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Joe Turner's Come and Gone

Play · 1986

Scene one: Set in the 1910s, the audience is introduced to Seth Holly's boardinghouse, where Seth and his wife Bertha are in the kitchen watching Bynum in the backyard. Seth is complaining to Bertha about Bynum's strange spiritual activities. Bertha tells Seth to let him be as he isn't bothering anyone. They also talk about Jeremy, a young man staying in the boardinghouse, getting arrested the night before for supposedly being drunk in public. Seth then has a monologue about the poor situation that the freed slaves are in after traveling up North. He worries that the African Americans are too naïve and that all the promises of jobs in the North will be taken by the poor white Americans. Then Rutherford Selig, the People Finder, comes to order dustpans from Seth, a maker of pots and pans. Then Bynum talks about an adventure that he once took up river where he found the "shiny man", a man he found on the road that offered to explain to him the Secret of Life. He had a spiritual encounter with the man, and sees the ghost of his father, telling him to find his song in life. His song, he later explains, is the Binding Song, which he uses to bind people to one another. Selig leaves and Jeremy enters, and after getting a scolding from Seth, he tells him that the white cops came and picked him up for no reason and that he was, in fact, not drunk at all. Then Herald Loomis and his daughter Zonia enter, looking for a place to stay for the week. They reveal that he is looking for his wife, Martha. After Seth shows them to their room, Jeremy relates a story about his guitar-playing abilities and how he is wary of playing for white men or money because of a bad experience. Bynum convinces Jeremy to go down to a bar to play for some money. Seth confides in Bynum and Bertha his lack of confidence in Loomis, and thinks that he is a "mean looking" man and he doesn't want to help him find his wife because of it. After this Mattie Campbell enters, looking for Bynum because she has heard that he can "fix things". Her man, Jack, has up and left her, but she wants him to come back. Bynum tells her that he can only bind people that wish to be bound; that she is better off just letting him find his own path in life. Jeremy intervenes and suggests that Mattie stays with him as to cure both of their loneliness. The scene ends with Zonia and Reuben, the little boy from next door. Reuben discloses Bynum's odd tendencies to Zonia and tells her a story about his friend Eugene that used to sell pigeons to Bynum so he could use their blood in his rituals. Scene two: It is a week later and the audience again finds Seth and Bertha eating breakfast in the kitchen. Seth is still worried about Loomis's intentions and doesn't like the look of the man. He suspects that he knows who Loomis's wife is but won't tell him because he is worried about what he will do once he finds her. Selig returns to the house to pick up the dustpans that Seth has made for him and Loomis pays him to try to find his wife because Bynum tells him that Selig is the People Finder. Scene three: It is the next day and yet again we find Seth and Bertha in the kitchen. Seth is upset because he can't find anyone to front him the money to make a new factory for making pots and pans. Then Bynum and Jeremy talk about the importance of being in love with a woman and how being with a woman is all a man needs in life. Then the last boarder enters, Molly Cunningham. She is also looking for a place to stay because she missed her train to Cincinnati. Jeremy takes a liking to Molly's appearance. Scene four: Again they are in the kitchen of the boardinghouse when the scene opens. The group has just finished eating dinner when Seth suggests they "juba"- an African-style call-and-response song and dance. Herald Loomis enters and demands that they stop the singing. He goes into an episode where he talks in tongues and falls to the floor. He starts recalling a religious hallucination and Bynum has to calm him down and take him upstairs. Scene one: Seth informs Loomis that he has to leave the boardinghouse because he thinks that Loomis was drunk when he had his episode. Seth tells him that he runs a respectable house and won't put up with any shenanigans. Loomis and Zonia have until the next Saturday to leave the house. Bynum, Molly and Mattie are left in the kitchen where they talk about how children often follow in their parents' footsteps. Molly asserts that she will never follow her father's path and that she will always be a strong, independent woman. Mattie leaves for Doc Goldblum's, where she cleans and irons for work. Jeremy returns to the house from work and reveals to Seth that he would not give a white foreman 50 cents to keep his job so he was fired. Seth thinks it was an idiotic choice because now he is out of a job and no longer makes $8 a week. Molly tells Jeremy that he could easily get his job back by simply returning to work. Jeremy then asks Molly to travel around with him because he needs a woman that is independent and knows what she wants. Molly agrees but refuses to return to the South. Scene two: Bynum and Seth are playing a game of dominoes and Bynum is singing a song about Joe Turner. Loomis asks Bynum to stop because he is uncomfortable with the song. Bynum reveals that he knew all along that Loomis was taken away by Joe Turner and that he needs to find his song in order to start his life again. Loomis relates his story to Bynum and Seth, telling them that he was taken by Joe Turner's men while trying to preach to some gambling African Americans. He spent seven years on Turner's chain gang and only survived by the thought of his wife and daughter. He tells them that after seven years he returned home to find that his wife had left and his daughter was living with her grandmother. The scene ends with Loomis being skeptical of Bynum and his voodoo abilities. Scene three: The scene opens with Bertha reassuring Mattie that she will find everything that she wants and needs in life and that she just has to be patient. The scene ends with Loomis telling Mattie that he's noticed her watching him and that he finds her attractive. He goes to touch her, however, but feels awkward and says "I done forgot how to touch". Scene four: It is the next morning and Zonia and Reuben are in the yard. Reuben tells Zonia that he has seen the ghost of Seth's mother earlier that morning and she made him keep his promise to Eugene and release the pigeons. They marvel at the idea that people could come back to life in the form of spirits. Reuben then asks Zonia if he can kiss her on the lips and she agrees. They decide that later in life they will find each other to get married. Scene five: In the final scene Loomis and Zonia leave the boardinghouse as it is Saturday. Bertha tells Mattie that all she needs in life is love and laughing- which they all start to do. Then Martha Pentecost [Loomis] enters with Selig looking for Loomis and Zonia. Loomis reenters with Zonia and he recounts the last decade of his life; his search for her and the heartache it has caused him. Martha tells him that she has moved on with her life because she couldn't wait for him any longer. Martha also reveals that she had Bynum put a binding spell on her and Zonia and that is why they have come to find each other. Loomis goes into a rage and pulls out a knife. He denounces his Christian background and slashes his chest. The stage directions read "Having found his song, the song of self-sufficiency, fully resurrected, cleansed and given breath, free from any encumbrance other than the workings of his own heart and the bonds of the flesh, having accepted the responsibility for his own presence in the world, he is free to soar above the environs that weighed and pushed his spirit into terrifying contractions." He leaves and the play ends with Bynum yelling: "Herald Loomis, you shining! You shining like new money!"

