The Suitcase Kid (NHB Modern Plays) E-Book

Jacqueline Wilson

• Herausgeber: Nick Hern Books
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 80

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

An adaptation for the stage of Jacqueline Wilson's popular novel. Ten-year-old Andy used to live happily at Mulberry Cottage with her family: Mum, Dad, and Radish the rabbit, who lives in Andy's pocket and shares all her secrets. But then it all went wrong: Mum went to live with Bill, and Dad went off with Carrie. And Andy is expected to shuttle between the two - living out of a suitcase - and come to terms with her strange new families. Seen all over the country, this resourceful dramatisation is suitable for young actors as well as young audiences. The adapter, Vicky Ireland, has provided production notes to indicate how the play can be staged even with minimal resources - plus a lot of ingenuity! 'A real theatrical treat... the audience of school parties fell quiet as mice and raptly attentive the second the lights went down' - Scarborough Evening News

Leseprobe

Jacqueline Wilson

THE SUITCASE KID

adapted for the stage by

VICKY IRELAND

introduced by

JACQUELINE WILSON

NICK HERN BOOKS

London

www.nickhernbooks.co.uk

Contents

Introduction

Production Notes

Original Production

Characters

The Suitcase Kid

About the Author

Copyright and Performing Rights Information

INTRODUCTION

I was thrilled when Vicky Ireland got in touch with me and said she wanted to adapt one of my books for the stage. I immediately warmed to this pocket-sized, dynamic blonde woman. I knew she had a brilliant track record. I knew she understood drama. I knew she had great respect for her child audiences. But when she said she wanted to turn The Lottie Project into a play, I thought she was completely bananas. It’s a book with a split text, mostly present day, but important parts are Victorian. There are any number of characters, lots of school scenes, street scenes, a seaside setting, a police search including a helicopter, and a huge amusement theme park. How on earth could Vicky conjure this up on stage with a very limited budget and a cast of six?

Well, I was the banana. She used her imagination, very clever special effects, evocative music, a brilliant set like a large book and a fantastic cast of actors. I’ll never forget that magical first night, sitting amongst so many spellbound children, seeing my imaginary world become a reality on stage.

Since then, Vicky has adapted five more of my books, with ever-increasing success. She certainly had her work cut out adapting The Suitcase Kid. The story is in twenty-six sections, one for every letter of the alphabet. The cast includes a tiny toy rabbit called Radish, no bigger than a child’s thumb. How was this going to work on stage?

Of course Vicky worked wonders! She wrote her way steadily through the plot, giving the play tremendous verve and pace without sacrificing the alphabet device. There were two very clever versions of Radish. She became so real that many children waved to her at the beginning of the play and gasped in horror when she got lost.

There were a lot of tears shed for poor Andy, torn between her mum and her dad – but there was a smile on everyone’s face at the end of the play. I’m sure there’ll be tears and laughter when you perform your own version of The Suitcase Kid.

JACQUELINE WILSON

PRODUCTION NOTES

Principal Characters

ANDY (short for Andrea), ten years old, large for her age. She is intelligent, sensitive and lonely, struggling with moving each weekend between her respective parental homes. Her constant companion is a small toy rabbit, Radish. Andy is an ugly duckling, waiting to blossom.

RADISH, a toy rabbit, much loved by Andy who invests in Radish all the love and care she misses from her own family life.

MUM, Andy’s mum. Late thirties, attractive and hard-working, doing her best to fit into a new household and be fair to her stepchildren as well as her own daughter. She is a feisty woman in a new relationship, who just wants to enjoy life.

DAD, Andy’s dad. Late thirties, well-educated and intelligent. He is very much in love with Carrie, his new partner, whilst still being jealous of ex-wife’s partner Bill and his household. Although often tired and in financial difficulties, he tries to be responsible and do the right thing by his family.

CARRIE, Dad’s new partner. Early thirties, pretty, relaxed, outgoing and could be termed a ‘hippy’. She has a low income and struggles as a single parent to bring up her twins. She is very tolerant and tries hard to be kind and loving to Andy. She is also heavily pregnant.

BILL, Mum’s new partner, Andy’s stepfather. Late thirties, working-class painter and decorator, has been a widower for some time. He is loud and boisterous, and inclined to be insensitive. He can be both good fun and annoyingly chauvinistic.

KATIE, Bill’s daughter, Andy’s stepsister. Ten years old, small, pretty and spoilt by her father. She is full of insecurities, taking out her fears on Andy, and can be mean and spiteful to those around her.

GRAHAM, Bill’s son, Andy’s stepbrother. Twelve years old, sensitive, thoughtful and kind. He retreats into himself rather than face his father’s mockery and his younger sister’s demands. He is very protective towards Katie because he understands her insecurities.

