You have been in such a place; pray did you see my friend there?" Observe, 1. How honourably God speaks of Job: He is my servant. Good men are God's servants, and he is pleased to reckon himself honoured in their services, and they are to him for a name and a praise (Jer. 13:11) and a crown of glory, Isa. 62:3. "Yonder is my servant Job; there is none like him, none I value like him, of all the princes and potentates of the earth; one such saint as he is worth them all: none like him for uprightness and serious piety; many do well, but he excelleth them all; there is not to be found such great faith, no, not in Israel." Thus Christ, long after, commended the centurion and the woman of Canaan, who were both of them, like Job, strangers to that commonwealth.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-8.htm
6) The two dance a wild fandango together in this area.Fandango is a lively folk and flamenco couple-dance usually in triple metre, traditionally accompanied by guitars and castanets or hand-clapping (palmas in Spanish). Fandango can both be sung and danced. The sung fandango is usually bipartite: it has an instrumental introduction followed by "variaciones". Sung fandango usually follows the structure of "cante" that consist of four or five octosyllabic verses (coplas) or musical phrases (tercios). Occasionally the first copla is repeated...
The metre of fandango is similar to that of the bolero and seguidilla. It was originally notated in 6/8 time, but later in 3/8 or 3/4.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fandango
7) Second Reporter. I who have understood nothing... have known Nothing... have been answered nothing... I ONLY AM ESCAPED ALONE...
Job 1:15
III. They took from him all that he had, and made a full end of his enjoyments. The detail of his losses answers to the foregoing inventory of his possessions.
1. He had 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 she-asses, and a competent number of servants to attend them; and all these he lost at once, v. 14, 15.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-15.htm
8) Mr. Zuss. SHALL WE TAKE THE GOOD AND NOT THE EVIL?
J.B. SHALL WE TAKE THE GOOD AND NOT THE EVIL? We have to take the evil- Evil with good. It doesn't mean there Is no good.
Job 2:10
III. He bravely resists and overcomes the temptation, v. 10. He soon gave her an answer (for Satan spared him the use of his tongue, in hopes he would curse God with it), which showed his constant resolution to cleave to God, to keep his good thoughts of him, and not to let go his integrity.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/2-10.htm
9) J.B. THE LORD GIVETH... THE LORD TAKETH AWAY...
Mr. Zuss. Finish it! BLESSED BE THE...
Job 1:21
[1.] He blesses God for what was given, though now it was taken away. When our comforts are removed from us we must thank God that ever we had them and had them so much longer than we deserved. Nay, [2.] He adores God even in taking away, and gives him honour by a willing submission; nay, he gives him thanks for good designed him by his afflictions, for gracious supports under his afflictions, and the believing hopes he had of a happy issue at last.
http://biblebrowser.com/job/1-21.htm
10) Adams. Even the Liggetts is gone.
Liggett Tobacco, or the Liggett Group, was formerly known as the Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company, and is the smallest major U.S. tobacco company. Liggett was the maker of L&M, Chesterfield, Lark and Eve brand cigarettes.
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Liggett
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Basic Facts (about the script)
BASICS
Full-length Verse Drama in English
Presented in two acts with no scene divisions
12 M, 9 F
Running time: 1 hour, 40 Minutes
http://articles.latimes.com/2002/apr/26/entertainment/et-stage26?pg=1
GENRE
"Poetic Drama"
http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsM/macleish-archibald.html
"Verse Drama"
http://www.samuelfrench.com/store/product_info.php/products_id/2420
BIO
Archibald MacLeish (1892-1982)In his lifetime, Archibald MacLeish received the Pulitzer Prize three times for his poetic works: the first in 1932 for Conquistador, his epic poem about the conquest of Mexico by the Spanish; the second in 1952 for his volume Collected Poems, and a third in 1958 for J.B., a drama depicting a contemporary treatment of the story of Job.Before he was known as a poet, however, he was a lawyer, an editor, assistant secretary of state and Harvard professor. He received his B.A. at Yale and an L.L.B. from Harvard in 1919, practicing law for a few years in Boston. He then traveled to Europe, wanting to wanting to focus on the possibilities of a writing career, and there came under the influence of T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound.When he returned to the States served as editor of Fortune magazine from 1928-1938 and Librarian of Congress from 1939-1944. His early poetry reflected a concern with national and social issues and he became known as "the poet laureate of the New Deal."
http://www.geocities.com/infinitum_poetry/biosarchibaldmacleish.html
PUBLICATION INFO
Originally produced by the School of Drama, Yale University, at the University Theatre on April 22, 1958.
Available for purchase at: http://www.amazon.com/J-B-Play-Verse-Archibald-MacLeish/dp/0395083532/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247589214&sr=8-1
Acting edition available at: http://www.samuelfrench.com/store/product_info.php/products_id/2420
LICENSING AND RIGHTS
For amateur and professional rights please contact Samuel French, Inc.: http://www.samuelfrench.com/store/contact_us.php
Full-length Verse Drama in English
Presented in two acts with no scene divisions
12 M, 9 F
Running time: 1 hour, 40 Minutes
http://articles.latimes.com/2002/apr/26/entertainment/et-stage26?pg=1
GENRE
"Poetic Drama"
http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsM/macleish-archibald.html
"Verse Drama"
http://www.samuelfrench.com/store/product_info.php/products_id/2420
BIO
Archibald MacLeish (1892-1982)In his lifetime, Archibald MacLeish received the Pulitzer Prize three times for his poetic works: the first in 1932 for Conquistador, his epic poem about the conquest of Mexico by the Spanish; the second in 1952 for his volume Collected Poems, and a third in 1958 for J.B., a drama depicting a contemporary treatment of the story of Job.Before he was known as a poet, however, he was a lawyer, an editor, assistant secretary of state and Harvard professor. He received his B.A. at Yale and an L.L.B. from Harvard in 1919, practicing law for a few years in Boston. He then traveled to Europe, wanting to wanting to focus on the possibilities of a writing career, and there came under the influence of T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound.When he returned to the States served as editor of Fortune magazine from 1928-1938 and Librarian of Congress from 1939-1944. His early poetry reflected a concern with national and social issues and he became known as "the poet laureate of the New Deal."
http://www.geocities.com/infinitum_poetry/biosarchibaldmacleish.html
PUBLICATION INFO
Originally produced by the School of Drama, Yale University, at the University Theatre on April 22, 1958.
Available for purchase at: http://www.amazon.com/J-B-Play-Verse-Archibald-MacLeish/dp/0395083532/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1247589214&sr=8-1
Acting edition available at: http://www.samuelfrench.com/store/product_info.php/products_id/2420
LICENSING AND RIGHTS
For amateur and professional rights please contact Samuel French, Inc.: http://www.samuelfrench.com/store/contact_us.php
Friday, July 10, 2009
Three Definitions of Dramaturgy
"Dramaturgy is the art of dramatic composition and the representation of the main elements of drama on the stage. Some dramatists combine writing and dramaturgy when creating a drama. Others work with a specialist, called a dramaturg, to adapt a work for the stage."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dramaturgy
"–noun the craft or the techniques of dramatic composition."
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/dramaturgy
"NOUN: The art of the theater, especially the writing of plays."
http://www.geocities.com/amylynnhess76/whatsadramaturg.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dramaturgy
"–noun the craft or the techniques of dramatic composition."
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/dramaturgy
"NOUN: The art of the theater, especially the writing of plays."
http://www.geocities.com/amylynnhess76/whatsadramaturg.html
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