John Bull

Play · 1803

John Bull is an 1803 comedy play by the British writer George Colman the Younger. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden on 5 March 1803. The original cast included George Frederick Cooke as Peregrine, Henry Erskine Johnston as Frank Rochdale, Charles Klanert as Williams, John Waddy as Lord Fitz-Balaam, William Thomas Lewis as Honourable Tom Shuffleton, John Henry Johnstone as Dennis Brulgruddery, John Fawcett as Job Thornberry, George Davenport as Mr Pennyman, John Emery as Dan, Nannette Johnston as Lady Caroline Braymore, Mary Ann Davenport as Mrs Bulgruddery and Maria Gibbs as Mary Thornberry. The prologue was written by Thomas Dibdin. Its Irish premiere was at Dublin's Crow Street Theatre on 18 May 1803.

John Proctor Is the Villain

Play · 2022

John Proctor Is the Villain is set in a high-school classroom in a small, rural Georgia town in 2018. Carter Smith is the English teacher for several 11th-graders—the straight-A student Beth, the new transfer student Nell, the wealthy girl Ivy, the pastor's daughter Raelynn, the slightly awkward Mason, and Raelynn's boyfriend Lee. Mr. Smith assigns the students the play The Crucible, the protagonist of which is John Proctor, who was convicted of witchcraft during the Salem witch trials. John Proctor Is the Villain includes several songs by pop artists such as Lorde and Taylor Swift. The Broadway production used ominous sounds and flickering lights to denote the transitions between each scene. Belflower received permission to use excerpts from The Crucible from Arthur Miller's estate.

