Ubu goes to work with water pistol and kazoo. Where traditional drama shows the whispered conspiracy of a queen inciting her husband to greater power, ubu roi shows a blowsylooking, overstuffed woman hurling obscenities as undignified as any uttered by her husband. And where traditional drama carefully builds a plot from opening scene to final resolution, ubu roi jumps around in time and space, deliberately episodic, showing that plays should be constructed to match a world that doesnt make sense. At first glance, you may be amused by this comedy and yet startled to find that it has a place in the history of the theater. The date of its composition, 1896, helps to explain why ubu roi is important. It was new, different and shocking. As you watch it, keep that date in mind 1896, when ubu roi was first performed in a theater which rocked with audience protest. In the years which followed, this play, written by a young frenchman, has been credited with having been a major influence on the theater of the absurd. And the outrageous events of the 20th century have made ubu roi seem prophetic and ominous as well as funny. Great tragedy, telling the stories of great men, depends on a belief in order. The hero suffers because he has made an overwhelming error in judgment, or because he has incurred the anger of the gods. In either case, the hero is great, dignified and significant. As a schoolboy writing ubu roi in its first version when he was only 15, alfred jarry knew the great tragedies well enough to make fun of them. For instance, lady macbeth encouraging her husband to murder king duncan might look and sound like this. Nor time, nor place did then adhere, yet you would make both. They have made themselves and that their fitness now does unmake you. I have given suck, and know how tender it is to love the babe that milks me. I would, while it was smiling in my face, have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dashed the brains out, had i so sworn as you have done to this. If we ould fail. We fail. But screw your courage to the stickingplace, and well not fail. When duncan is asleep, whereto the rather shall his days hard journey soundly invite him. His two chamberlains will i with wine and wassail so convince that memory, the warder of e brain, shall be a fume, and the receipt of reason a limbeck only. When in swinish sleep their drench natures lie as in a death, what cannot you and i perform upon the unguarded duncan . What, not t upon his spongy officers, who shall bear the guilt of our great quell . Bring forth men children only. [music] in the parody of the scene in ubu roi, the couple are decidedly ss dignified. Similarly, when king duncan rewarded macbeth with a new title, royalty is treated ceremoniously, like this. To contend against those honors deep and broad wherewith your majesty loads our house. Give me your hand. Conduct me to mine host, we love him highly and shall continue our graces tord him. By your leave, hostess. Having been king of aragon, you are content to ride in reviews at the head of 50 bumpkins armed with billhooks when you in ubu roi, a similar scene is like an upside down version. Dignity is as lacking here as in a groucho marx movie or a punch and judy show. Where shakespeares characters speak in blank verse, exploring the whole range of human emotion, jarrys shout out crude threats and insults. And my god, madam, you really have come too far. It is clear that ubu roi burlesques shakespeare, but it is unlike the drama of its own time too. During an age when ibsen and chekhov were commenting in their own daring ways on the beliefs of their society, no one was quite like jarry. Other playwrights put daring words into the speeches of their characters. Jarry provided characters who are distortions of people, anatomic miracles and sartorial disasters. Ibsen, with his wellmade play, suggests that once social laws and attitudes are changed, the world may be an orderly place for reasonable people to live. Other playwrights examine the inner lives of characters or puzzled over a philosophy worth believing in. Only jarry, by emphasizing the base, brutelike passions of cartoon characters in a chaotic play punctuated by rude music, suggests that humanity isnt worth taking that seriously after all. As you watch ubu roi, you will be amused, if not startled, by the language and the abrupt changes in scene and costume. The convention of announcing an entire army through use of a toy sign is one innovation. You will see other deliberate effects designed to destroy any sense of realism. But then again, whoever said that plays have to look real . [music] pshit. Oh, what a nasty word. Pa ubu, youre a dirty old man. Watch out and dont bash your lot in, ma ubu. Its not me you want to do in, old ubu, oh, no. Its someone else for the high jump. By my green candle, im not with