And so it begins -
the crumbling of the polished facade,,,
,,the unravelling of the carefully curated life
we've built for ourselves, WHIP CRACKS
Free of scandal and inconvenient truths,
of hidden desires and secret longings,
But should they emerge,,, do we let them lie?
Or do we pursue them?
And are we prepared for the consequences?
SHE SIGHS
Who was that lady that just called?
Did she upset you?
No, no, not at all, I just, erm,,,
Come here and take your linctus,
But it's horrible, And so is whooping cough,
- Now go and do your reading, - Go,
FAINT CHATTERING
Everyone was loving my gown,
So, I was thinking, Mama, I need a new riding coat,
so shall we visit Miss Louisa today?
Oh, er,,, I think not,
She mentioned last night she's booked up
for several months in advance,
Well, she'll fit ME in,
And I wanted to take some bonbons for the children,
No,
No?
Their mother may not want them to have sweet things,
It's so sad, Grandmama,
Their father died before they were born,
and she had to bring them up all alone,
So brave, Yes, very commendable,
All the more reason not to overburden her,
Are you joining us for the opera tonight?
What is it? Traviata? SHE CHUCKLES
All that weeping and wailing annoys me,
THEY CHUCKLE June,,,
You should wear the pink silk,
I've invited the Carterets to our box,
Why?
So we can all become better acquainted,
Hm,
DOOR CLOSES
June must be thrilled, So many young men clamouring to dance,
And what a picture she looked, And that gown was a triumph!
Almost a disaster!
But the girl worked wonders, Girl?
You were ogling her, remember? That little chickabid,
You might've introduced me, I took care not to,
She seemed awfully thick with Jo, The dressmaker?
Who's this? Pretty young thing, quite charming,
Remind me why she was "thick" with Jo?
Well, perhaps he was thanking her for saving the day,
Can you get an appointment with her? That's what I'm hoping for,
After June's ball, everyone will be after her,
Shall we? Mm,
What are you doing?
Seeking employment,
As a typist?
Oh, how demeaning,
I need something to tide me over
until I can find a way to pay for Paris,
Are you still persisting with that madness?
Why wouldn't I?
Ah, congratulations! Thank you,
Congratulations! Thank you very much,
Very well done,
Good to see you, THEY CHATTER
The point is, there is no prior instance
of a chairman resigning,,, No,
,,and therefore no precedent for the eldest son's accession
before his father's death,
So in the case of Jo,,,
Increasingly at odds with the aims of the firm?
If it were brought before the board how much further he might deviate,
how that could endanger the future of the company,,,
The sheer insanity of prizing tradition over merit,
It's archaic, it's wasteful,
and if it goes ahead, a missed opportunity,
It is not a foregone conclusion,
I will insist it be brought before the board,
And in the meantime,,, we build the case against Jo,
SIGHS SOFTLY
BELL RINGING
SHE CHUCKLES
SHE SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY
THEY CHUCKLE
HE SIGHS, DOOR OPENS
I saw her,
At the ball last night, the girl from Venice,
Louisa, How did she come to be there?
She makes gowns, June's gown,
Well, she's a widow, She lives in Soho,
Had you any idea? No, not an inkling,
Will you see her again?
I don't know,
'Were you told who to marry?'
I chose freely,
Your father was my first love,,,
,,and when he died, I was sure I would never get over him,
But you did? Nothing compares to first love,
We persuade ourselves the fever is real,
And then, if we're lucky, we meet our true soulmate
and discover something more,,, profound,
So, Papa's your soulmate?
Like magnets, perhaps,
The attraction of opposites,
Gentlemen,,, today, I can announce
that Forsyte & Co has been offered a unique opportunity,
My old friend Sir Jimmy Buckland has finally succeeded in his scheme
to deploy a tribe from Upper India to the gold mines of Ceylon,
Carried in the teeth of great difficulties,
it should double the output of his mines,
And quarter the lives of his workers?
Well, whether one expires of miserable old age
on one's own barren soil or prematurely of damp
at the bottom of a foreign mine, I hardly,,,
Surely of small consequence as long as it benefits the shareholders,
Well, I imagine it's of some consequence to the widows,
May I continue?
Thank you,
Sir Jim, as a personal favour to me, has given us advance notice
so that we may use the information to our advantage
by offering our clients,
and indeed ourselves, the chance to invest,
It is quite literally a golden opportunity,
It's a risk,
Which we have an impeccable record for calculating,
Still feels like gambling to me,
Are we agreed?
