A theatrical play, adaptation of Anthony Burgess's 'A Clockwork Orange'
PREFACE
A woman in this world, being born in a patriarchal family, in a village called Armenohori in a small town called Florina, in the north west of Greece. The only girl between the three siblings. I was born in 1990 in Greece and I experienced the meaning and feeling of being the girl and later the woman, the ‘other’ gender.
This is written and presented in a world that women still fight for their rights. Although much have changed especially in liberal places such as London, there is still a long ride to go. We, the future designers, what can we change? How we see and translate this world with our designs?
Writing and creating this project, it has been a real journey, facing my fears, shaking my relationships and full of emotions, difficult to confront.
This is a reinterpretation of the ‘A Clockwork orange’, Stanley Kubrick’s film and Anthony Burgess’s book and play, about the social changes, about gender in relation to architecture, design and space.
This is Alexia’s past, present, in between and future. The story is divided in 4 parts and 4 spaces.
CHARACTERS
A CLOCKWORK
ORANGE ALEXIA
ALEXIA MOTHER
FATHER
PETRA
DIMITRA
GEORGIA
BILL
ALEXANDER
Part One
1
THE SET-NATIONAL THEATRE (NT)
It is a summer day in the capital city. Signs shows where we are. It is not clear if this is the future present or past. A dystopian unequal reality and social disorder.
Alexia is a revel girl. The energy of her youth has not yet learned how to express through creation but instead through aggression, which is stimulated by Beethoven and milk.
HER HOME
There is this underpass that leads to her home. Following the stairs, that take you to the eastern side of the NT building.
The garish décor and colour scheme, the old sculptures in the living room. Walls with work of art and modern furniture. Ordinary views of domesticity and activity and on the other hand extraordinary feeling of environment .
There is a knock on the door.
She is asleep.
-MOTHER
Alexia wake up.
-ALEXIA
What do you want?
-MOTHER
It’s past eight, you don’t want to be late for school daughter. The children, your brothers, have already gone.
-ALEXIA
Alright, Mum...
Alexia enters at the kitchen.
The fridge has only bottles of ordinary white milk.
She then walks to the living room where Father is sitting in his leather armchair.
-FATHER
Ah, Alexia, girl, awake at last, yes?
Are you doing anything wrong?
-ALEXIA
To what do I owe this extreme pleasure , sir and not you are at work sir?
-FATHER
I am very disappointed from you girl. You are doing I hear things that only the boys should do.
So what are you doing Alexia girl that you shouldn’t? Because next time the tower will be your room.
-ALEXIA
I’ve been doing nothing I shouldn’t , nothing I shouldn’t sir, I mean.
-FATHER
What gets into you all women? We study the problem but we have not find the answer a century, yes. We have a good society here, yes, a good home here, yes and good loving parents. Why the evil that crawls inside of you?
I have to return to work Alexia, girl. You should continue your day with your studies.
Father leaves the house.
Alexia waits and follows by leaving the house to find the gang waiting for her.
Part Two
2
THE KOROVA MILK BAR
-ALEXIA
There was me Alexia, the three sisters, Petra, Georgia and Dina and we walking towards the Korova milk bar trying to make up what to do with the evening. The Korova Milk Bar sold milk, which is what we were drinking. This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-energy.
There were four girls you could see, in suits giving a strong powerful image. White trousers connotation of purity. Dark black and grey suits except from one, Alexia. Her suit was in the colour red, indicating the leadership of the female group.
-GEORGIA
What’s this of the red there? What’s this of a leader? You Alexia the bolshy then? We gov-erned not before of a leader. It was all for one before and all droogs together? Right?
-PETRA
Oh very much right.
-ALEXIA
Wrong Petra, wrong Georgia. There is got to be someone in charge. Who do you see? Dina the dim? Or Alexia the red? There is those that come ripe for the job some are like scum. You? You won’t do. Petra is dam. Georgia is a slob. There is some get born horned like a ram. Who blows the horn? Me, not she or two or three. So that is sorted. Let’s go to the theatre!
