Dykstra Ted - 2P4H: 2 pianos 4 hands

Not a sour note. Not a lost chord. Not a misplaced phrase. The Toronto Star 2 Pianos 4 Hands is destined to travel far, not only across Canada, but also within international cultural circles. Variety Be glad Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt suffered tormented childhoods. Be thankful, in fact.

Because if they hadnt, odds are 2 Pianos 4 Hands, their hilarious show, might never have happened. The Washington Post A shining 2 Pianos 4 Hands is about the rigors of mastering the instrument, but its for anyone with a dream. The Los Angeles Times A damn fine way to treat two Steinways. The Independent (UK) Enormously enjoyable. The Times of London 2 Pianos 4 Hands is a night to savour. The Sydney Morning Herald **** Magical! Superb! Laugh-out-loud funny! Poignant! Perfection! This is the last time that 2 Pianos 4 Hands is coming our way before Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt retire the show.

Dont miss these farewell performances. Paula Citron, The Globe and Mail (2011) A concerto of musical mayhem. Alex Reynolds, CHCH News Simple, charming, funny, brilliant. A wonderful showcase for Toronto talent. Something we can really be proud of. Marichka Melnyk, CBCs Here and Now An absolute joy.

Dont miss Dykstra and Greenblatts great humour and music. Margo Kelly, CBC Tremendous! 2 Pianos 4 Hands has been in constant production for sixteen years because its a sensational two man show. The show captures magnificently the joy and the anguish of being gifted. John Moore, Newstalk 1010 **** Fresh and deliciously entertaining. Robert Crew, The Toronto Star A show that celebrates so strongly not just music but optimism triumphing in the face of disappointment. (Ted Dykstra & Richard Greenblatt) Playwrights Canada Press 202-269 Richmond Street West, Toronto, ON, Canada M5V 1X1 phone 416.703.0013 No part of this book may be reproduced, downloaded, or used in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, except for excerpts in a review or by a licence from Access Copyright, www.accesscopyright.ca. (Ted Dykstra & Richard Greenblatt) Playwrights Canada Press 202-269 Richmond Street West, Toronto, ON, Canada M5V 1X1 phone 416.703.0013 No part of this book may be reproduced, downloaded, or used in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, except for excerpts in a review or by a licence from Access Copyright, www.accesscopyright.ca.

For professional or amateur production rights, please contact Marquis Entertainment: 312-73 Richmond Street W., Toronto, ON M5H 4E8, Canada phone 416.960.9123 Cover and book design by Blake Sproule The Alegreya serif typeface used was designed by Juan Pablo del Peral. The Source Sans Pro sans serif typeface was designed by Paul D. Hunt. The typefaces are used under the SIL Open font license version 1.1 Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Dykstra, Ted 2 pianos 4 hands [electronic resource] / Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt. A play. Electronic monograph in multiple formats.

Issued also in print format. ISBN 978-1-77091-093-5 (PDF).--ISBN 978-1-77091-095-9 (EPUB) I. Greenblatt, Richard, 1952- II. Title. III. Title: Two pianos four hands.

PS8607.Y59T86 2012 C812.6 C2012-904502-0

We acknowledge the financial support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council (OAC)an agency of the Government of Ontario, which last year funded 1,681 individual artists and 1,125 organizations in 216 communities across Ontario for a total of $52.8 millionthe Ontario Media Development Corporation, and the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund for our publishing activities. Many people have asked us why its taken over fifteen years and over five thousand performances in some two hundred cities on five continents to publish this script after its original opening at the Tarragon Theatre in Toronto in the spring of 1996. Maybe because this is a piece that is inimitably meant to be performed rather than read. Maybe because it was created as a collective of two, stemming from anecdotes, memories, dreams, and nightmares, and only written down later as a chronicle of what we improvised. Maybe because the music played in the show is so inextricably linked to its theatrical essence and which cannot, almost by definition, be communicated with words. For whatever reason, we are very happy to present this now as a record of the work.

Whenever we perform it, we cannot help but make small changes. It is as if certain jokes or lines of dialogue have an expiration date, after which they go off. This version is simply the latest incarnation, after our runs in Toronto and Ottawa in 20112012. We have no doubt that if and/or when we perform it again, there will be similar small changes. We are indebted to many people who helped in the development of this piece. But we dedicate this play to our piano teachersDr.

Lilian Upright of Edmonton and the late Professor Dorothy Morton of Montrealwho were our other mothers. And to all piano teachers everywhere. Richard Greenblatt & Ted Dykstra

Ted and Richard in front of the Great Canadian Theatre Company, Ottawa, during their first Canadian tour, 1996. Photo by Beatrice Campbell. Foreword I loved 2 Pianos 4 Hands from the first time I saw it in 1996 at the Tarragon Theatre in Toronto. My feelings about the piano, about music, about satisfying my demanding parents, seemed to be refracted in the kaleidoscopic vision of Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt. I felt that they had been luckier than me: my teacher was not like theirs.

Unfortunately, I was subjected to an antique vestal virgin called Miss Jamieson on Stewart Street in downtown Ottawa. Walking to the lessons after leaving class at Elgin Street Public School, I used to put one foot in front of the other, toe to heel, in order to get there as slowly as possibleso as not to hear her thumping time while the student before me was playing, and to put off as long as possible having to peer into her densely powdered, highly rouged, and wrinkled face with its three hairy moles. This vision was topped by wispy white hair, tied up in a bun inexplicably covered with a black hairnet. She seemed to have a perpetual running sore on her neck, which she attacked with a flowered handkerchief of some indefinable material. I was always somewhat worried that I would catch something from it but I kept knowledge of this from my mother, who was paranoid about germs. I had only to say that someone had sneezed near me at school for her to want to keep me at home the next day.

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