you. How come . Do you mean to say that you are content with your lot . Pshit, madam, yes. By god, i am perfectly satisfied. Who wouldnt be . Captain in the dragoons, aidedecamp to King Wenceslas, decorated with the order of red eagle of poland, exking of aragon. You cant get higher than that. So what . Having been king of aragon, you are content to ride in reviews at the head of 50 bumpkins armed with billhooks, when you could get your loaf measured for the crown of poland . Huh . Dont understand a word ure sayin my love. How stupid can you get . By my green candle, King Wenceslas is still alive. But isnt he . And even if does kick the bucket, hasnt he masses of children . Why shouldnt you finish off the whole bunch and put yourself in their place . Now, by god, madam, you really have gone too far. And you shall be, very shortly, aten u good d proper. You great slob. If im beaten up, who is going to put a patch on the seat of your pants . So what . Havent i a bum like everyone elses . If i were you, i should try sitting that bum on a throne. You could become enormously rich, eat as many bangers as you like, and roll through the streets in a fine carriage. If i were king, ill get them to make me a great bonnet, like the one i used to wear in aragon, whicthose lousy spaniards had the cheek to pinch off of me. Cant you go get yourself an umbrella and a guard officers greatcoat that would come right down to your feet. Thats more than i can resist. Pshit the bugger, and bugger the pshit. If i catch him alone on a dark night, hes for it. Well done, pa ubu. Now youre talking like a man. Oh, no. Me, a captain in the dragoons to brutally murder the king of poland . Id rather die. Oh, pshit. So you want to stay as poor as a church mouse, hmm, mr. Ubu . Gods wounds, madam. Pshit. Id rather be poor as the stingiest mouse, than rich as the cruelest cat. And your bonnet and your umbrella and your officers greatcoat . And then what, you old cow . [music] pfart, pshit, what a stingy bastard. But pfart, pshit. I think ive got him pshitting just the same. Thanks be to god and myself, within a week, i may be queen of poland. [music] youre looking exceptionally ugly tonight, madam. Is it because we have company . Pshit. Im rather hungry. I think ill bury my teeth in this bird, a chicken. I fancy. Not bad at all. You wretch. What are our guests going to eat . Theres plenty left for them. I shant touch another thing. Go look out of the window, ma ubu, and see if our guests have arrived. Ah, here comes captain manure and his merry men. Old ubu, what are you eating now . Nothing, nothing, just a spot of veal. The veal. Hes eaten my veal, the lout. The veal. Help. Help. By my green candle, ill gouge yr eyesut. [music] good day, gentlemen. We have been awaiting your arrival with impatience. Good day, madam. But where is mr. Ubu . Here i am. Here i am. By my green candle, pshit. I shouldnt have thought im so easy to miss. Good day, mr. Ubu. Well, madam, and what succulent dishes have you prepared for us today . Polish broth, spareribs of polish bison, veal, chicken and hound pie, parsons noses from the royal polish turkeys, charlotte russe. Thats enough. Isnt there any more . Iced pudding, salad, fruit, cheese, boiled beef, jerusalem pfartichokes and cauliflower a la pshit. Do you think im an oriental potentate, shelling out all that money . Take no notice of him. Hes off his rocker. Get away. I shall sharpen my teeth on your shanks. Why dont you eat up and shut up, old ubu . Here, try the polish broth. Oh, what muck. Youre right. Hasnt quite come off. You illmannered louts, ato you want . Ive got an idea. Back in a jiffy. Gentlemen, lets try the veal. Oh, excellent. What there is left of it. And now, for the parsons nose. Absolutely delicious. Hurrah for ma ubu. Hurrah for ma ubu. And soon youll be adding, hurrah for pa ubu. Try a taste of that. Pass me the spare ribsbs of polish bison, mother, and ill dish them out. Get out, all of you. I know something i want to say to captain manure. But we havent had our dinner yet. Youve had your dinner. Get out, i say, all of you. Not you, manure. Are you still here . By my green candle, ill do you all in with a vice grip. Go out. Get out, all of you. Get out, i say. Help. Rescue. Men defend yourselves. I dont have to say it again. You run get out. You stupid old skunk. Do i make myself plain . Well, good, theyve gone. Thats better. Now, we can relax. Well, captain, did you enjoy your dinner . Very good, sir, except for the pshit. Oh, i didnt think the pshit was too bad. A little of what you fancy, they say. Captain manure. Ay. I am going to create you duke of lithuania. But i thought you were completely broke, mr. Ubu. In a few days, with your help, i shall be king of poland. You mean you will assassinate wenceslas . The buggers no fool, hes guessed it. If its a matter of