[lit-ideas] The Ostnia/Westland Room
- From: Jlsperanza@xxxxxxx
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 20:29:46 EST
Geary:
"Does anyone know the name of a W. H. Auden poem about leaders meeting in a
villa retreat and making decisions in that safe and privileged atmosphere
that will rain death down on cities? I've looked through many of Auden's
collected works, but can't find it. I can't remember more than what I've just
told
unfortunately. I'm 98% positive it exists out there in the world of print. If
it rings a bell, please let me know."
Well, this is one takes place in the office of a dictator. But not precisely
your scenario.
On the Frontier: A Melodrama in Two Acts, by W. H. Auden and Christopher
Isherwood, first published in 1938.
The play tells the story of the outbreak of war between the fictional
European countries of Ostnia and Westland. Some of the action takes place in
the
"Ostnia-Westland Room", an imaginary setting in which two rooms, one in an
Ostnian household, one in Westland household, each occupy half the stage, and
the
family in one house are unaware of the family in the other - although the son
and daughter of the two families sense each other's existence. Other scenes
take place in the office of the Westland dictator. The play ends in a
visionary scene between the two lovers who have never met in real life. The
play was
produced in October 1938 at the Arts Theatre, Cambridge, in a production by
the Group Theatre (London). The music for the play was composed by Benjamin
Britten.
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