PAULA, Bill’s daughter, Andy’s stepsister. Fourteen years old. Mostly absent, ‘doing her own thing’. She has no problems with sharing her home with Andy. (This character could be cut.)

CRYSTAL, Carrie’s twin son. Five years old, the older twin, clever and thoughtful with a kind and generous streak.

ZEN, Carrie’s twin son. Five years old, the younger twin, demanding and attention-seeking. A typical noisy five-year-old.

MRS PETERS, eighties, kind and generous.

GREAT AUNT ETHEL, eighties, loud-mouthed and smells of wee. She only appears at the start of the story and sets the tone of looking down at Andy.

ZOË, Carrie and Dad’s newborn daughter.

The Alphabet

The chapters in Jacqueline Wilson’s novel are each named after the letters of the alphabet – and all contain words, objects and emotions that reflect each letter. Similarly, I tried to include this device in my adaptation, with an alphabet weaving in and out throughout the play, and important people, places or incidents going from A-Z. The letters and titles of each scene are listed below.

The adaptation sets up the convention of using the alphabet early on. Andy begins the play by discussing with her stepbrother Graham how she will use the alphabet throughout her narration and begins, ‘A is for Andy.’ Later, she mentions that ‘B is for Baboon… and bathroom’. Naming each of the letters in turn fades out after this, but the audience should be engaged and encouraged to keep a watch out for the letters themselves. The letters are brought back in more overtly towards the end: X is for Xmas, Y for yacht, Z is for… (and before it’s revealed, there’s always a passionate whispered response from the children in the audience who already know the story) …Zoë, the new baby’s name.

For the original production, a list of the alphabetical references was included in the programme as a quiz, with the answers given at the back.

Scenes (and corresponding letters of the alphabet)

PROLOGUE

ACT ONE

Scene One

A is for Andy

The counsellor’s room

Scene Two

B is for Baboon and Bathroom

Mum’s home

Scene Three

C is for Cottage

Mulberry Cottage fantasy

Scene Four

D is for Dad

Car

Scene Five

E is for Ethel

Carrie’s home

Scene Six

F is for Friends

Mum’s home

Scene Seven

G is for Garden

Larkspur Lane

Scene Eight

H is for Haiku

School

Scene Nine

I is for Ill

Mum’s home

Scene Ten

J is for Jelly

Carrie’s home

Scene Eleven

K is for Katie

Mum’s home

ACT TWO

Scene Twelve

L is for Lake

Larkspur Lane

Scene Thirteen

M is for Mate, Metal and Meccano

Mum’s home

Scene Fourteen

N is for Night

Mum’s home

Scene Fifteen

O is for Oh!

P is for Photographs

Carrie’s home

Scene Sixteen

Q is for Questions

Mum’s home

Scene Seventeen

R is for Radish

Larkspur Lane

Scene Eighteen

S is for Starlight

T is for Time

Outside

Scene Nineteen

U is for Under and Unconscious

Larkspur Lane

Scene Twenty

V is for Visitor, Vanish and Vision

W is for Welcome

Larkspur Lane

Scene Twenty-One

X is for Xmas

Carrie’s home

Y is for Yacht

Mum’s home

Scene Twenty-Two

Z is for Zoë

Hospital

Suggested Cuts

The play can be produced in two acts with songs, and will last about one hour and forty-five minutes. Or the script can be cut and performed as one act with no songs, lasting about an hour.

The suggested editing of the play (to create this single-act version) is marked with a thin line running vertically alongside the sections to be cut.

Casting and Doubling

The Suitcase Kid was originally performed by a cast of six adult actors, with the following doubling:

Andy

Mum / Carrie

Dad / Bill

Counsellor / Katie / Crystal / Mrs Peters

Great Aunt Ethel / Graham / Zen / Teacher

With no doubling and large numbers of extras, the cast could be as large as required.

Set Design

The original production of The Suitcase Kid was staged in the round, where it is very difficult to have a set design without blocking the view of large sections of the audience. So we used minimal furniture and props which would suggest settings but not be obtrusive or cumbersome. This also had the advantage that the action could move quickly, with scenes flowing easily into each other. A complicated set design really isn’t needed (or wanted) for this type of play.

On the floor of the stage area, though, we had a painted floorcloth which had a map showing Andy’s journeys. It was based on Nick Sharratt’s original illustration, which is on the front cover of this book. Strung around the upper gallery of the theatre, there was a wooden frieze of the letters of the alphabet. At the end of the play, when Andy says, ‘It’s as easy as A, B, C,’ the A, B and C letters lit up.