Journey Through the Impossible

Play · 1882

Georges, son of explorer John Hatteras, drinks a potion that lets him travel beyond the probable with his fiancée Eva, Doctor Ox and others. They journey to Earth’s center, the bottom of the sea and planet Altor, where Georges’ attempt to save the resource-depleted world backfires. Ox and Volsius reconcile their opposing scientific and spiritual influences, restoring Georges to health and leading him to renounce his obsession with travel.

Journey's End

Play · 1928

Monday, 18 March 1918: evening. In the British trenches facing Saint-Quentin, Captain Hardy converses with Lieutenant Osborne, an older man and public school master, who has come to relieve him. Hardy jokes about the behaviour of Captain Stanhope, who has turned to alcohol to cope with the stress that the war has caused him. While Hardy jokes, Osborne defends Stanhope and describes him as "the best company commander we've got". Private Mason, a servant cook, often forgets about ingredients and key parts of the food that he prepares for the officers. He is really part of the infantry but the company has let him be a part-time cook. Second Lieutenant Trotter is a rotund officer commissioned from the ranks who likes his food; he cannot stand the war and counts down each hour that he serves in the front line by drawing circles onto a piece of paper and then colouring them in. Second Lieutenant James "Jimmy" Raleigh is a young and naive officer who joins the company. Raleigh knew Stanhope from school, where Stanhope was skipper at rugby; Raleigh refers to Stanhope as Dennis. He also has a sister whom Stanhope is dating. Raleigh admits that he requested to be sent to Stanhope's company. Osborne hints to Raleigh that Stanhope will not be the same person he knew from school, as the experiences of war have changed him; however, Raleigh does not seem to understand. Stanhope is angry that Raleigh has been allowed to join him and describes the boy as a hero-worshipper. As Stanhope is in a relationship with Raleigh's sister Madge, he is concerned that Raleigh will write home and inform his sister of Stanhope's drinking. Stanhope tells Osborne that he will censor Raleigh's letters so this will not happen; Osborne does not approve. Stanhope has a keen sense of duty and feels that he must continue to serve rather than take leave to which he is entitled. He criticises another soldier, Second Lieutenant Hibbert, whom he thinks is faking neuralgia in the eye so that he can be sent home instead of continuing fighting. Osborne puts a tired and somewhat drunk Stanhope to bed. Stanhope, as well as the other officers, refers to Osborne as "Uncle". Tuesday, 19 March 1918: morning. Trotter and Mason converse about the bacon rashers which the company has to eat. Trotter talks about how the start of spring makes him feel youthful; he also talks about the hollyhocks which he has planted. These conversations are a way of escaping the trenches and the reality of the war. Osborne and Raleigh discuss how slowly time passes at the front, and the fact that both of them played rugby before the war and that Osborne was a schoolmaster before he signed up to fight. While Raleigh appears interested, Osborne points out that it is of little use now. Osborne describes the madness of war when describing how German soldiers allowed the British to rescue a wounded soldier in no man's land, while the next day the two sides shelled each other heavily. He describes the war as "silly". Stanhope announces that the barbed wire around the trenches needs to be mended. Information gathered from a captured German indicates that an enemy attack is planned to begin on Thursday morning, only two days away. Stanhope confiscates a letter from Raleigh, insisting on his right to censor it. Stanhope is in a relationship with Raleigh's sister and is worried that, in the letter, Raleigh will reveal Stanhope's growing alcoholism. Full of self-loathing, Stanhope accedes to Osborne's offer to read the letter for him. The letter is, in fact, full of praise for Stanhope. The scene ends with Stanhope quietly demurring from Osborne's suggestion to re-seal the envelope. Tuesday, 19 March 1918: afternoon. In a meeting with the Sergeant Major it is announced that the attack is taking place on Thursday. Stanhope and the Sergeant-Major discuss battle plans. The Colonel relays orders that the General wants a raid to take place on the German trench prior to the attack, "a surprise daylight raid", all previous raids