Samuel Beckett
Digital Manuscript Project
Krapp's Last Tape / La Dernière Bande

MS-UoR-1227-7-7-1

MS. Pages: cover - 13r 13v - 18r 18v - 23r 23v - 25r

[p. cover]

ETE 56

[p. inscover]

195

3

- For Reading University Library
Sam. Beckett -

[p. titlepage]

Fin de Partie scraps
All That Fall "
Krapp First draft
Pim Notes
Willie-Winnie Notes

[p. 10v]
DOODLE 1
DOODLE 2
addition 1→

[0003] Front centre, [0004] sitting on a small plain wooden chair at before a small plain wooden table, X. [0004|001] About 70.

[0005] xx window from antiquated clothes. Coat and trousers of different suits.

[0008] Collar hanging open. [0004] Little Little wearish old man.

DOODLE 3

[0005] Red rusty baggy Rusty black narrow trousers, [] too short for him. [0006] Black xxx Rusty black sleeveless waistcoat, 4 pockets. [0007] xxx xxx Heavy silver watch & chain. [0008] Grimy white shirt open at neck. No collar. [0009] Surprising pair of yellow boots white cricket boots, size ten, very narrow & pointed.

[0010] Pallid face. [0011] Purple nose.

[0014] Very near-sighted and [0015] hard of hearing. [0014] No glasses.

[0016] Croaking voice, [0017] characterist characteristic accent.

[0019] On the table a tape-recorder and a number of cardboard boxes containing recorded tapes.

[0020] Table and immediately adjacent area in strong light. [0021] Rest of stage in shadow darkness.

A

[0036] (reading from ledger, his nose down on it). [0037] Box three Box ... thrrree ... spool ... five. ([0038] He turns his head front without rai and stares front. [0039] With relish.) [0040] Spool! [0041] (Pause.) [0042] Spooool! [0045] (He turns back to table, starts peering & poking at the boxes.) [0046] Box ... three thrree thrree ... thrree ... four... two ... (with surprise) ... nine! ... seven... good God! ... seven ... ah! .... the little rascal! [0047] (He separates box three from the others.) [0048] Box three thrree. [0049] (He opens it, peers at the spools it contains.) [0050] Spool ... (He peers at ledger, finds the entry.) Five. (He peers at spools) Five ... five ... [0051] (He takes out a spool, xx straightens up, holds up the spool between finger & thumb.) [0052] Box thrree, sSpoool five.

[p. 11r]
Magee Monologue

20.2.58

[0004] wearish small old man, [0014] almost blind [0014|001] (x objects, writing up against eye), [0015] almost deaf (cupped ear down almost touching tape), [0004] sitting centre on small plain wooden chair at small plain wooden table. [0016] wheezy ruined old voice [0017] with some characteristic accent [] [0019] On table: a thick worn ledger, a tape-recorder and a number of cardboard boxes filled containing recorded tapes. [0020] Table and immediately adjacent zone in a circle of strong light, [0021] rest of stage in shadow.

A.

[0036] (reading from ledger, his nose down on it) [0037] Box ... three ... spool ... five ([0038] He turns his head from ledger away from table xxx xxx front, without raising it. [0039] Appreciatively.) [0040] Spoool! [0041] (again, relishing the word.) [0042] Spooool! [0045] (He turns back to table, starts peering at the boxes) and fumbling at the boxes.) [0046] Box ... three. (He turns his head front without raising it. As before,). The rolling the r). Three! (Pause) Thrreee! (He turns back to boxes) Box ..... box ...... (peering at numbers) ......... four ......... two ..... (with surprise) ... nine! .... seven ... ah! the little rascal! [0047] (He separates the box from the others) [0048] Box three thrreee. [0049] (He opens it, peers at the spools it contains) [0050] Spool ... (He turns back to peer at ledger, peers at it, finds the entry.) Five. (He turns back to peer at spools.) Five ... five ... [0051] (He takes out a spool.) [0052] Spool five. [0053] (He places spool on table before him, closes box and puts it back to with the others. He turns back to spool.) [0054] Box thrreee spoool five. ([0059] He puts it on the machine.) [0061] He x peers again at ledger. Finally.) [0061|001] Passim. ([0065] He turns head front without raising, stares

