Chapter 51 "Yes, Prime Minister"

The next day,

Morning.

Lu Shi brought the script of "Yes, Prime Minister" to Shaw,

He needed the professional opinion of a professional.

As a professional translator, he had mostly dealt with novels and social science books, and very few scripts, so he lacked relevant writing experience.

Lu Shi went to Shaw's office,

At this time, Shaw had just arrived, pouring hot water into a flat metal container,

This thing is called a hot water bottle, a heating device before the electric blanket was invented.

Lu Shi greeted, "Principal."

Shaw looked up,

"Lu, you're here. How was yesterday's meeting?"

Lu Shi replied, "I met Churchill, Winston Churchill."

Shaw frowned for a long time,

As a result,

"I seem to have some impression... Hmm... Churchill... who is he again?"

Still couldn't remember.

At this time, Churchill was not very famous, so it's not surprising that Shaw didn't remember.

Lu Shi waved his hand, changing the subject: "Principal, I brought a script over, can you help me take a look?"

As he spoke, he handed over the script of "Yes, Prime Minister".

Shaw looked surprised,

"So fast!?"

He took the script, glanced at the title, and then showed a knowing expression, saying, "Is it the unit drama we talked about before? If it's that kind of script, it should be relatively easy to create, no wonder you could write it so quickly."

Lu Shi didn't deny it,

The overall framework of the script was copied, even though it needed modifications according to the era, the difficulty of secondary creation was much smaller.

Shaw lit his pipe and then made coffee,

He always did this as preparation before reading large chunks of text.

He took a sip of coffee and opened the first page of the script.

The script started with a sarcastic line on the title page:

"The great British tradition of being improper has always been improper."

"Ha! Ahem..."

Shaw sprayed the coffee he had just drunk.

He quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe it, saying at the same time, "Sorry, I really didn't expect... um... you wrote it so colloquially. Not to mention Wilde's aestheticism, even in my new plays, I wouldn't use such direct language."

Lu Shi said, "Yes! Prime Minister" is like this overall, what you saw is just a small test."

This is just a small test?

Shaw was reserved about this style of writing,

He didn't understand why Lu Shi, who could write modernist poetry, which was elegant, would abandon his skills and write a drama so vulgar and simplistic.

Lu Shi probably sensed Shaw's confusion,

"Principal, keep reading."

Shaw nodded,

"I trust you."

With that, he continued to flip through to the first page.

He only took one look and then showed a helpless expression,

Didn't expect Lu Shi to be such a novice, the stage directions were written very amateurishly.

Stage directions are an indispensable part of the script language, they are explanatory text in the script, including character lists, time and place of the plot, costumes, props, scenery, as well as the expressions, actions, entrances and exits of the characters,

Without stage directions, actors would be like headless flies.

Although Shaw thought Lu Shi lacked experience, out of trust in him, he still patiently continued reading.

Unexpectedly, it took more than two hours to read through.

The script had three main characters:

Jim Hack, a young and promising politician, originally a member of the opposition party, successfully joined the cabinet after helping his party win the election, further becoming the new party leader and then becoming prime minister, moving into 10 Downing Street;

Bernard Woolley, Jim's assistant, the prime minister's private secretary;

Humphrey Appleby, cabinet secretary, representative of the civil service.

The entire script revolved around the love-hate relationship between these three.

At the beginning of the play, it was about Jim's recent assumption of office as prime minister, and his plan to inspect the Admiralty, listening to the advice of the staff,

Bernard suggested that Hack should not let Humphrey know about his communication with the staff, because Humphrey always felt that the staff were not "one of us".

This surprised Jim very much,

So there was this classic dialogue:

Jim: I remember the staff received an Outstanding Military Medal.

Bernard: That can't make up for the fact that he didn't go to Cambridge or Oxford, and even, "even" didn't go to the London School of Economics.

Jim: (⊙_⊙)?

London School of Economics is Jim's alma mater.

Shaw couldn't help but laugh out loud when he read this, he didn't expect Lu Shi to even mock himself in his script.

After that, there were all kinds of funny lines flying around,

Such as the joke Lu Shi made before about defending Britain,

And the Four Levels of Governance.

Shaw's mouth was crooked with laughter,

He put down the script, rubbing his eyes, saying, "Lu, I've written many drama reviews in the Star and Saturday Review, so I often look at scripts with a critical eye, which is a kind of arrogance, a condescending attitude. But this "Yes! Prime Minister"..."

Shaw hesitated slightly,

Then, he actually showed a wry smile,

"I wanted to say that I was willing to look at this play on equal terms, but on second thought, I found it too high-minded. I should look up to it."

Lu Shi waved his hand,

"Principal, it's not that serious."

Shaw insisted: "It is! Very much so!"

He looked at the script again, admiration in his eyes,

"Although I've only read the first few scenes of "Yes! Prime Minister," I have a feeling of 'so this is how a play can be written', and even feel that my vocabulary is too limited, I couldn't find the right language to praise it."

Lu Shi didn't show false modesty anymore,

Because Shaw's feelings were also his first impression of "Yes! Prime Minister."

Shaw said, "The humor in this play is very sophisticated, ordinary British humor can't compare to it at all, let alone those crude low-brow methods."

Lu Shi touched his nose,

"Crude methods aren't necessarily bad. If the amount of joy is the same, playing darts and writing poetry are equally good."

Shaw smiled,

"Darts and poetry? Isn't that a saying from Jeremy Bentham? Of course, I also agree with Bentham's view - there's no difference in the joy itself. But, it's undeniable, there are different means of creating joy."

Lu Shi didn't understand, "Why?"

Shaw finally had the opportunity to teach Lu Shi, very excited,

He gestured and said, "Plays with crude methods can indeed create joy, but their appeal is very short-lived. Once the audience loses interest, it's easy to detach from that kind of joy, making it difficult to immerse themselves in the drama again. Your "Yes! Prime Minister," on the other hand, is the opposite. At first glance, it only evokes a smile, but soon, this kind of initial joy turns into a lasting pleasure, making people unable to help but savor it repeatedly."

This was quite a high praise.

Lu Shi said, "Principal, do you like this play?"

If even Shaw, a playwright, liked it, then "Yes! Prime Minister" should be solid.

Sure enough, Shaw nodded in satisfaction,

"This may be the play I like most in my life, it's hard to have a latecomer in the future... Well... it's better not to say it all, who knows what tricks you, this monster, will come up with in the future."

Shaw looked at Lu Shi with a look of seeing a monster.

Lu Shi coughed lightly,

"Then... could you help me polish it?"

Shaw was very happy,

"It's my honor to help revise the script of "Yes! Prime Minister." However, this play's satire is too sharp, and the target of satire is a bit... "

As he spoke, Shaw extended his right index finger, pointing to the sky,

The meaning to be conveyed was self-evident.

He sighed, "Alas... I don't know if "Yes! Prime Minister" can be performed in a large theater."

Lu Shi was optimistic,

"It's okay, let's try it in a small theater first."

Shaw volunteered, "I'll contact for you."