Act One
Scene One
Open on an empty chessboard. Slowly, formally, the characters enter, the American principals in white, the Russian principals in black. The ARBITER is in grey. The chorus is covered by black or white mantles, depending on which side they stand on.
The Story of Chess.
ARBITER
EACH GAME OF CHESS
MEANS THERE'S ONE LESS
VARIATION LEFT TO BE PLAYED
EACH DAY GOT THROUGH
MEANS ONE OR TWO
LESS MISTAKES REMAIN TO BE MADE
ALL PRINCIPALS
EACH GAME OF CHESS
MEANS THERE'S ONE LESS
VARIATION LEFT TO BE PLAYED
EACH DAY GOT THROUGH
MEANS ONE OR TWO
LESS MISTAKES REMAIN TO BE MADE
ARBITER
NOT MUCH IS KNOWN OF EARLY DAYS OF CHESS
BEYOND A FAIRLY VAGUE REPORT
THAT FIFTEEN HUNDRED YEARS AGO
TWO PRINCES FOUGHT, THOUGH BROTHERS, FOR A HINDU THRONE
FREDDIE AND ANATOLY
THEIR MOTHER CRIED
FOR NO ONE REALLY LIKES THEIR OFFSPRING FIGHTING TO THE DEATH
SHE BEGGED THEM "STOP THIS SLAUGHTER" WITH HER EVERY BREATH
BUT SURE ENOUGH ONE BROTHER DIED
FLORENCE AND SVETLANA
SAD BEYOND BELIEF
SHE TOLD HER WINNING SON
"YOU HAVE CAUSED SUCH GRIEF –
I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS EVIL THING YOU'VE DONE."
FREDDIE
HE TRIED TO EXPLAIN
HOW THINGS HAD REALLY BEEN
ANATOLY
BUT HE TRIED IN VAIN
NO WORDS OF HIS COULD MOLLIFY THE QUEEN
WALTER AND MOLOKOV
AND SO HE ASKED THE WISEST MEN HE KNEW
THE WAY TO LESSEN HER DISTRESS
THEY TOLD HIM HE'D BE PRETTY CERTAIN TO IMPRESS
BY USING MODEL SOLDIERS ON
A CHECQUERED BOARD TO SHOW IT WAS HIS BROTHER'S FAULT
ALL PRINCIPALS
THEY THUS INVENTED CHESS.
WALTER
CHESS DISPLAYED NO INERTIA
SOON SPREAD TO PERSIA, THEN WEST
MOLOKOV
NEXT THE ARABS REFINED IT
THUS REDESIGNED IT PROGRESSED
FLORENCE
STILL FURTHER YET
AND WHEN CONSTANTINOPLE FELL IN FOURTEEN FIFTY THREE
ONE WOULD HAVE NOTICED EVERY OTHER REFUGEE
INCLUDED IN HIS BAGS A SET
ANATOLY
ONCE IN THE HANDS
AND IN THE MINDS OF LEADING FIGURES OF THE RENAISSANCE
THE SPIRIT AND THE SPEED OF CHESS MADE SWIFT ADVANCE
THROUGH ALL OF EUROPE'S VITAL LANDS
FREDDIE
WHERE WE MUST RECORD
THE GAME WAS FURTHER CHANGED
RIGHT ACROSS THE BOARD THE WESTERN TOUCH
UPON THE PIECES RANGED
ALL PRINCIPALS
(ANATOLY) KING (FLORENCE) AND QUEEN (FREDDIE) AND ROOK
(MOLOKOV) AND BISHOP, (WALTER) KNIGHT (SVETLANA) AND PAWN
ALL TOOK ON THE LOOK
WE KNOW TODAY – THE MODERN GAME WAS BORN
ARBITER
WITH SUCH SUCCESS
WE SEE A GAME THAT STARTED BY MISTAKE IN HINDUSTAN]
AND BOOSTED IN THE MAIN BY WHAT IS NOW IRAN
REACH EVERY CORNER OF THE GLOBE WITH NATION
SQUARING UP TO NATION TO DETERMINE, NO HOLDS BARRED,
WHO OWNS, WHO MADE, WHO WILL PARADE
THE CHAMPION OF CHESS
And so we come to the 1981 World Chess Championship in Bangkok, Thailand, between champion Freddie Trumper of the United States and Anatoly Sergievsky of the Soviet Union.
