Overview
Synopsis
Norfolk girl Beatie Bryant returns home from London on a trip to see her family. She is keen to introduce them to her boyfriend, Ronnie, whom she has been seeing for three years. Beatie blusters into her small home village with enthusiastic stories of Ronnie’s views on life, politics, and society. But the world she portrays is miles away from the community into which she was born, where women cook and the men struggle to keep their jobs while moaning about pain in their guts. Beatie is desperate to shake her family out of its apathy, and relies on Ronnie’s words and ideas to encourage them to think for themselves. But when Ronnie doesn’t show up, it becomes clear that Beatie has been struggling to find her own voice all this time.
Roots is the second play in the Wesker Trilogy and a seminal piece of British post-war theatre, often referred to as kitchen sink drama.
Show Information
- Book
- Arnold Wesker
- Category
- Play
- Age Guidance
- Youth (Y)/General Audiences (G)
- Number of Acts
- 3
- First Produced
- 1959
- Genres
- Drama
- Settings
- Period, Multiple Settings
- Time & Place
- Norfolk, England, 1959
- Cast Size
- medium
- Licensor
- Concord Theatricals
- Ideal For
- College/University, Community Theatre, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre, Mostly Male Cast, Includes Young Adult, Adult, Mature Adult, Elderly Characters, Medium Cast
Context
Plot
Characters
| Name | Part Size | Gender | Vocal Part |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Lead |
Female |
Non-singer |
|
|
Lead |
Female |
Non-singer |
|
|
Supporting |
Female |
Non-singer |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Non-singer |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
Non-singer |
|
|
Supporting |
Male |
|
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Non-singer |
|
|
Featured |
Female |
Non-singer |
|
|
Featured |
Male |
Non-singer |
Songs
A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.
Monologues
Scenes
Key Terms
The name given to plays that depict the daily struggles of ordinary working class people post World War Two.
Videos
Quizzes
Themes, Symbols & Motifs
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Quote Analysis
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Guide Written By:
Alexandra Appleton
Writer, editor and theatre researcher