[p. 11v]

[0053] (He lays it on table, closes box three and puts it back with the others. He bends over spool. [0054] Box three Box thrree, spool five. ([0059] He puts spool on machine, [0061] peers at ledger. Reading from ledger entry at foot of page.) [0062] Mother at rest ... [0064] The black ball ... ([0065] He raises his head. [0066] Puzzled.) [0067] The black ball??? ([0068] He peers again at ledger) [0069] ... The dark nurse [0069|001] ... broods ... [0070] (He raises his head, broods, peers again at ledger) [0071] Improvement of bowel condition ... [0073] Memorable ... what? [0074] (He peers closer) [0075] Equinox. Memorable equinox. ([0076] He raises his head, stares xx front. [0077] Puzzled.) [0078] Memorable equinox? ([0079] Pause. [0080] He shrugs his shoulders, peers again at ledger.) [0081] Farewell ... to - (he turns the page) - love.

addition 2→

[0082] He closes ledger, bends over machine, switches it on, takes up listening posture, i.e. ear cupped towards ear cupped towards machine, face front.

Tape.

[0083] (strong young voice, but unmistakably his at a much earlier time.) [0084] Thirty-seven today, sound -

[0085] xxx xxxions
Settling himself more comfortably he knocks a box off the table on the floor. He curses, stops machine, sweeps boxes and ledger violently off table, switches on the machine, resumes his pose.

Tape

[0086] Thirty-seven today etc.

[p. 12r]

[0065] blankly before him. [0065|001] Finally, softer.) [0065|002] PPassim! [0082] (He turns back to table, starts up machine, crouches down over tape, cupping his ear , his face turned front.

Tape

[0083] (strong young voice, unmistakably A's at a much earlier time). [0084] This day, being in the third - xxx

[0085] Settling himself more comfortably A knocks a box off the table on to the floor. He curses, stops the machine, sweeps boxes and ledger violently off the table, turns [] turns back tape to beginning starts up the machine again, resumes his pose.

Tape

[0085|001] This day This day, being in the third -

[0085|002] The weight of boxes and ledger off the table he feels it unsteady on its legs, curses, stops the machine, tries to steady it, fails, gets up and carries it laboriously towards front. This brings him out of zone of light. [0085|003] He sets down table in shadow, goes back into for chair, carries it to table and sits down in shadow. The light moves and comes to rest on him in his new position. [0085|004] He is now say a yard or so from edge of stage. He makes sure the table is firmly on its legs, turns back tape to beginning, resumes his position.

[p. 12v]

DOODLE 4
DOODLE 5
addition 3→
addition 4→

Tape.

[p. 13r]

[0086] This day, being in the third decade of the Ram, I enter upon my 31st year, sound apparently in wind and limb, apart from my old trouble, and intellectually, I have little doubt, at the height peak of my powers. [0086|001] (Pause. With fervour.) May the all all-merciful Providence - (Pause. With fervour. Continues) [0086|002] May the star which shone on my cradle in xxx Great stood above my cradle bassinet in North Great Georges Street continue to burn, as heretofore, in my breast and in my labours. [0086|003] (Pause. In a lower voice.) In particular may I be given the strength, in the years coming years, to ... (Hesitation. Finally, still lower.) to drink less. (Pause.)Solemnly.) [0086|004] In the past year 12 months I spent, in l on licensed premises alone, anything between from seventeen and to nineteen hundred hours. (Pause.) Nineteen Nineteen hundred hours. (Pause.) [0086|005] Oh I know, I know, I have had these crises before, but never at no time quite so acutely as today this afternoon, sitting lying on the grass, in the park, in the sun. (Pause.) What would help me more than anything, I think, is a ... fuller ... a ... a fuller ... a more ... more natural ... a more ... absorbing engrossing (lowering his voice) ... sexual life. (Pause.) [] Enthusiastic. Intercourse! with real partners. [0086|006] (Pause.) These nineteen hundred hours, for example, if in the future instead of having of spent them bibul spending them bibulating, I were to spend them -

[0171] A stops the machine, then gets remains motionless a moment, then gets up

MS. Pages: cover - 13r 13v - 18r 18v - 23r 23v - 25r