The Blue Bird: A Fairy Play in Six Acts
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Maurice Maeterlinck >> The Blue Bird: A Fairy Play in Six Acts
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(_He hides his head in his arms and his whole frame is shaken with
sobs._)
LIGHT (_pressing him maternally in her arms_)
Do not cry, my child.... You did not catch the one that is able to live in
broad daylight.... He has gone elsewhere.... We shall find him again....
THE DOG (_looking at the dead birds_))
Are they good to eat?....
(_They all go out on the left_.)
SCENE 2.--_The Forest.
A forest. It is night. The moon is shining. Old trees of various kinds,
notably an_ OAK, _a_ BEECH, _an_ ELM, _a_ POPLAR, _a_ FIR-TREE, _a_
CYPRESS, _a_ LIME-TREE, _a_ CHESTNUT-TREE, _etc_.
ENTER _the_ CAT.
THE CAT (_bowing to the trees in turn_)
To all the trees here present, greeting!....
THE TREES (_murmuring in their leaves_)
Greeting!....
THE CAT
This is a great day, a day of days!.... Our enemy is coming to set free
your energies and to deliver himself into your hands..... It is Tyltyl, the
son of the wood-cutter, who has done you so much harm.... He is seeking the
Blue Bird, whom you have kept hidden from Man since the beginning of
the world and who alone knows our secret.... (_A murmuring in the
leaves_.) What do you say?... Ah, it's the Poplar!... Yes, he possesses
a diamond which has the virtue of setting free our spirits for a moment;
he can compel us to hand over the Blue Bird and thenceforth we shall be
definitely at Man's mercy.... (_A murmuring in the leaves_.) Who is
speaking?... Ah, the Oak!... How are you?... (_A murmuring in the leaves
of the_ OAK.) Still got your cold?... Does the Liquorice no longer look
after you?... Can't you throw off your rheumatism?... Believe me, that's
because of the moss; you put too much of it on your feet.... Is the Blue
Bird still with you?... (_A murmuring in the leaves of the_ OAK.) I
beg your pardon?... Yes, there is no room for hesitation; we must take
the opportunity; he must he done away with.... (_A murmuring in the
leaves_.) I didn't quite catch.... Oh, yes, he is with his little
sister; she must die, too.... (_A murmuring in the leaves_.) Yes, they
have the Dog with them; there is no keeping him away.... (_A murmuring in
the leaves_.) What did you say?... Bribe him?... Impossible.... I have
tried everything.... (_A murmuring in the leaves_.) Ah, is that you,
Fir-Tree?... Yes, get four planks ready.... Yes, there are Fire, Sugar,
Water and Bread besides.... They are all with us, except Bread, who is
rather doubtful.... Light alone is on Man's side; but she won't come....
I made the children believe that they ought to steal away while she was
asleep.... There never was such an opportunity.... (_A murmuring in the
leaves_.) Ah, that's the Beech's voice!... Yes, you are right; we must
inform the animals.... Has the Rabbit got his drum?... Is he with you?...
Good, let him beat the troop at once.... Here they are!...
(_The roll of the_ RABBIT'S _drum is heard, diminishing in the
distance. Enter_ TYLTYL, MYTYL _and the_ DOG.)
TYLTYL
Is this the place?...
THE CAT (_obsequiously, eagerly, mealy-mouthed, rushing to meet the_
CHILDREN)
Ah, there you are, my little master!... How well you look and how pretty,
this evening!.... I went before you to announce your arrival.... All Is
going well. We shall have the Blue Bird to-night, I am sure.... I have just
sent the Rabbit to beat the troop in order to convoke the principal
animals of the country.... You can hear them already among the foliage....
Listen!... They are a little shy and dare not come near.... (_The sounds
are heard of different animals, such as cows, pigs, horses, donkeys, etc.
The_ CAT, _aside, to_ TYLTYL, _taking him apart_) But why
have you brought the Dog?... I have told you he is on the worst terms with
everybody, even the trees.... I fear that his odious presence will spoil
everything....
TYLTYL
I could not get rid of him.... (_To the_ DOG, _threatening him_)
Go away, you ugly thing!...
THE DOG
Who?... I?... Why?... What have I done?...
TYLTYL
I tell you, go away!... We don't want you here and there's an end of it....
