An Inspector Calls Study Guide

Table of Contents
Introduction...................2
Playwright......................3
Characters......................4
History of Radio............5
Suffragettes....................6
The Prairie.....................7
Irish Immigrants.............8
Glossary.........................9
Production...............10-11
Activities................12-13
Studio Classes..............14
Study Guide written by
Nicholas Hubbard and Sandra
Midkiff
Designed by Sandra Midkiff
Education
& Outreach Department
•Educational Touring
• Acting Studio
• Student Matinees
• Community Outreach
“Encouraging - Educating - Entertaining”
Karen Lund
Associate Artistic Director
Sandra Midkiff
Education & Outreach Associate
Josiah Wallace
Director of Outreach
Sara K. Willy
Director of Education
Young Davey and Frankie develop an extraordinary
friendship on their thrilling adventures during the
summer of 1895. They ride the rails and travel the
midwestern countryside until a run-in with trouble
tragically separates them. In 1923, New York radio
salesman Leon Schwab discovers unlikely storyteller,
David Quinn. “The Voice of the Prairie” is born as the
tales of Davey and ‘Frankie the blind girl’ are
broadcast throughout the Midwest. Set in the early
days of radio this heartwarming, romantic comedy is
a theatrical journey to a place where anything and
everything is possible.
The Characters
POPPY QUINN
DAVEY QUINN
FRANKIE
FRANKIE’S FATHER
THE WATERMELON MAN
DAVID QUINN
LEON SCHWAB
FRANCES REED
JAMES
THE JAILER
Setting
Various locales in the United States of America: the backroom
of a hardware store, a farm, a cliff, a backyard, a street, an
expensive suite at Kansas City’s Muellback Hotel, a parlor, a
train platform, a jail cell, a shed, etc.
Note: When you see this symbol (*) flip to the
glossary on page 9 to see the definition for this word.
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The Playwright
John Olive
http://www.prairierootsphoto.ca/primages/sale/Prairie-Gold.jpg
John Olive
was born in
Fukuoka, Japan
on December
12, 1949. He
received a B.A.
and M.A. in
Theatre Arts
from the
University of
Minnesota. Mr.
Olive has been
http://www.playscripts.com/images/
a resident
playwright with
Mr. Olive has received numerous awards, which
include a Minnesota State Arts Board Grant, “1978”,
a “1997” Kenneday Center Drama Award for
Summer Moonand an American Theatre Critic’s
Association New Play Citation for The Voice of the
Prairie in “1988”. He has written screenplays and
teleplays for Disney, Amblin Entertainment,
Yorktown Productions, MGM/UA and Lorimar. He
is working on two novels for children, Slither and
Smartass, as well as a nonfiction book about creating and telling bedtime stories for young children,
Tell Me A Story In The Dark. He is also popular
teacher of creative writing.
Seattle
Children’s Theatre, for whom he has done six
mainstage adaptations, and also with the Actors
Theatre of St. Paul. He lives in Minneapolis with
his wife Mary and their son Michael.
His plays include Minnesota Moon, Standing
On My Knees, Clara’s Play, Careless Love, Killers,
The Summer Moon, Evelyn and the Polka King,
God Fire, Into the Moonlight Valley, and many
others. He has been produced at the Guthrie
Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, Steppenwolf,
Actors Theatre of Louisville, South Coast Rep, the
Old Globe, ACT/Seattle, the Oregon Shakespeare
Festival and the Royal Theatre Copenhagen.
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Taproot Theatre Company’s The Voice of the
Prairie. Timothy Hornor and Marianne
Savell. Photo by Erik Stuhaug.
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The Characters
1895
POPPY QUINN
David’s father and an old storyteller with a thick
Irish accent. Poppy is infamous for his con artistry.
He is delighted by poteen* and unable to master
horrible nightmares. He does not hold Americans in
high opinion.
DAVEY QUINN
A young boy, who doesn’t know his age, made
rough by his travels with his father. He has a strange
laugh and descriptions of him suggest that his looks
make people uncomfortable. He cares for Poppy
during his alcoholic fevers.
FRANKIE
The daughter of an alcoholic father much like
Poppy. She has been abused, but that has only made
her stronger. She is bold and quick on her feet,
despite being blind. From the first time Davey
meets her, she shows that she can take care of
herself. Like Davey she seems eager to run off and
have a new life.
FRANKIE’S FATHER
A loud and angry man, he is broken by his wife’s
sickness and takes out his pain on his daughter.
captivate an audience with storytelling. He is the
older Davey Quinn.