killing wenceslas, im with you. Im his deadly enemy, and i can answer for my men. Oh, manure, i love you dearly for that. Oh, god, man, how you stink. Dont you ever wash . Occasionally. Never. Im going to tread on your toes. Fat lump of pshit. Well, manure, thats all for now. But i swear to you, on the head of ma ubu, that im going to make you duke of lithuania. But silence, my angel. [music] master ubu. I have resolved to reward you for your Many Services as captain of dragoons. And i therefore proclaim you count of sandomir. Oh, sire, im speechless with gratitude. Tut. Think nothing of it. But be sure to be present tomorrow morning at our grand review. I shall be there, sir. In the meantime, kindly deign to accept this magnificently decorated kazoo. You dont expect me to Start Playing a kazoo at my age, surely . Oh, well, ill give it to young boggerlas. [laughter] now, who is this ubu creature . Well, ill bugger off. Help. Rescue. Ive ruptured my gut and smashed my rattle box. Oh, ubu, are you hurt . Yes, badly. And i shall certainly croak. What will become of ma ubu . Oh, we shall provide for her upkeep. You are most kind. [music] ungenerous sire, but you will be liquidated just the same, King Wenceslas. [music] well, my good friends, its high time we planned our little conspiracy. Let each give his counsel. With your permission, we will begin with mine. Speak, mr. Ubu. Very good, my friends. I am of the opinion that we should simply poison the king by stuffing his lunch with arsenic. [laughter] the moment he starts the grousing and scuffing hell drop dead, and i shall be king. [laughter] you wicked old thing, you. Why . You dont like that idea . All right, then. Lets hear from manure. My suggestion is that i fetch him a good wallop with my sword and cleave him from top to toe. Very and gallant. But, but, supposing he kicks out at you. Oh, just a moment. For his grand parades, he wears iron boots, which can be jolly painful. If id half a chance, id snitch on the lot of you. That way, id be rid of the whole beastly business and very likely pick up a reward into the bargain. Oh, the traitor, the coward, the rotten mean skunk. Oh, down with old ubu. Down with ubu. Shut that ruckus, gentlemen, or ill turn you all in. Very well, ill take all the risks on your behalf. Captain manure, is it agreed that your job is simply to split the king down the middle . Wouldnt be better if we all jumped on him at once, striving and yelling, in that way we have a better chance of winning over the troops. No, look. Ill tell you what. Ill try to tread on his toe. Hell kick out of me, ill yell, pshit, and that will be the signal for you all to hurl yourselves upon him. And then the moment hes dead, youll pinch his crown and scepter. And i and my men will go in pursuit of the royal family. Leave a sharp lookout for young boggerlas. One moment, gentlemen, we are forgetting an indispensable ceremony. We must all take an oath to quit ourselves like men. But how can we . We havent got a priest. My old woman will be the priest. Well, so be it. Do you all swear, on the head of madam ubu, to kill the king good and proper . We swear it. Long live old ubu. Ubu. Ubu. Ubu. [chanting ubu, ubu, ubu] really, sire, are you quite determined to attend this parade . And pray, madam, why not . Ill tell you once more. No. I saw him in a dream smiting you with mass weapons and throwing you into the vistula. And an eagle, like that which figures in the arms of poland, placing the crown on his head. Ahchoo on whose head . Old ubus. Oh, ridiculous. Master ubu is a most worthy gentleman who would let himself be dragged apart by wild horses rather than betray my interests. How wrong you are. Silence, young rascal. And as for you, madam, to show you what complete faith i have in master ubu, i shall attend the grand parade dressed as i am, without sword or breastplate. Oh, what fatal rashness. I shall never see you again alive. Oh. No. Come, ladislas. Come, boleslas. [music] may god and the great Saint Nicholas protect you. Ah, noble master ubu, enter the royal enclosure with your followers. And we will review the march pass together. Well, shall we . Coming, sire. [music] ah theres my regiment of danzig horseguards. Oh, what a magnificent spectacle. You really think so . Looks like something the cat brought in. Look at that one. You there. When did you last have a shave, you lousy slob . But this fellow is very well turned out. What on earth is the matter with you, old ubu . This [stomps] treason [stomps] pshit after him oh help help help, holy virgin help im dying help i have the crown death to the traitors [chanting ubu, ubu, ubu] help help those maniacs have forced their way into the palace. Theyre coming up the stairs. May god protect us. That vile ubu, wretch, rascal. I just like to get my hands on him. I. You would, would you . And