ALEXIA SINGS:
I’m singing’ in the rain
Just singing’ in the rain
What a glorious feeling
I’m happy again
I’m laughing’ at clouds
So dark up above
The sun’s in my heart
And I’m ready for love
Let the stormy clouds chase
Everyone from the place
Come on with the rain
I’ve a smile on my face
I’ll walk down the lane
With a happy refrain
Just singing’…
The sign shows the Korova milk bar. This is where the female society is. Striped flooring like home but not that kind of stripes. Rebellious stripes. Red for the colour of women, pillars stable and pillars hanging to show that this is a different place, where the rules of society and men do not apply here. Colourful sofas, red, purple, pink. Concrete, smooth lighting, red curtains and four velvet penous-like armchairs waiting the droogs to be sited. Women legs for floor lamps and glasses where the milk is served in the shape of a uterus. The girls are tired and thirsty.
-ALEXIA
We were all feeling a bit shagged and fagged and fashed, it having been an evening of some small energy expenditure, O my sisters, such a good idea to be stopped at the Korova for a cap of the pure white in colour maternal milk.
Dim orders the milk for all them from the waiter boy and then joins the others. Alexia looks at a party of tourists they are sitting next to their chairs.
-ALEXIA
There was some sophistos around laughing. The Devotchka was smecking away, and not caring about the wicked world one bit. Then the disc twanged off and out, and in the short silence before the next one came on, she suddenly came with a burst of singing, and it was like for a moment, O my sisters, some great bird had flown into the milk bar and I felt all the malenky little hairs on my plott standing endwise, and the shivers crawling up like slow malenky lizards and then down again. Because I knew what she sang. It was a bit from the glorious 9th, by Ludwig van.
Dimitra makes a lip-trump followed by a dog owl, followed by two fingers pronging twice in the air, followed by a clowny guffaw.
Alex takes the glasses and pours it to Dimitra’s head because of her rudeness.
-ALEXIA
That’s enough for now, Dimitra you destroyed the atmosphere. Let’s follow the signage on the concrete wall for the stage theatre. There will be some boys there. It will be fun watching them doing their boys things.
Part Three
3
THE STAGE
Orange Oranges all over the floor showing that something is not working right. There is not even a clock here.
-ALEXIA
Really queer!
Leg-watchers only and a mattress on the stage waiting for the play that starts at 4 this evening.
Alexia indicates that someone has arrived.
-ALEXIA
Well if isn’t that fat stinking Bill bullyboy and his gang.
-BILL
Who did you call fat, eh? Me? Let’s go men!
There is now a fight happening very exactly choreographed in the manic music.
The girl’s faces are one with floor carpet pattern. White with thin red blood river running down.
One lost fight again. But the thing is there are no clockwork oranges around.
-ALEXIA
Let’s go to the future room to clean our faces.
There is a woman here that may help us.
A man and not a woman approaching the 4 droogs.
-ALEXIA
There’s been an accident sir and I don’t have a phone. Can you help us?
-ALEXANDER
Come on girls I will lead you to the future fantasy space to help you clean up and call your fathers.
They all pass the concrete hall and enter the future fantasy, that is to say a non-named, non-gendered, bathroom like space.
Part Four
4
FUTURE FANTASY
-ALEXIA
This is the real weepy and like tragic part of the story began and ended with this man’s help. O my sisters, brothers and friends. This has not sentenced us. This future fantasy room, is a different space I see that exists. Men and women together. No female or male thrones. One sit for a man and one for a woman. Not a prison, nor the biggest tower of the building. Is is a open space for everyone and for all.
Good mornings to new days and I will say tomorrow here next to the Thames. With no fights and officers fathers. There is a treatment and not that of the brain’s of women but a different one. The treatment of architecture and design that create a real future brighter with no ruled spaces and places.
And what do you know, my brothers and sisters, it is as the Ninth, the glorious Ninth of Ludwig van.
The door closes behind her.30 31
SOME LAST WORDS
Because the story of Alex and ‘A clockwork orange’, is a story about characters, socie-ties, freedom, architecture, gender.
Kubrick’s and Burgess’s worlds are so familiar today.
That was my clocwork orange with a twist.
What are the rules of gender?
How women appeared and appear?
Does architecture have a gender?
Does the architecture of film have gender?
Can architecture and design tell a story?
I wrote this story to open a discussion about politics of gender, architecture and film.
A play by Danai Batskou
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