LEON SCHWAB
Described as a dandy* man. He is a fast talking,
high-strung businessman who has come out to the
mid-west to conquer the prairie with radio. He sees
David Quinn as his ticket to success.
FRANCES REED
In her mid-30s; Frances is a blind schoolteacher in a
conservative Arkansas town. She is constantly
pursued by the local minister, James, but a
restlessness and longing for her old life of adventure
keep her independent. It is obvious that many of the
people in her town gossip about her and question her
competence to work with children.
JAMES
James is a preacher from Frances’ town who is
desperately in love with her. He thinks she is
misguided in her longing for the past.
THE JAILER
He is used to the uneventful routine of his small
town outside of New York.
THE WATERMELON MAN
A mean man without a name, who comes between
Davey and Frankie. He is responsible for separating
them.
1923
DAVID QUINN
In his mid-30s; David is a farmer from rural
Nebraska. While wandering around looking for
work he was given the farm by its prior owner and
now leads a quiet life. He has recently been
discovered by Leon Schwab for his ability to
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Taproot Theatre Company’s The Voice of the Prairie. Jeff
Berryman and Timothy Hornor.
Photo by Erik Stuhaug.
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Radio: The Voice
of America
There is little agreement about exactly when the
story of radio begins. In the late 19th Century while
Davey and Poppy were traveling America, many
scientists were concerned about how waves of
electricity were transferred through the air without
the use of wires (pioneering work with wires and
cables had already been done, giving us the
telephone and telegraph). In 1887, the experiments
of the German scientist Heinrich Hertz proved that
electric waves could be sent across a gap from one
hoop of wire to another. This discovery paved the
way for huge accomplishments in wireless
technology, the first of which are credited to the
British-Italian Guglielmo Marconi. Marconi made
the first wireless transmission across the Atlantic
Ocean in 1901.
The first radio broadcast* occurred on
Christmas Eve, 1906. Reginald A. Fessenden
successfully transmitted not only speech but song,
poetry and even a piece played on a violin to
listeners within several hundred miles. In the
summer of 1908 American Lee de Forest played
phonograph records (probably on a Victrola*) from
the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, that
reached out at least five hundred miles. By 1916
Frank Conrad in Pittsburg had regular musical
programming in the experimental stages, and his
new station, KDKA, announced the 1920
presidential election results from five hundred to
one thousand listeners.
“Broadcasting” Becomes a Household Word
“I have in mind a plan of development which
would make radio a ‘household utility’ in the same
sense as the piano or phonograph. The idea is to
bring music into the household by wireless.” David
Sarnoff, future President of RCA, predicts radio
broadcasting in a 1916 letter.
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The Radio Corporation
of America (RCA) was
formed in 1919 to bring
together control of all the
relevant inventions and
http://www.1earth.com.au/
technology and begin to
manufacture radio
equipment for the public. Shortly after this there
was a broadcasting boom. From 1921 to 1922 the
number of radio stations listed per month increased
almost nine times. In the beginning these licensed
stations, and amateur ones as well, all competed for
the same wavelengths*. This meant that unless they
agreed to share time on the air it was impossible to
listen to a program without interference and static.
It was the job of Secretary of Commerce Herbert
Hoover* to regulate all of this.
Freedom across the Ether*
“This is one of the few instances where the
country is unanimous in its desire for more
regulation.” Herbert Hoover at the 1922
Department of Commerce Radio Conference.
In the early days the possibilities for content
were endless, and because there were no official
laws censorship was not an issue. Secretary Hoover
did not yet have the Federal Communications
Commission* to aid him in the work of regulation,
though he was trying. The first stations to make an
impact were broadcasting anything from boxing
matches and whole operas to election speeches and
comedy revues. It is up to the imagination to guess
what local, independent stations like Leon Schwab’s
were putting on the air. Thanks to RCA, Zenith and
Philips* equipment for receiving broadcasts was
readily at the public’s fingertips. By 1926, when
General Manager David Sarnoff* and other high
profile figures at RCA were forming the National
Broadcasting Company network from the original
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Suffragettes: Susan B. Anthony,
Helen Keller and the World of the Play
“Herbert
Hoover is a
Bolshevik!”
Leon
Schwab in
The Voice of
the Prairie.