You're a nuisance, there!...
THE DOG
I sha'n't say a word.... I shall follow you at a distance.... They sha'n't
see me.... Shall I beg?...
THE CAT (_aside, to_ TYLTYL)
Do you allow this disobedience?... Hit him on the nose with your stick; he
is really unbearable!...
TYLTYL (_beating the_ DOG)
There, that will teach you to be more obedient!...
THE DOG (_yelling_)
Ow! Ow! Ow!...
TYLTYL
What do you say?...
THE DOG
I must kiss you now you've beaten me!... (_He covers_ TYLTYL _with
violent kisses and embraces_.)
TYLTYL
Come.... That will do.... That's enough.... Go away!...
MYTYL
No, no; I want him to stay.... I am afraid of everything when he is not
there....
THE DOG (_leaping up and almost upsetting_ MYTYL, _whom he overwhelms with
hurried and enthusiastic kisses_)
Oh, the dear little girl!... How beautiful she is!... How good she is!...
How beautiful she is, how sweet she is!...I must kiss her!... Once more,
once more, once more!...
THE CAT
What an idiot!... Well, we shall see!... Let us lose no time.... Turn the
diamond....
TYLTYL
Where shall I stand?...
THE CAT
In this moonbeam; you will see better.... There, turn it gently!...
(TYLTYL _turns the Diamond. A long-drawn-out rustling shakes the leaves
and branches. The oldest and most stately trunks open to make way for the
soul which each of them contains. The appearance of these souls differs
according to the appearance and the character of the trees which they
represent. The soul of the_ ELM, _for instance, is a sort of pursy,
pot-bellied, crabbed gnome; the_ LIME-TREE _is placid, familiar and
jovial; the_ BEECH, _elegant and agile; the_ BIRCH, _white,
reserved and restless; the_ WILLOW, _stunted, dishevelled and
plaintive; the_ FIR-TREE, _tall, lean and taciturn; the_ CYPRESS,
_tragic; the_ CHESTNUT-TREE, _pretentious and rather dandified;
the_ POPLAR, _sprightly, cumbersome, talkative. Some emerge slowly
from their trunks, torpidly stretching themselves, as though they had been
imprisoned or asleep for ages; others leap out actively, eagerly; and all
come and stand in a circle round the two_ CHILDREN, _while keeping as
near as they can to the tree in which they were born_.)
THE POPLAR (_running up first and screaming at the top of his voice_)
Men?... Little men!... We shall be able to talk to them!... We've done with
silence!... Done with it!... Where do they come from?... Who are they?...
What are they?... (_To the_ LIME-TREE, _who comes forward quietly
smoking his pipe_) Do you know them, Daddy Lime-Tree?...
THE LIME-TREE
I do not remember ever having seen them....
THE POPLAR
Oh, yes, you must have!... You know all the men; you're always hanging
about their houses....
THE LIME-TREE (_examining the_ CHILDREN)
No, I assure you.... I don't know them.... They are too young still.... I
only know the lovers who come to see me by moonlight and the topers who
drink their beer under my branches....
THE CHESTNUT-TREE (_affectedly adjusting his eyeglass_)
Who are these?... Are they poor people from the country?...
THE POPLAR
Oh, as for you, Mr. Chestnut-Tree, ever since you have refused to show
yourself except in the streets of the big towns...
THE WILLOW (_hobbling along in a pair of wooden shoes_)
Oh dear, oh dear!... They have come to cut off my head and arms again for
fagots!...
THE POPLAR
Silence!... Here is the Oak leaving his palace!... He looks far from well
this evening.... Don't you think he is growing very old?... What can his
age be?... The Fir-tree says he is four thousand; but I am sure that he
exaggerates.... Listen; he will tell us all about it....
(_The_ OAK _comes slowly forward. He is fabulously old, crowned with
mistletoe and clad in a long green gown edged with moss and lichen. He is
blind; his white beard streams in the wind. He leans with one hand on a
knotty stick and with the other on a young_ OAKLING, _who serves as
his guide. The Blue Bird is perched on his shoulder. At his approach, the
other trees draw themselves up in a row and bow respectfully_.)
TYLTYL
He has the Blue Bird!... Quick! Quick!... Here!... Give it to me!...
THE TREES
Silence!...
