The European Premiere of
THE DRAWER BOY
by Michael Healey
10 Sept - 20 Oct 2001
Miles, a young actor from Toronto with literary aspirations, could scarcely have chosen a more challenging subject for his new play about Canadian farmers than the farm of the two aging bachelors Angus and Morgan. Angus who suffered a head injury during an air raid in London during the Second World War, has never recovered from it’s aftermath and still suffers from short-term memory loss.
Morgan, who cares for hirn like a brother, is a taciturn cynic, who takes a fiendish pleasure in turning Miles’ sojourn at the farm into something resembling a survival training. In spite of several stimulating incidents in the form of a tractor accident, lessons in handling a chain saw and an upsetting encounter with Daisy the cow, Miles is unable to make any headway with his play, until one evening he finds hirnself an unseen witness to the nighdy ritual of the two friends. Morgan relates to Angus the story of their lives in minute detail – how they grew up together, Morgan working on his father’s farm while Angus perfected his drawing skills, how they went off to the war, how they both fell in love while overseas and how they made plans for the future until Angus was injured, how they returned horne with the two girls and married and finally, how their wives died in a car accident.
When Angus and Morgan return horne a couple of days later after seeing the first rehearsal of Miles’ play both are extremely agitated for Miles has incorporated their life story into it without their prior knowledge. Angus can scarcely contain his elation – the experience of seeing the events of his life as a stage drama has acted as a catalyst on his memory and given hirn a new lease of life. Morgan however, is seething with fury over Miles’ indiscretion and intends to throw hirn out of the house. But Angus has taken a liking to the young guest and so Miles remains, oblivious of the chain reaction he has set in motion for Angus suddenly remembers that he has never visited his wife’s grave. He implores Morgan to take hirn there, arequest that Morgan vehemently refuses. But he is powerless to prevent Angus from starting to piece together the puzzle of his past. ..
Morgan, who cares for hirn like a brother, is a taciturn cynic, who takes a fiendish pleasure in turning Miles’ sojourn at the farm into something resembling a survival training. In spite of several stimulating incidents in the form of a tractor accident, lessons in handling a chain saw and an upsetting encounter with Daisy the cow, Miles is unable to make any headway with his play, until one evening he finds hirnself an unseen witness to the nighdy ritual of the two friends. Morgan relates to Angus the story of their lives in minute detail – how they grew up together, Morgan working on his father’s farm while Angus perfected his drawing skills, how they went off to the war, how they both fell in love while overseas and how they made plans for the future until Angus was injured, how they returned horne with the two girls and married and finally, how their wives died in a car accident.
When Angus and Morgan return horne a couple of days later after seeing the first rehearsal of Miles’ play both are extremely agitated for Miles has incorporated their life story into it without their prior knowledge. Angus can scarcely contain his elation – the experience of seeing the events of his life as a stage drama has acted as a catalyst on his memory and given hirn a new lease of life. Morgan however, is seething with fury over Miles’ indiscretion and intends to throw hirn out of the house. But Angus has taken a liking to the young guest and so Miles remains, oblivious of the chain reaction he has set in motion for Angus suddenly remembers that he has never visited his wife’s grave. He implores Morgan to take hirn there, arequest that Morgan vehemently refuses. But he is powerless to prevent Angus from starting to piece together the puzzle of his past. ..
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