Scene One
Open on an empty chessboard. Slowly, formally, the characters enter, the American principals in white, the Russian principals in black. The ARBITER is in grey. The chorus is covered by black or white mantles, depending on which side they stand on.
The Story of Chess.
ARBITER
EACH GAME OF CHESS
MEANS THERE'S ONE LESS
VARIATION LEFT TO BE PLAYED
EACH DAY GOT THROUGH
MEANS ONE OR TWO
LESS MISTAKES REMAIN TO BE MADE
ALL PRINCIPALS
EACH GAME OF CHESS
MEANS THERE'S ONE LESS
VARIATION LEFT TO BE PLAYED
EACH DAY GOT THROUGH
MEANS ONE OR TWO
LESS MISTAKES REMAIN TO BE MADE
ARBITER
NOT MUCH IS KNOWN OF EARLY DAYS OF CHESS
BEYOND A FAIRLY VAGUE REPORT
THAT FIFTEEN HUNDRED YEARS AGO
TWO PRINCES FOUGHT, THOUGH BROTHERS, FOR A HINDU THRONE
FREDDIE AND ANATOLY
THEIR MOTHER CRIED
FOR NO ONE REALLY LIKES THEIR OFFSPRING FIGHTING TO THE DEATH
SHE BEGGED THEM "STOP THIS SLAUGHTER" WITH HER EVERY BREATH
BUT SURE ENOUGH ONE BROTHER DIED
FLORENCE AND SVETLANA
SAD BEYOND BELIEF
SHE TOLD HER WINNING SON
"YOU HAVE CAUSED SUCH GRIEF –
I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS EVIL THING YOU'VE DONE."
FREDDIE
HE TRIED TO EXPLAIN
HOW THINGS HAD REALLY BEEN
ANATOLY
BUT HE TRIED IN VAIN
NO WORDS OF HIS COULD MOLLIFY THE QUEEN
WALTER AND MOLOKOV
AND SO HE ASKED THE WISEST MEN HE KNEW
THE WAY TO LESSEN HER DISTRESS
THEY TOLD HIM HE'D BE PRETTY CERTAIN TO IMPRESS
BY USING MODEL SOLDIERS ON
A CHECQUERED BOARD TO SHOW IT WAS HIS BROTHER'S FAULT
ALL PRINCIPALS
THEY THUS INVENTED CHESS.
WALTER
CHESS DISPLAYED NO INERTIA
SOON SPREAD TO PERSIA, THEN WEST
MOLOKOV
NEXT THE ARABS REFINED IT
THUS REDESIGNED IT PROGRESSED
FLORENCE
STILL FURTHER YET
AND WHEN CONSTANTINOPLE FELL IN FOURTEEN FIFTY THREE
ONE WOULD HAVE NOTICED EVERY OTHER REFUGEE
INCLUDED IN HIS BAGS A SET
ANATOLY
ONCE IN THE HANDS
AND IN THE MINDS OF LEADING FIGURES OF THE RENAISSANCE
THE SPIRIT AND THE SPEED OF CHESS MADE SWIFT ADVANCE
THROUGH ALL OF EUROPE'S VITAL LANDS
FREDDIE
WHERE WE MUST RECORD
THE GAME WAS FURTHER CHANGED
RIGHT ACROSS THE BOARD THE WESTERN TOUCH
UPON THE PIECES RANGED
ALL PRINCIPALS
(ANATOLY) KING (FLORENCE) AND QUEEN (FREDDIE) AND ROOK
(MOLOKOV) AND BISHOP, (WALTER) KNIGHT (SVETLANA) AND PAWN
ALL TOOK ON THE LOOK
WE KNOW TODAY – THE MODERN GAME WAS BORN
ARBITER
WITH SUCH SUCCESS
WE SEE A GAME THAT STARTED BY MISTAKE IN HINDUSTAN]
AND BOOSTED IN THE MAIN BY WHAT IS NOW IRAN
REACH EVERY CORNER OF THE GLOBE WITH NATION
SQUARING UP TO NATION TO DETERMINE, NO HOLDS BARRED,
WHO OWNS, WHO MADE, WHO WILL PARADE
THE CHAMPION OF CHESS
And so we come to the 1981 World Chess Championship in Bangkok, Thailand, between champion Freddie Trumper of the United States and Anatoly Sergievsky of the Soviet Union.