THE CAT (_to_ TYLTYL)
Take of your hat. It's the Oak!...
THE OAK (_to_ TYLTYL)
Who are you?....
TYLTYL
I am Tyltyl, sir.... When can I have the Blue Bird?...
THE OAK
Tyltyl, the wood-cutter's son?...
TYLTYL
Yes, sir....
THE OAK
Your father has done us much harm.... In my family alone, he has put to
death six hundred of my sons, four hundred and seventy-five uncles and
aunts, twelve hundred cousins of both sexes, three hundred and eighty
daughters-in-law, and twelve thousand great-grandsons!...
TYLTYL
I know nothing about it, sir.... He did not do it on purpose....
THE OAK
What have you come here for; and why have you made our souls leave their
abodes?...
TYLTYL
I beg your pardon, sir, for disturbing you.... The Cat said that you would
tell us where the Blue Bird was....
THE OAK
Yes, I know that you are looking for the Blue Bird, that is to say, the
great secret of things and of happiness, so that Man may make our servitude
still harder....
TYLTYL
Oh, no, sir; it is for the Fairy Berylune's little girl, who is very
ill....
THE OAK (_laying silence upon him with a gesture_)
Enough!... I do not hear the Animals.... Where are they?... All this
concerns them as much as us.... We, the Trees, must not assume the
responsibility alone for the grave measures that have become necessary....
On the day when MAN hears that we have done what we are about to do, there
will be terrible reprisals..... It is right, therefore, that our agreement
should be unanimous, so that our silence may be the same....
THE FIR-TREE (_looking over the top of the other trees_)
The Animals are coming.... They are following the Rabbit.... Here are the
souls of the Horse, the Bull, the Ox, the Cow, the Wolf, the Sheep, the
Pig, the Cock, the Goat, the Ass, and the Bear....
(_Enter the souls of the_ ANIMALS, _who, as the_ FIR-TREE
_utters their names, come forward and sit down among the trees, with the
exception of the soul of the_ GOAT, _who roams to and fro, and of
the_ PIG, _who snuffles among the roots_.)
THE OAK
Are all here present?...
THE RABBIT
The Hen could not leave her eggs, the Hare is out on a run, the Stag has a
pain in his horns, the Fox is ill--here is the doctor's certificate--the
Goose did not understand and the Turkey flew into a passion....
THE OAK
These abstentions are most regrettable.... However, we have a quorum....
You know, my brothers, the nature of our business. The child you see before
you, thanks to a talisman stolen from the powers of Earth, is able to take
possession of the Blue Bird and thus to snatch from us the secret which
we have kept since the origin of life.... Now we know enough of Man to
entertain no doubt as to the fate which he reserves for us once he is in
possession of this secret. That is why it seems to me that any hesitation
would be both foolish and criminal.... It is a serious moment; the child
must be done away with before it is too late....
TYLTYL
What is he saying?...
THE DOG (_prowling round the_ OAK _and showing his fangs_)
Do you see my teeth, you old cripple?...
THE BEECH (_indignantly_)
He is insulting the Oak!...
THE OAK
Is that the Dog?... Drive him out! We must suffer no traitors among us!...
THE CAT (_aside, to_ TYLTYL)
Send the Dog away.... It's a misunderstanding.... Leave it to me; I will
arrange things.... But send him away as quick as you can....
TYLTYL (_to the_ DOG)
Will you be off!...
THE DOG
Do let me worry the gouty old beggar's moss slippers!.... It will be such a
joke!...
TYLTYL
Hold your tongue!... And be off with you!... Be off, you ugly brute!...
THE DOG
All right, all right, I'm going.... I'll come back when you want me....
THE CAT (_aside, to_ TYLTYL)
It would be a good thing to chain him up, or he will commit some folly; the
Trees will be angry and all will end badly....
TYLTYL
What can I do?... I have lost his leash....
THE CAT
Here's the Ivy just coming along with strong bonds....
THE DOG (_growling_)
I'll come back, I'll come back!... Ugh! Goutytoes! Timbertoes!... Pack of
old stunted growths, pack of old roots!... It's the Cat who's at the bottom
of all this!... I'll be even with him!... What have you been whispering
about, you sneak, you tiger, you Judas!... Wow, wow, wow!....
THE CAT
You see, he insults everybody....
