Getting Married TITLE OF SOURCE: AUTHOR'S NAME - FIRST: LAST: DESCRIPTION: Visual Text A dozen-or-so assorted Shavian characters, quarrelling about whether the wedding they're all gathered to attend should take place.<br><br>An excerpt: (NMI note: "Leo" in the following excerpt is a woman.)THE GENERAL. Would you, a Bishop, approve of such partnerships?<br><br>THE BISHOP. Do you think that I, a Bishop, approve of the Deceased Wife's Sister Act? That did not prevent its becoming law.<br><br>THE GENERAL. But when the Government sounded you as to whether youd marry a man to his deceased wife's sister you very naturally and properly told them youd see them damned first.<br><br>THE BISHOP [horrified] No, no, really, Boxer! You must not--<br><br>THE GENERAL [impatiently] Oh, of course I dont mean that you used those words. But that was the meaning and the spirit of it.<br><br>THE BISHOP. Not the spirit, Boxer, I protest. But never mind that. The point is that State marriage is already divorced from Church marriage. The relations between Leo and Rejjy and Sinjon are perfectly legal; but do you expect me, as a Bishop, to approve of them?<br><br>THE GENERAL. I dont defend Reginald. He should have kicked you out of the house, Mr. Hotchkiss.<br><br>REGINALD [rising] How could I kick him out of the house? He's stronger than me: he could have kicked me out if it came to that. He did kick me out: what else was it but kicking out, to take my wife's affections from me and establish himself in my place? [He comes to the hearth].<br><br>HOTCHKISS. I protest, Reginald, I said all that a man could to prevent the smash.<br><br>REGINALD. Oh, I know you did: I dont blame you: people dont do these things to one another: they happen and they cant be helped. What was I to do? I was old: she was young. I was dull: he was brilliant. I had a face like a walnut: he had a face like a mushroom. I was as glad to have him in the house as she was: he amused me. And we were a couple of fools: he gave us good advice --told us what to do when we didnt know. She found out that I wasnt any use to her and he was; so she nabbed him and gave me the chuck.<br><br>LEO. If you dont stop talking in that disgraceful way about our married life, I'll leave the room and never speak to you again. COMMENTS: Visual Text Mainly a dissertation about marriage; not really a play, although it's in dialogue form, and there are some changes which happen to the characters. But at its core it is a treatise, not a story, and hence, ill-suited for adaptation to the musical stage. CANDIDATE FOR ADAPTATION?: --- not set --- Not reviewed Promising Unlikely SOURCE MATERIAL: Fable Novella Play Plot summary Short Story -- Parent -- GENRE: Comedy Comic Horror Detective Drama Fable Fairy Tale Fantasy Folklore Folktale Ghost Story Melodrama Mystery Myth Operetta Other Romance Suspense Young Audiences -- Parent -- SETTING: Africa America England Europe Fantasy International New Zealand Pastoral Rural Rustic Science Fiction -- Parent -- LENGTH FOR ADAPTATION: 10 Minutes 15 Minutes 30 Minutes 45 Minutes 60 Minutes 90 Minutes Two Hours -- Parent -- URL FOR PDF DOCUMENT: GettingMarried.pdf
