When The Rain Stops Falling - Australian Plays Transform

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by Andrew Bovell

When the Rain Stops Falling

$23.99

Alice Springs in the year 2039. A fish falls from the sky and lands at the feet of Gabriel York. And it still smells of the sea. It's been raining for days and Gabriel knows something is wrong. Fifty years earlier his grandfather, Henry Law predicts that fish will fall from the sky heralding a great flood which will end life on earth as we know it. In an intricate, multi-layered story that spans four generations and two continents, When the Rain Stops Falling explores patterns of betrayal, abandonment, destruction, forgiveness and love. This powerful drama unfolds with humanity, surprising humour and hope, as the past plays out into the future. "When the Rain Stops Falling will become an Australian classic." - West Australian

• Form/Style: drama, magic realism
• Length in minutes: 0
• Cast: 9 total
• Roles: 4 female identifying, 5 male identifying
• Cast age groups: 16 to 18, 18+
• Audience age: young adult, adult
• Publisher: Currency Press

• MONOLOGUES
• GALLERY
• LINKS & DOWNLOADS
• PRODUCTION HISTORY

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Gabriel

Male | 20s | over 10 minutes Starts on page 1

EXTRACT: I do not believe in God. I do not believe in miracles. I cannot explain this. It began with a phone call. It was Friday evening. About ten pm. Which was unusual. The phone rarely rings and never at that hour. I was reading. As I do before bed. A history. The Decline and Fall of the American Empire 1975-2015. I am fascinated by the past. Which may, at least in part, explain the fish.

Joe

Male | Unspecified | 3 to 5 minutes Starts on page 28

EXTRACT: It's 1988. I'm twenty-four years old. I'm driving a Datsun 180B. I'm crossing the Hay Plain halfway between Sydney and Adelaide. I'm sitting on a hundred and ten k's, but I'm itching to go faster. Itching to get home. But the cops are up and down this stretch and I don't want to risk it. I'm heading back to my parents' farm on the Coorong. I tried the city. It didn't work. It's not for me. Too fast. Too sharp. The Coorong's where I belong.

REVIEW: WHEN THE RAIN STOPS FALLING

JASON BLAKE, SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 13 MAY 2009

"Intriguing from the start, Andrew Bovell's drama takes us on a looping journey that stretches back to late '50s London before leading us back to the future."

REVIEW: REIGNING PLAYWRIGHT'S FUTURE TENSE

MARTIN BALL, THE AGE, 15 OCTOBER 2009

"Andrew Bovell's 2008 play When the Rain Stops Falling is a family drama whose moral is that repressing secrets just makes them fester. Yet if this sounds like every other American theatre saga, Bovell's carefully layered script nevertheless transcends the usual cliches to deliver a moving and often enthralling dramatic experience."

PROGRAM: WHEN THE RAIN STOPS FALLING

BLACK SWAN THEATRE COMPANY, 2011

Program for the Black Swan Theatre Company's 2011 production of When the Rain Stops Falling by Andrew Bovell

TEACHERS' NOTES: WHAT I WROTE BY ANDREW BOVELL

SNODGER MEDIA, 2009

This study guide for What I Wrote: Andrew Bovell has been written for senior secondary students. It provides information and suggestions for learning activities in English, Literature, Theatre Studies and Drama. PDF (1.0MB)

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Purchase at Currency Press

When the Rain Stops Falling SCRIPT

$23.99

SKU: CP-2413 Category: Currency Press

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