The Caucasian Chalk Circle at University of Washington - Jones Playhouse

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2. The Caucasian Chalk Circle

Authors

• Bertolt Brecht
• Duncan Sheik
• Kweyao Agyapon
• Morton Subotnick
• Thulani Davis
• W.H. Auden

Brecht throws the audience into the action when a coup brings down the social order. The intertwining tales of Grusha, a young kitchen maid who rescues a baby abandoned by his royal mother, and Azdak, a drunken scribe suddenly elevated to high court judge, meet when Azdak must determine the fate of the child. Brecht borrows the idea of the chalk circle from an ancient Chinese folktale, and Azdak places the child in the circle for a winner-takes-all tug of war between Grusha and his high born mother.