Stone

de Edward Bond

'Stone', first presented at the ICA, London, in 1976, is a one act parable of oppression, a politically-charged journey through a spare and allegorical landscape. It tells the story of a man who sets out into the world with seven coins saved up for him by his parents. The man meets a stonemason who robs him, returns the money, and gives him a stone to carry and promises to pay him if he carries it to the stonemason's house. As the man walks he meets a tramp, a dancing girl, a policeman and a judge, and the stone gets bigger and heavier all the time. Hewn into forceful images and angular poetry, 'Stone' is a simple but fervent discussion of injustice and freedom.