“‘There must be something in books, things we can’t imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing.'”
- Guy Montag
By Ray Bradbury
Adaptation and Direction: Wynn Handman
Performed by Rich Orlow
Appropriate for: elementary / middle / high school, and college audiences
Available for: live performances
Literature to Life brings Ray Bradbury's terrifyingly recognizable vision of the future to the stage for audiences of all ages. Guy Montag is a fireman in a not-so distant future. Except instead of putting out fires, he starts them in order to burn books. Bradbury's vision of a world, awash in information, but lacking critical thought, offers audiences a sobering look at our world, while offering hope for a better future.
The Story
This classic American novel presents a frightening vision of the future: where firemen don't put out fires – they start them in order to burn books. One night while returning from work, Fireman Guy Montag meets his new neighbor: a teenage girl whose free-thinking ideals and liberating spirit cause him to question his life and his own perceived happiness.
In Performance
This Literature to Life award winner was adapted for the stage and helped to launch the national literacy effort, Project 451. The show features sixty minutes of performance spanning the full breadth of this beloved American science fiction novel. In performance, the actor tells the story from the perspective of the protagonist, Montag, and seamlessly transitions between the five other primary characters.