2008 Woodie Awards
The Pendulum Swings
Iustin Moga
Issue date: 1/24/08 Section: Arts & Features
On December 4, 2007, students of Professor Janet Godwin's First-Year Seminar, "British Comedy", mounted a performance of a slightly absurd comedy: One-Way Pendulum by N. F. Simpson.
In a way, the show depicts the day-to-day activities of an English family and the efforts of its members to escape the mundane. Kirby Groomkirby is engaged in scientific research to try to teach weight-speaking scales to sing - using Pavlov's dog experiments as a model. Although he may sound eccentric, he is not the only one to be characterized that way. His sister Sylvia, played by first-year Jane Scheinman, complains to her mother about the short length of her arms, and shows off her "Momento Mori", which is supposed to remind her of death. This keepsake was given to Sylvia by her sweetheart, Stan, whom she is supposed to be seeing in the evening.
The plot begins to unfurl as the play spins into confusion with the arrival of Stan, Myra - a family friend who gets paid to eat up food - and old Aunt Mildred, who rants on the topic of transportation to the Outer Hebrides. Through the conversations of the characters, the audience finds out that Arthur Groomkirby, played by first-year Dan Gleason, enjoys studying legal processions and trials. Eventually, the play moves on to a courtroom scene in which Kirby Groomkirby, the son of Arthur Groomkirby and played by senior Ryan Dunbar, is on trial for murder. After examination of several key witnesses, it was determined that Kirby's method for killing was to tell a joke, then hit the victim over the head with a blunt object. The purpose of this tactic is to allow the victim to die happily.
The interrogation of witnesses is one of the biggest sources of comedy in the play. For example, the prosecuting counsel argues that, due to changes in metabolism during sleep, one individual cannot have a valid alibi for a certain date as he was not the same person on that date. That same night, the judge plays three-handed whist against Arthur without cards. The two argue as to who should be, and who is, the dummy.
In a way, the show depicts the day-to-day activities of an English family and the efforts of its members to escape the mundane. Kirby Groomkirby is engaged in scientific research to try to teach weight-speaking scales to sing - using Pavlov's dog experiments as a model. Although he may sound eccentric, he is not the only one to be characterized that way. His sister Sylvia, played by first-year Jane Scheinman, complains to her mother about the short length of her arms, and shows off her "Momento Mori", which is supposed to remind her of death. This keepsake was given to Sylvia by her sweetheart, Stan, whom she is supposed to be seeing in the evening.
The plot begins to unfurl as the play spins into confusion with the arrival of Stan, Myra - a family friend who gets paid to eat up food - and old Aunt Mildred, who rants on the topic of transportation to the Outer Hebrides. Through the conversations of the characters, the audience finds out that Arthur Groomkirby, played by first-year Dan Gleason, enjoys studying legal processions and trials. Eventually, the play moves on to a courtroom scene in which Kirby Groomkirby, the son of Arthur Groomkirby and played by senior Ryan Dunbar, is on trial for murder. After examination of several key witnesses, it was determined that Kirby's method for killing was to tell a joke, then hit the victim over the head with a blunt object. The purpose of this tactic is to allow the victim to die happily.
The interrogation of witnesses is one of the biggest sources of comedy in the play. For example, the prosecuting counsel argues that, due to changes in metabolism during sleep, one individual cannot have a valid alibi for a certain date as he was not the same person on that date. That same night, the judge plays three-handed whist against Arthur without cards. The two argue as to who should be, and who is, the dummy.
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