WHEN THE RAIN STOPS FALLING Key: AP- Andrew Price, EP- Eliza Price, GY- Gabriel York, JR- Joe Ryan, GBY- Gabrielle York, GNY- Glen York, GL- Gabriel Law, HL- Henry Law, EBP- Elizabeth Perry, PY- Peter York, GB- Georgia Bray

Scene Synopsis Stage Directions Quotes Significance/ Themes A Steady Fall of Rain

Sets the context for the play- of miseries, rain, and unexpected events

People pass by him. Back and forth. Back and forth.

Their heads are bent against the relentless weather and against their relentless lives

And a fish falls from the sky and lands at Gabriels feet. Black.

Sets the theme and mood for the play

Unique that it is set in no direct setting

Gabriel Yorks Room (Alice Springs 2039)

Gabriel York receives a phone call from his son Andrew Price, who we learn was left by Gabriel early on in his childhood.

Gabriel York hangs up, yet calls him back as he is crying over the fact he

Gabriel look at the fish AP: Hello? Is this Gabriel York? Its Andrew here. Your son. I hope you dont mind me calling you like this. I hope you dont mind. Its just that Im in Alice. And I was wondering if I could see you. Dad?

GY: I wondered whether his tears tasted as bitter as mine. I hoped not

GY: I can hardly feed myself let

Shows how pedantic and paranoid Gabriel is about his son finding out how he lives, and how miserable he is

Brings in the motif of the fish, and how it has fallen from the sky so unexpectedly

Sets up that Gabriel does not believe in God or miracles

Gabriels room is a representation of how he lives, and his life. That no

hasnt heard from him in so long, and invites him to lunch

Gabriel then begins to think of all his flaws in the way his life has turned out and how different this may appear to his son

alone a son I havent seen for what twenty years? I mean lunch hardly seems the point

GY: What will he think of me? Me? I mean what will he think of the clothes I wear? My suit?

GY: A one-room bed-sit on the twelfth floor. Not the kind of place a father should live Layers of dust and dirt and grime and dead insects. Years of neglect

GY: I began to clean it. The room. That night. A bucket of hot water and soapsuds. I washed the walls, the ceilings, even the light fittings were scrubbed and by morning, when I had finally finished I looked around and it looked exactly the same

GY: I opened my mouth and screamed and a fish fell out of the sky and landed at my feet

GY: I dont believe in God. I dont believe in miracles

GY: The past is a mystery. And yet, perhaps it will be easier to explain than the fish

matter how many times he tries to clean up what he has done, it will always remain the same as the past will never leave him, just the same as the dirt in his room

Speaks almost sarcastically about his son coming over to find out why he left him as a child

Rooms The same sequence of walking into the room with a wet umbrella hanging it on the hook. Then moving to the window, then into an adjacent bathroom followed by stoping to think, the sitting at a table eating fish soup. This is repeated by Elizabeth Law, Gabrielle York, Joe Ryan, Older Gabriella York, Younger Elizabeth Law, Gabriel Law, and Henry Law

Elizabeth Law enters and shakes the water from her black umbrella. She closes her umbrella and hands it on a hook. She removes her raincoat and hangs it beside he umbrella. She crosses to the window and stares down into the street as Gabriella York enters

Elizabeth moves from the window to an adjacent bathroom. We can hear her urinating.

Elizabeth enters from the bathroom and stops in a moments thought

Elizabeth takes a bowl and a spoon and fills her bowl with soup from a large pot on the stove

EBP: Hows the soup? Establishes a repetitive movement from all of the cast as they repeat the same actions as the character before them

Mimics the cycle each generation goes through, in repeating mistakes the father or mother has made in terms of their family

Brings awareness of movement with no dialogue until he very last line of the scene

Elizabeth Laws Room (London 1988)

Elizabeths son, Gabriel Law, comes to visit her and they talk about fish soup.

We discover Gabriel

Younger Elizabeth enters. She shakes the water from her black umbrella. She closes it and hangs it on a hook.

EBP: I mean I dont know what you like or dont like, your tastes are a mystery to me, thinking I might be inspired, in this weather, would you believe?

