The final scene shows that Victoria has left Martin for a polyamorous relationship with Edward and Lin, and they are sharing custody of their son Tommy. Act II has a looser structure, and Churchill played around with the ordering of the scenes. The three of them have a drunken ceremony in which they call up the Goddess, after which characters from Act I begin appearing. When Gerry leaves Edward, Edward, who discovers he is in fact bisexual, moves in with his sister and Lin. Victoria, upset and distant from Martin, starts a lesbian relationship with Lin. Betty has left Clive, her daughter Victoria is now married to an overbearing Martin, and Edward has an openly gay relationship with Gerry. Act 1 ends with the wedding celebrations the final scene of the first act ends with Clive giving a speech while Joshua, watched by Edward (who does nothing), aims his rifle at him and fires as the scene ends with a blackout.Īlthough Act II is set in 1979, some of the characters of Act I reappear – for them, only 25 years have passed. The governess Ellen, who reveals herself to be a lesbian, is forced into marriage with Harry after his sexuality is discovered and condemned by Clive. Clive makes passionate advances to Mrs Saunders, his wife Betty fancies Harry, who secretly has sex with Joshua, and later with Clive's son, Edward. Her arrival is soon followed by Harry Bagley, an explorer. The natives are rioting and Mrs Saunders, a widow, comes to them to seek safety.
Gerry, Edward's lover (normally played by the same actor who plays Betty)Ĭlive, A British colonial administrator, lives with his family, a governess and servant during turbulent times in Africa.Cathy, Lin's daughter, age 5, played by a man (normally the same actor who plays Joshua).Lin, a lesbian single mother (normally played by the same actress who plays Maud).Victoria, her daughter (normally played by the same actress who plays Edward).Edward, her son, now played by a man (normally the same actor who plays Clive).Betty, now played by a woman (normally the same actress who plays Ellen/Mrs.
Joshua, his black servant, played by a white.Gerry, Edward's lover (normally played by the same actor who plays Joshua).Cathy, Lin's daughter, age 5, played by a man (normally the same actor who plays Clive).Lin, a lesbian single mother (normally played by the same actress who plays Ellen/Mrs.Martin, Victoria's husband (normally played by the same actor who plays Harry).Victoria, her daughter (normally played by the same actress who plays Maud).Edward, her son, now played by a man (normally the same actor who plays Betty).Betty, now played by a woman (normally the same actress who plays Edward).Saunders, a widow (played by the same actress who plays Ellen) Victoria, his daughter, a ventriloquist's dummy.Joshua, his black servant, played by a white actor.1.2 Royal Court & New York Productions Ĭharacters Royal Court Production.The New York Production opened at Lucille Lortel's Theatre de Lys on and ran through Septemand was directed by Tommy Tune with an original incidental music score by Maury Yeston. The play was featured in The Royal National Theatre's NT2000 poll of the 100 most significant plays of the 20th century and was also selected for Time Out New York's list of the "best plays of all time". Its humour depends on incongruity and the carnivalesque, and helps to convey Churchill's political message about accepting people who are different and not dominating them or forcing them into particular social roles.Ĭloud Nine is one of Churchill's most renowned works. The play uses controversial portrayals of sexuality and obscene language, and establishes a parallel between colonial and sexual oppression. Act II shows what could happen when the restrictions of both the comic genre and Victorian ideology are loosened. Act I parodies the conventional comedy genre and satirizes Victorian society and colonialism. Each actor plays one role in Act I and a different role in Act II – the characters who appear in both acts are played by different actors in the first and second. However, between the acts only twenty-five years pass for the characters. Act I is set in British colonial Africa in the Victorian era, and Act II is set in a London park in 1979. The two acts of the play form a contrapuntal structure.
It was workshopped with the Joint Stock Theatre Company in late 1978 and premiered at Dartington College of Arts, Devon, on 14 February 1979. Act I: A British colony in Victorian AfricaĬloud Nine (sometimes stylized as Cloud 9) is a two-act play written by British playwright Caryl Churchill.
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