Radio
seems to
have snuck
up on America. As breakthroughs were being made
in the field, most of the world was unaware. In
large part this had to do with the tumultuous state of
the union (and the world) between 1895 and 1923.
http://www.blogwaybaby.com
America at War
In 1895 America was still living with the
aftermath of the Civil War, which had ended thirty
years before in 1865. In 1898 America would go to
war with Spain over Cuba and territories in the
Pacific Ocean. Then, from 1914-1918, World War I
would devastate much of Europe and cost the lives
of many Americans. These destructive times were
the ones in which Davey and Frankie had their
adventures and grew up to become David Quinn and
Frances Reed.
Struggles to Gain a Voice
“If it ain’t Susan B. Anthony in dark glasses.” Leon
Schwab in The Voice of the
Prairie.
Susan B. Anthony
http://www.nndb.
com/people/
This period between 1895
and 1923 was also marked by
calls for rights from several
different groups, notably
women, workers and the
differently abled. The people in
Frances Reed’s Arkansas town
call her a “suffragette”.
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Suffragette was the term used by those hostile to the
women’s movement for suffrage, or the right to
vote, and to people like Susan B. Anthony*. Leon
Schwab talks a lot about Herbert Hoover and the
Bolsheviks*, and this is a reference to the Russian
Revolution that took place in 1917. The revolution
was an attempt to gain power for the workers in
Russia, and their struggles were an inspiration to
workers unions and followers of the Bolshevik
philosophy in America.
The Only Blind Schoolteacher in
Arkansas
“Necessity gives to the eye a precious power of
seeing, and in the same way it gives a precious
power of feeling to the whole body. Sometimes it
seems as if the very substance of my flesh were so
many eyes looking out at will upon a world new
created every day.” Helen Keller in the preface to
The World I Live In, published in 1908.
One outspoken
follower of this
philosophy was Helen
Keller (1880-1968). The
character of Frances
Reed seems to be
modeled on Ms. Keller, a
woman blind and deaf
from the age of 19
months old. In writings
such as The Story of My
Helen Keller
Life (1903) and Out of
http://www.sec.state.la.us
the Dark (1913) Keller
argued for acknowledgement that women and
people of different abilities could lead active,
fulfilling and socially important lives. She
eloquently describes her relationship to the world
based on her senses of touch and smell, and the
adult Frances’s monologues seem to be influenced
by such passages from Keller.
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The Prairie: Nebraska and the
Midwest
It is safe to suggest that John Olive chose the
Midwest as the environment for The Voice of the
Prairie because while new technologies were
bringing progress to the major cities by the 1920s
and the rise of radio in these states was still ripe for
cultivation by ambitious businessmen and
developers from outside the area like Cornelius
Vanderbilt*.
“Hello! This is
Leon Schwab! The
voice of the
prairie…we’ll be here
tonight, making music
and talking talk until
the stars come out and
the cows come home.
So turn your radio
on!!!!” From the first
broadcast in The Voice
of the Prairie
David Quinn, “Stupid Farmer”
When David Quinn is discovered as a potential
radio star, he is, as Leon Schwab puts it, “an honestto-God farmer”. Farmers had a great impact on the
history of Nebraska and the Midwestern states
where the play is set. After Kansas and Nebraska
were established as territories in 1854, settlers
began to make their mark on the prairie. In 1862
President Lincoln passed
the Homestead Act, and
this provided free land to
anyone of legal age who
was willing to build a
house and live there for at
least five years. Most of
the people who took up this
offer were farmers.
In Nebraska, farmers
initially staked out much of
the Sand Hills and high
plains in the east. Large
ranchers resisted the
encroachment of farmers
moving west. Eventually
new techniques of
irrigation and dry land
farming led to the
settlement by persistent
farmers in most of
Nebraska by the 1890s.
The midwestern
states can be said to
include Illinois,
Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, Nebraska,
North Dakota, Ohio,
South Dakota and
Wisconsin. Many of
them, especially the
http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/~kenr/prairiephotos/prairiemap.jpg
Great Plains States like
During World War I in the
Nebraska, were
th
early
20
century,
Nebraska
contributed significant
territories until the late 1800s. In 1900 the average
amounts
of
food
to
the
war
effort.
This demand for
population for these states was around 500,000,
the state’s products brought on economic prosperity,
about 10% of the population in places like New
but when the war ended in 1918, so did the demand.
York and Pennsylvania. Despite some areas of
A steady decline in the number of farmers began,
variation, the Midwest is for the most part flat. The
many of them leaving to pursue better opportunities
grassland geography has led to the dominance of
elsewhere, especially in the cities of the east.
agriculture, and this was especially true in the 19th
th
and early 20 centuries.
