Key words
teenager, angst,
abuse, family, school, suicide, family, love, relationships
Time
Although
not specified by the author it can be deduced that the play takes place
sometime between 2003-2007 as references are made about both Tony Blair being
Prime Minister and the war in Iraq.
Place
Deducing from the text it
seems that this play is set in the suburb of a major city, most likely, in this
case, London. Darryl’s language has a strong
influence of London “street talk”/slang
Specify/accent
Tom
is from Surrey and should be played by a black actor. It is assumed that Darryl
is, in opposition, white.
Characters
Tom (30-35)
Darryl (14)
Jodi (30-35)
Rita (55-60)
Synopsis
After
leaving a good job in advertising in “the city” Tom is retraining as a teacher.
His only pupil, or project, is Darryl: a hyper-active and disruptive
14-year-old boy who has been taken out of mainstream classes.
Darryl’s
mother has recently committed suicide leaving him to live with his Grandmother
and her partner. This means that Darryl has not had the supervision that a boy
of his age requires and has developed a fascination with violence and torture.
Tom
struggles during his one-to-one classes with Darryl and we begin to learn of
Tom’s past. The pressure of working for a big corporation in the city was too
much for him to deal with. This lead Tom to act violently towards his
girlfriend Jodi and in turn become depressed.
Jodi
is pregnant and so proposes to Tom on the basis of a previous agreement that
they had about marriage and pregnancy.
Monologues
and duologues
The play is broken
up into 10 scenes with two characters in each and so is rich in duologues. The
only exception to this is the final scene, in which we briefly see three
characters on stage at one time.
Page11
(duologue – Tom and Darryl) This is scene 1 where we meet Tom and
Darryl. We learn that Darryl is no longer in classes with his peers and we find
out about what happened to his mother.
Page
37 (duologue – Tom and Jodi) We are introduced to Jodi. Throughout
this scene Tom discusses his work whilst Jodi has an ulterior motive. By the
end of this scene we know that Jodi is pregnant and she is engaged to Tom.
Page
51 (duologue – Tom and Darryl) Darryl continues to face Tom with challenging
behavior and we learn that everyone has a breaking point. Tom is pushed to
aggression and Darryl’s disruptive behavior becomes worse than ever.
Page
65 (duologue – Tom and Rita) This is the pair’s first meeting. They
discuss Darryl’s behavior and the influence that Rita’s partner may have on
this. Rita reveals that a large kitchen knife is missing from her home.
Page
75 (duologue – Tom and Darryl) Darryl is now taking medication to
regulate his behavior. His interaction with Tom in this scene is a stark
contrast to what has come previously. Darryl’s disturbing, yet descriptive
piece of writing for English continues to raise concerns about his state of
mind.
Page
80 (duologue – Tom and Jodi) It is the evening of their wedding. The
conversation still revolves around Tom’s work at school with Darryl, much to
Jodi’s displeasure. We see that both are trying to make the relationship work
but things are definitely fraught.
Page
92 (duologue – Tom and Rita) It is the middle of the night and Rita
has been injured by her grandson. Fearing what would happen to Darryl if she
called the authorities she has opted to call Tom instead. Both are concerned
for Darryl’s wellbeing. However, with a baby on the way and his new wife at
home Tom is reluctant to intervene fearing further provocation of violence or
aggression from Darryl.
Page
97 (duologue – Tom and Darryl) Today is Darryl’s last day with Tom
before moving off to a residential school. The pair say their goodbye’s and the
overall mood is fairly optimistic.
Page
102 (duologue – Jodi and Darryl) Jodi is home alone and heavily pregnant
with Darryl pays her a visit. Knowing what he can be like Jodi does not feel
comfortable being alone with Darryl. When asked to leave he refuses and in
doing so antagonizes the situation.
Page
111 (monologue – Jodi) Backed into a corner by Darryl’s
refusal to leave Jodi unleashes her feelings about the boy. She tells him that
he is to blame for his father leaving, his mother’s death and her unstable
relationship with Tom.
Page
113 (duologue – Tom and Rita) The pair meet by Rita’s
daughter/Darryl’s mother’s grave. They discuss Darryl’s progress at his new
school.
Page
117-118 (monologue – Tom) Tom tells Rita exactly how he feels
about Darryl. In this bleak speech, he tells of the emotional strain this young
boy has had on his wife, who now barely leaves the house.
Other
Work by Duncan Macmillan
People Places
Things, Lungs, Every Brilliant Thing
Wrritten by Olivia Seaton-Hill
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