what, brave boggerlas, would you do to me . By gods will, i shall defend my mother to the death. The first man to make a step forward is good as dead. Oh, get me out of here. Im scared. Boggerlas, surrender. Heres one for you, you dog. Thats the spirit, boggerlas. Keep it up. We promise to save your life, boggerlas. I brought the army you broken laggards, swine blackguards, mercenary scum. Oh, bother, but ill still win in the end. Mother, escape by the secret staircase. And you, my son, what about you . Ill follow you. Capture the queen. Pshit, shes got away. Ubu. Ubu. Ubu. Ubu. Ubu. As for you, you little lamb. By gods will, heres my vengeance. Mother, i follow you. [whistles close call] behold me, monarch of this fair land. Ive already got a guts ache with overeating. And soon, theyre going to bring in my great bonnet. We owe a great debt of gratitude to the duke of lithuania. Who is that . Why, captain manure. For gods sake, woman, dont you ever mention that slob to me. As far as im concerned, he can whistle for his dukedom. Hes not gonna get it. Youre making a great mistake, pa ubu. Hell turn against you. Oh, i should worry. So far as im concerned, he and boggerlas can go and jump in the lake. Bring out the chest for nobles. And the slash half on nobles, and the bolt hook for nobles, and the account book for nobles. And then bring in the nobles. For pitys sake restrain yourself, pa ubu. Gentlemen, i have the honor to inform you that as a gesture to the economic welfare of my country, i have decided to liquidate the nobility and confiscate their goods. Horror to all of us. Soldiers and citizens defend us. Bring on the first noble and pass me the bolt hook. Those who are condemned to death, i shall push through this door here, where they will fall down into the bleed pit chambers and then proceed to the gas room where they will be debrained. Whats your name, you snob . Count of vitepsk. Whats your income . Three million rix dollars. Guilty. [music] this is base brutality. You there, whats your name . Come on, answer, you snob. Grand duke of posen. Excellent excellent i couldnt ask for a better. Down the hatch. You there, whats your name, ugly mug . The duke of courlande and of the cities of riga, ravel, and mitau. Oh, very good. I shall ask the lot. Thats all . Get down the hatch. Whats your name, number four . Prince of podolia. Whats your income . Im bankrupt. Take that for disobedience. Now get down the hatch. Number five, whats your name . Margrave of thorn, count palatine of pollock. Thats not very much. Are you sure thats all you are . Its been good enough for me. Well, its better than nothing, i suppose. Get down the hatch. Whats eating you, ma ubu . Youre too bloodthirsty, pa ubu. Im getting rich. Now im going to have him read out the list of what ive got. Registrar, read out my list and my titles and possessions. Count of sandomir, count. The princedoms first, stupid bugger. Princedom of podolia, grandduchy of posen, duchy of courlande, county of sandomir, county of vitepsk, palatinate of pollock, margravate of thorn. Go on. Thats the lot. What do you mean thats the lot . Oh, well, im going to make some laws next. Hmm, that will be worth watching. I shall begin by reforming the judicial code, and then turn my attention to financial matters. [music] we are strongly opposed to any change. So, pshit. In the first place, judges will no longer receive a salary. And what shall we live on . We are all poor men. Youll keep the fines you impose, and the possessions of those you condemn to death. Thats unthinkable. Infamous. Scandalous. Contemptible. We refuse to judge under such conditions. Down the hatch with the judges. What have you done, pa ubu . Who will administer justice now . Why, i will. Youll see how well it will work out. Yes, it will be a right old mess. Shut your gob, clownish female. Im now going to turn my attention to financial matters. [music] in the first place, i intend to pocket half the tax receipts. But thats ridiculous. Quite absurd. It doesnt make sense. Are you making fun of me . Get down the hatch, all of you. [music] calm down, lord ubu. Kings are not supposed to behave like that. Youre butchering the whole world. So, pshit. No more justice, no more financial system. Fear nothing, my sweet child. I shall go around the villages myself and collect the taxes. Hey, did you hear the news . Huh . The king is dead, and all the nobles as well. Whats more, pa ubu has seized the throne. And it seems theyre going to raise all the taxes and that pa ubu is gonna make the rounds to collect them. Great god. What will become of us . Look. Sounds like someone is knocking at the door. Open up, pshit, in the names of saint john, saint peter and Saint Nicholas. By my hussar and my caisson, i have come to collect the taxes. [music]
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