'Jigsaw Heart' 

by Peter Devonald

SYNOPSIS
Potter meets sitcom as two very different narratives collide. A stereotypical TV family go about daily life as a writer is lost in memories; the father attacks the son in a parody of 'The Piano', as the writer sleeps with the past; the father has secrets in the sitcom as the writer wakes from nightmares...

The sitcom side of the work is surreal, bizarre and funny. Traditional plots occur. The son's girlfriend comes to dinner, the mother talks in advert speak, father turns into werewolf as they wait for the end of the world...

The other narrative bleakly explores Guy's life. Former lovers come to visit, either in reality or in his mind; a detective comes, searching for a missing person; the nightmare past prepares for its sacrifice. And somehow the sitcom is relevant to his life...

The Jigsaw Heart uses a jarring technique of narrative implosion to explore the nature of sitcoms, artistic creations and memories. The inability of the form of situation comedy to deal with dark issues, especially abuse, is mocked and made increasingly banal. The horror of sexual abuse is seen starkly through the inability of the form to cope. But this piece is not just satire; it is funny, dark, amusing... in a way the best one liners are saved for the darkest moments, savouring the savageness of this sitcom/Potteresque narrative.

Jigsaw Heart has been called a "demanding and ambitious piece. It is a grotesque comedy from the school of Orton" (Keith Sturgess, artistic director of Red Rose Theatre Company, head of drama at Lancaster University 1988 93).

Genre
Sitcom comedy/thriller/ avant garde

Duration
One and half hours

Cast
Six main roles (four male, two female): Several token roles (for use in mock adverts)

For full script contact pdevonald@hotmail.com

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