A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Stairs to the Roof

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  8w, 16m

Much of the play is set in a shirt factory in St. Louis and chronicles the daily frustrations of white-collar workers who find themselves stuck in dead-end jobs that stifle creativity.

Stairs to the Roof

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    8w, 16m
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult

Details

Summary
Much of the play is set in a shirt factory in St. Louis and chronicles the daily frustrations of white-collar workers who find themselves stuck in dead-end jobs that stifle creativity. Williams' protagonist, Benjamin Murphy, finds release through frequent trips to the washroom, where he writes poetry, and through a romantic affair with a co-worker. He finds his ultimate escape hatch when he discovers an unused staircase that leads to the roof -- and a wide world beyond. William's called it a prayer for the wild of heart who are kept in cages and dedicated it to all the wage earners of the world. It features a fantastic, sci-fi style ending that predates the likes of 2001: A Space Odyssey and Star Trek by several decades. The theme is clear and still resounds today: whether man can control technology or technology controls man.
History

Stairs to the Roof premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, CA in February 1947 under the direction of Gilmor Brown.

Cast Attributes
Keywords

MR. GUM ALFRED
JOHNNIE - the office boy
A DESIGNER
BENJAMIN D. MURPHY
MR. WARREN B. THATCHER
THE GIRL
JIM
THE BARTENDER
BERTA
ALMA - Ben's wife
HELEN
A YOUNG SOLDIER
EDNA - Jim's wife
THE POLICEMAN
A VAGRANT
THE NIGHT WATCHMAN - also plays THE ZOOKEPER
TWO ZOO GUARDS
THE CLOWN
FIRST MUMMER - reader
BEAUTY
THE BEAST
MRS. HOTCHKISS
ALMA's MOTHER
MESSERS. P, D, Q, T - company stockholders
MR. E

Plus ensemble of office workers, choral voices, offstage speakers, carnival crowd, and a barker.

  • Setting Multiple locations

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: $130 per performance

Scripts

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Authors

Tennessee Williams

Tennessee Williams (1911-1983) explored passion with daring honesty and forged a poetic theatre of raw psychological insight that shattered conventional proprieties and transformed the American stage. The autobiographical The Glass Menagerie brought what Mr. Williams called “ ...
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