Between the Lines

Written By: Scott Douglas

Synopsis: Three imaginative scenes about literacy and people with mental disabiliities.  In the first scene Eliza Doomuch, a young woman with Down's Syndrome, must cope with Henry Higgins, an overzealous volunteer tutor who dreams of introducing students to the joys a "high literature".  In the second scene Eliza dreams a soap opera in which she join forces with an illiterate international man of mystery to secure funding for the local literacy centre.  In the last scene, Eliza tells a story about a horrible circus sideshow in which she is a nameless freak, bound by a contract she cannot read and displayed with labels she cannot control, until, with the help of Etudio (the mime who won't shut up) she learns to read and reclaims her real name.

History: 1995 - Commissioned by the Popular Theatre Alliance of Manitoba and the Association for Community Living

Availability: Copy in MAP archives.

Running Time (mins): 20-45

Cast: 2M / 2F

Genres: Comedy ,  Drama