Procrasti...
Cast:
Shelly
Danielle
Edgar
Setting: Somewhere, you know
[Note: Blank lines are still lines for the actor, they must be acted for this play to work]
(lights up, Shelly and Danielle sitting anywhere they want on stage; I'm not going to push them)
Danielle:
Shelly: Danielle?
D:
S: Danielle?
D:
S: Danielle?
D: Yeah.
S:
D: Yeah?
S: Oh, ahhh... did you ever...
D: Probably not.
S: Me either.
D:
S:
D:
S: Ummm...
D: Yeah?
S: What comes next?
D: Like after now?
S: Yeah.
D: I dunno.
S: Probably not that important.
D:
S: Right?
D: No, we've got plenty of time.
S:
D: Don't we?
S: Sure. We must.
D: Yeah.
S: I mean no one's even here.
D: No.
S:
D:
S:
D: Plenty of time.
(Enter Edgar)
S: Oh, hi, Edgar.
D:
S: Danielle? Edgar's here.
D: He is?
S:
D: Shelly?
S: No, he's not.
D: Hmmmm.
S: Danielle?
D:
S: Danielle?
D:
S: Danielle?
D: What?
S: (stage whisper) Edgar missed his cue.
D: His cue?
S: Yeah.
D: Oh... okay.
S:
D:
S: Danielle?
D: Yeah?
S: We sorta need him on stage for the next part of the play.
D: Oh.
S: Can you give him his cue again?
D: When?
S: Now should work.
D:
S: Or now.
D: Plenty of time.
(enter Edgar)
S: Oh, hi, Edgar.
D: That's not him either, is it?
S: Definitely not him not there.
D: Should I try it again?
S:
D: Shelly?
S:
D: Shelly? Should I?
S: Yeah, missing cues is gonna drag this play down.
D:
S:
D: Agreed.
S:
D: Anyway. Plenty of time.
(enter Edgar, for real this time, he is in a whacky clown wig with a little make-up, wearing his boxers and t-shirt)
S: Oh, hi, Edgar.
Edgar: (stage whisper) Shelly, was that my cue?
S: (stage whisper) It was your cue.
E: (s.w.) 'Cause I thought maybe she was just saying that I actually had plenty of time; so...
D: Hi, Edgar.
E: (s.w., hushing Danielle) Shhh... I'm not ready yet, I figured I had plenty of time like you said, so I was still in make-up.
D:
E: (s.w.) So...
S: We'll just go on without you.
E:
S: Without you.
E: (s.w.) Right.
(exit Edgar, giving thumbs up sign)
D: Least he always hits his exits.
S: Yeah.
D: Good ol' Edgar.
S:
D:
S: So, let's just get to the next scene.
D: Okay.
S:
D:
S: Damnit. I was hoping you had the first line of the next scene.
D: I don't know if I do or not.
S: Me either.
D: Huh... wellllll...
S: I'm still working on the next scene.
D: Something about a clown, right?
S: Pretty sure that's right.
D: A clown and...
S:
D: A clown and...
S: Murder?
D: Maybe.
S:
D: What's the play called again?
S: Ummm... "Death By Clown"?
D: Really?
S: I think so.
D: Well, yeah... I'll have to take your word for it. I haven't gotten around to really working my lines yet, you know?
S: Hey, no problem, I'm in the same boat.
D: Well, we should have plenty of time.
S:
D: Plenty of time.
(enter Edgar, with a little bit more clown make-up on, but not much)
E: (s.w.) Was that for me?
D: No, I think that was a coincidence.
E: (s.w.) Cool, 'cause I'm running a little late here with the make-up and...
S: Thanks, anyway, Edgar.
D: Yeah. Good work.
(exit Edgar, giving thumbs up sign)
S: Good ol' Edgar.
D:
S: He's so talented.
D: One of the best.
S: Yeah.
D:
S:
D:
S: Okay then. What's next?
D: Well, I know my last line.
S: Oh, cool, go ahead.
D:
S: You know, whenever you want.
D: Yeah. I'm building up to it.
S: Great... I know it's going to be amazing.
D: I hope so.
S: Awesome.
D:
S:
D: Some clowns just aren't that funny.
S:
D: What did you think?
S: Wow!
D: Plus, Edgar's on the ground with an axe in his head.
S: Oh, yeah, that will really add to the ending.
D: Yeah.
S:
D:
S: Hey, maybe he has the axe with him now.
D:
S: Right. Let's check.
(Shelly and Danielle start walking off toward where Edgar had made his entrances, lights start fading)
D: Hey, Edgar! Did you bring the axe?
E: (from offstage)
D: Maybe he didn't hear me.
S: This play's going to be so great when we get everything all ready to go.
D: Definitely.
(lights out)
(end)
4 comments:
Brilliant! My dissertation looks just like this (sans clown w/axe in head).
Elizabeth (Tromvestite's wife's friend in Chicago--yes, you still have a reader in Chicago).
Actually, the last time I met a clown with an axe in his head, he looked a lot like a dissertation... maybe YOUR dissertation?!
(cue suspenseful, dangerous music)
(fade out, leaving audience with harrowing sense of intrigue)
(Implication: Elizabeth kills clowns.)
(cue music again)
(subtext: The rigors and strictures of academia destroy our sense of humor)
(additional subtext: Academic pursuits are inherently pro-murder)
(very subtle subtext: Danielle is frickin' hot!)
Death by Clown is my kind of play. And I could tell about Danielle being hot by the way she didn't deliver those lines.
Even though I have been falsely accused of clown-killing, I hereby resolve to use the phrase "death by clown" in my dissertation. I am absolutely serious and I think I can pull it off since I'm writing about Kierkegaard and the teleological suspension of the ethical. At the very least, I will put it in a footnote.
(cue creepy circus music)
(fade out, leaving audience with harrowing sense of intellectual intrigue)
(Implication: Elizabeth doesn't take her dissertation seriously)
(cue music again)
(subtext: The rigors and strictures of academia aren't enough to keep Elizabeth from having a little fun)
(additional subtext: Academic pursuits are independent of the pro-clown and clown agendas, instead allowing the author to use the clown as a trope or metaphor whenever it suits the author's fancy)
(very subtle subtext: Elizabeth is frickin' hot!)
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