Download Study Guide: Cruel and Tender

Study Guide: Cruel and Tender
by Martin Crimp
after Sophocles’ Trachiniae
directed by Atom Egoyan
January 21 – February 18, 2012
Overview and Classroom Activities
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Study Guide: Cruel and Tender
A letter to teachers and students:
Education is a vital part of what we do at Canadian Stage. We are committed to sharing material with
our audiences that will challenge, enrich and deepen their perspectives. Martin Crimp’s Cruel and
Tender is an exceptional example of how sharing art diversifies our conversations. Crimp’s script
presents endless opportunities for critical discussions surrounding politics, global conflict, and the role
of media in today’s world. The piece engages individuals with varied interests in a dark journey with
contemporary relevance.
Cruel and Tender is a modern interpretation of Sophocles’ classic Greek tragedy The Trachiniae, written
over 2000 years ago. The events and themes that drive its plot resonated with ancient Greek audiences
and remain significant today. As British Theatre Guide critic Philip Fisher wrote in response to the first
production of the show in London, “much of its subject matter could almost be drawn directly from the
front pages of the newspapers this week” (Fisher, The British Theatre Guide, 2004). This fact poses
questions about how the world has or has not changed over time.
Atom Egoyan, celebrated Academy Award®-nominated film director, will be directing the production.
Egoyan’s known ability to depict a layered story from multiple angles while simultaneously taking an
interest in human nature and interactions is ideally suited to direct Crimp’s text. Furthermore, it will be
exciting to see how his exquisite film aesthetic translates to the stage.
Cruel and Tender reflects issues affecting our society as a whole as well as our struggles as individuals. It
explores our motivations and the actions and consequences surrounding family, passion, legacy and
politics while delving into diverse themes including the media’s role in warfare, questions of heroism
and gender roles, all discussed in this study guide. As you will see, there are outstanding connections to
media literacy, politics, history, philosophy, gender studies and classic Greek theatre curriculums. The
play’s narrative, its themes and this production’s staging are certain to evoke enlightening discussion in
any classroom.
See you at the theatre!
Cheers,
Erin Schachter, Education & Enrichment Manager
416.367.8243 x280
[email protected]
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A Students’ Guide to Live Theatre
Here are your responsibilities:
1. Thank you in advance for turning off your cell phone, iPod, iPhone or anything else that makes
noise before entering the theatre. These items distract the actors, your classmates and you!
They can also affect our in-house technical signals and spoil the show. This is a common
courtesy. Vibrate/silent is not the same as off.
2. No texting! Because your phone is off you will need to wait until intermission to update your
Facebook status (and when you login, link to Canadian Stage at www.facebook.com/cdnstage).
3. No headphones of any sort. Listening to your own media is not only rude, but distracting to
those around you.
4. In order to respect our theatre and you, our patrons, we only allow water in the theatre and no
other food or drinks.
5. Please refrain from talking during the performance- the actors and the audience will hear you!
(Laugh when it’s funny, cry when it’s sad. Otherwise, zip it!)
6. Please sit in the seat assigned to you. If you sit elsewhere the seating for everyone is disrupted.
7. Represent your school and yourself with good behavior. Theatre is awesome. You should be too!
8. Keep an open mind and think critically. Theatre is engaging and challenging. Be prepared to
examine what you see rather than judge it. You’ll be surprised how much you learn, even about
yourself, when you try to see things differently.
9. Enjoy the show and come again soon!
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Cruel and Tender
Characters
Amelia – 40s, a housewife, married to The General
The General- 40s, Amelia’s husband, has been away at war for some time
James- Amelia and The General’s son, late teens
Richard- 50s, a journalist
Jonathan- 30s, a government minister
Iolasos- A friend of The General
Housekeeper (Rachel) – one of Amelia’s helpers
Physiotherapist (Cathy) – one of Amelia’s helpers
Beautician (Nicola) – one of Amelia’s helpers
Laela- 18, a beautiful girl and the daughter of a political leader who is in conflict with The
General
A Boy- about six, related to Laela
Setting
“The time is the present. The place is The General and Amelia’s temporary home, close
to an international airport.” (Crimp 2004)
Amelia is waiting for news of her husband who is away fighting war. A beautiful young African woman,
Laela, and a young boy are brought to her home and introduced as the last survivors of The General’s
attacks. Amelia discovers that Laela is in fact her husband’s mistress and that his motives for war may
be more personal than political. Amelia’s reaction to this news and the consequences of her retaliation
drive the action of the play.
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Theatrical Context
“The War on Terror soon provoked ‘a significant body of theatre work in London’…All
this went hand in hand with a renewed interest in Greek tragedy…Arguably, the most
interesting of these Greek projects has been Crimp’s Cruel and Tender.” (Sierz, The
Theatre of Martin Crimp, 63)
Cruel and Tender is Martin Crimp’s adaptation of Sophocles’ Greek tragedy The Trachiniae, also known
as The Women of Trachis. Sophocles wrote more than 120 plays and won first prize eighteen times at
the City Dionysia, a play competition held every year at the Theatre of Dionysus in Athens, Greece. His
The Trachiniae was written in approximately 490 BCE.
The Trachiniae tells the story of Deianeira, the wife of Heracles who desperately misses her husband
who has been fighting abroad. Survivors of Heracles’ attacks are brought to his home. Deianeira
discovers that Heracles laid siege to a city to obtain the king’s daughter, whom he has taken as a lover.
Deianeira decides to use a love potion given to her by the centaur Nessus to win back Heracles’ love. She
sends her son to give the potion to his father. Her son returns home and tells her that Heracles is dying
as a result of her gift. Ashamed of what she has done, Deianeira kills herself. Heracles arrives home
weak and dying. The play concludes with Heracles being carried off to be burned alive, as an ending to
his suffering.
Though the play’s structure and inspiration is classical in nature, its themes, questions and message
resonate in a powerful way for a modern audience.