Yes, Agreed, Adjourned,
I'll be back later, I have an appointment,
Hm, Anyone we know?
No, Hm,
Is it to your taste?
I can admire the tonal qualities, but, no, it doesn't move me,
May I ask what does?
A more vibrant style,
something which captures the fleetingness of a moment
rather than preserves it in aspic,
You're a romantic, SHE CHUCKLES
My stepmother says I'm "utterly unfit for decent society",
Your crime? I dance,
The polka, the waltz? The ballet,
Ah, My mother was a dancer, and I seem to have inherited her,,,
Talent? Passion,
There, I said it, Now's your chance to escape,
SHE CHUCKLES And yet,,, as you see,,,
,,I'm still here,
So,,, no escape,
From what?
The opera, the Carterets,
the scheme to throw me to the wolves,,,
Horatio?
Oh, isn't he more of a poodle?
SHE SNICKERS, THEY CHUCKLE
Well, look who I have, I know she's not mine,
But I take her with me when I'm feeling vexed
or miserable,,, and she always cheers me up,
Is that why you got her?
She was a gift, From a friend,
Someone I met in Italy,
An attachment?
Short-lived, Let me guess,
She wasn't "suitable",
You were forbidden to pursue her,
We just went our separate ways,
And then you met Mama,
Yes,
I'm not sure I want to fall in love,
It sounds like torture, HE CHUCKLES
Well, it can also be magnificent,
Hm,
DOG BARKS JAMES: Jo never seems to learn,
Today in the boardroom,
wittering on about widows and gambling,
Oh, poor Cyril, How he frets when he knows I'm going out,
Shall I stay behind and pet him for you?
Oh, dear, no!
That would defeat the whole purpose of the evening,
The purpose being to dangle June and I
before the Carterets and hope they bite?
What he fails to grasp is the need for us to be led
by sound commercial nous,
Darling, we simply want you to find someone who deserves you,
If we're to maintain our position as London's premier brokers,
the board should be worried, And you look so handsome,
The board will be worried, She won't be able to resist you,
I will make sure of that,
PEOPLE CHATTERING
So glad you could join us, Lady Carteret,
Oh, my dear,
To be seen in the company of the illustrious Forsytes,
who wouldn't leap at the chance?
Hm, LADY CARTERET CHUCKLES
Lovely to see so many young people,,,
,,but sad to think they're seldom masters of their own fate,
I like to think we take their views into account,
Tradition is what counts, stability,
No impulsive changing of the guard,
But sometimes, is it not a fresh perspective
that is exactly what is needed?
Provided the proposed candidate's up to the task,
I understand you're an avid reader, Er, well, I,,,
SHE STUTTERS Have you read Frankenstein?
Er, no, I,,,
You'll find you have some sympathy for the creature,
No will of its own, forced to do another's bidding,
until, of course, it rebels,
Ah, I seem to have left my wallet at home,
Perhaps I could prevail on your father,
Or you could just not drink,
Oh, my cousins,
Mama, I might just, erm,,, Of course,
Ooh!
Hm,
I do beg your pardon, Are you hurt?
Do I look like a damsel in distress?
On the contrary,
Are you here with friends? Family,
My mother thinks this is the place to meet the right people,
Would I fall into that category?
SHE CHUCKLES I seriously doubt it,
Do I sense a renegade?
June Forsyte,
Philip Bosinney,
Buccaneer,
BELL RINGS GIRLS: Come on!
PEOPLE CHATTERING
# Addio
# Del passato
# Bei sogni
# Ridenti,,, #
SHE GASPS
# Le rose del volto
# Gia sono,,, #
Hm, Hm,
I adore Traviata,
Makes one positively melt, don't you find?
# Sostegno, ah
# Della traviata
# Sorridi
# Al desio
# A lei
# Deh, perdona
# Tu accoglila
# O Dio
# Or tu
# Tutto
# Fini, #
HOLDS NOTE
APPLAUSE
DOG BARKS Did you miss me, pudding?
Ooh, don't sulk, I promise I'll make it up to you,
Always affecting, Traviata, Lost love and all that,
Perhaps we should be celebrating love found,
Perhaps we should,
Can you believe June tonight?
Determined not to cooperate,
The Carterets, our plans,
Will you speak to her?
Saying what?
