The Necklace Story
❖ CHARACTERS: • Narrator 1 • Narrator 2 • Narrator 3 • Narrator 4 • Madame Matilda Loisel • Monsieur Loisel (Matilda's Husband) • Madame Jeanne Forester (Matilda's former schoolmate)
❖ Scene 1: An apartment
[Matilda mimes in concert with the narrators' descriptions.]
NARRATOR 1: This is Matilda, a pretty and charming young woman who happened to be born into a family that didn't have much money. She felt so trapped by her circumstances that she abandoned all expectations of having a better life...
NARRATOR 2: Yes, so eventually she married a man who held a rather low-paying position in a huge company. And her wardrobe...
NARRATOR 3: ...It was so plain and simple, mainly because, on her husband's salary, she could only afford to shop in second-hand stores.
NARRATOR 4: But she always felt as if she had once been a princess and had somehow fallen upon hard times. Her beauty, grace and charm were certainly self-evident...
NARRATOR 2: ...and she came to understand that her natural ingenuity, her instinct for elegance, and her supple mind made her the equal of women who were much better off financially than she.
NARRATOR 4: You can understand how the bare walls, shabby second-hand chairs, and faded hand-me-down curtains in her tiny apartment depressed her and even made her...
NARRATOR 3: ...angry!
NARRATOR 1: Yes, angry! Angry about the injustice of it all!
NARRATOR 2: And she became a daydreamer. She always seemed to be thinking about glittering, luxurious rooms, hung with oriental tapestries, illuminated by tall bronze candelabras...
NARRATOR 4: and servants! She imagined footmen in knee breeches who would fall asleep in the huge over-stuffed armchairs.
NARRATOR 1: She dreamed of reception halls...
NARRATOR 3: ...hung with ancient silks...
NARRATOR 1: ...and dainty little cabinets...
NARRATOR 2: ...overflowing with priceless curiosities from exotic places...
NARRATOR 3: ...and coquettish perfumed
❖ Scene 1: An apartment
[Matilda mimes in concert with the narrators' descriptions.]
NARRATOR 1: This is Matilda, a pretty and charming young woman who happened to be born into a family that didn't have much money. She felt so trapped by her circumstances that she abandoned all expectations of having a better life...
NARRATOR 2: Yes, so eventually she married a man who held a rather low-paying position in a huge company. And her wardrobe...
NARRATOR 3: ...It was so plain and simple, mainly because, on her husband's salary, she could only afford to shop in second-hand stores.
NARRATOR 4: But she always felt as if she had once been a princess and had somehow fallen upon hard times. Her beauty, grace and charm were certainly self-evident...
NARRATOR 2: ...and she came to understand that her natural ingenuity, her instinct for elegance, and her supple mind made her the equal of women who were much better off financially than she.
NARRATOR 4: You can understand how the bare walls, shabby second-hand chairs, and faded hand-me-down curtains in her tiny apartment depressed her and even made her...
NARRATOR 3: ...angry!
NARRATOR 1: Yes, angry! Angry about the injustice of it all!
NARRATOR 2: And she became a daydreamer. She always seemed to be thinking about glittering, luxurious rooms, hung with oriental tapestries, illuminated by tall bronze candelabras...
NARRATOR 4: and servants! She imagined footmen in knee breeches who would fall asleep in the huge over-stuffed armchairs.
NARRATOR 1: She dreamed of reception halls...
NARRATOR 3: ...hung with ancient silks...
NARRATOR 1: ...and dainty little cabinets...
NARRATOR 2: ...overflowing with priceless curiosities from exotic places...
NARRATOR 3: ...and coquettish perfumed