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Study Links
Drama
What role does performance have in educating the audience about current events? Does theatre work
to influence the audience’s perception or attitudes? How might the context of the play, and how it is
viewed/interpreted, vary from production to production (i.e. England in 2004 vs. Canada 2012)?
What are the elements of Greek tragedy? What are the elements of Greek tragedy that Crimp has
borrowed for Cruel and Tender? In general, what are some of the challenges of re-examining a classic
story and building a new one in its image?
English
Is it possible to tell a story without bias? How does Crimp use literary devices such as prose and
analogies within Cruel and Tender?
Media Literacy
What role does media play in the action of Cruel and Tender? How is commentary embodied in art
different from standard news sources?
Politics
Consider Jonathan’s role in Cruel and Tender. What part do politicians have to play in shaping events
that occur? What is the difference between doers and discussers?
History
What past or current events, issues and conflicts does Cruel and Tender echo? What are the
descrepencies between actual history and the story told in the play? Why would Crimp make these
changes?
Psychology
The General's mind seems addled upon his return, despite his claims otherwise. How can modern
warfare affect military personnel? What kinds of treatments are offered to veterans and how are they
re-integrated into society?
Philosophy – What do philosophers say about power and violence? Identify perspectives that agree and
perspectives that differ from each other. Is the desire to conquer and control natural for humans?
Consider the words of Colonel DuBois from Robert Heinlein’s film Starship Troopers: “Anyone who clings
to the historically untrue – and – thoroughly immoral doctrine that violence never solves anything I
would advise to conjure up the ghosts of Napoleon Bonaparte and the Duke of Wellington and let them
debate it. The ghost of Hitler would referee. Violence, naked force, has settled more issues in history
than has any other factor; and the contrary opinion is wishful thinking at its worst. Breeds that forget
this basic truth have always paid for it with their lives and their freedoms”. How does Cruel and Tender
support or challenge this theory?
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Gender Studies
Martin Crimp discusses the accepted roles of men as fighters and women as caregivers in several
interviews. Are these traits innate or learned? How is this distinction challenged within the play?
Historical/Social Background
The War in Iraq
Internationally acclaimed Swiss director Luc Bondy proposed that Crimp create this adaptation when he
stumbled upon Sophocles’ The Trachiniae and, according to the Young Vic’s Artistic Director David Lan,
“found in it something that resonated with a world seeking to justify the invasion of Iraq. And if we
constantly go back to the Greeks, it is because of the immediacy of their engagement with the
world. Sophocles used a myth the audience all knew to comment on his own time; in a similar way we
are using Sophocles’ play as a way of illuminating ours” (“Cruel and Tender”, Theatre Pro).
Key Points About the War in Iraq
2003 was the second time America invaded Iraq. The first was The Persian Gulf War which
occurred during the presidency of George Bush Senior (1990-1991)
The UN had done inspections of suspected sites of weapons of mass destruction in 2002 and
found no evidence to support the suspicions that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. The UN
Head Weapons Inspector is quoted as saying that while Iraqi cooperation with the American
inspection was "active", it was not "unconditional" and not "immediate". This lack of
unconditional cooperation is what is credited with leading the US to invade and occupy Iraq.
At the time of the US invasion, Saddam Hussein was Iraq’s Prime Minister. US officials
continuously tried to connect Saddam Hussein to Al Qaeda, an Islamic terrorist organization, but
no conclusive evidence of an association was ever discovered. Hussein was captured, tried and
ultimately executed for war crimes against the Shiite people in his country.
In a statement to the public on March 19, 2003, President George W. Bush explained that: “Our
nation enters this conflict reluctantly -- yet, our purpose is sure. The people of the United States
and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace
with weapons of mass murder. We will meet that threat now, with our Army, Air Force, Navy,
Coast Guard and Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of fire fighters and
police and doctors on the streets of our cities.”
Following the invasion, it was determined that the Iraqi government had suspended its nuclear
weapons programs in 1991 and did not have any active nuclear supply at the time of the
invasion.
Some isolated chemical weapons were discovered in the searches of Iraqi compounds, but
nothing on a scale to be classified as weapons of mass destruction.
As one of his first official acts, President Barak Obama unveiled a plan to have all American
troops withdrawn from Iraq by the end of 2011. He reiterated these expectations as recently as
October 2011.
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Adaptation: The Trachiniae to Cruel and Tender
The Trachiniae is a Greek tragedy which utilizes traditional theatre conventions of the time. Although
Cruel and Tender is considered a “radical rewriting of a previous play” (Sierz, The Theatre of Martin
Crimp, 63) the influences of Sophocles’ work on Crimp are evident. While Crimp was decidedly
“obedient to Sophocles’s original structure” (Sierz, The Theatre of Martin Crimp, 165), the contemporary
version also challenges some aspects of the original play.
Action off stage
Ancient Greek tragedies never portrayed violence or death on stage. Rather, disturbing action was
reported to the audience as having occurred beyond their view. The reasons for this are not certain but
may be attributed to the fact that there was a lack of technology and props to achieve such effects, the
squeamishness of the Greek audience, and the emphasis on the emotional or psychological impact of a
play’s content on the audience.
In an interview Crimp said: “Violent acts create a point of concentration. The stage lets us represent
violence without having to suffer it. But in fact I show very little violence on stage. It is more often
reported -- as in a Greek play” (Mirzaii, Nouse: University of York, 2009). In the play, the two main
violent occurrences, The General being poisoned and Amelia’s suicide, both happen out of the
audiences view. In addition, the site of the war around which the play revolves is never seen. It is
interesting to consider how this affects the audience’s experience: do we leave asking different
questions than if we had witnessed this violence?
Chorus
The chorus is a convention that is unique to Greek theatre. The chorus was a group of 12 to 50 actors
who shared a collective voice. Usually in song, their main function was to mediate between the
audience and the action by providing background information and dramatic reactions to the play’s
events.
