I've been meaning to put this extract from the Matilda programme in for some time now. Sitting in the Cambridge Theatre in half term reading Dennis Kelly's piece I wanted to shout YES when I'd finished. It's a GREAT, GREAT piece about WHY we should have stories. The character of Matilda (which of course anyone who's reading this blog has probably read and if you haven't try it) finds her way, gains strength, escapes her awful parents and follows her dreams through books. Dennis Kelly wrote the book for the musical. Tim Minchin wrote the music and lyrics. Without further ado here's what he says-it's powerful stuff.
'.....so in our version Matilda she is in love not just with books but with stories in
general. It seems a stupid thing to say (I'm going to do it anyway) but stories are the reason novels exist. Stories in one form or another are at the heart of films, TV programmes, plays, jokes, songs, books, musicals and, of course, telling stories. our Matilda was going to the source. She loved stories. Our imaginary worlds arrived almost as soon as we can speak, probably before. You can look at any child who's gaining their first words, even when they only have sounds that make no sense and a desire to communicate, and you can see their imaginations fizzing away. It is clear that stories are a vital part of what it is to be our species. I don't know if there's been any reserarch into chimps telling stories, but eve if they do, I bet they're not as good at it as us we've been at it for 35, 000 years. We often think that when we grow up our imaginations fail, but that's not true. They're still a vibrant, necessary part of being alive: we can't turn them off. But like all powerful forces they can be used for good or bad, so what sometimes happens is that they got cobwebbed, they get rusty and dull, used for imagining power or wealth or how terrible we are and how much everyone hates us, which is not really what they were made for. We still love stories, but we stop believing we can tell them. This isn't true. We do it everyday. We just sometimes forget to make it as fun as it can be.
There are two types of grown-ups in Matilida - the ones who love stories and the ones who don't. Mr and Mrs Wormwood and the Trunchball hate stories. They are irritated by them and threatened by them - they think they are a waste of time and energy - and as characters they are generally mean, irritating and sometimes quite stupid. Mrs Phelps and Miss Honey, on the other hand, love stories: Mrs Phelps so much that she think they are real, Miss Honey so much that the first time we see her she is in a library. As characters they are kind, generous, alive and loving. I don't think this is an inaccurate pictures of grown-ups in general, to be honest. Denying stories is denying the most human part of being a human. Without stories we're just eating machines with shoes. It goes without saying that all the kids in Matilda love stories.
And it goes without saying that Storyshack believes there would also be two types of grown ups. I'm sure, if you're reading this, I know which one you are!
'.....so in our version Matilda she is in love not just with books but with stories in
general. It seems a stupid thing to say (I'm going to do it anyway) but stories are the reason novels exist. Stories in one form or another are at the heart of films, TV programmes, plays, jokes, songs, books, musicals and, of course, telling stories. our Matilda was going to the source. She loved stories. Our imaginary worlds arrived almost as soon as we can speak, probably before. You can look at any child who's gaining their first words, even when they only have sounds that make no sense and a desire to communicate, and you can see their imaginations fizzing away. It is clear that stories are a vital part of what it is to be our species. I don't know if there's been any reserarch into chimps telling stories, but eve if they do, I bet they're not as good at it as us we've been at it for 35, 000 years. We often think that when we grow up our imaginations fail, but that's not true. They're still a vibrant, necessary part of being alive: we can't turn them off. But like all powerful forces they can be used for good or bad, so what sometimes happens is that they got cobwebbed, they get rusty and dull, used for imagining power or wealth or how terrible we are and how much everyone hates us, which is not really what they were made for. We still love stories, but we stop believing we can tell them. This isn't true. We do it everyday. We just sometimes forget to make it as fun as it can be.
There are two types of grown-ups in Matilida - the ones who love stories and the ones who don't. Mr and Mrs Wormwood and the Trunchball hate stories. They are irritated by them and threatened by them - they think they are a waste of time and energy - and as characters they are generally mean, irritating and sometimes quite stupid. Mrs Phelps and Miss Honey, on the other hand, love stories: Mrs Phelps so much that she think they are real, Miss Honey so much that the first time we see her she is in a library. As characters they are kind, generous, alive and loving. I don't think this is an inaccurate pictures of grown-ups in general, to be honest. Denying stories is denying the most human part of being a human. Without stories we're just eating machines with shoes. It goes without saying that all the kids in Matilda love stories.
And it goes without saying that Storyshack believes there would also be two types of grown ups. I'm sure, if you're reading this, I know which one you are!
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