The Mayor of Casterbridge
by Thomas Hardy
Adapted by
Philip Goulding
Philip Goulding was awarded an Arts Council of England Theatre Writing bursary in 1995. His stage plays include Beneath The Waves (Eastern Angles/Colchester Mercury 1993), Then He Kissed Me (Royal Theatre Northampton 1993, Courtyard London/ Soho Theatre Co 1996), kid (Eastern Angles/Colchester Mercury 1994), Different Animal (Hen & Chickens London 1995), Went Down To The Crossroads (Courtyard London 1997), Waiting For Elvis (New Perspectives 1998), Tall Tales from the WeirdWideWorld (Forest Forge 1999) and Heading West (Forest Forge 2000). He has written adaptations of Beauty & the Beast, Alice in Wonderland, The Pied Piper and Hansel & Gretel (Forest Forge 1995, '96, '97 & '99), Toad of Toad Hall (Forest Forge 1998, New Perspectives 1999), The Government Inspector (Forest Forge/Salisbury Playhouse 1997, Watermill Theatre, Newbury 1998), The Titfield Thunderbolt (New Perspectives 1997) and The Mayor of Casterbridge (Forest Forge/Salisbury Playhouse 1998). He was joint first prize winner in the 1988 Radio Times TV Drama Awards and his television play Keeper was screened on Channel 4 in 1990. His radio plays A Fat Man Eats The Moon and The Dilemma have been broadcast on RTE (Dublin).
Synopsis
Thomas Hardy's powerful and searching tale of fate, power and the great Victorian myth of "getting on" tells the gripping story of the dynamic and forceful Michael Henchard, a journeyman hay-trusser who through sheer force of will, works his way up, breaking free of a bad marriage and alcoholic despondency to become both a prosperous businessman and the Mayor of Casterbridge. Ultimately though, Henchard finds he is unable to escape his past, and driven by his nature, he commits a number of impulsive deeds that will surely bring disastrous results.
Michael Henchard's tragedy has been compared to that of Shakespeare's King Lear, and his story stirs us as Heathcliff, Ahab and Oedipus stir us. Henchard has been compared to a proud pinnacle of rock that has within it a fatal geological fault that guarantees its inevitable final collapse.
The story illustrates that the pattern which is innate in character must become that character's history: that character is, indeed, fate, but that fate can be lived through and endured. View extract.
Cast
Minimum 3 male, 3 female
Duration
125 minutes
Contact
Philip Goulding
c/o Eric Glass Ltd
28 Berkeley Square
London
W1X 6HD
UK