TYLTYL
Yes, he is unbearable and one can't hear one's self speak.... Mr. Ivy, will
you chain him up, please?...
THE IVY (_timorously going up to the_ DOG)
Won't he bite?...
THE DOG (_growling_)
On the contrary, on the contrary!... He's going to kiss you!... Just wait
and see!... Come along, come along, you old ball of twine, you!...
TYLTYL (_threatening him with his stick_)
Tylo!...
THE DOG (_cringing at_ TYLTYL'S _feet and wagging his tail_)
What am I to do, my little god?
TYLTYL
Lie down flat!... Obey the Ivy.... Let him bind you, or....
THE DOG (_growling between his teeth, while the_ IVY _binds him_)
Ball of twine I... Hunk of yarn!... Hangman's rope I... Calves' leash!...
Look, my little god I ... He's cutting my paws!... He's choking me!...
TYLTYL
I don't care!... It's your own fault.... Hold your tongue; be quiet; you're
unbearable!...
THE DOG
You're wrong, for all that.... They mean mischief.... Take care, my little
god!... He's closing my mouth!... I can't speak!...
THE IVY (_who has tied up the_ DOG _like a parcel_)
Where shall we put him?... I've muzzled him finely.... He can't utter a
word....
THE OAK
Fasten him tight down there behind my trunk; to my big root.... We will
decide later what had best be done with him....
(_The_ IVY _and the_ POPLAR _carry the_ DOG _behind
the_ OAK'S _trunk_.)
THE OAK
Is that done?... Well, now that we are rid of this inconvenient witness, of
this renegade, let us deliberate in accordance with justice and truth....
I will not conceal from you the deep and painful nature of my emotion....
This is the first time that it is given to us to judge Man and make him
feel our power.... I do not think that, after the harm which he has done
us, after the monstrous injustice which we have suffered, there can remain
the least doubt as to the sentence that awaits him....
ALL THE TREES and ALL THE ANIMALS
No! No! No!... No doubt at all!... Hanging!... Death!... The injustice has
been too great!... The abuse too wicked!... It has lasted too long!...
Crush him!... Eat him!... At once!... Here and now!...
TYLTYL (_to the_ CAT)
What is the matter with them?... Are they displeased?...
THE CAT
Don't be alarmed.... They are a little annoyed because Spring is late....
Leave it to me; I will settle it all....
THE OAK
This unanimity was inevitable.... We must now decide, in order to avoid
reprisals, which form of execution will be the most practical, the easiest,
the quickest and the safest, which will leave the fewest accusing traces
when Man finds the little bodies in the forest....
TYLTYL
What is all this about?... What is he driving at?... I am getting tired of
this.... He has got the Blue Bird; let him hand it over....
THE BULL (_coming forward_)
The most practical and the surest way is a good butt with the horns in the
pit of the stomach.... Shall I go at him?...
THE OAK
Who speaks?...
THE CAT
It's the Bull.
THE COW
It would be better to keep quiet.... I won't meddle with it.... I have all
the grass to browse in the field which you can see down there in the blue
light of the moon.... I have quite enough to do....
THE OX
I also.... However, I agree to everything beforehand....
THE BEECH
I can offer my highest branch to hang them on....
THE IVY
And I the slip-knot....
THE FIR-TREE
And I the four planks for their little coffin....
THE CYPRESS
And I a perpetual grant of a tomb....
THE WILLOW
The simplest way would be to drown them in one of my rivers.... I will take
charge of that....
THE LIME-TREE (_in a conciliatory tone_)
Come, come.... Is it really necessary to go to such extremities?... They
are very young.... We could quite simply prevent them from doing any harm
by keeping them prisoners in an enclosure which I will undertake to form by
planting myself all around....
THE OAK
Who speaks?... I seem to recognise the honeyed accents of the Lime-tree....
THE FIR-TREE
Yes, it's he....
THE OAK
So there is a renegade among us, as among the Animals?... Hitherto we have
only had to deplore the disloyalty of the Fruit-trees; but they are not
real trees....
THE PIG (_rolling his small eyes gluttonously_)
I think we should first eat the little girl.... She ought to be very
tender....
TYLTYL
What's he saying?... Just wait a bit, you...
THE CAT
I don't know what is the matter with them; but things are beginning to look
badly....
