THE STORY
Sydney Carton, a hard-drinking, womanizing lawyer, meets the beautiful Lucie Manette as she is about to leave for Paris for a reunion with her father. Although Carton falls in love with Lucie, he doubts that she could ever love him.
In Paris, Lucie and her father, Doctor Manette, reunite in Ernest Defarge’s wine shop. For 18 years, Doctor Manette has been a prisoner in the Bastille. Silently overseeing the reunion, Mme. Defarge, Defarge’s fierce wife, projects an ominous presence.
Outraged by his aristocratic father’s cruelty, Charles Darnay, son of the Marquis St. Evremonde, leaves Paris for London. Believing his son to be a liability, the Marquis hires two hoodlums to commit a crime and frame him. The plan nearly works as Darnay is arrested and brought to trial. But when one of the thugs, identifies Darnay as the killer, Carton points out the physical esemblance between Darnay and himself. Totally confused, the thug recants, and the jury acquits Darnay.
Carton decides to tell Lucie that he loves her. Even though their passion ignites, Carton backs off for fear that his latest attempt at sobriety could be temporary. Even though she loves Carton, when Darnay proposes, Lucie accepts.
As the French Revolution begins, Mme. Defarge lures Darnay to Paris where he is arrested for being an aristocrat. Although Doctor Manette nearly persuades the judge to free Darnay, Mme. Defarge produces the doctor’s prison diary, which seals Darnay’s fate.
The diary tells of a long-ago night when the much younger Marquis summoned Doctor Manette to treat a dying girl and her brother, both of whom the Marquis had assaulted. After they died, however, the Marquis imprisoned Doctor Manette in the Bastille so that he could not report the crime. Screaming that the girl and boy were her sister and brother, Mme. Defarge denounces all Evremondes.
To save Darnay from execution, Carton slips into the prison, drugs him, and takes his place. Still crazed for revenge, Mme. Defarge intends to denounce Lucie and Doctor Manette as traitors. But Miss Pross, Lucie’s childhood nanny, stops her. When the two women fight, Miss Pross kills Mme. Defarge with her own gun.
At the guillotine, Sydney Carton understands that his sacrifice is “a far, far better thing” than he has ever done before. As he mounts the steps to the blade, he finds his ultimate salvation.
Cast of Characters
Principal male roles, 5 actors required:
Sydney Carton
A hard-drinking, womanizing lawyer who loves Lucie Manette; his final act redeems his wasted life
Charles Darnay
Carton’s lookalike, he is a good man who rejects his French father’s evil lifestyle and moves to England; he marries Lucie Manette
Doctor Manette
Wrongly imprisoned in the Bastille for 18 years, the doctor finally meets his daughter and restarts his life
Jarvis Lorry
A good friend to Doctor Manette, Mr. Lorry lives for “doing business”; even though he is somewhat stuffy, he cares for the doctor and Lucie
Ernest Defarge
Doctor Manette’s former servant, he now owns the wine shop in Paris; although he is a revolutionary, he isn’t a bloodthirsty zealot
Secondary male roles, 7 actors required:
C.J. Stryver
A lawyer, he is Carton’s boss; he is pompous and overly proud of his ability
Jerry Cruncher
Mr. Lorry’s hired man; Jerry finds corpses and sells them to doctors to make extra money
Marquis St. Evremonde
A wealthy aristocrat whose evil deeds are legendary; he meets his end at the guillotine
Jacques #1
A French revolutionary
Jacques #2
A French revolutionary
Jacques #3
A French revolutionary
John Barsad
A British criminal, he works for the Marquis; eventually, however, he and his partner, Roger Cly, help Carton save Darnay’s life
Principal female roles, 2 actors required:
Lucie Manette
A young girl who unites with her father when he is released from
prison; although she loves the sensual Sydney Carton, she marries
the reliable Charles Darnay
Mme. Defarge
Damaged by the Marquis’ treatment of her family, she allows
revenge and rage to define her
Secondary female roles, 3 actors required:
Miss Pross
Lucie Manette’s nurse, Miss Pross is highly protective of her; in a
hand-to-hand fight with Mme. Defarge, Miss Pross is victorious
The Vengeance
A revolutionary who is Mme. Defarge’s sidekick
The Furies
A revolutionary who is Mme. Defarge’s sidekick
Chorus:
Male multiple roles, 8 actors required:
Butler/Jailer
Four men in bar/two servants of the Marquis
Gaspard/Roger Cly
Street vendor/Minister/Dying Young Man
Carriage driver/British Attorney/Young Marquis
Gabelle/Young Doctor Manette
Servant #1/British judge/French judge
Servant #2/Henchman #1/Blade Sharpener
The Furies
Female multiple roles, 2 actors required:
Barmaid #1/peasant/the Marquis’ wife
Barmaid #2/Dying young girl/Seamstress
General chorus roles:
French nobility
Bastille prisoners
French soldiers
French citizens
British citizens
Children's roles:
Marie, age 6
Young Jerry, age 11
Young Mme. Defarge, age 10
Young Charles, age 6