- 204 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
The Cocktail Party
About this book
A comedic play about the universal quest for meaning, written in some of Eliot’s “most beautiful poetry” (The New York Times). A sterling example of contemporary theater, The Cocktail Party is a dramatic tour de force from one of our greatest writers to date.
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Yes, you can access The Cocktail Party by T. S. Eliot in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literature & American Drama. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
Act I. Scene 1
The drawing room of the Chamberlaynesā London flat. Early evening. EDWARD CHAMBERLAYNE, JULIA SHUTTLETHWAITE, CELIA COPLESTONE, PETER QUILPE, ALEXANDER MACCOLGIE GIBBS, and an UNIDENTIFIED GUEST.
ALEX
Youāve missed the point completely, Julia:
There were no tigers. That was the point.
JULIA
Then what were you doing, up in a tree:
You and the Maharaja?
ALEX
My dear Julia!
Itās perfectly hopeless. You havenāt been listening.
PETER
Youāll have to tell us all over again, Alex.
ALEX
I never tell the same story twice.
JULIA
But Iām still waiting to know what happened.
I know it started as a story about tigers.
ALEX
I said there were no tigers.
CELIA
Oh do stop wrangling,
Both of you. Itās your turn, Julia.
Do tell us that story you told the other day, about
Lady Klootz and the wedding cake.
PETER
And how the butler found her in the pantry, rinsing her
mouth out with champagne.
I like that story.
CELIA
I love that story.
ALEX
Iām never tired of hearing that story.
JULIA
Well, you all seem to know it.
CELIA
Do we all know it?
But weāre never tired of hearing you tell it.
I donāt believe everyone here knows it.
[To the UNIDENTIFIED GUEST]
You donāt know it, do you?
UNIDENTIFIED GUEST
No, Iāve never heard it.
CELIA
Hereās one new listener for you, Julia;
And I donāt believe that Edward knows it.
EDWARD
I may have heard it, but I donāt remember it.
CELIA
And Juliaās the only person to tell it.
Sheās such a good mimic.
JULIA
Am I a good mimic?
PETER
You are a good mimic. You never miss anything.
ALEX
She never misses anything unless she wants to.
CELIA
Especially the Lithuanian accent.
JULIA
Lithuanian? Lady Klootz?
PETER
I thought she was Belgian.
ALEX
Her father belonged to a Baltic familyā
One of the oldest Baltic families
With a branch in Sweden and one in Denmark.
There were several very lovely daughters:
I wonder whatās become of them now.
JULIA
Lady Klootz was very lovely, once upon a time.
What a life she led! I used to say to her: āGreta!
You have too much vitality.ā But she enjoyed herself.
[To the UNIDENTIFIED GUEST]
Did you know Lady Klootz?
UNIDENTIFIED GUEST
No, I never met her.
CELIA
Go on with the story about the wedding cake.
JULIA
Well, but it really isnāt my story.
I heard it first from Delia Verinder
Who was there when it happened.
[To the UNIDENTIFIED GUEST]
Do you know Delia Verinder?
UNIDENTIFIED GUEST
No, I donāt know her.
JULIA
Well, one canāt be too careful
Before one tells a story.
ALEX
Delia Verinder?
Was she the one who had three brothers?
JULIA
How many brothers? Two, I think.
ALEX
No, there were three, but you wouldnāt know the third
one:
They kept him rather quiet.
JULIA
Oh, you mean that one.
ALEX
He was feeble-minded.
JULIA
Oh, not feeble-minded:
He was only harmless.
ALEX
Well then, harmless.
JULIA
He was very clever a...
Table of contents
- Title Page
- Table of Contents
- Copyright
- Acknowledgments
- THE COCKTAIL PARTY
- Persons
- Act I. Scene 1
- Act I. Scene 2
- Act I. Scene 3
- Act II
- Act III
- One-Eyed Riley
- The Cast of the First Production
- About the Author