The House That Alex Built, play #5 by Kate Herbert, April 2020

 Covid19 Iso Project

This is an audio reading of Play # 5 The House That Alex Built, in the Cycle of 8 X 10. This reading is done unrehearsed by me, solo, playing all characters, unedited and reading stage directions. This is my Covid19 Iso project - or part of it. Enjoy! Many more to come with me doing all characters or with another performer.

ALEX struggles with the changing scope of his sustainable building business and MARIA suggests some radical changes.  

 

CHARACTERS: 1 MALE, 1 FEMALE
ALEX: (JASON'S FATHER) 40s, three kids, Jason from first marriage & two smaller kids with 2nd wife.

MARIA: (JASON’ STEPMOTHER) ALEX’S second wife, physiotherapist.

SETTING ALEX and MARIA’S Kitchen

DESIGN Bench & stools/chairs. Laptop on bench.

Extract from The House That Alex Built is earlier in this blog.

8 X 10 - A cycle of 8 plays approx 10 minutes each

 

Play # 1 Baggage
Play # 2 Phone Calls on a Train
Play # 3 Social ME-dia
Play # 4 Lover Boy!
Play # 5 The House That Alex Built
Play # 6 DB and Scruff
Play # 7 Thievin’ Thugs
Play # 8 Foxy’s Hangout

 

The 8 plays are connected not by a narrative thread, but by themes and characters. A character that is only mentioned in a play then appears in the following play until we get to Play # 8, when a character is mentioned who appeared in Play # 1.

 

As I wrote the plays, I realised that each dealt with a different social issue: bullying, perceptions of disability, street violence etc. I then noticed that each play had characters using mobile phones and that phone technology had become a character!

 

Cast

Baggage – 1 Woman, 1 Man

Take My Phone -Please!– 3 Women, 2 Men

Social ME-dia – 1 Woman, 1 Teenage Girl

Lover Boy! – 1 Woman, 1 Teenage Boy

The House That Alex Built– – 1 Man, 1 Woman

DB & Scruff – 1 Man, 1 Woman

Thievin’ Thugs – 2 Men (2 off-stage voice)

Foxy’s Hangout ­ – 2 Men