having been made under cover of darkness, and that they want to be informed of the outcome by 7 p.m. Stanhope states that such a plan is absurd, and that the General and his staff merely want this so their dinner will not be delayed. The Colonel agrees with Stanhope but says that orders are orders, and they must be obeyed. Later, it is stated that in a similar raid, after the British artillery bombardment, the Germans had tied red rag to the gaps in the barbed wire so that their soldiers knew exactly where to train their machine guns. It is decided that Osborne and Raleigh will be the officers to go on the raid, despite the fact that Raleigh has only recently entered the war. Hibbert complains to Stanhope about the neuralgia he states he has been suffering from. Stanhope replies: "it would be better to die from the pain, than from being shot for desertion". Hibbert maintains that he does have neuralgia and the right to leave the battlefield to seek treatment, but when Stanhope threatens to shoot him if he goes, Hibbert breaks down crying. He says "Go on then, shoot!", suggesting that he would rather die than stay on the battlefield. The two soldiers admit to each other that they feel exactly the same way, and are struggling to cope with the stresses that the war is putting on them. Stanhope comforts Hibbert by saying they can go on duty together. Osborne reads aloud to Trotter from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland; another attempt to escape from the realities of the war. The scene ends with the idealistic Raleigh, who is untouched by the war, stating that it is "frightfully exciting" that he has been picked for the raid. Wednesday, 20 March 1918: afternoon. There is confirmation that the raid is still going ahead. The Colonel states that a German soldier needs to be captured so that intelligence can be extracted from him. Osborne admits to Stanhope that he knows he is probably not coming back, and asks Stanhope to look after his most cherished possessions and send them to his wife if he does not return after the raid. In the minutes before going over the top, Raleigh and Osborne talk about home – the New Forest and the town of Lyndhurst – to pass the time. Smoke-bombs are fired, the soldiers move towards the German trench, and a young German soldier is captured. However, Stanhope finds out that Osborne has been killed although Raleigh has survived. Stanhope sarcastically states, "How awfully nice – if the Brigadier's pleased", when the Colonel's first concern is whether information has been gathered, not whether all the soldiers have returned safely. Six of ten other ranks have been killed. Wednesday, 20 March 1918: night. Trotter, Stanhope, and Hibbert drink and talk about women. They all appear to be enjoying themselves until Hibbert is annoyed when Stanhope tells him to go to bed, and he tells Stanhope to go to bed instead, then Stanhope suddenly becomes angry and begins to shout at Hibbert, and tells him to clear off and get out. Stanhope also becomes angry at Raleigh, who did not eat with the officers that night but preferred to eat with his men. Stanhope is offended by this, and Raleigh eventually admits that he feels he cannot eat while he thinks that Osborne is dead, and his body is in no man's land. Stanhope is angry because Raleigh had seemed to imply that Stanhope did not care about Osborne's death because Stanhope was eating and drinking. Stanhope yells at Raleigh that he drinks to cope with the fact that Osborne died, to forget. Stanhope asks to be left alone and angrily tells Raleigh to leave. Thursday, 21 March 1918: towards dawn. The German attack on the British trenches approaches, and the Sergeant Major tells Stanhope they should expect heavy losses. When it arrives, Hibbert is reluctant to get out of bed and into the trenches. A message is relayed to Stanhope telling him that Raleigh has been injured by a shell and that his spine is damaged, meaning he cannot move his legs. Stanhope orders that Raleigh be brought into his dugout. He comforts Raleigh while Raleigh lies in bed. Raleigh says that he is cold and that it is becoming dark; Stanhope moves the candle to the bed and goes deeper into the dugout to fetch a blanket, but, by the time he returns, Raleigh has died. The shells continue to explode in the background. Stanhope receives a message that he is needed. He gets up to leave and, after he has exited, a mortar hits the dugout causing it to collapse and entomb Raleigh's corpse. <!--SEE TALK PAGE