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Irish Immigrants:
An Unexpected Invitation to Travel
“Those proper Englishmen, they change their tune
when they get to Ireland.” Poppy Quinn at the
beginning of The Voice of the Prairie.
David Quinn’s memories of his father are
deeply influenced by their heritage as Irish
immigrants. Poppy was from Ulster, the
northernmost of the four provinces of Ireland. By
1800 Ireland had become part of Great Britain, and
English Protestants* began to settle the country and
become the dominant class. Throughout the 19th
century the economic and political separation
between this upper class of Protestants and the local
Irish Catholics, derogatorily referred to as
“papists”*, became more pronounced. Poppy’s
stories hint at these divisions—with their references
to the rosary* and mortal sins*, both important
aspects of the Catholic faith.
Though Poppy is “the worst confidence man [or
con artist] in the U.S.A.” according to David, his
aptitude for storytelling is an Irish tradition.
Centuries of folklore, mythology and oral history
endured through modern times and resulted in a
mixture of personal and national memories that were
often exaggerated and full of adventure. They were
not always manipulated for profit like Poppy’s
stories, but they were used to redefine Irish history
at the turn of the century, emphasizing the heroic and
fantastical events of the past. In The Voice of the
Prairie, David Quinn wins over the American radio
audience by drawing on this powerful inheritance.
The Unexpected Invitation
“Poppy used to say, ‘Only dead people stay in one
place.’” David Quinn in The Voice of the Prairie
Most of these local Catholics made their living
by working the land, and when harsh conditions
were brought on by the Great Potato Famine of the
1840s many of them decided, often with much
sadness to leave the island and look for a better life
in America. Between 1820 and 1920 over
4,400,000 people emigrated from Ireland to the
United States. However, they were not necessarily
satisfied with what they found (surrounded as they
were by “pagans”* as Poppy calls them) and
developed a sort of spiritual homelessness.
An Old Storyteller
“Irish History is a ‘Story’” R.F. Foster in The Irish
Story: Telling Tales and Making it up in Ireland.
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Glossary
Poteen
Unlawfully distilled Irish whiskey.
Dandy
A man who gives exaggerated attention to
appearance.
Amplifier and Transformer
Devices for controlling energy and transferring
energy from one circuit to another.
Broadcast
To send out in several different directions. In
farming the term was used to describe scattering
seeds with a wide toss or “broad cast”.
Victrola
A line of phonographs (record players) released in
1906 by the Victor Talking Machine Company.
Wavelengths
The distance between repeating parts in a wave
pattern. Radio stations were eventually assigned
wavelengths on which to broadcast their programs
(FM runs between 88 and 108).
Herbert Hoover
Secretary of Commerce for the United States, 19211929, under presidents Harding and Coolidge. Went
on to become the 31st president, 1929-1933.
The Ether
A hypothetical substance filling all space, it was
thought to be the medium through which
electromagnetic waves traveled.
The Federal Communications Commission
The FCC was established in 1934 to regulate all
non-Federal Government use of radio, television,
wire, satellite and cable.
Zenith and Philips
Early producers of amateur radio equipment, Zenith
was founded in 1918, Philips in 1890.
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David Sarnoff
(1891-1971) President of RCA from 1930-1971. He
began his work with wireless as an office boy for the
American Marconi Company.
Cornelius Vanderbilt
(1794-1877) Vanderbilt was businessman who made
his fortune in shipping and railroads. He used his
wealth to found Vanderbilt University.
Protestant
One who separated from the Roman Catholic
Church.
Papist
A slur referring to Roman Catholics that was coined
by Protestants. It indicates one who believes in the
supremacy of the Pope over all Christians.
The Rosary
A Catholic devotion consisting of a set of beads and
a system of repeated prayers, from a Latin word
meaning “crown of roses”.
Mortal Sins
Sins that can remove from a person the possibility of
salvation if they are not repented. They are called
“mortal” because they are said to kill the eternal life
in a soul given at baptism.
Pagans
Typically this word refers to non-Christians or nonbelievers (of accepted religions). Originally it was a
term used to describe someone from the country.
Susan B. Anthony
(1820-1906) An important leader in the fight for
women’s rights, and also for other causes such as the
abolition of slavery. She was on the original dollar
coin.
Bolshevik
Members of the majority in the Russian SocialDemocratic Labor Party. They seized power in the
1917 revolution. The word is often used
interchangeably with “communist”.
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The Designs
Designers t
ake the direct
or’s vision for a pla
y and make it a reality
take
director’s
play
reality..
