Comedy/ 4 Men, 1 Woman/ Full Length, Two Acts
Synopsis:
(From Northern Lights): “The Fox’s Reward is inspired by a medieval folklore classic, immortalized in the French Renaissance under the title of La Farce de maître Pathelin. The central characters are Vulpes, a down-and-out ‘master of the law,’ and his wife, vixen Marguerite. The two are out to fleece a greedy draper. Their shepherd William, however, may have more wits about him than at first appears. A feeble-minded and ailing-bodied Judge Jeeble completes the cast.
“The premise works on multiple levels, with fun and puns poked at the foibles of the legal profession, without resorting to clichéd lawyer jokes, but rather by artful craftsmanship of words. On the most concrete level, this is about madness and reality, folie à deux and the resulting delusion when others plant their realities in the heads of others . . . . Reflecting the current fiasco of corporate America’s relentless greed, we see corruption and gullibility as two all-too human characteristics throughout the ages. And who has not at one point rationalized petty behavior?”
“Bouncy, flouncy summer fun, fun, fun . . . . Let yourself be seduced by this merry romp — by hook or crook!”
– Northern Lights“A surprisingly comic piece, proving Scrivener to be as adept with humour as he is with chaos and meditation.”
– Bryn Pearson, Allreaders.com
Amateur and professional rights:
Mark Scrivener
63 Mountain Top Rd.
Georgica NSW 2480
Australia
Email: narrowroads@hotmail.com
About the Playwright: Mark Scrivener studied for three years at the Harkness Speech and Drama School, where his first play was produced when he was 20. Since then, his work has been seen at theatres including The Colonnade Theatre Company, Prometheus Productions, The Player’s Theatre Company, and The Rainbow Youth Theatre, among others. His verse play Narrow Roads to Inner Lands was broadcast on Oneword Radio in the UK, and he has had over 80 poems and other pieces published in Australian newspapers and magazines, including The Australian, The Sydney Morning Herald, Quadrant Magazine, The Bulletin, Poetry Australia, and The School Magazine.His poems have also been published in anthologies from Thomas Nelson and Co. and The Paterson Literary Review, while his verse translations have appeared in Poetry Australia, Quadrant, Meanjin, and The Australian. A Master of Letters graduate (with high distinction) from the University of New England in Armidale, Australia, Mark has also toured for over 25 years as a performance poet.
The Fox’s Reward was first performed (as The Worthy Master of the Law) at Chance Theater in Anaheim, California in August, 2002.