´óÏó´«Ã½

Johannes Brahm’s Op.49 No.4 Lullaby is an unwelcome guest in the boxing ring for a boxer at his final fight lulled by an epiphany.

Kayvan Novak stars as an unbeaten boxer, delivering the final blows of his last fight when he is visited by the unwelcome sound of Johannes Brahm’s well-known piece Lullaby Op.49 No.4.

This comic piece is written by Salim Allybokus a new writer to the ´óÏó´«Ã½ and is one of 6 new short monologues developed and produced by ´óÏó´«Ã½ Writersroom for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3 as part of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Music Day 2017 celebrations.

Each drama celebrates this year’s theme The Power of Music with a monologue about the transformative power of music.

Other monologues are performed by actors including Liam Neeson, Tamsin Greig, Julie Hesmondhalgh and Daniel Mays.

The Boxer..... Kayvan Novak
Director and Series Producer..... Justine Potter
Assistant Producer..... Usman Mullan
Executive Producer..... Anne Edyvean

Sound Designer & Editor..... Eloise Whitmore
Music Editor..... Jeremy Evans

Composer..... Johannes Brahms
Music..... Lullaby

A note from the writer Salim Allybokus:

I’m a new comedy writer and part of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Writersroom’s comedy development scheme. My monologue, ‘The Boxer’s Epiphany’, tells the story of a clinical, brutal boxer who experiences a sudden and unexpected moment of empathy for his opponent over ‘Lullaby’ by Brahms. When considering the ‘transformative power of music’, I wanted to focus on music’s association with identity. I was also keen to take an ostensibly simple piece of music and build a contrastingly complex, internal, psychological struggle around it. When trying to introduce a comedy element to the piece, I wanted to emphasise that juxtaposition of a vicious fighter who is somehow emasculated by the gentle chimes of ‘Lullaby’.

As a new writer who had been used to drafting and editing alone, I found the collaborative process to be an excellent learning experience. Crucially, working with a producer for the first time provided some much-needed objectivity to my writing-process and enabled me to focus on parts that were seemingly funnier in my head than on paper. Furthermore, I was also able to understand how closely the specifics of a writing brief have to be adhered to and the challenge of keeping an idea within that framework. Ultimately, hearing my words brought to life by Kayvan Novak was the most rewarding moment of the whole process and added an additional perspective that I could have never otherwise achieved.

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