READ STUDY GUIDE: Act I, scene ii |
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Act I, Scene ii
| [Enter SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, QUINCE, and STARVELING.] |
| QUINCE |
| Is all our company here? |
| BOTTOM |
| You were best to call them generally, man by man, |
| according to the scrip. |
| QUINCE |
| Here is the scroll of every man's name, which is thought |
| fit, through all Athens, to play in our interlude before the |
| duke and duchess on his wedding-day at night. |
| BOTTOM |
| First, good Peter Quince, say what the play treats on; |
| then read the names of the actors; and so grow to a point. |
| QUINCE |
| Marry, our play is—The most lamentable comedy and most |
| cruel death of Pyramus and Thisby. |
| BOTTOM |
| A very good piece of work, I assure you, and a merry.— |
| Now, good Peter Quince, call forth your actors by the scroll.— |
| Masters, spread yourselves. |
| QUINCE |
| Answer, as I call you.—Nick Bottom, the weaver. |
| BOTTOM |
| Ready. Name what part I am for, and proceed. |
| QUINCE |
| You, Nick Bottom, are set down for Pyramus. |
| BOTTOM |
| What is Pyramus? a lover, or a tyrant? |
| QUINCE |
| A lover, that kills himself most gallantly for love. |
| BOTTOM |
| That will ask some tears in the true performing of it. |
| If I do it, let the audience look to their eyes; I will move |
| storms; I will condole in some measure. To the rest:—yet my |
| chief humour is for a tyrant: I could play Ercles rarely, or a |
| part to tear a cat in, to make all split. |
| The raging rocks |
| And shivering shocks |
| Shall break the locks |
 Of prison gates: |
| And Phibbus' car |
| Shall shine from far, |
| And make and mar |
| The foolish Fates. |
| This was lofty.—Now name the rest of the players.—This is |
| Ercles' vein, a tyrant's vein;—a lover is more condoling. |
| QUINCE |
| Francis Flute, the bellows-mender. |
| FLUTE |
| Here, Peter Quince. |
| QUINCE |
| Flute, you must take Thisby on you. |
| FLUTE |
| What is Thisby? a wandering knight? |
| QUINCE |
| It is the lady that Pyramus must love. |
| FLUTE |
| Nay, faith, let not me play a woman; I have a beard coming. |
| QUINCE |
| That's all one; you shall play it in a mask, and you may speak as |
| small as you will. |
| BOTTOM |
| An I may hide my face, let me play Thisby too: |
| I'll speak in a monstrous little voice;—'Thisne, Thisne!'— |
| Ah, Pyramus, my lover dear; thy Thisby dear! and lady dear!' |
| QUINCE |
| No, no, you must play Pyramus; and, Flute, you Thisby. |
| BOTTOM |
| Well, proceed. |
| QUINCE |
| Robin Starveling, the tailor. |
| STARVELING |
| Here, Peter Quince. |
| QUINCE |
| Robin Starveling, you must play Thisby's mother.— |
| Tom Snout, the tinker. |
| SNOUT |
| Here, Peter Quince. |
| QUINCE |
| You, Pyramus' father; myself, Thisby's father;—Snug, |
| the joiner, you, the lion's part:—and, I hope, here is a play |
| fitted. |
| SNUG |
| Have you the lion's part written? pray you, if it be, give it |
| me, for I am slow of study. |
| QUINCE |
| You may do it extempore, for it is nothing but roaring. |
| BOTTOM |
| Let me play the lion too: I will roar that I will do |
| any man's heart good to hear me; I will roar that I will make the |
| duke say 'Let him roar again, let him roar again.' |
| QUINCE |
| An you should do it too terribly, you would fright the |
| duchess and the ladies, that they would shriek; and that were |
| enough to hang us all. |
| ALL |
| That would hang us every mother's son. |
| BOTTOM |
| I grant you, friends, if you should fright the ladies |
| out of their wits, they would have no more discretion but to hang |
| us: but I will aggravate my voice so, that I will roar you as |
| gently as any sucking dove; I will roar you an 'twere any |
| nightingale. |
| QUINCE |
| You can play no part but Pyramus; for Pyramus is a |
| sweet-faced man; a proper man, as one shall see in a summer's |
| day; a most lovely gentleman-like man; therefore you must |
| needs play Pyramus. |
| BOTTOM |
| Well, I will undertake it. What beard were I best to play it in? |
| QUINCE |
| Why, what you will. |
| BOTTOM |
| I will discharge it in either your straw-colour beard, |
| your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your |
| French-crown-colour beard, your perfect yellow. |
| QUINCE |
| Some of your French crowns have no hair at all, and |
| then you will play bare-faced.—But, masters, here are your |
| parts: and I am to entreat you, request you, and desire you, to |
| con them by to-morrow night; and meet me in the palace wood, a |
| mile without the town, by moonlight; there will we rehearse: for |
| if we meet in the city, we shall be dogg'd with company, and our |
| devices known. In the meantime I will draw a bill of properties, |
| such as our play wants. I pray you, fail me not. |
| BOTTOM |
| We will meet; and there we may rehearse most obscenely |
| and courageously. Take pains; be perfect; adieu. |
| QUINCE |
| At the duke's oak we meet. |
| BOTTOM |
| Enough; hold, or cut bow-strings. |
| [Exeunt.] |
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