In Cruel and Tender Crimp portrays a chorus that is fundamentally different than those used by
Sophocles and his peers. Whereas a traditional Greek chorus is a cohesive unit, Crimp uses
individualized characters including a Housekeeper, a Beautician and a Physiotherapist in its place. While
they sometimes function individually and sometimes together, they never act entirely in unison. They
are not simply a group of people that represent one entity; instead they are individuals with names and
unique identities. Why would Crimp make this choice?
Problem-play versus Tragedy
According to Collins World English Dictionary, by definition a classic tragedy is “a play in which the
protagonist, usually a man of importance and outstanding personal qualities, falls to disaster through
the combination of a personal failing and circumstances with which he cannot deal”. In Cruel and Tender
The General’s fate is not entirely known by the play’s conclusion. This difference qualifies Crimp’s work
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as a problem-play rather than a tragedy because it leaves the audience with questions. A problem-play
is defined by Britannica Online Encyclopedia as a “type of drama that developed in the 19th century to
deal with controversial social issues in a realistic manner, to expose social ills, and to stimulate thought
and discussion on the part of the audience”.
In Sophocles’ version, the chorus’ reactions indicate how the audience should feel about the events that
took place. Without the chorus operating in a traditional way, or serving traditional functions, a modern
audience is left to work out their own response which arguably forces them to think more critically
about what they have seen.
Other influences by Sophocles
There are several other specific structural elements that Crimp draws directly from Sophocles’ original
work.
- As in Sophocles’ The Trachiniae, the two main characters in Cruel and Tender never meet. There is no
point in which Amelia and The General are seen on stage together.
- In the original, “when [Heracles] is brought in, injured, the verse goes completely mad. Odd little
onomatopoeic phrases express his distress…this is why, when*The General] comes in, [Crimp has] him
sing the Billie Holiday number” (Sierz, The Theatre of Martin Crimp, 106).
- According to Crimp, the Greeks “were people who talked of heroes and gods but the images they used
were rooted in everyday” (Sierz, The Theatre of Martin Crimp, 108). This directly affects the analogies
within Crimp’s script. For example, in the first scene Amelia says that the infrequent rate at which The
General sees his son is “like a farmer inspecting a crop”.
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Critical Exploration
1. The Role of the Media in Warfare
“The satirical bite of Cruel and Tender comes from Crimp’s understanding of how politicians and the
media maintain power by manipulating the truth” (Sierz, The Theatre of Martin Crimp, 149).
Mainstream media, including newspapers, television and radio, plays an essential role in informing the
public about war and conflict. Each media outlet chooses what stories are represented, curates which
perspectives are shared, and thus controls the message that is delivered to the public. It is essential to
realize that these reports are usually biased depending on the source’s political position and the storyteller’s (i.e. writer, editor) background. The effects of the pervasive influence of media can be observed
in four fairly contemporary conflicts.
The Vietnam War (1955-1975)
The war in Vietnam was the beginning of a new age for media. For the first time, citizens at home were
able to watch the reality of war on their televisions. Early in the conflict, public support for the war in
Vietnam was positive. According to The Gallup Poll, an opinion poll at the time, approximately 60% of
Americans were in favour of American presence in Vietnam as of 1965, the beginning of the war. The
media presence had a central role in changing this attitude as Americans watched video footage and
news broadcasts. For the first time Americans could see the disturbing reality of war for themselves. By
the end of the conflict, public opinion was deeply opposed to the war in Vietnam. By 1971 the same
opinion poll showed that a mere 28% of Americans were in favour of American involvement. When
veterans returned home, they were not all treated as heroes like the soldiers before them. Instead,
many of these individuals were perceived as men who had committed crimes that the public did not
want to acknowledge and some veterans were apparently ignored, ridiculed and avoided.
The Persian Gulf War (1990-1991)
Over a decade of advancements in journalism and technology placed the Gulf War into the living room
of nearly every home in North America. Americans were witness to missiles launching and striking
targets, flashes and explosions lighting up the sky through night-vision technology and fighter jets
launching live off aircraft carriers. Media sources all strove to get ahead of one another in delivering an
exciting and contentious story. As people’s support for the war decreased, the role of media in
impacting public opinion around conflict was solidified.
In order to challenge the negative message of the media, accusations of bias and calls for censorship
were made. The Pentagon put restrictions upon reporting the Gulf War. In a short document called
“Annex Froxtrot,” Captain Ron Wildermuth, the chief Public Affairs Officer for U.S. Central Command,
laid out new rules regarding media in what is assumed an effort by the military to avoid the backlash
they received after Vietnam. The memo primarily emphasized one thing: "News media representatives
will be escorted at all times. Repeat, at all times." By the end of the war, policies regarding the media's
role in conflict had changed dramatically and opposition to censorship began to increase.
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The War in Iraq (2003-present)
This most recent international conflict has added a new element to media influence on warfare. As
media develops there are increasingly more media outlets vying to be the source for information.
Increasingly, it is possible to watch, read and listen to news programs that support one’s views and
political agenda. For example, consider Fox news in the United States. Fox is primarily funded by
Conservative and right wing companies and officials. As a result, the material it covers carries a message
that promotes the perspective of its supporters. The population that tends to go to Fox for information
is made up of people who share that viewpoint. In contrast, an individual that identifies with a different
political agenda might seek media information elsewhere.
As the war in Iraq develops, it becomes increasingly clear that media outlets are businesses too. The war
in Iraq was anticipated by news corporations before it even occurred with each corporation working to
establish itself as the network of choice for the impending events. This rivalry has created a political and
economic agenda based on selling the war to the people. Some members of the public have begun to
question, if the media profits economically from warfare, why would such sources ever challenge or
present alternatives to the conflict?
Revolution in Egypt (January 25, 2011-present)
Social Media and Revolution
In 2011, 30-year-old Egyptian activist and Google executive Wael Ghonim used social media to spread a
powerful message of revolution. Ghonim used internet sites such as Facebook to organize the protest
that resulted in the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak. Through social media, 12 million Egyptians
effectively ended the repressive regime of Mubarak.
