A Man With Five Children

Nick Enright

• Publisher: Currency Press
• Year: 2013
• eBook ISBN: 9781921428586
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Drama
• Index: Literature

Gerry is a documentary filmmaker who, one day each year, follows five children around with a camera. The results are shown annually on television. Yet for the children who grow up under Gerry's (and the nation's) watchful eyes, the experience creates its own dynamic. Are the participants his subjects, his children or his creations? Spanning more than twenty years, A Man With Five Children invites you into a world of fractured celebrity and distorted vision.

ACT ONE

SCENE ONE: 1972

A bare stage. GERRY 28 approaches the audience.

GERRY: I want your child, and yours, and yours. What do I want from them? One day out of their lives. One day a year, till they turn twenty-one. One day for the camera to follow them. To a football game, a ballet class, a birthday party. One day a year for them to speak and be heard. Which day? You say. Or I say. Or maybe they say. You’ve all seen some of my films. Now you know the way Gerard Hilferty works. I get close, and I stay close. I’ll try to not to bring along any preconceptions. I’ll try to bring nothing but a camera and a microphone. You know that old maxim? ‘Give me a child at seven, I’ll show you the adult.’ I don’t buy that. I say, give me a child at seven and let’s see where he goes, where she goes. No money will change hands. You’ll have a record of your child’s life. Your children will have a way to chart their own lives. And once a year, New Year’s Day, on national television, we’ll show some moments from the year these children have lived, from the day they give me. I want your child, yours, yours, yours, yours. Five children to speak for young Australia. I hope all five will want to come with me on the journey. And if they do, we’ll meet at the gates of the zoo.

He waits. ROGER appears.

G’day.

ROGER: My name is Roger Chan.

GERRY: I’m Gerry.

ROGER: My father told me what you’re going to do. You talk to us. Then you do it again next year. And you’ll put the two films together and see how we’ve changed.

GERRY: That’s pretty right.

ROGER: And then the next year, you’ll do the same thing. But why?

JESSIE approaches.

JESSIE: Why are we here? Zoos are bad places.

GERRY: We could talk about that. You’re Jessie. I’m Gerry. This is Roger.

He sees CAM approaching.

Hi.

CAM: I’m hungry.

GERRY: We’ll have lunch at the zoo.

CAM: I’m hungry now.

GERRY: Jessie, Roger. This is Cam.

ROGER: Cam? Is that short for something?

CAM: Cameron. Duhh.

SUSANNAH 7 approaches. ZOE 7 trails her.

SUSANNAH: She won’t say her name. Are all these children seven? She seems quite young for seven. I’m seven. I’m tall for my age.

GERRY: Susannah, this is Jessie—

JESSIE: Hi.

GERRY: Cam.

ROGER: Roger. Roger Chan.

JESSIE: What’s your name?

ZOE: Zoe.

SUSANNAH: She wouldn’t tell me.

GERRY: Zoe. Jessie. Cam. Susannah. Roger. You’ll want to practise those names.

ROGER: Zoe. Cam. Jessie. Susannah. Roger. I know them.

GERRY: Let’s go to the zoo. You walk ahead. I’ll follow.

He picks up the camera.

CAM: I don’t want to.

ROGER: We’ll see ourselves on television.

CAM: I don’t fucken want to.

ROGER starts to play with a high-tech game.

SUSANNAH: He’s rude. He shouldn’t be here.

CAM: You shouldn’t. You talk funny. She shouldn’t. She’s an abo. I hate abos.

JESSIE: Why?

CAM: Australia for Australians. [To JESSIE] Bloody abo boong. [To ROGER] And you. Slope-features.

GERRY: Hey! I don’t want any name-calling. Never again. You’re all different. You’re all Australians. I want you all to respect one another. And I want you all to stay. Every one of you.

CAM is walking away.

Specially you, Cam.

CAM: What’ll you give me?

ROGER: Didn’t you hear? No money will change hands.

CAM grabs for the game. ROGER won’t let go.

CAM: Get me one of them?

GERRY: No. I can’t give you anything. But maybe we can do something together.

CAM: Take me to the footie?

GERRY: The footie? I reckon I could do that. If I can bring my camera.

CAM: All right. When?

GERRY: Some time this season.

ROGER: Can I come too?

GERRY: Sure.

CAM: I’m good at footie. See?

He grabs ROGER’s game and goes to dropkick it.

ROGER: Don’t!

CAM throws it into the air. ROGER catches it. CAM runs off, followed by ROGER. GERRY films.

SUSANNAH: I like Gerry. Do you like him? Zoe?

ZOE: I don’t know. [To JESSIE] Do you?

JESSIE: When he came to our school he hid behind the trees. [To GERRY] Didn’t you?

GERRY: I wasn’t hiding. I was looking.

JESSIE: Looking for what?

GERRY: A girl with a purple hair ribbon.

JESSI...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright Page
• Playwright’s Biography
• Playwright’s Note
• First Production
• Characters
• Setting
• A Note on the Text
• Act One
• Act Two