THE OAK
Silence!... What we have to decide is which of us shall have the honour of
striking the first blow, who shall ward off from, our tops the greatest
danger that has threatened us since the birth of Man....
THE FIR-TREE
That honour falls to you, our king and our patriarch....
THE OAK
Is that the Fir-tree speaking?... Alas, I am too old!... I am blind and
infirm and my numbed arms no longer obey me.... No, to you, brother, ever
green, ever upright, to you, who have witnessed the birth of most of these
trees, to you be the glory, in default of myself, of the noble act of our
deliverance....
THE FIR-TREE
I thank you, venerable father.... But as I shall, in any case, have the
honour of burying the two victims, I should be afraid of arousing the just
jealousy of my colleagues; and I think that, next to ourselves, the oldest
and the worthiest and the one that owns the best club is the Beech....
THE BEECH
You know I am worm-eaten and my club is no longer to be relied upon.... But
the Elm and the Cypress have powerful weapons....
THE ELM
I should be only too pleased; but I can hardly stand upright.... A mole
twisted my great toe last night....
THE CYPRESS
As for me, I am ready.... But, like my brother, the Fir-tree, I shall have,
if not the privilege of burying them, at least the advantage of weeping
over their tomb.... It would be an unlawful plurality of offices.... Ask
the Poplar....
THE POPLAR
Me?... Are you serious?... Why, my wood is more tender than the flesh of
a child!... And, besides, I don't know what's the matter with me.... I am
shivering with fever.... Just look at my leaves.... I must have caught cold
at sunrise this morning....
THE OAK (_bursting out with indignation_)
You are afraid of Man!... Even those unprotected and unarmed little
children inspire you with the mysterious terror which has always made us
the slaves that we are!... Enough of this! Things being as they are and the
opportunity unequalled, I shall go forth alone, old, crippled, trembling,
blind as I am, against the hereditary enemy!... Where is he?...
(_Groping with his stick, he moves towards_ TYLTYL.)
TYLTYL (_taking his knife from his pocket_)
Is it me he's after, that old one, with his big stick?...
ALL THE TREES (_uttering a cry of alarm at the sight of the knife, they
step in between and hold back the_ OAK)
The knife!... Take care!... The knife!...
THE OAK (_struggling_)
Let me be!... What does it matter?... The knife or the axe!... Who's
holding me back?... What! Are you all here?... What! You all want to....
(_Flinging down his_ _stick_) Well, so be it!... Shame upon
us!... Let the Animals deliver us!...
THE BULL
That's right!... I'll see to It!... And with one blow of the horns!...
THE OX _and_ THE COW (_holding him back by the tail_)
What are you doing?... Don't be a fool!... It's a bad business!... It will
end badly.... It is we who will pay for it.... Do let be.... It's the wild
animals' business....
THE BULL
No, no!... It's my business!... Wait and see!... Look here, hold me back or
there will be an accident!...
TYLTYL (_to_ MYTYL, _who is uttering piercing screams_)
Don't be afraid!... Stand behind me.... I have my knife....
THE COCK
He has plenty of pluck, the little chap!...
TYLTYL
So you've made up your minds, it's me you're going for?...
THE ASS
Why, of course, my little man; you've taken long enough to see it!...
THE PIG
You can say your prayers; your last hour has come.... But don't hide the
little girl.... I want to feast my eyes on her.... I'm going to eat her
first....
TYLTYL
What have I done to you?...
THE SHEEP
Nothing at all, my little man.... Eaten my little brother, my two sisters,
my three uncles, my aunt, my grandpapa and my grandmamma.... Wait, wait,
when you're down, you shall see that I have teeth also....
THE ASS
And I hoofs!...
THE HORSE (_haughtily pawing the ground_)
You shall see what you shall see!... Would you rather that I tore you with
my teeth or knocked you down with a kick?... (_He moves ostentatiously
towards_ TYLTYL, _who faces him and raises his knife. Suddenly the_
HORSE, _seized with panic, turns and rushes away_.) Ah, no!... That's
not fair!... That's against the rules!.... He's defending himself!...
THE COCK (_unable to hide his admiration_)
I don't care, the little chap's full of grit!...
THE PIG (_to the_ BEAR _and the_ WOLF)
Let us all rush on them together.... I will support you from the rear....