In April 2011, Ghonim told CNN:
“This revolution started online. This revolution started on Facebook. This revolution
started [...] in June 2010 when hundreds of thousands of Egyptians started collaborating
content. We would post a video on Facebook that would be shared by 60,000 people on
their walls within a few hours. I've always said that if you want to liberate a society just
give them the Internet.”
Ghonim was arrested after the protest in Cairo on January 25, 2011, and imprisoned for 12 days.
Following his release, he insisted: "I'm not a hero. I was writing on a keyboard on the Internet and I
wasn't exposing my life to danger. The heroes are the ones who are in the street."
For Ghonim, social media was the shield that he carried into the battle. Using social media not only
allowed him to organize an uprising, but it allowed him to do so anonymously.
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Media in Cruel and Tender
“The play implies that we, the viewing public, and the media corporations that package
data for us ultimately bear the responsibility for creating, and continuing to create, the
values, public and private, by which we try to live” (Ginman, 1 October 2004).
In addition to commentary about existing biases and political agendas within the media, Crimp also
alludes to the importance of media glorification in defining a hero. This is reiterated by The General’s
infatuation with knowing whether cameras will witness his arrest in conjunction with his obsession with
knowing if “the gods” will be watching. This parallel is insightful in better understanding how significant
a role the media plays.
This theme is further demonstrated in the play by the character Jonathan, a government minister who
reports to the home front about what is happening in the war overseas. It is clear that Jonathan, much
like the media, is often skewing the reality of war to benefit his personal agenda.
2. Violence and Terrorism
Violence is a key theme that drives the action of Cruel and Tender. This is not surprising when
considering that “*Crimp’s+ work is characterized by its vision of contemporary society as a place of
social decay, moral compromise, and barely suppressed violence.” (Sierz, Martin Crimp in Conversation
with Aleks Sierz: The Question is the Ultimate in Discomfort, 2006)
Gender Roles
According to Crimp, “if violence is about power…for example the modern state claims a monopoly on
the use of violence, then perhaps it’s not surprising if gender enters the picture” (Mirzaii, 2009).
Historically, it is evident that men have been trained to be the fighters. In fact, as part of his research for
Cruel and Tender, Crimp read Joshua Goldstein’s book War and Gender. According to Crimp this text
“makes a very strong case for the importance of gender roles in making war: the man in uniform trained
to kill, the woman at home representing both the family and the state the man is fighting for. Despite a
tiny minority of women engaging in combat, I believe this remains the model” (Mirzaii, 2009).
Distinction between these roles is blurred, however, within the play. Amelia’s violent retaliation against
her husband, and ultimate suicide, prove that the same violent impulses can exist in a woman. So
although Laela is convinced that “boys need to fight—they need to learn—they need to kill. Boys need
to kill. Boys need to fight. Boys must fight…” (Crimp 27), Crimp presents a challenging argument
suggesting it is not a gender-specific urge.
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Heroism
The relationship between violence and heroism is highlighted in the character of The General. He is
glorified as a hero by some, but this same quality also leads to his undoing. We are often told of his
fame, his heroism and prestige by Jonathan, but the only truly heroic thing we know he did was carry a
soldier to safety from a burning house. The General also seems to take pride in his violent actions when
he gloats to his son that “I have purified the world for you. / I have burnt terror out of the world for
people like you” (Crimp 57). This provokes the question: are terrorism and heroism intimately linked in
contemporary society? According to Luc Bondy, Cruel and Tender is “about the nature of heroism. In the
Second World War, there were clear military heroes such as De Gaulle, but what is heroism today? In
the play, The General thinks he’s a hero, even when he decimates the country for his lover” (Sierz,
Interview: Greek Tragedy and the War on Terror, 18 April 2004).
3. The Hydra Metaphor
The Hydra is a mythical serpent-like monster that grew two heads for every one that was cut off. The
Hydra of Lerna was slain by Hercules as the second of his so-called 'twelve labours.'
"Some of the labours of Heracles do resemble the war on terror," says Crimp. "He has to kill the hydra
and for every head you cut off, two grow in its place" (Sierz, Interview: Greek Tragedy and the War on
Terror, 18 April 2004). According the Luc Bondy, the relevance of Sophocles’ tale, and Crimp’s
adaptation of it today is the “feeling that the fight against terrorism seems to provoke more terror”
(Sierz, 18 April 2004). To emphasize this important theme, Crimp alludes to the Hydra at several points
in the script. The General even outright compares terror to a Hydra and says “for every head I have ever
severed / two have grown in their place” (Crimp 58).
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About the Director: Atom Egoyan
Atom Egoyan is an internationally acclaimed filmmaker. It becomes apparent rather quickly that he is a
natural choice of artist to direct Cruel and Tender at Canadian Stage.
Egoyan commented in an interview with the National Post that Cruel and Tender “is a wonderful play
which is incredibly timely because it’s about disposing of a tyrant…We see this disposing not from
external forces, his bloody and horrific conquests but from within the family structure itself, from the
perspective of his son, his wife, his slave lover, his confidante” (Leong, National Post, 2011). Crimp’s
layered writing can be challenging to portray. Egoyan’s genuine interest in human relationships, also
supported within his films, ensures that the seemingly foreign narrative will be relatable. Furthermore,
Egoyan’s skill at telling a story from multiple angels and perspectives on-screen means that the layers
within Crimp’s text and the playwright’s nuances will be appropriately captured on stage.
Biography
Atom Egoyan’s films have been presented around the world, winning five major prizes at the Cannes
Film Festival (including the Grand Prix), two Academy Award® nominations, and numerous other
honours. His films have won over 25 Genies – including three Best Film Awards – and a prize for Best
International Film Adaptation from The Frankfurt Book Fair. Egoyan’s work has been presented in
several international retrospectives, including a complete career overview at the Pompidou Centre in
Paris, followed by similar events at the Filmoteca Espagnol in Madrid and the Museum of The Moving
Image in New York.
