The scene is the living roomkitchen of a small house on an isolated country road, which is shared by jessie and her mother. Jessie cates, an unemployed epileptic with a failed marriage and a deeply troubled son, tells her mother, thelma, that she plans to kill herself before the night is over. Night mother by marsha norman, the 1983 pulitzer winning drama is an emotionally draining play. Summary night, mother a worldclass play by marsha norman opens in the kitchen scene. It has only two characters, jessie cates, the daughter who lives with her mother, thelma cates. Write the rest of the story after deciding where to place the monologue you have written. Night, mother, written in 1981, was marsha normans fifth play. Snl, saturday night live, season 40, episode 1682, reese witherspoon, mothers day, monologue, aidy bryant, kate mckinnon, kyle mooney, cecily strong, sasheer. A middleaged epileptic unable to hold a job or drive with a failed marriage and a drugaddicted runaway son on the wrong side of the law, jessie can find no reason to go on living.
Shaw at first, this late 19thcentury play by george bernard shaw seems like a simple, even witty drama between a goodnatured, headstrong daughter and her mother. Apr 01, 1983 weve got a good life here, says thelma cates to her daughter, jessie, in marsha normans new play, night, mother. Mama, i only told you i was going to kill myself so i could explain it, so you wouldnt blame yourself, so you wouldnt feel bad. What would you do if someone you loved sat down with you one night and calmly told you that they were going to end their life before morning. Gertrudes monologue is memorable from shakespeares most popular tragedy. Edie falco and brenda blethyn in night, mother photo joan marcus as she calmly and methodically cleans her fathers gun, jessie cates matterof. I am not your child, i am what became of your child. Character description, analysis and casting breakdown for thelma cates mama from night, mother join stageagent today and unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. You think you can just leave whenever you want like youre watching television here.
Night, mother thelmas lines rehearsal section 1 quizlet. She is in her early thirties, but too old to be doing this. Audition for night mother at the garage group in teaneck. A oneact play spanning a few hours, this quite simply is the story of a woman, jessie, preparing for her death, and her candid, endearing conversation with her mother, who desperately tries to both. Outwardly normal sissy spacek calmly informs her mother anne bancroft that shes about to commit. Food, love and death in normans night mother inquiries. On a seemingly normal evening, we meet thelma cates mama, an aging mother and widow who lives with her daughter, jessie. Academy awardwinners sissy spacek and anne bancroft star in this powerful drama about a mothers emotional struggle to understand her troubled daughter. It begins with jessie calmly telling her mama that by morning she will be dead, as she plans to commit suicide that very evening. The night, mother community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. Outwardly normal sissy spacek calmly informs her mother anne bancroft that shes about to commit suicide. As the play starts, mama is cataloguing the stocks of sweets which need replenishing. Night, mother is a sharp, terse play that examines the issue of hopelessness in all areas and. Jessie cates, late thirties to early forties, who lives with her mother, thelma.
By one of americas most talented playwrights, this play won the dramatists guilds prestigious hullwarriner award, four tony nominations, the susan smith blackburn prize, and the pulitzer prize in 1983. These are both simple country women, with jessie being the quieter and. In the course of the play, she reveals that she never loved jessie s father and that they had little communication. Burkman in the demeter myth and doubling in marsha normans night mother 1990. Im just not having a very good time and i dont have any reason to think itll get anything but worse. The things we as women know best, norman has explained, have not been perceived to be of critical value to society. Thelma, who is a widow, and jessie, who is divorced. I have no rights to sell this, and it is only to be used for audition purposes. She has begun to feel her age, and so takes it easy when she can, or when it serves her purpose to let someone help her. You may edit and reshape some details if you need to for your plot and theme. The main two characters mama thelma and her daughter jessie futilely talks about the trivial things and jessie reveals her wish and plan to commit suicide that night. Jessie read more pro members only join the stageagent community to read our character analysis for thelma cates mama and unlock other amazing theatre resources. A middleaged epileptic unable to hold a job or drive with a failed marriage and a drugaddicted runaway. She has an air of contentment about her simple existence.
These are both simple country women, with jessie being the quieter and less demonstrative and thelma being more talkative. A oneact play spanning a few hours, this quite simply is the story of a woman, jessie, preparing for her death, and her candid, endearing conversation with. Quizlet flashcards, activities and games help you improve your grades. Night, mother a very brief summary the litterateurs. Its a normal saturday evening in the catess home where mother and daughter, thelma and jessie, live out a rather mundane, humdrum existence. She tries to give reasons and prevent her daughters suicide. In marsha normans pulitzer prizewinning play, a daughter announces to her mother that she will kill herself at the end of the evening, leading to an uneasy completion of routine tasks and a.