We will throw them down and share the little girl when she is on the
ground....
THE WOLF
Divert their attention in front.... I am going to make a turning
movement....
(_He goes round_ TYLTYL, _whom he attacks from behind and half
overthrows_.)
TYLTYL
You brute!... (_He raises himself on one knee brandishing his knife and
doing his best to cover his little sister, who utters yells of distress.
Seeing him half overturned, all the_ ANIMALS _and_ TREES _come up
and try to hit him_. TYLTYL _calls distractedly for assistance_.)
Help! Help!... Tylo! Tylo!... Where is the Cat?... Tylo!... Tylette!
Tylette!... Come! Come!...
THE CAT (_hypocritically, holding aloof_)
I can't come.... I have sprained my paw....
TYLTYL (_warding of the blows and defending himself as best he can_)
Help!... Tylo! Tylo!... I can't hold out!... There are too many of them!...
The Bear! The Pig! The Donkey! The Ass! The Fir-tree! The Beech!... Tylo!
Tylo! Tylo!...
(_Dragging his broken bonds after him, the_ DOG _leaps from behind
the trunk of the_ OAK _and, elbowing his way through_ TREES
_and_ ANIMALS, _flings himself before_ TYLTYL, _whom he defends
furiously_.)
THE DOG (_distributing great bites_)
Here! Here, my little god!... Don't be afraid! Have at them!... I know how
to use my teeth!... Here, there's one for you, Bear, in your fat hams!...
Now then, who wants some more?... Here, that's for the Pig and that's for
the Horse and that's for the Bull's tail!... There, I've torn the Beech's
trousers and the Oak's petticoat!... The Fir-tree's making tracks!... Whew,
it's warm work!...
TYLTYL (_overcome_)
I'm done for!... The Cypress has caught me a great blow on the head....
THE DOG
Ow!... That's the Willow!... He's broken my paw!...
TYLTYL
They're coming back, they're charging down upon us, all together!... This
time, it's the Wolf!...
THE DOG
Wait till I give him one for himself!...
THE WOLF
Fool!... Our brother!... His father drowned your seven puppies!...
THE DOG
Quite right!... And a good thing too!... It was because they looked like
you!...
ALL THE TREES AND ANIMALS
Renegade!... Idiot!... Traitor!... Felon!... Simpleton!... Judas!... Leave
him!... He's a dead man!... Come over to us!...
THE DOG (_drunk with ardour and devotion_)
Never! Never!... I alone against all of you!... Never! Never!... True to
the gods, to the best, to the greatest!... (_To_ TYLTYL) Take care,
here's the Bear!... Beware of the Bull!... I'll jump at his throat....
Ow!... That's a kick.... The Ass has broken two of my teeth....
TYLTYL
I'm done for, Tylo!... Ah!... That was a blow from the Elm.... Look, my
hand's bleeding.... That's the Wolf or the Pig....
THE DOG
Wait, my little god.... Let me kiss you.... There, a good lick.... That
will do you good.... Keep behind me.... They dare not come again.... Yes,
though.... Here they are coming back!... This time, it's serious!.... We
must stand firm!...
TYLTYL (_dropping to the ground_)
No, I can hold out no longer!...
THE DOG (_listening_)
They are coming!... I hear them, I scent them!...
TYLTYL
Where?... Who?...
THE DOG
There! There!... It's Light!... She has found us!... Saved, my little
king!... Kiss me!... We are saved!... Look!... They're alarmed!... They're
retreating!... They're afraid!...
TYLTYL
Light!... Light!... Come quick!... Hurry!... They have rebelled!... They
are all against us!...
_Enter_ LIGHT. _As she comes forward, the dawn rises over the
forest, which becomes light_.
LIGHT
What is it?... What has happened?... But, my poor boy, didn't you know?...
Turn the diamond!... They will return into silence and obscurity; and you
will no longer perceive their hidden feelings....
(TYLTYL _turns the diamond. Immediately, the souls of all the_ TREES
_rush back into the trunks, which close again. The souls of the_
ANIMALS _also disappear; and a peaceful_ COW _and_ SHEEP,
_etc., are seen browsing in the distance. The Forest becomes harmless
once more_, TYLTYL _looks around him in amazement_.)
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