Before his film career, Egoyan began writing and directing plays in his hometown of Victoria and then in
Toronto, where he was part of the inaugural Playwright’s Unit at Tarragon Theatre. Egoyan returned to
the stage with his production of SALOME, which was premiered by The Canadian Opera Company in
1996, and was later presented by Houston Grand Opera as well as several other successful remounts.
His original opera, ELSEWHERELESS, with music by Rodney Sharman, received over 30 performances
throughout Canada, and was nominated for six Dora Awards. In 1998, Egoyan directed the world
premiere of Gavin Bryars’ DR. OX’S EXPERIMENT for English National Opera in London, and also directed
Richard Wagner’s DIE WALKURIE as part of the Canadian Premiere of The Ring Cycle, winning the Dora
for Outstanding Production. On the occasion of Samuel Beckett’s Centenary Celebration in 2006,
Egoyan’s critically acclaimed interpretation of Beckett’s EH JOE was presented by The Gate Theatre in
Dublin, later transferring to London’s West End (with Michael Gambon and Penelope Wilton) and
remounted as part of the Lincoln Center Festival in New York in 2008 (with Liam Neeson). For this
production, Egoyan won The Irish Times/ESB Award for Best Direction.
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Egoyan’s art installations have been presented at the Venice Biennale, the Irish Museum of Modern Art,
Modern Art Oxford, and several other museums and events. His writings have been published in The
New York Times, The Guardian, The Village Voice and several other publications, including his own book
projects. Egoyan has been knighted by the French Government, received State Honors from The
Republic of Armenia, and is an Officer of The Order of Canada.
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Pre-Show Activities
1. The Reasons for War
“Men will turn the cities of other men to dust without reason.
Shame and truth will put on white dresses and hiding their
Beauty from the people will abandon the earth.” (Crimp, 77)
War is a central theme in a significant amount of theatre from the early Greeks to the Modern stage. As
the vicious cycle of warfare continues, so too do the themes that playwrights can tease out compound
and complicate. The quote above comes from one of the final moments in the show from one of the
most complicated characters in the show, Laela an 18 year-old, sub-Saharan African girl, who has been
brought back by the General under mysterious pretenses.
a. Start off by examining this quote with your students. Brainstorm the “reasons for war” that they
can think of based on what they see in the media and what they know from history. If the class
is having trouble, assign this as a point of research and return to it when they have had a chance
to hunt.
b. After a list of examples have been generated divide the class up into groups of 2 – 4, one group
for each example of war. Have half the group represent either side of the warring factions.
c. Set up debates between the two sides (no violence allowed!), trying to address the ultimate
question: Is there a reason for war?
2. Ownership
When he takes me in his arms, the world is bright all right.
What’s the difference if I say I’ll go away, when I know I’ll come back on
my knees some day.
For whatever my man is, I’m his forever more.
(lyrics from Billie Holiday’s “My Man” 1938)
Billie Holiday’s romantic ballad recurs throughout Cruel and Tender and its irony is felt as you look to
Crimp’s take on the inner workings of this dysfunctional family. Ownership, specifically a modern take
on patriarchal ownership through a capitalistic and existential lens are central to this adaptation. All the
people outside of the military are seen as “spoils” of war without any true human quality to them.
a. Examine how war embodies ownership in the minds of all involved. Find examples of how war
becomes ownership from the perspective of those being attacked?
b. Try to think of an actual example from our world today of how war becomes ownership from
the perspective of those attacking?
c. Outline examples of how men embody ownership through the act of war?
d. What are some examples of how women embody ownership through war?
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Extension: Ownership in the media
The majority of the images we know of war come from the media, which is yet another layer of
ownership. Stories, photos, correspondents and cameras become a new kind of currency focused on
reporting but also profiting from war.
a. Have your students study different networks evening news broadcasts. Does war show up?
What shape does this take? What signs of ownership are seen in this broadcast?
The General in Cruel and Tender is the prime force of ownership as he exerts his force and power upon
his enemies however, when we meet him he seems to have fallen from his reputed glory.
b. Have the students explore the media’s ability to profit from these situations. What power
figures have they seen “owned” by the media? What celebrities have they seen “owned” by
the media?
c. Using Billie Holiday’s song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9JFieYfDa8) as the
underscoring, have the student look at the idea of ownership; encourage your students to rely
on movement and abstract ideas, and not exclusively on words. Where do they see ownership
as a dominant force? What does it look like? What is at stake? Find the drama in this moment.
You have 2 minutes and 57 seconds to explore ownership as a performance.
3. He Ain’t No Hercules (or Heracles, even!)
Martin Crimp, in taking on Sophocles’ Trachiniae, has something to say about the modern idea of
heroism and power. Hercules became one of the most famous heroes of Greek Mythology through
triumph over the 12 Labours laid out by the Oracle of Delphi. The Labours were as follows:
1. To kill the Nemean lion
2. To destroy the Lernaean Hydra
3. To capture Ceryneian Hind alive
4. To trap the Erymanthian boar
5. To clean the Augean stables
6. To get rid of the Stymphalian birds
7. To capture the Cretan bull
8. To round up the Mares of Diomedes
9. To fetch Hippolyte's girdle, or belt
10. To fetch the cattle of Geryon
11. To fetch the golden apples of the Hesperides
12. To bring Cerberus from Tartarus.
(Ruck, et al., The World of Classical Myth, 1994)
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a. Have the students look into Hercules as a hero, as a man, even as a Disney character. What are
the qualities, images, characteristics and traits that define a hero for the Greeks?
b. Either through dramatization, scene-creation, sketch or creative writing, depict what a modern
hero looks like.
c. Hercules was fighting so hard so that he could reach atonement, what do modern heroes fight
for?
d. What Labours can you imagine for your modern hero?