Judas

Play · 1929

Judas is a play in three acts co-authored by Walter Ferris and Basil Rathbone. It premiered on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre on January 24, 1929. It had a short run of only 12 performances. It was staged by Richard Boleslavsky and starred Rathbone as Judas Iscariot. Boleslavsky also designed the costumes; although they were made by the Helene Pons Studio. The show was produced by William A. Brady and Dwight Deere Wiman. Some of the others in the cast included Robert Barrat as Joseph of Arimathea, William Challee as John the Apostle, Charles Halton as Matthew the Apostle and Akiba, William Courtleigh as Simon Iscariot and Caiaphas, Dorothy Cumming as Naomi, and Jennie Eustace as Rebekah among others. Brooks Atkinson stated in his review in The New York Times, that it was "such a play as actors love and skeptics deplore... For the actor it is an opportunity to cast off the shackles of realistic drama and to revel in attitudinizing and posturing under the protection of a sacred theme."

Julian

Play · 1823

Julian is an 1823 historical tragedy by the British writer Mary Russell Mitford. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden on 15 March 1823. The original cast included William Macready as Julian, Maria Foote as Alphonso, King of Sicily, George John Bennett as Duke of Melfi, William Abbot as Count D'Alba, Daniel Egerton as Leanti, William Chapman as Calvi, Thomas Comer as Bertone and Maria Lacy as Annabel. Mitford wrote the play during the delays over the staging of her previous work Foscari which finally premiered in 1826. It is influenced by the 1820 rebellion on Sicily and its defeat and repression by Bourbon forces.

Julian and Agnes

Play · 1801

Julian and Agnes is an 1801 Gothic tragedy by the British writer William Sotheby. Best known as a poet he wrote several tragedies, but this was his only play to be performed in London's West End. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on 25 April 1801. The original cast included John Philip Kemble as Jullian, Sarah Siddons as Agnes, Richard Wroughton as Provost, John Hayman Packer as Prior, William Barrymore as Confesser, Charles Holland as Infirmier, Walter Maddocks as Steward, William Powell as Francis and Anne Biggs as Ellen.

Juliana

Play · 1671

Juliana; Or, The Princess Of Poland is a 1671 tragedy by the English writer John Crowne. It was originally staged by the Duke's Company at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre in London. The original cast included Mary Betterton as Juliana, Thomas Betterton as Ladislaus, Henry Harris as Cardinal, John Young as Demetrius, William Smith as Sharnofsky, Samuel Sandford as Cassonofsky, Henry Norris as Colimsky, Edward Angel as Landlord, Matthew Medbourne as Theodore, John Crosby as Alexey, Jane Long as Paulina and Anne Shadwell as Joanna.

June Moon

Play · 1929

At the center of June Moon is Fred Stevens, a young aspiring lyricist who journeys from Schenectady to New York City, where he hopes to make a name for himself in the world of song publishing and night clubs. On the train, he meets dental assistant Edna Baker, and the two embark upon a friendship that evolves into love for her and fondness for him. While struggling to become a Tin Pan Alley notable, Fred takes a shine to his composer partner Paul's glamorous, gold-digging sister-in-law Eileen. The two men sell a song to a music publisher and it develops into a hit. Ultimately, revelations about Eileen's true character help return Fred to his senses and Edna, whom he realizes he truly loves.

Kenilworth

Play · 1821

Kenilworth is an 1821 historical play by the British writer Alfred Bunn. A melodrama, based on the novel of the same title by Walter Scott, it premiered at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden in London on 8 March 1821. A separate adaptation of the novel by Thomas Dibdin appeared at the Surrey Theatre the same year. The original Covent Garden cast included John Vandenhoff as the Earl of Leicester, William Abbot as Varney, Henry Erskine Johnston as Sir Walter Raleigh, Charles Connor as Tresilian, Thomas Comer as Michael Lambourne, Charles Farley as Antony Foster, Harriet Faucit as Queen Elizabeth and Mary Vining as Amy Robsart (Countess of Leicester).