[Beat] is introduced here, to show a change in dynamics in the mood of the character and their dialogue

Quotes show the disconnection between mother and son

is a picky eater, and that he offers to help his mother re-paint next time she needs it, instead of paying money

The younger Elizabeth is also seen in the background of this scene, and does not talk until the last moments of the scene, blending the two together

She removes her raincoat and hangs it beside the umbrella. Then she moves to the window and looks down into the street

The Younger Elizabeth stops eating

Beat. Henry enters Gabriel and Older

Elizabeth exit.

EBP: They say its good for you. And its simple. Easy to prepare. Especially for one

GL: Anyway How are you, Mum?

EBP: I never know how to answer that. Im never sure whether people, when they ask it, want me to tell them the truth or whether they just want me to go through the motions

EBP: I had a fall Gabriel

Brings in motif of rain, and how it can change people in such absurd ways, to bring them new emotions, thoughts, or feelings

Quote shows Elizabeth lives alone Especially for one

Elizabeth confessing she fell, links the first scene to this scene

Repetition of movement, of the same sequence followed by all character who enter the scene- shows how every character is in some way linked, but not directly, and how repetitive movement is used to act as a physical motif to connect ideas, thoughts, and feelings

The Same Room (London 1959)

More talk about the rain

Henry speaks of the side effects bad weather has on humanity bringing up an event from 1816 The Year Without a Summer

A woman runs after Henry to give him a hat that is not his

Joe enters. He shakes the water from his umbrella and hangs it on a hook. He removes his raincoat and hangs it on a hook beside the umbrella

Joe comes out of the bathroom remembering his hat

Joe touches his head and realises his hats

HL: Drenched. Still, there are people drowning in East Pakistan so we shouldnt complain

EBP: Its fish Im afraid. Theres a new fishmonger in the high street. Lovely man. Greek. Do anything for you

EBP: God knows where it came from, and I thought, well, what about fish? Well, not fish, but fish soup

HL: The weather! And it made

Elizabeth is revealed as seeing fish as a negative meal to serve her husband, and the repetition of the (3rd) quote explains this further

Henry explains how humanity suffers after the pitfall of bad weather

The womans red umbrella signals that she is an important figure, as every other character is seen walking with a black umbrella

Elizabeth disagrees with hnreys

Elizabeth reveals she is pregnant, and is not sure she wants to keep the child, as she says she has passed the age to have a baby

not there The older Gabrielle

enter and shakes the water from her umbrella

me think just how helpless we are when the weather turns against us. All our science. All our knowledge. All our magnificent endeavour amount to very little in the face of bad weather

EBP: It will take more than bad weather to silence the human mind. The more ordered a society, the less able it is to cope with chaos

EBP: Yes but it wasnt meant to happen, was it? Perhaps ten years ago. When I was ready To be perfectly honest, Im just not sure I want it

statement about the weather, and it is here that we see the first small signs of the failing relationship

The use of slashes shows that Henry is keen to have a child, and will do all it takes to convince Elizabeth to continue with the pregnancy

Joe Ryan and Gabrielle Yorks Room (Adelaide 2013)

We find that Gabrielle has memory troubles, and often conversation is repeated about the weather and where Joe has been

More talk about time blending in to each other

Gabrielle believes that she smokes and

She trails away Sure enough, a rumble

of thunder. She moves to the window

She moves to the table, takes a place and proceeds to eat her soup

The younger Gabrielle enters

[Joe] He takes his raincoat and umbrella

JR: Ive lost my hat GBY: In Bangladesh. There are

people drowning in Bangladesh JR: Are there? GBY: Its just what people say,

Joe. A figure of speech JR: Its fish They say its good

for you. Good for the brain. Not sure what it does exactly but they say we should have it three times a week at least

GBY: Did Gabriel call? Are you sure? He might have left a

Joes quote Ive lost my hat connects the previous scene, as it repeats history yet showing the other side of the story, only many years later

Repetition of motif of the fish, and its benefits and side effects

Gabriel Law is brought spoken in relation to Gabrielle

Motif of umbrellas is brought back, as Joe goes outside again to look for his hat with it- connecting him to Henry Law

convinces Joe that she does, bringing o