4. A Modern Chorus
The Chorus is an essential component of early Greek theatre and often the meaning of the play was
made explicit to the audience through the Chorus who could speak as the audience to the audience.
a. Have the students imagine themselves as the protagonist of their life’s epic drama. Who would
be their chorus, what would this look like?
b. Have students break into groups and stage the Parodos (the first entrance of the chorus into the
orchestra and the first appearance of the hero/heroine) in a modern circumstance. How would
their modern Chorus speak, dress, communicate? What does the main character have to say?
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Post-Show Activities
1. Adaptation
In Cruel and Tender, Crimp was able to give an old story modern context.
a. Identify a classical tale that may be adaptable in order to make a point to a modern audience.
b. Have students outline, write or stage an adaptation of this original story that will effectively
resonate for classmates either independently or in small groups.
2. Image of Women
In the Pre-show activities, we focused on the preconceptions and even masculine predisposition
towards war and violence.
a. Now that you have seen the play, discuss what Crimp is saying about women in Cruel and
Tender. Identify if there is there any tenderness to Crimp’s portrayal of women? Any cruelty?
Extension: The Greeks staged plays to honour the gods and the goal for the characters in the play was to
inform the public about how not to behave. Why do you think Crimp wrote this adaptation? What are
the goals characters? How has the image of men, women, children and the public changed after seeing
Cruel and Tender?
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Classroom Activities as designed by Young Vic Theatre Company
Please note: These activities are specific to the production seen in London in 2004 and may not
pertain to the Canadian Stage production directed by Atom Egoyan.
Full document may be found at:
http://www.youngvic.org/taking-part/schools-colleges/resource-packs
A Wiener Festwochen, Chichester Festival Theatre
and Young Vic production
Cruel and Tender
by Martin Crimp
after Sophocles’ Trachiniae
Directed by Luc Bondy
Resource Pack
1.
Compare the two versions of how Laela and her brother came to be in Amelia’s house:
Version 1
JONATHAN
A man called – exactly – thank you – Seratawa - …Seratawa was using the camp – well not camp but city
– was using the city of Gisenyi – is this right? – to recruit and to train terrorists – many of them, I’m sorry
to say, children.
So what do you do? I’ll tell you what you do, Amelia, you send in the General. You tell him to forget blue
cards. You tell him to forget the conventional rules of engagement. Because if you want to root out
terror – there is only one rule: kill. We wanted that city pulverised – and I mean literally pulverised – the
shops, the schools, the hospitals, the libraries, the bakeries, networks of fountains, avenues of trees,
museums – we wanted that so-called city turned – as indeed it now has been – irreversibly to dust.
Now as for these children, the General found them in a drain, Amelia. And the General being what he is
– what you and I both know him to be – I mean not just a soldier, but a man – and not just a man – a
father – a husband. Being all those things, he has asked me – which is delicate, I realise – but asked me
to bring these children who couldn’t stand up for blood – who were slipping, Amelia, in that drain,
barefoot on the blood, and on the pulverised bone of their brothers and sisters – has asked me to bring
them to this house to remind us – to remind each one of us – of our common – I hope – humanity.
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Version 2
RICHARD
Here come the helicopters. And here come the rockets bursting out of the rocket-tubes. And here are
the bottles of blood bursting in the hospital refrigerators. And oh – look – these are the patients blown
off their beds onto the broken glass. And here are some heads on poles, Amelia…
AMELIA
Boring, boring – you think I don’t / know all this?
RICHARD
And here – oh look – what’s this? What’s this, Amelia? Who’s this? Who’s this girl? Her name is Laela.
And he wants this girl so much – so much – he is so – what’s the word? – inflamed – he is so – that’s
right – inflamed – that in order to take this girl from her father he is prepared to murder not just the
father, but the inhabitants of an entire city…
HOUSEKEEPER
Don’t listen to him / Amelia.
RICHARD
…of an entire city. Yes. Then ship the girl and what remains of her family…(Shines beam at
Amelia.)…back to his own wife.
2.
Why does Jonathan lie to Amelia? What does this suggest about the political world he inhabits?
What techniques does a ‘spin-doctor’ use to massage the truth? (A spin-doctor might play down the
significance of a terrible event, or ‘bury’ it in an account of an even more terrible event. He might try to
distract his listeners by referring to minor or irrelevant details.) Jonathan claims the General was acting
under orders from the Government (and so exonerates him of the cruelty of slaughtering an entire city).
He then appeals to Amelia’s love for her husband, emphasising the General’s humanity and his
exceptional qualities as a father. Note the frequent use of dashes, which signal the constant changes of
direction in Jonathan’s speech, as he attempts to frame the ‘official’ version of events as he goes along.
3.
For this exercise split the group into pairs. A secretly tells B a terrible piece of news. B must now
try to ‘spin’ this into a positive statement and present it to everyone else in the room. For example, A
might say: ‘All the dogs in Battersea Dogs Home have died of the ‘flu.’ B must turn this into a piece of
good news. What techniques might B use to convince people he/she is telling the truth? B might
introduce the information in a roundabout way, saying, for example: ‘It has long been thought that an
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oversupply of dogs in London leads to disease and causes suffering for all those dogs which are
abandoned by their owners.’ B might try to distract listeners by asking: ‘Have you ever thought about
having a hamster as a pet?’ and then go on to describe the qualities of hamsters, before telling the
audience why dogs don’t make good pets. Suggest that the pupils think about body language and
presentation as they give their ‘version’ of A’s bad news. They might look their listeners very
deliberately in the eye, to convince them that nothing is being hidden. They might emphasise certain
words, to draw the listeners’ attention to positive actions and outcomes. Think about body language –
will their arms be folded authoritatively or their hands clasped in appeal? What tone of voice will they
adopt? Will they be frivolous or serious?
The group can then guess what the true statement was. Finally A can then reveal the true facts. The
group should consider together what techniques are most effective in convincing people of something.