Motherdaughter angst, with death in the wings the new. Restaurant morning present day louise is a waitress in a coffee shop. Burkman examines the nature of the motherdaughter relationship in night, mother by comparing jessie and thelma to the mythic demeter and persephone. Its a classic, it will serve you well as an actor to read it, whether or not theres a particular monologue for you right now this second in it. Mothers day apologies monologue with reese witherspoon. Case in point, kathy bates and anne pitoniak as jessie and thelma cates in marsha normans pulitzer prize winning night, mother, a ninetyminute argument for and against jessies intended that also reveals the lifelong complexities of the motherdaughter relationship. Find thousands of great monologues absolutely free. The play is about a daughter, jessie, and her mother, thelma.
Help i need a monologue from the play night mother. The film was entered into the 37th berlin international film festival. She is jessies mother, she is fifty nine years old, she likes speaking, she has a closed mind, because she says soothing and these things are like she says. The play night, mother was written by marsha norman in 1982. Adapted from the play by marsha norman, night, mother is the story of a parents worst nightmare. Monologue from night, mother, written by marsha norman. Feb 06, 2014 i think there are quite a few in that play, but here is one. In an ideal production of night, mother, everyday activity should be part of a persuasive, hypnotic spell woven by a woman who, for the first time in her life, knows exactly what she wants. Normans plays like night, mother explores the psyche of someone who plans and coolly organizes her suicide. Mother was adapted by marsha norman from her own harrowing pulitzer prizewinning play. Jessie from night, mother by marsha norman monologue search. It was directed by tom moore and written by marsha norman based on her pulitzer prize winning play of the same name. Weve got a good life here, says thelma cates to her daughter, jessie, in marsha normans new play, night, mother. When night, mother premiered in canada in 1984 the notices were favorable.
Rather than having a true appetite for life, mamas appetite for sweets symbolizes her need for a slave for her deathinlife experience, a way of filling up emptiness and hiding from her fear of life and death. The play opened in massachusetts and appeared on broadway shortly after. The play opens with jessie asking her mother where a particular gun is kept. After weeks of preparing, jesse finally tells her mother. Dec 22, 2017 academy awardwinners sissy spacek and anne bancroft star in this powerful drama about a mother s emotional struggle to understand her troubled daughter. Complete summary of marsha norman, marsha williams night, mother. Heaven forbid you actually have a play on your shelf why dont you want to buy the play. In brief, night, mother is a oneact play with two characters on stage. She spends much of her time on needlework, and her creations clutter the family home. Marsha norman suffered from an isolated childhood, so she used her experience of loneliness to write the play. Jessie is the divorced mother of a hoodlum son, who unsatisfied and depressed struggles with life as an unemployed epileptic. Among the numerous honors bestowed upon the play, it. The motherdaughter relationship is a perfect example of that.
Nearly 60, thelma is a woman with the kind of mind that views things as being only as she sees them. I have no rights to sell this, and it is only to be. I couldnt help but remember night, mother, which i had no idea was a playfurther yet, that it garnered the pulitzer prize in 1983. It was directed by tom moore and written by marsha norman based on her pulitzer prizewinning play of the same name. Marsha normans conceptual challenge in night, mother in modern drama, vol. At the plays outset, the middleaged jessie announces to her mother, thelma, that she is going to kill herself. It begins with jessie calmly telling her mama that by morning she will be dead, as she plans to commit suicide that very. It was somebody pink and fat who never heard of sick or lonely, somebody who cried and got fed, and reached up and got held and kicked but didnt hurt anybody, and slept whenever she wanted to, just by closing her eyes. The two main characters in night, mother are jessie cates and her mother thelma, whom jesse calls mama. She is a widow and has one other child, a son named dawson who lives with his wife. As the lights lift, thelma is searching her cabinets for a snowball treat, calling to her daughter as of yet out of sight about nothing in particular.
It had 380 performances while one broadway and was nominated for four tony awards. Night, mother thelmas lines rehearsal section 1 study guide by jewelmcjem includes 364 questions covering vocabulary, terms and more. Jesse is middleaged and lives with mama, taking care of all the details of her. You make me feel like a food for being alive, child and you are so wrong. With sissy spacek, anne bancroft, ed berke, carol robbins. Top 10 list of mommy monologues for women who have an audition coming up where they need to represent a mother character role. The play won the 1983 pulitzer prize for drama and was nominated for the tony award for best play.
She discovers it in a higher shelf and stuffs it happily in her mouth, continuing her monologue around it. Sep 21, 2017 write the rest of the story after deciding where to place the monologue you have written. She is very pretty and meticulously groomed, even at the end of her shift. Jessie read more pro members only join the stageagent community to read our character analysis for thelma cates mama and. Nov 14, 2004 edie falco and brenda blethyn in night, mother photo joan marcus as she calmly and methodically cleans her fathers gun, jessie cates matteroffactly informs her mother thelma that she is. At the end of the period, please pick up night mother by marsha norman from the library. Some actors leave an indelible mark on roles that they create.