Kensington Gardens

Play · 1719

Kensington Gardens is a 1719 comedy play by the Irish actor John Leigh. It is also known as Kensington Gardens, or, The Pretenders. It follows the attempts of several suitors to woo a wealthy rich widow, and the serious of complications that ensue. Leigh himself played the role of Lord George Belmour, with Lacy Ryan as Colonel Lovely, George Pack as Sir Vanity Halfwit, William Bullock as Sir Politick Noodle, James Spiller as Captain Hackit, Christopher Bullock as Bardach, John Harper as Grogram John Egleton as Varnish and Elizabeth Spiller as Melissa. The production at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre lasted for estimated seven performances. The play is dedicated to Lord Brooke, a patron of the theatre.

Kim's Convenience

Play · 2011

Mr. Kim (Appa) owns and runs his own business, Kim’s Convenience, in Toronto's Regent Park neighbourhood, with his wife Mrs. Kim (Umma). Mr. Kim hopes the store will provide a future for his daughter, Janet, who he hopes will take over the store from him when he retires; however, Janet has no interest in running the store and wishes to have a career as a photographer. Regent Park is being gentrified with new condos and developments and the potential that a Wal-Mart will open up and destroy Mr. Kim's business. Realtor Mr. Lee offers to purchase the store and property. The Kims' son, Jung, ran away from home when he was 16 after Appa had hit him and he was hospitalized for a few days. Everything seemed to go back to normal after Jung was released, until one day when Appa went to get money from the safe and found it—and Jung's room—empty. Since then, Appa hasn't spoken to Jung, though Umma maintains surreptitious contact with Jung by meeting him at church. It is not until the prodigal son returns and reconciles with his father that the future of Kim's Convenience is assured.

Kindertransport

Play · 1993

In November 1938, after nights of violence against Jews across Germany and Austria, the British government introduced a programme called the Kindertransport (children's transport), which gave Jewish children—and only children—safe passage to the UK. Spared the horrors of the death camps, the Jewish children were uprooted, separated from their parents and transported to a different culture where they faced, not the unmitigated horror of the death camps, but a very human mixture of kindness, indifference, occasional exploitation, and the relationships between the ordinary people faced with helpless children. Eva Schlesinger, daughter of Helga and Werner, is sent away to temporarily live with a foster carer in Manchester, England, until her parents find work and move to England too. She lives with Lil, a woman who has two other children (Nora and Margaret) and is married to Jack. Lil allows Eva to smoke when she meets her which shows how Lil is not a proper guardian for Eva at first. Eva and Lil fall out as Eva skips her English lessons to go and ask round rich houses if they will give her parents jobs; Lil thinks this makes her seem desperate. She is unhappy and misses her mother. Eva and Lil both eventually become at peace with one another and get on well; Eva is shown as gradually losing her Jewish roots. One day Helga arrives when Eva is in her late teens and Eva tells Helga that Lil and Jack have adopted her and she has been naturalised as English, and her name is now Evelyn. Helga is offended and upset that Evelyn will not travel to New York with her to stay with family. Helga tells Evelyn her father is dead. They have an argument and Helga leaves, which is then followed by an imaginary vicious, angry argument between Helga and Evelyn in which Evelyn gets out all of her hatred for Helga, and she proclaims that Helga IS the Ratcatcher, a character constantly present in the play. At the same time in the present, Evelyn's daughter Faith is uncovering her mother's secret past and they have an argument, which eventually comes to rest. All of this takes place in the attic of Evelyn's house, which supposedly represents Evelyn's psyche.

King Charles I

Play · 1737

King Charles I is a 1737 tragedy by the British writer William Havard. Written as an imitation of the style of Shakespeare's history plays, it focuses on the imprisonment of Charles I following his defeat in the Civil War and execution by the English Republic. It was a major success and anticipated later works by portraying Charles as a devoted family man who is undone by the scheming of Oliver Cromwell and his allies. It premiered at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre with a cast that included Henry Giffard as King Charles, William Giffard as Ireton, William Hamilton as the Duke of Gloucester, William Havard as Bishop Juxton, Thomas Wright as Oliver Cromwell, Benjamin Johnson as Fairfax and Anna Marcella Giffard as Queen Henrietta Maria.