Though the manipulation in these examples is extreme, we often try to influence, persuade or affect
one another when we speak. Dramatic language is active – it seeks a reaction. When actors deliver a line
in a play, they think about what their intention is, and try to express that in the way they speak, stand,
move, etc. If their intention is to convince someone of the truth of what they are saying, everything they
do will be aimed at achieving this. They might have to win the listener’s trust, hold their attention,
flatter them or frighten them into believing them; whatever they do, they must remember that their
words and movements are the tools with which to do it.
4.
Compare the opening passages of Sophocles’ Trachiniae and Martin Crimp’s Cruel and Tender:
Trachiniae
Cruel and Tender
DEIANIRA
AMELIA
It’s a long-established saying amongst men
There are women who believe
That no one knows his fate before his death,
all men are rapists.
Nor how his life will turn out, good or ill.
I don’t believe that
Well, I know mine. It will not take my dying
because if I did believe that
To recognize my life as ill-starred, full of grief.
how – as a woman – could I go on living
When I was still in my father Oeneus’ house
with the label ‘victim’?
I first acquired a desperate fear of sex.
Because I am not a victim – oh no Worse than any unmarried girl in Aetolia.
That’s not a part I’m willing to play – believe me
It was a river asked father for my hand, She smiles.
I mean, of course, Achelous, who had three forms.
I was just fifteen
First he would come as a raging bull and then
living with my father
In the shape of a wriggling snake, or else
living very, very quietly with my father
In the form of a beef-faced man with a sooty beard
when the first man came to my father
Spewing out water like a river in spate.
wanting me. He described to him
With the threat of a lover like that confronting me
the various ways he wanted me
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I prayed for death to release me once and for all
short skirt
From the horrors of this monster’s marriage-bed.
shoes
And, in the nick of time, to my relief,
The son of Alcmena and Zeus came to my rescue,
Stopped eating.
Great Heracles, who made a formal challenge
To try and set me free. What kind of battle they fought
I can’t say. I didn’t see it. If you want to know
You’ll have to find someone who dared to watch.
I cowered there, paralysed with fear,
eyes
The fear that beauty like mine can only lead to misery.
Zeus decreed that the fight should end happily.
Happily, I suppose. But since I’ve been Heracles’ wife
I’ve worried about him ceaselessly, night and day.
Fear breeds fear. Night follows lonely night,
Dispelling some fears, creating others, worse.
We’ve had a family but he sees them no more often
general Than a farmer visits his boundary field,
Once to sow it, and then again to reap it.
while I listened outside the door in the very
and the very high-heeled agonising
I had begged and begged to be allowed to wear.
I ran up to my room. Locked the door.
She smiles.
Three years later and I’m married incredibly – to a soldier to the only man
who has ever remembered the colour of my
after a single conversation under a tree.
I am eighteen years old and I have a house
a husband and a bed a bed with white pillows and a child. I became the mother of a child even if he – the father the soldier who is by now of course the great
only sees this child at distant intervals
like a farmer inspecting a crop
in a remote field.
5.
Just from looking at the two passages on the page ask the group to consider what is the main
difference between them? How would they describe Martin Crimp’s dialogue?
Note the repetition of words and phrases. What effect does this have? By stressing ideas and images like
this, Amelia summons them back into her mind and emphasises their importance to her. The repetition
may also imply that Amelia spends a lot of time thinking about the past. Perhaps it also suggests that
Amelia is strong-minded, emphatic, deliberate in her thoughts and actions. You will often find a link
between a character’s emotional state and the manner of her speech.
Remember that dramatic language is active: each of the sentences in Amelia’s speech implies an action.
These actions may not be physically represented, but they may be suggested in the way the actor
delivers the line.
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6.
Look, for example, at Amelia’s line, and read the line aloud as a group in unison:
‘Because I am not a victim – oh no –
that’s not a part I’m willing to play – believe me.’
Ask the group to consider what action is implied in Amelia’s statement? Try to think of a transitive verb
(i.e. a word that describes doing something to someone or something else) to express her action here.
You might say, ‘Amelia pushes the thought away’.
Divide the group into pairs and ask them to stand opposite each other. A speak the line while
performing the action they have chosen. They should try pushing against their partner as they speak the
words. Suggest they imagine their partner is a bad thought that they are trying to get rid of, as if literally
pushing the thought away. B should make it difficult for A by leaning towards them and trying not to
give way. They should actively struggle to push their partner away from them.
A should read the line again; this time facing their partner but not performing the action. As they speak
the words to their partner, they should try to remember what it felt like and how their voice sounded as
they pushed against their partner. They should try and keep this physical sense of resistance, of
pushing, in their mind and body as they speak.
7.
Now look at the closing passages of both plays with the group:
Trachiniae
Cruel and Tender
HERACLES
up
On then. Be resolute, my soul.
her
Before the pain floods back,
herself
Lips set like stone, steely, muzzling,
Muffling the scream,
Grudging but the end is triumph.
The HOUSEKEEPER is the first to start clearing
was
HYLLUS
Raise him aloft as you carry him.
Forgive me my complicity.
The Gods, not men, are the true cause,
Of everything that happens,
Claiming a father’s respect
the mess from the overturned trolley. 3 joins
and helps. 2 goes over to LAELA and helps
to some of the food on LAELA’s plate. LAELA
reads aloud from her book.
LAELA
(reads) “I wish I was not of this people. I wish I
dead or still un…un…” (shows word)
2
Unborn – not born yet.
LAELA
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But overlooking all our suffering.
We are the
No mortal man can see the future,
we
The present’s bad enough.
be
The cruelest fate that any man endured,
The Gods should be ashamed.
“Or still…unborn. We are the people.
people of iron. We work by day and in the night
grow sick and die. Our babies will be…born, will
born with grey hair and god will destroy us.”
1
You too, women of Trachis, away from this house.
