Product Description

The 1963 radio dramatization, with Richard Burton as the narrator, of Dylan Thomas's "play for voices", about the inhabitants of a small Welsh village.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4663 in Books
• Published on: 2001-04-02
• Released on: 1999-10-01
• Format: Audiobook
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 2
• Binding: Audio CD

Customer Reviews

A great performance of a truly great work
Under Milk Wood is one of the finest examples of writing you will ever read, or in this case hear. Words of such depth, lilt and lyrical rhythm that they take the breath away. It is genuinely difficult to find terms that do this masterpiece of the English language justice - so I will not try, just listen and be entranced by the magic of Dylan Thomas's unique genius.

To find a recording of this work that does it justice is rare indeed - and the BBC production on these CDs is as close to perfection as I have ever heard. This is the "Under Milk Wood" by which all others are judged and found wanting. Buy it. Listen to it. Please.

Original 1954 recording with Richard Burton, all-Welsh cast.
Written as a "play for voices" for the BBC, this historic audiotape features the all-Welsh cast of the original BBC production from 1954. Richard Burton is the First Voice, which connects all the characters, played by twenty-eight men, women, and children. With perfect diction and the sense of character which only a great actor can convey, Burton rolls his R's, modulates his voice in pitch and intensity, and makes Thomas's poetry come fully alive--full of alliteration and various kinds of rhyme, with nouns and adjectives used as verbs to convey action and sense impressions simultaneously, and always a wry humor and honesty of feeling.

Depicting one full day in the life of a small town in Wales, Thomas shows its motley residents as they awaken, perform their daily tasks, socialize, gossip, and daydream about the past that might have been and the future that may yet hold hope. When night falls and the residents retire, their losses and disappointments, along with their escapes into dreams, are given voice and poignancy. Polly Garter, with her numerous children by numerous fathers, dreams of Willie, a very small man who was the love of her life. Captain Cat, the blind bell-ringer, thinks of all the sailors he knew who died at sea. Mr. Pugh dreams of poisoning his wife, and young Gwenny, who has extorted pennies from the little boys who do NOT want to kiss her, plans for the next day and more pennies.

The sound effects provide context for the drama without overpowering the narrative--a cock's crow, the clip-clop of horses, the bark of dogs, footsteps, the sea, bell buoys--and simple songs add to the realism and the sense of character and place. A mournful tune performed by Polly Garter in a minor key, as she remembers Willie and compares him to her other lovers, is beautifully sung by Diana Maddox, her clear, bell-like voice and almost palpable sadness making her one of the most memorable of the characters. A humorous children's singing game, sung by local school children, gives added realism, and little Gwenny's song to three very young boys is delightfully cheeky. Both enchanting and historically important, this memorable recording is worth seeking through Used sites or through amazon.co.uk--the best recording ever made of this wonderful "play for voices." Mary Whipple

A stunning, evocative and embracing audio experience
The BBC recording of the 'play for voices' with Richard Burton as the lead narrator, is a wonderful creation. The story of South-West Wales fishing village, following the life of the village as a single day passes, it is a glorious composition of finely drawn characters. The word play is poetic, the inter-twined lives of the voices are surreal, the atmosphere is tangible. There is comedy and pathos as the author and the superb cast of voices draw out the stories within the village. It's best listened to in the dark, start to finish, in one sitting. Let the pictures flood through your mind; the words and voices are so evocative. Then read it to yourself, preferably with a well-annotated version that explains all the nuances and subtleties. You will not be able to read it without hearing Richard Burton's rich voice in your mind and seeing again the village, cascading down the hills to the little harbour, and every place within where a little drama is happening. Unforgetable.