The Chester Cycle Noah Play

SMRG put on a play reading of the Noah play,

from the Chester Cycle, at the home of Dr John Ward

on Friday evening, 1st December 2000.

The play was preceeded by a explanatory talk by the President of SMRG,

Dr Kendall St. Clair.

The script is also available. As should be obvious, this is not entirely the same as the original version.

Some highlights from the play:

• God on high, on a step ladder in his pope's robes.
• The chopping block thundering down to earth.
• The animal menagerie sound effects cacophony.
• The Onedin theme snippet, timed to coincide perfectly with Noah's pronouncement that the boat appeared to be moving.
• The Commentator's cracks about the Ark ("three storeys? No rowing boat, this!", and "It's worse than Titanic!").
• The bit with the dove shooting across to Noah, zipping off to God, God stuffing an olive branch down its throat and chucking it back to Noah.
• The stand-in for the raven (the noisy mechanical albatross from The Rescuers).
• The impressive thunderstorm as the ark set off, with a perfectly timed thunderclap punctuating God's pronouncement.
• Noah's exuberant animal slaughter/sacrifice when they reacxh dry ground again.
• And last but not least, John Ward's hospitality, the delicious food and John Rosauer's most excellent specially-created sound-effects CD.

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