That there's a time and a place for everything,
And the time for June is now,
She's 18,
She has to put away childish things,
She worships you, HE CHUCKLES SOFTLY
If you tell her we would only ever choose someone worthy of her,,,
But perhaps you think your father made the wrong choice for you?
I made the choice,
You must go,
I can't bear to leave you,
Your family needs you,
Your father's summoned you home,
When I return,,,
,,where will you be?
Florence? Rome?
Will you write to me, tell me where you'll be?
Jo, stop,
Let's not pretend,
What?
These past few months,,,
Have been the most precious of my life,
And mine too, But,,,
,,we always knew they would come to an end,
Why must they?
Because I am a lady's maid, and you're a gentleman,
What, and no gentleman ever married a lady's maid?
You're dreaming,
Believe me, I'm not,
If you still feel this way in a year's time,,,
I'll feel the same way in 50 years' time,
Then I have your address,
I'll write, HE CHUCKLES SOFTLY
Wherever you are,,,
,,I'll come to you,
BELL RINGS, HORSE WHINNIES
CHATTERING
Jo,,, Louisa,
Louisa, please,
SHE SIGHS
Please, keep your voice down,
My assistant is asleep,
Why have you come?
Honestly, I don't know,
To prove you weren't a figment of my imagination?
Or to see the only person,,, who ever completely understood me,
Did, We are very different now,
And yet here we are,
HE EXHALES
SHE EXHALES
Do you still paint?
Rarely,
It was one of the many things I gave up to serve the god of commerce,
I'm sad to hear it,
Now tell me about your husband, Late husband,
Is there any point in,,,? Well, were you happy?
Did you love him?
BANGING, SHE GASPS
Er, that's my assistant, Erm, she sleepwalks,
You must go,
Please don't come here again,
SHE EXHALES
SHE EXHALES DEEPLY
CHATTERING
THEY SPEAK FAINTLY
Hm, HE CHUCKLES SOFTLY
You needn't have gone to such trouble,
I'm happy with bread and cheese, Oh, so am I,
And when nature arranges a feast for the soul,
what more does one need?
When we lived in Paris, we used to picnic by the Seine,
You were happy there,
When my mother was alive and I could watch her dance,
And you were destined to follow in her footsteps?
As you were destined to follow your father's?
I seem to have a talent for numbers,
In their own way, they have a magic which intrigues me,
You make them sound quite mysterious,
Well, they are, But also immensely practical,
Like you, one learns techniques, one practises one's craft,
But beyond that,,, one learns to trust one's instincts,
Exactly that,
Not that I lay claim to any form of artistry,
SHE LAUGHS Perhaps you underestimate yourself,
HE CHUCKLES
Your dancing, is it the only profession you've ever considered?
I've prepared for it my whole life, And if my audition goes well,,,
Your audition?
I sold my jewellery to go and try for the Corps de Ballet,
In Paris? Yes, in Paris,
And when would this be?
I leave in a month,
Oh, THEY CHUCKLE AWKWARDLY
I'm convinced he has Miss Carteret in his sights,
Pargetter told me he's on the river this afternoon with a picnic!
Which can only mean,,, An imminent announcement,
I'm sure we can all agree Olivia Carteret is an excellent choice,
Certainly fits the bill for a man destined to be chairman,
Miss Heron,,,
,,we've known each other a matter of weeks,
so I've no right to question any choice you might make,
But today when I heard you speak of Paris,,,
Ah, you thought me rash, irresponsible,
Far from it,
I understood the impulse, the desire,
and I recognised that I wished to encourage it,
Encourage?
It's true that Paris has a somewhat shady reputation,,,
SHE CHUCKLES
,,though I myself found it captivating,
You've been?
In my youth,
and would not be averse to visiting again,,,
if you were there,
Though, my family, well, no doubt they'd disapprove,
Perhaps we needn't tell them,
SHE CHUCKLES
DOORBELL CHIMES, DOOR CLOSES
Mrs Forsyte,
I hope I'm not disturbing you,
Won't you take a seat?
I have always been curious about you,,,
,,the girl who first captured his heart,
Not that he ever spoke of you,
One just instinctively knows,,,
that one wasn't the first,
What made you come to my house?
You begged me to, And you were curious,
And hoped to see him?
I've never attempted to see him, I've,,,
I've never tried to contact him,
I've,,, I've never asked him for anything,
Does he know about the children? No,
You understand he never can,
It would ruin him,
In his business, reputation is everything,
And in mine,
I came here with nothing, singlehandedly raised,,,
,,two children whilst building a business,
Do you seriously imagine that I wish to endanger my own good name?
