- 96 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
This is Living
About this book
'You weren't moving. Your hair was soaked. We saw you.'
Alice and Michael met six years ago. Three years later their daughter Lily was born. Now, in a Yorkshire meadow, just past midnight, they're having an argument. Because Alice is cold, she's tired, and Michael won't stop telling her that she died twelve hours ago.
A poignant exploration of what it means to say goodbye, Liam Borrett's play This is Living was first performed in a critically acclaimed and award-winning production at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2014. It had its London premiere at Trafalgar Studios, London, in 2016.
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Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access This is Living by Liam Borrett in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literature & British Drama. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
ACT ONE
Monday 4th July. Just after midnight; Sunday, minutes ago. A riverbank. Otley, West Yorkshire. The water laps by the bank, the wind slips through the nettles. MICHAEL (thirty-one) still in yesterday’s clothes, sits, staring down at the bottom of the bank. The body of ALICE (twenty-eight) lays face-down at the edge of the water.
He stares at it, for too long a time.
He moves towards her, crouches down. Her clothes and hair are soaked, her shoes missing, her face and neck spattered with mud. He gently lifts her face out of the water, stares into her eyes, distant, lifeless. Beat. He lifts her body up onto the bank. Looks at her face, one final moment before closing her eyes. Proceeds to make his way back up the hill.
Without warning, ALICE lurches up to sitting as water explodes from her mouth. She collapses back down to the ground, her eyes snapping open.
He stares at her, unable to comprehend the situation, as she rolls over and pushes herself up onto her hands and knees, laughing uncontrollably.
ALICE | Have I been on the Blue Nun? Fucking, Echo Falls? Told ya before, jump me when I start heading towards the Echo Falls… She pushes herself up to standing, her balance somewhat lacking. She notices that she’s soaked. Rained? Would have been nice of ya to – She laughs. He just stares at her. Fuck did we get out here? Like Blackpool all over again, lucky I didn’t start on the red. |
MICHAEL | Fuck off – |
ALICE | We got Berocca? Shop still open? What is it, like, eleven? She with Mum? She’ll kick my arse, you wait, blaming you for this, telling you that now. Beat. |
MICHAEL | Fuck off – |
ALICE | Fancy us? Huh? Fancy us? Fucking, soggy biscuit – Get a kiss? She goes to kiss him. He steps back. Looks at her. |
MICHAEL | Should stop. |
ALICE | We’re not having any more, no. |
MICHAEL | You’re – |
ALICE | What you been on, Desperados? |
MICHAEL | Fuck off… |
ALICE | Ey, this is us now, imagine if we did this all the time, you wonder how people do it – |
MICHAEL | Come on, mate. |
ALICE | Going down fucking, Co-op, middle of the day – She laughs. |
MICHAEL | Co... |
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Contents
- Original Production
- Author’s Note
- Dedication
- Characters
- This is Living
- About the Author
- Copyright and Performing Rights Information