Table Manners

Roles

• Norman - Young Adult (20-35), Adult (36-50), Male

About this piece

Norman expresses his frustrations to Reg

Summary

This play is the first of "The Norman Conquests" trilogy which also includes "Living Together" and "Round and Round the Garden". The story centers on a family of two sisters, Ruth and Annie, and an older brother, Reg. Ruth is married to Norman, an assistant librarian with a big libido, and Reg is married to Sarah. Annie is the youngest of the three and still lives at home, tending their bedridden mother. Norman, frustrated by his relationship with his career obsessed wife, convinces Annie to leave for the weekend with him. Annie, however, tells Sarah and Reg about her plans for the weekend with her brother-in-law. Norman shows up to pick up Annie at her house but there he is forced to confront Sarah and Reg. In this funny monologue Norman, after Sarah and Annie exit the room, confesses to Reg why he wanted to cheat on Ruth. He did it because of the way she treats him, he argues, who has no need of him at all "except as an emotional punch bag". He then expresses his frustrations that come from his never ending sexual appetite and that he feels like a "gigolo trapped in a haystack"...

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