For you have witnessed strange and terrible deaths,
Horrors never seen before.
Zeus’ fault. All of it. The fault of Zeus.
(under breath) That will do, Laela.
LAELA
“Father will not respect son and the son will…”
despise?
2
Despise – that’s right – his/father.
LAELA
“Will despise his father and hurt his father with
cruel
words. The children of the people of iron will
cheat
their parents of what is owed to them,
condemn them,
and disobey their wishes.”
1
(as before) I said that’s enough.
LAELA
“Men will turn the cities of other men to dust
without
reason. Shame and truth will put on white dresses and hiding their…beauty from the people will
abandon the earth.” (slight pause) “They will go/ up into –
1
Enough now. You can help us clear up this mess.
LAELA
Clear up the mess? (smiles) That is your job.
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James appears, holding the child in his arms.
A plane passes on its way to the airport.
The ending of Cruel and Tender is radically different from that of Trachiniae. How would you describe
the language and the tone of Sophocles’ ending? The final statement is formal and grand, and offers an
overview or moral summary of the preceding action. It looks outwards to the role of the gods in the
characters’ lives. By contrast, the ending of Martin Crimp’s Cruel and Tender is less formal. Laela
struggles to read from a book as the assistants look on. She demonstrates that she is now the mistress
of the house. There is no reference to the gods or fate at all.
8.
Who is the hero of Cruel and Tender? What qualities make him or her a hero, or are there no
heroes in Martin Crimp’s play? It is clear who Hyllus (Heracles’ son) blames for the family’s misfortunes
in Sophocles’ play but this is less clear in Crimp’s version. Ask the group to consider the following
questions regarding Cruel and Tender.
Who is responsible for the tragedy and destruction within the household and beyond it?
Has Laela brought destruction to the General’s family, or is she merely a catalyst for inevitable
violence?
Is the General responsible, since he brought war and horror to many and brought his young mistress
home to be looked after by his wife? Or is Amelia responsible, since she poisoned her husband,
thinking to win his love? Or is her former companion, the scientist who made the terrible nerve agent,
ultimately responsible for what happens in the play?
Or are they all to some extent responsible for their misfortunes?
Laela reads from a book at the end of the play. What sort of message does the book offer? Why does
assistant 1 try to stop her from reading it?
What does Laela’s final line suggest about her ‘journey’ through the play? What sort of woman has
she become by the end of the play? Why does she show no apparent grief over the downfall and
suffering of the General?
Has Laela been corrupted by the material wealth and luxury of her life in the General’s house?
Perhaps her terrible experiences in Gisenyi at the hands of her lover have made her immune to pain.
Martin Crimp offers no clear answers to the questions raised by the play. In these discussions, there is
no right or wrong, only the recognition that human beings can be both cruel and tender, weak and
strong at once, and that the line between triumph and disaster can be crossed in an instant.
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Works Cited
Atom Egoyan Faculty Page. (n.d.). Retrieved 12 6, 2011, from European Graduate School:
http://www.egs.edu/faculty/atom-egoyan/biography/
Crimp, M. (2004). Cruel and Tender after Sophocles' Trachiniae. London: Faber and Faber Limited.
Cruel and Tender. (n.d.). Retrieved December 1, 2011, from Theatre Pro:
http://theaterpro.com/cruelandtender.html
Fisher, P. (2004, August 12). Reviews - Cruel and Tender. Retrieved December 1, 2011, from The British
Theatre Guide: http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/crueltender-rev.htm
Ginman, J. (1 October 2004). Cruel and Tender: Metaphysics and Performance in a Time of Terror.
Western European Stages .
Leong, M. (2011, February 23). Atom Egoyan to direct play for Canadian Stage. Retrieved December 6,
2011, from National Post: http://arts.nationalpost.com/2011/02/23/atom-egoyan-to-direct-play-forcanadian-stage/
Little, R. a. (2004). Resource Packs. Retrieved December 15, 2011, from Young Vic:
http://www.youngvic.org/taking-part/schools-colleges/resource-packs
Mirzaii, L. (2009, February 10). Cruel and Tender. Retrieved November 2, 2011, from Nouse: University
of York's Student Newspaper: http://www.nouse.co.uk/2009/02/10/cruel-and-tender-3/
Sierz, A. (18 April 2004). Interview: Greek Tragedy and the War on Terror. Sunday Telegraph London .
Sierz, A. (2006). Martin Crimp in Conversation with Aleks Sierz: The Question is the Ultimate in
Discomfort. New Theatre Quarterly , 352-360.
Sierz, A. (2006). The Theatre of Martin Crimp. London: A & C Black Publishers Ltd.
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This Study Guide was created and compiled by:
Erin Schachter, Education & Enrichment Manager
Jessica Warnock, Interim Education Manager
Brendon Allen, Member of Educator Advisory
Kevin Parkin, Education department Intern
Educator Outreach Program Sponsor:
Production Sponsor of Cruel and Tender:
Canadian Stage Educator Advisory Committee, 2011.2012
Sally Spofforth, Marc Garneau
Brendon Allen, The Bishop Strachan School
Anne-Louise Bannon, Marshall McLuhan
Michael Limerick, Monarch Park
Laurence Siegel, Arts Education Consultant
Christine Jackson, TDSB
Janet O’Neill, TDSB
Melissa Farmer, Branksome Hall
Jessica Warnock
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Education and Enrichment Programs
For more information about this show and our education programs visit www.canadianstage.com or
contact Canadian Stage’s Education & Enrichment Manager Erin Schachter at
[email protected] or 416.367.8243 x 280
Don’t miss your chance to bring your class to this exciting production of Cruel and Tender!
By booking a group, you will receive:
An invitation to Educator Preview Night
Opportunities for workshops at your school or at the theatre
Affordable ticket prices
One low service charge
Flexible payment terms
Complimentary tickets
To book your school group, contact Sales Manager James Metcalfe at [email protected] or
416.367.8243 x276
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