FOREVER SLOWHAND

Copyright © 1999 by Richard Ian Pentland Gooch E110-2911 Bayview Avenue North York ON M2K 1E8 ripgch@yahoo.com 07.IX.1999

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In strict alphabetical order, thus simultaneously avoiding accusations of favouritism and side-stepping the issue of character identification, I acknowledge the following individuals for their support, inspiration and technical assistance. Shawn Allaire, Lance Armstrong, Peter Boyd, Eric Patrick Clapp, Dave Clifton, Vici Debnam, Gabe Ferrazzo and the Cambrian Players of Thunder Bay, David Robert Jones, Ann Linton, Sandra Mullarkey, Steve Proctor, Peter Raffo, Richard Toscan, Jane Trotter, Lawrence Wilson and Robert Allen Zimmerman. Thanks are also due to Training Wheels and HRDC in Thunder Bay for providing the means of translation from brain to paper. Finally, I shall be forever in the debt of the endlessly patient, understanding and indulgent Pat, for it is she who stimulates my creativity. Dedicated to the precious memory of Harold Gooch. Carpe diem. The text which follows reproduces the script as used in the read-through by the Cambrian Players of Thunder Bay, October 3 1999. This constitutes the first public performance of the work-in-progress. Gabe Ferrazzo was both producer and director. Technical support was provided by Richard Gooch. The soundtrack was recorded onto DAT. Cast in order of appearance: Driver: Ryan Burton Fool: Jerry Silen Hippie: Taras Lesyk Girl: Sherryl Silen Groupie: Jane Burkowski Lady: Marnie Roberts Taddeo Niceguy: Brian Manrovich Freak: Gabe Ferrazzo

CHARACTERS DRIVER Male, early-30s. A self-appointed leader, calm almost blasé but with a hint of barely submerged enthusiasm. Obsessively well-ordered, a compulsive list-maker. FOOL Male, mid-20s. Excitable, almost hyperactive. Speaks before thinking. Annoying yet lovable. Driver is his hero, the big brother he never had. LADY Driver's former wife, late-20s. Self-assured, worldly. She's made the rock festival journey with Driver many times before. She wears an elaborately carved Celtic cross suspended from a simple neck chain. GIRL Mid-20s, slightly naïve, volatile sister of Driver. HIPPIE Indeterminate age, but clearly older. Mysterious, grungy, a man of few words. Long-term friend and ally of Driver. NICEGUY Lady's latest love, early-30s. Instantly engaging. Obviously reliable, dependable. Ultimately dull and shallow. GROUPIE Girl's close friend also mid-20s. Flirtatious and mercurial, a Stevie Nicks clone in dress and attitude. FREAK Ageing hippie in his 40s, maybe older. Delights in life. Loud and far from self-conscious. Slightly scary and a little conspiratorial. CONTEXT England. High summer 1978. Bob Dylan is due to headline at an open-air concert at Blackbushe Aerodrome in Surrey. Eric Clapton is second on the bill. 200 000 people are making their way to the venue from all over Europe. In a quiet suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne in the top right-hand corner of the country a loose-knit group of seven friends is assembling in readiness for the overnight, 300 mile journey in a rented minivan. SETTING Act I: A nondescript quiet suburban street in Newcastle upon Tyne, northeastern England. Late evening sounds of starlings bedding down and dogs barking. The usual atmospheric stuff. Act II: Interior of a roadside greasy spoon café somewhere in the middle of England. Fifties-style furnishings; two or three stalls; an old jukebox. Just before dawn as the first watery glow through the windows begins to compete with inadequate fluorescent lighting.

SCENES by MUSIC Act I Scene 1 Crossroads - Cream Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? - Chicago Act I Scene 2 Street Fighting Man - The Rolling Stones Woman - The James Gang Act I Scene 3 Every Picture Tells A Story - Rod Stewart Won't Get Fooled Again - The Who Act I Scene 4 Layla - Derek and the Dominoes Let It Grow - Derek and the Dominoes Act I Scene 5 Spoonful - Cream In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida - Iron Butterfly Act I Scene 6 In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida - Iron Butterfly Act I Scene 7 Sunshine Of Your Love - Cream Rock & Roll - Led Zeppelin Act Scene 8 Rock & Roll - Led Zeppelin Act II Scene 1 Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan Lay Down Sally - Eric Clapton Whole Lotta Rosie - AC/DC Act II Scene 2 You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet - Bachman Turner Overdrive Heart Of Gold - Neil Young Act II Scene 3 Nights In White Satin - The Moody Blues In A Broken Dream - Python Lee Jackson or A Whiter Shade Of Pale - Procol Harum White Man Black Man - The James Gang Act II Scene 4 Maybe I'm Amazed - Paul McCartney Blackbird - The Beatles Act II Scene 5 Layla - Derek and the Dominoes Little Wing - The Jimi Hendrix Experience Act II Scene 6 Lay Lady Lay - Bob Dylan The Needle And The Damage Done - Neil Young John, I'm Only Dancing - David Bowie Act II Scene 7 Rock & Roll Suicide - David Bowie Suffragette City - David Bowie

ACT I Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 Scene 5 Scene 6 Scene 7 Scene 8

ACT II Scene 1 Scene 2 Scene 3 Scene 4 Scene 5 Scene 6 Scene 7

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