Company Name: Hesitate and Demonstrate
Devised and directed: Geraldine Pilgrim, Janet Goddard, Sally Cranfield
Cast: Geraldine Pilgrim, Janet Goddard, Sally Cranfield, John Darling
Sound: John Darling
Year: 1978
Set: The set was composed of the interior of a derelict house awaiting demolition. Each image was built around a different room of the house. The house area was framed by scaffolding towers also containing images. The entire set was covered in bricks.
Image 1: Top of flats. Rafters built onto them with hanging floors from above. Black cat balanced looking down as if trapped.
Image 2: Blackbird trapped in a broken window. Lit by red light.
Image 3: Red glass globe. Suspended doubles as demolition ball when cut to swing and clock pendulum.
Image 4: Large suspended clock of station type
Image 5: Kitchen area. Mans area. Cabinets and tables full of white coffee mugs. Some contain objects, including rat.
Image 6: Three women posed as statues their head masked with jumpers. Stand in their own areas.
A. Lavatory bowl covered in bricks, containing wet hair.
B. Bucket with wet stockings
C. Kitchen sinks. Broken holding old medicine bottles and kettle.
Image 7: Scaffolding tower. Treadle sewing machine and dummy on platform.
Image 8: Catwalk. Each area lit by different light.
Image 9: Dance floor ringed by bricks. Glitterball. Suspended miniature dance dresses.
Image 10: Pawnbroker image. Pawnball suspended over fireplace. Fireplace false back. Moneybags and weighting machine on mantlepiece.
Image 11: Epileptic fit image. Operating table with stirrups. Razor on strop by sink. Clam shell light on walls opens to reveal pearl globe. Cherub suspended drops down.
Image 12: Telephones either side of catwalk. Switchboard in scaffolding tower. Telephone in kitchen area.
Image 13: Cafe table. Empty. Pig toaster and type writer brought on
Image 14: Lilac Lady. Scaffolding tower platform covered in glass and flowers. Suspended music notes. Staircase below with bannister.
Image 15: Doors open to reveal brick wall that is dismantled brick by brick
Costumes
Two women wears identical cream linen suits. Identical cream jumpers. Identical brown court shoes and cream petticoats. The man wears an overcoat, a Trilby hat and a stained grey suit with a white shirt.
Scenario
Audience enter to blackout
Tape
Demolition sound getting closer
Cue explosion
light trough rafters silhouette of cat
Cue 2nd explosion
Light trough window. Showing blackbirds in glass.
Cue major masonry fall
Suspended red globe cut. Swing as if demolition ball.
Ticking clock
Light up on clock face. Ball becomes pendulum. Station announcements. Light up on the man below the clock. Wearing overcoat and trilby. Reads newspaper. Turns around impatient as if waiting. Blackout.
Heartbeat
Special on mug with rats
Sound of trains
Light up on man at kitchen table holding it to stop vibrating cups from falling off. Hangs up hats on cabinet, makes cup of coffee, looks for clean cup. Handles falls off to sound of explosion. Blackout.
Tape
I’m in the mood for love. Mae West. Light up on women frozen in poses. With jumpers on head in the act of taking them off.
1st verse
They begin to move. Sally moves, takes off jumper put on jackets. Takes hair from lavatory bowl and freezes.
2nd verse
Janet does the same then takes stockings from bowl and wrings them out. Freezes.
3rd verse
Geraldine does the same. Finds letter in kettle reads. Freezes. Blackout.
Light up on Sally in scaffolding sewing at machine. Janet fits Gerry as measuring dress. Bag containing dress is given to Gerry. Sally stop sewing. they all look at men.
Gerry walks past John under clock. Discretely drops dress from bag as if handkerchief. Looks coquettishly over shoulder at man.
Tape. Fashion show music.Three women model their suits as if bored models on slow motion. On catwalk. Stop at end of catwalk slowly turn and beck to men who is seated at kitchen table. Freeze. Blackout.
Minutes script excerpt taken from Hesitate and Demonstrate: A photographic Portrait and Script by Henry, A. in P.S. Primary Sources on the International Performing Arts (Vol.1 pp8-13, June-July 1979)
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