And should he try to see you?
I will tell him to go away,
SHE SIGHS, DOORBELL CHIMES
BELL RINGS
I thought your scrawling days were long gone,
Something you wanted, Soames?
Perhaps you should give it all up,
Quit the grind, and daub away to your heart's content,
Perhaps I should,
Why don't you?
Ask my father, or yours, Ah, of course,
You're here to save us,
How noble,
Good day to you, Soames,
THEY PANT
What did I say, first time we boxed at Oxford?
That I'll never make it as a fighter cos I lack discipline,
HE CHUCKLES I wonder why we became friends,
Because we both needed a punch bag,
And I was missing Soames, HE CHUCKLES
THEY GRUNT
So, brother,,,
,,a number of us have been speaking, and, er,,, well,
we're keen to hear Jo's vision for the company,
Vision? Mm,
Ahead of the vote, What vote?
There'll be no vote, The decision is mine,
Yeah, but must be ratified, It's tradition,
Eldest son to eldest son,
Well, with respect,,,
well, you broke with tradition when you pushed Jo into the chair
before your demise,
Even so,,, I mean, surely,,,
,,you want all the board
to be fully behind the new appointment?
Don't think I don't know what you're about,
You have your eye on the prize for Soames,
I think we both know he's the better man for the job,
Isaac? Er, just curious,
did you pick up any sense from the other partners
what they think of Jo's promotion?
I know what I think,
Tell me,
He's passionate, struggles to compromise,
Mm, But that's why this company needs him,
In ten years, he's never let you down,
I don't believe he ever will,
Thank you, Isaac,
FOOTSTEPS APPROACH
Your father just told me,
Beggars belief, the idea of a vote?!
Expected,
Well, you know James is setting you up to fail,
Quite,
Disappoint him,
You have the vision, the ability,
You deserve it,
We deserve it,
So let's be very considered about our next move,
Not throw it away in a moment of madness,
Cyril, Paw,
Paw, Paw,
Cyril, paw, Paw,,, Ah!
Oh! Well done, Cyril,
That's so funny, There you go, clever dog,
DOG BARKS, SHE LAUGHS
Someone's looking pleased with themselves,
Happy Miss Carteret! Happy Soames, if he's any sense!
Which I'm certain he does, Well, I mustn't be late,
I told June I'd take her with me, but Frances has forbidden her to go,
Go where? The dressmaker, Mrs Louisa,
Who also does wedding gowns, Why did Frances forbid her?
No idea, but she was absolutely insistent,
"June is not to go",
Well, I'm heading into town myself, Can I drop you?
Silk Street in Soho?
There's a jeweller's nearby, Won't you join us?
Thank you, no, I will make my own arrangements,
SHE CHUCKLES
My dear, Are you quite well? Yes,
That is, a matter has come to my attention,
I'm not quite sure how to manage it,
KNOCKING ON DOOR
That will be, er,,, Mrs Dartie?
Er, is Mrs Byrne at home?
Children, put those down, Come here,
Hello,
Are you,,,? My children, yes,
And their father? He died,
A long time ago, before we were born,
How old are you? Ten,
Hannah, take the children, But, Mama,,,
Please do as I say, I need to speak with this gentleman,
I'll come to you soon,
SHE EXHALES
DOOR CLOSES Who is their father?
Is he dead?
Is he?
As good as,
Dear God, Louisa, you couldn't think to tell me?
What should I have said?
I had no claim on you, We barely knew each other,
I saw myself for what I was - a diversion,
I loved you!
You desired me, as I desired you,
And what we had was,,, was brief and careless
and could never have come to anything,
You should have looked for me, after Venice,
You knew my family, you knew my name,
I did look for you,,, when I knew I was with child,
I had every intention of seeking you out,
So why didn't you?
I read about your marriage in the newspaper,
What else could I do but make my own arrangements?
Earn enough to set aside for my confinement?
I took in mending, embroidery,
anything I could to provide for my child,
Children, as it turned out,
But if you'd told me,,, Then what?
You had a wife, a stepchild, a family name,
Was I supposed to be your guilty secret?
Better to find my own means to provide for my children,
Our children,
OUR children,
They can never know,
Please don't make this difficult,
Our lives need not be thrown into disarray
simply because we happened to meet again,
As you wish,
But first, I'd like to see the children again,
Don't do this,
Please let me see them, Louisa,
Please,
SHE SIGHS
Children, come here,
And it is certain?