Set Design
Mark Lund
Costume Design
Sarah Burch Gordon
Davey
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Poppy
Frankie
Watermelon Man
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The Company
Frankie
Marianne Savell
David Quinn
Jeff Berryman
Davey
Timothy Hornor
Production Staff
Director
Scott Nolte
Set & Sound Designer Mark Lund
Dramaturg
Nicholas Hubbard
Props Designer
Charity Parenzini
ASM/Dresser
Suja Hart
Lighting Designer
Andrew Duff
Costume Designer
Sarah Burch Gordon Production Stage
Manager
Jenny Schmidt
Stage Manager
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Rebecca Patterson
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Activities
Directions:
Unscramble each of the clue words.
Copy the letters in the numbered
cells to other cells with the same
number.
It’s Your Turn to
Design!
Design an old radio so you can hear Leon
Schwab’s radio broadcasts
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Writing A
ctivity
Activity
You have been chosen to give a 3 minute radio broadcast. Think of a story from your life to tell
and write it in the space below.
We are so glad you are joing Taproot Theatre for a student matinee performance.
Audience Etiquette is important for everyone to experience an enriching and
educational experience. See you at the performance!
Audience Etiquette
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
It is appropriate to talk quietly until the performance begins.
If you need to use the restroom, please do so before the performance begins. Restrooms are
located in the upper and lower lobbies.
Be sure to be seated before the performance begins
No food, gum, candy or beverages are to be brought into the theatre.
Please don’t wear headphones during the performance.
Please turn off watch alarms, cellular phones, and other electronic devices.
Students who disturb other members of the audience may be asked to leave the theatre and
wait in the lobby.
Remember: you will get an opportunity to talk with the actors and director at the end of the
performance. Be prepared with questions about the production!
Please stay out of the aisles (also called “voms”) during the performance.
Please keep your hands and feet off of the stage at all times.
Enjoy the Show!
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If you’ve always wanted to be onstage...it’s time to act!
Whether you are a budding star or seasoned actor,
Taproot’s Acting Studio has classes for you!
Youth Classes
Spring Break Camps
Students will sample a buffet of acting skills such as improv, stage combat, Shakespeare and musical theatre
in this one-week adventure! Parents will enjoy a presentation the final day of camp
Session I
Ages 7-11
Session II
Ages 12-18
Monday-Friday, April 10 - 14
10:00 am – 4:00 pm
1 week/$250
Performance: Friday, April 14, 4:00 pm at TTC.
Class meets at Taproot Theatre
New! Session III
Especially for our youngest Actors! Students aged
4-6 will create an original performance while
learning the building blocks of acting.
Ages 4-6
Monday-Friday, April 10 - 14
10:15 am - 12:15 pm
1 week/$100
Performance: Friday, February 14, 11:00 am
Spring Musical
High School Master Class III
This audition-only class will challenge even the most
experienced young actors. Students will be cast in a
musical that they will never forget!
Pre-requisite: TTC Musical Theatre Supercamp
and approved audition. Limit 10 students
Ages 11-18 years
Saturdays, April 1 -May 20, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
7 weeks /$500
Dress Rehearsal: Sunday, May 21, 4:00 – 6:00 pm at
TTC.
Performances: Monday, May 22 and Tuesday, May
23, 7:00 pm at TTC.
HS Master Class III will continue to build on the
principles of HS Master Classes I and II, and will
solidify a process of ongoing training toward
connecting the actor’s various tools—body, voice,
gesture, and text. HS Master Class III will also
feature a final showcase of songs, monologues, and
duet scenes in which students will demonstrate their
growth and achievement.
Students must have instructor’s permission to
take this class.
Ages 14-18
Mondays April 3 - May 22, 6:00 – 8:00 pm
8 weeks/$220
Youth Scene Study
Adult Classes
This is a class for young actors who wish to deepen
their understanding of the craft of acting. Using
scene work, students will explore character, subtext,
relationship and environment.
Ages 10-18 years
Saturdays, April 1 - May 20, 10:00 am-12:00 pm
7 weeks/$220
Scene Study
This in-depth class is for adult actors who wish to
deepen their understanding of the craft of acting.
Using scene work, we will explore character, subtext,
relationship, and environment as we intensify our
exploration of the actor’s process.
Mondays, April 3 - May 22, 7:00 pm-10:00 pm
8 weeks/$250
Check out www.taproottheatre.org or email Sara at saraw@taproottheatre.org
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