King Charles III

Play · 2014

Charles and his family gather following the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. Charles, as the new king, then holds his first weekly audience with the prime minister. They discuss a new bill for statutory regulation of the press, which has passed the House of Commons and the House of Lords and awaits only Charles' royal assent to become law. Charles is concerned that the law restricts freedom of the press too much, and would allow governments to censor the news and prevent legitimate uncovering of abuse of power by the government. He asks the prime minister for alterations to the bill, but the prime minister refuses. The two men spar, as the leader of the Opposition arrives for a weekly meeting with Charles, an innovation the new king has introduced. The leader of the Opposition expresses his own doubts on the bill, but he sees little alternative but for Charles to sign. In parallel, Prince Harry has begun a relationship with Jess Edwards, a republican. Both Charles and Prince William have seen the ghost of Diana, Princess of Wales, promising each man that he will become "the greatest king of all". One of his first actions is to refuse to give royal assent to the press regulation bill. The prime minister holds a crisis meeting with the leader of the Opposition and then goes alone to try to convince Charles to sign, but Charles continues to refuse. The prime minister then threatens to pass a new law bypassing the royal assent and then pass the press law, but Charles then dissolves Parliament before the prime minister can bring either of these plans into effect. Protests begin across the country and especially in London. Charles increases the army guard at Buckingham Palace, offers his protection to Jess (whom the press have made the centre of a sex scandal), and agrees to Harry's wish to become a commoner. The duchess of Cambridge (Prince William's wife Catherine) proposes a solution: William will serve as a mediator between Parliament and his father. William announces this plan at a press conference without his father's knowledge or consent. Seeing this as a betrayal, Charles reacts angrily. Ultimately, Charles is forced to abdicate in favour of William, who plans to sign the press bill and restore the status quo between king and Parliament. The play concludes with Harry's rejection of Jess, and William and Catherine's coronation as king and queen consort.

King Edgar and Alfreda

Play · 1677

King Edgar and Alfreda is a 1677 tragedy by the English writer Edward Ravenscroft. It was first staged by the King's Company at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. It is based on the life of the early English King Edwgar and his wife Alfreda. The original cast included Michael Mohun as Edgar, Cardell Goodman as Ethelwold, Nicholas Burt as Ruthin, Thomas Clark as Aldernold, John Wiltshire as Oswold, Philip Griffin as Durzo, Frances Maria Knight as The Queen and Elizabeth Boutell as Matilda.

King Hedley II

Play · 1999

King Hedley II is the ninth play in August Wilson’s ten-play cycle that, decade by decade, examines African American life in the United States during the twentieth century. Set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1985, it tells the story of an ex-con in Pittsburgh trying to rebuild his life. The play has been described as one of Wilson's darkest, telling the tale of a man trying to save $10,000 by selling stolen refrigerators so that he can buy a video store, as well as revisiting stories of other characters initially presented in Seven Guitars. The play is set in The Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Hedley’s wish, now that he has returned to Pittsburgh from prison, is to support himself by selling refrigerators and to start a family. Set during the Reagan Administration, the play comments critically on the supply-side economics theories of the day, examining whether their stated aim of providing trickle-down benefits to all Americans truly improved the lot of urban African Americans. Characters King Hedley II Tonya, King Hedley II's wife Ruby, King Hedley II's mother Elmore, a southern hustler (and former boyfriend of Ruby) Mister, friend Stool Pigeon, a wise man and a prophet King Hedley II draws "on characters established in Seven Guitars, King Hedley II shows the shadows of the past reaching into the present." Some of the characters presented earlier include King Hedley II, "the spiritual son of King Hedley from Seven Guitars and Stool Pigeon, a "sixty-five year old harmonica player...now a newspaper-collecting history carrier". The character of Ruby was a "vivacious young newcomer to Pittsburgh" in Seven Guitars but in King Hedley II is "...overcome with worry and regret...". Mister is Red Carter's son.

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