The children are his?
Beyond doubt,
And he doesn't know? Does anyone?
Nor must they,
James and Soames especially, Indeed,
How trustworthy is this girl?
Could she threaten to expose him? I don't believe she will,
She's posing as a widow,,,
Good, ,,and a respectable dressmaker,
So we're confident the matter will go no further,
We are,
Come,
This is a friend of mine,
HE SNIFFLES Hello,
I'm Jo,
How funny! So am I,
But everyone calls me Jos,
May I call you Jos?
SHE SIGHS
I'm Holly,
I know he looks older, but we're twins,
It's a pleasure to meet you, Holly,
Are you crying?
Yes, I am crying, HE EXHALES
Are you sad?
No,
I'm happy,
Happier than you can imagine,
Sorry,
I don't wish to scare you, That's the last thing I want,
Please, you must leave,
I have clients due,
The back door, this way,
HE SIGHS
Please don't come here again,
DOOR CLOSES
CHATTERING
I'll see you at dinner, Pa,
JOS LAUGHS Jos, Holly, come on,
But, Ma, I don't want to,,, Thank you, Holly,
DOORBELL CHIMES Hm,
I was told you were looking for me,
I came just now from Soho,
Yes?
From the dressmaker, Louisa,
She and I knew each other years ago,
I'm aware,
I've seen her myself,
Then you know about,,,? The children, Yes,
Nothing about their existence,,,
,,is simple,
And clearly there are consequences, Yes,
The possibility of discovery,
How it can be used against you,
Just as we're in touching distance of everything we've worked for,
We're a partnership,,, a family,
Let's not complicate or compromise,
We can put all of this behind us and go on as before,
I don't think you understand, I can't go on as before,
Before, I was unaware, But you're under no obligation,
I can't wish away two human beings, Frances,
You mean to acknowledge them?
I mean not to deny their existence,
For now,,,
,,promise me no-one need know,
It would be catastrophic,,,
,,for you as chairman,
for us as a family, for me as your wife,
I promise,
How could you?
HE SIGHS
SHE SIGHS
SHE SNIFFLES
What did you hear? All of it,
I knew her before your mother and I ever met,
But it makes no difference to us, You're still my beloved daughter,
Except now I have to share you, No,
Mama has to share you, No!
SHE SIGHS
It's her, isn't it?
Louisa, the one who gave you this?
Forgive me, Miss Heron,
but in the spirit of our recent conversation,
I wanted to bring you a gift,
Ah! They're beautiful,
Aww, thank you, SHE CHUCKLES
I hope they might speed you on your way to Paris
and the fulfilment of your desires, THEY LAUGH
Oh, Mr Forsyte, you've been such a friend to me,
THEY CHUCKLE
I hope so, THEY LAUGH
I do,
And yet,,,
,,with your permission, I,,,
would like to think of myself as more than a friend,
THEY CHUCKLE NERVOUSLY Forgive me,
I am well-schooled in matters of business,
Less so in matters of the heart,
Which,,, to be frank, has never been touched,
Not by a single soul, until,,,
Believe me, I never intended to speak so soon,
but, your imminent departure, I,,,
,,I can no longer leave unsaid what I've known
from the moment I saw you,
SHE GASPS SOFTLY
You are my heart's desire,
I cannot imagine a life without you,
Mr Forsyte, this is,,,
,,unexpected,
But not, I hope, unwelcome? I,,,
To be truthful, I'm,,, a little astonished,
We scarcely know each other,
But what we do know might lead us to be,,, hopeful?
Perhaps, Erm,,,
SHE EXHALES DEEPLY
Then let me say one more thing,
I'm convinced we could be happy,
But if you find we cannot, though God help me,
I'll move Heaven and Earth to make us so,,,
,,I will release you, and you will be free,
That's,,,
,,very generous,
But if you agree to our engagement,,,
,,we will go to Paris together,
And from there, plan our future,
And it will be all that you've dreamed of and more,
THEY CHUCKLE SOFTLY
Just imagine, Cyril -
dear Soames engaged and replacing Jo as chair,
SHE LAUGHS
That day could be closer than you think,
CLOCK CHIMES
JUNE SNIFFLES
SNIFFLES, SIGHS
Come on, child,
Spit it out,
SIGHS