Show & Tell: Synopsis
Cast: 3 male / 2 femaleRunning time (approximate): 2hr 10m
Availability: Show & Tell is not available for production.
Acting Edition: Show & Tell has not been published.
Characters
○ Jack Bothridge (late 70s, a retired MD)○ Ben Wilkes (mid 60s, his former colleague)
○ Peter Reeder (30s, an actor)
○ Harriet 'Harry' Golding (mid 40s, an actor)
○ Steph Tate (20s, an actor)
Jack is seen talking to his unseen off-stage wife as she goes out for the evening. Settling down, the doorbell rings with Peter Reeder from Homelight Theatre Company entering having spoken with Jack earlier on the phone - although Jack has no recollection of this and initially confuses Peter as a meter reader.
At odds with each other, Peter finally manages to explain that he's a member of a theatre company - established in the '60s - which comes to people's houses to perform plays. Finally, recollecting this, Jack decides to have a performance staged to mark his wife's imminent birthday. They agree on a - to Peter's disappointment - French farce, Le Cocu Heureux (A Friend Indeed) by Louis Bonhomme.
Throughout the conversation, it becomes apparent that Jack's mental facilities may not be what they were and he tends to forget and imagine things.
Jack's friend, Ben, arrives with Jack's medication and to play their regular game of chess. A former employee of Bothridge's Department store, he now helps Jack and is revealed to have been a keen amateur actor as a young man. He is quite alarmed when he hears of Jack's plans for the performance especially when Jack insists that all his family and his former employees attend the birthday event. Peter leaves satisfied he has a confirmed booking for an audience of thirty.
Jack and Ben settle down for a game of chess when, after several moves, Jack swipes all the pieces off the table, viciously declaring 'checkmate' and calling Ben a 'bastard'.
The next day, Harriet - director of HTC - comes to the house where she is met by Ben. He has clandestinely arranged the meeting to reveal some home truths. Alice, Jack's wife, died three years ago and Jack now imagines she is still with him.
Harriet is quite relieved as she actually as one of the principal actors has dropped out of the play and her only hope is a friend, Leo, who has found fame on TV but from her she has heard nothing as yet. Ben offers his own services noting his experience in his youth - including some professional rep experience. He also reveals that the promised audience doesn't actually exist. None of his family speak to Jack and neither do any of his surviving employees. Ben, its appears is his only friend.
It transpires that Jack's marriage to Alice was not a happy one and she had run away. As a result, she and Ben grew close and eventually married. Jack has been in denial ever since Alice left him and has pretended that nothing ever changed - not even her death. Ever since then, he has been staging large and more expensive anniversary events for his imaginary wife, perhaps out of guilt at the lack of attention he paid during her life.
Candidly, Harriet admits Homelight is in dire financial straits and needs this booking desperately - and is given hope when Leo phones to say he can do the play. Jack enters and after catching up, he signs the contract and the details of the performance are finalised.
Two weeks later and the members of Homelight are setting up in Jack's front room: Peter, Harriet and actor / stage manager Steph. It turns out the regular stage manager is ill and the three of them are all going to act and stage manage as appropriate. Harriet and Peter argue about the company and their differing views of theatre. Ben tries to engage with Steph and makes it known he is available if need be - having learnt the entire script of the play.
At which point, Leo calls to announce he can't make the performance. Smugly, Peter declares the performance must be called off but Harriet firmly rebuts him and asks Ben to take the role of Henri. Peter is against it, but is forced to do run a scene to see if Ben is adequate. He is more than adequate and outshines Peter as they perform. A delighted Harriet announces the show will go ahead with Ben now in the cast.
Two hours later and Jack enters to welcome his 'audience' - completely imagined along with his wife - and to welcome the company with A Friend Indeed.
The performance of the farce takes place with certain parallels with a wife having an affair on a train and the slow realisation by the husband what has happened.
At the curtain call, Jack - who has fallen asleep - awakens and encourages his invisible audience - and the real audience - to applaud. He embraces Ben and then, offering Alice his arm, loves the stage. The line between real and imagined on several levels blurred.
Synopsis by and copyright of Simon Murgatroyd. Please do not reproduce without permission of the copyright holder.