November 13, 2006

Happy Again

A scene, based off something else I wrote...be kind to it, please

Jacob: Tall, dark brown hair, ruffled, as if he hasn’t been sleeping lately. Circles under his eyes, though they aren’t that visible. He has on a button down cotton shirt (solid color, dark blue (or anything, really.) The shirt’s first three buttons are undone. Creased pants. Not dressy, any color. Laughs easily, and when he smiles, you can see the change in his face. (socks, shoes that are fairly easy to remove.)

Olivia: Preferably black very dark brown hair. Almost as tall as Jacob. Exhausted, fragile emotionally, is easily pissed off, tries to concentrate on something else besides Jacob the entire time during the scene. She averts her eyes when not speaking, and has little hand gestures she uses to express annoyance, anger, sadness, and fear. (Ad-libbed curse words and gibberish occur more then once.) Heavy folded black skirt, dark red top (long sleeved, or short sleeved.) Her hair is pulled up into a bun, but the bun becomes undone during the scene. (Socks, or stockings)

Setting: Large empty room. A small table, two chairs, a makeshift bed. The table and chairs sit in the center of the room. The bed is off on the left side, sitting diagonally, but somewhat towards the audience. Two spotlights center on the two chairs. The right, a woman is sitting, staring at the floor, the chair on its heels. The left chair, a Jacob, staring at Olivia. Lights fade out and washed full light covers the stage;

Jacob watches Olivia rock the chair back and forth a couple times before he finally loses it and shouts at her:

Jacob: “Would you stop that?”

Olivia: pause (looks up at him) “I’m sorry; that I can’t please you in every way. I’m terribly, terribly, sorry.”

Jacob: sharply) “That’s not the reason, and you know it.”

Olivia (Sarcastically) “Oh, then what can I do, to please the almighty-”

Jacob (Angrily) “Shut up! Can’t you take anything seriously?”

Woman stands up, towering over the man, glaring darkly at him, takes a deep breath and rants on:

Olivia: “Seriously? Have you gone blind and deaf, as well as stupid? My whole life, has been one big serious event after another. Once my sister was born, it was all I could not to rip my head off, because everything was so serious! And when my brother was born, oh, we didn’t become this happy family. No, Pause far from it, we moved even farther away from civilization as some might call it. And who was stuck with changing and watching the children because Nanny couldn’t do it? Me…” (Man stands up and they are eye to eye, she is fuming)

Jacob: “Alright then.” throws hands up in defeat “What do you want?”

Olivia: “You’re the one that-”

Jacob: “Don’t be so childish.”

Olivia: (shouting)“You’re the one groveling at my feet, begging me to fu- ”

(Man reaches for the woman and grasps her by the shoulders, silencing her.)

Olivia (pouting) “It’s true.” Woman sneers at him and sits down.

Jacob: “That’s not what I meant.”

Olivia: (halfway through the rant, woman starts to speak sarcastically) “Then what did you mean? Did you mean that I shouldn’t place blame on you? Is that it? Or, or, maybe, I should just sit here and let you do the talking. Or, maybe, pause because I can’t take everything seriously I should just wander around making sarcastic remarks-”

Jacob (tiredly) “Hadn’t stopped you before,”

Olivia: (shouts, but by the end of the line, voice diminishes to a hiss.) “My GOD. Do you want me to kill you? Because I can and I will, and I’m sorely tempted to!”

They are now sitting across from each other, staring each other down, eye to eye, noses almost touching.

Jacob: (rambling)“I really wouldn’t like it if you did but if you wanted –”

The woman raises her index finger as if to point it at him.

The man bites it.

She recoils and speaks quietly. She is confused and bewildered.

Olivia: “What the hell.” (Grabs her finger away from him, and mutters ad-lib curses.)

The man grins and starts to laugh at her. The woman is staring up at the ceiling, visibly fuming and biting her lip, or gritting her teeth.

Olivia: (screeching quickly) “I’ll wipe that smile off your face.”

The man reaches forward over the table and grabs her chin with his hand. He brings her face down so it is level with his and kisses her softly.

Jacob: “I’m sure you will.”

Olivia slaps him hard across the face. She stands up and stares around the room.

Olivia: “Would you stop it? You can’t fix everything by,” (She flings her arms around and is close to tears)“Just, by, being you!” (She is crying hard now.)

Jacob stands up and walks over to her, wrapping her in a hug and smoothing her hair.

Jacob: (Whispers) “Don’t cry,”

Olivia (Moves away quickly and screaming, as if losing control of her senses.) “Don’t!”

Olivia walks away from him towards the wall, which is near the back of the room and physically bangs her head against it, loud sobs erupting from her. Jacob frightened, walks over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders.

Jacob: Defeated, and his voice is quiet and breaking.) “Olivia,”

Olivia: “Please, stop,”

She stops him from wrapping his arms around her waist. Olivia refused to look at him, adverting her eyes to floor, and refusing to speak to him, biting her lips. Pulling away she slips away lithely to the bed, which is on the other side of the room. She sits quietly on the edge, rocking back and forth, as if thinking hard, concentrating.

(Jacob stands and looks at Olivia and the lights fade away and spot light washes over them.)

Jacob: As if lost in thought) “I didn’t mean to make her angry, I’m sorry. I can’t be perfect for her…”

Olivia: (Joining him in on the line “perfect,”also lost in thought,) “Perfect. I can’t do this, I’ve tried, and I just can’t be with anyone. I’m going to die an old woman, happy and content with solidarity…”

As she speaks, Jacob walks over and lies down on the bed, grabbing his side of the blanket.

Olivia: “I don’t know what he wants me to do…” Olivia catches his eyes and she ad-libs annoyance and gibberish quickly.

Olivia: “You were supposed to be turned around so I didn’t have to look at you.”

Olivia inches closer to him nonetheless and they are both lying down on the bed, the blanket draped over them, pulled up to their waists. Jacob stares out at the audience for a moment then turns to Olivia and buries his face in her hair.

Jacob: “I’m sorry,”

Olivia: “Shut up.”

Jacob: “I’m sorry.”

Olivia: (Growing weary) “Shut. Up.”

Jacob: “You won’t forgive me?”

Olivia: (Sternly.) “No.”

Olivia then falls asleep, her breathing levels out and she turns away from Jacob.

Jacob stays up thinking, the last few lines are his thoughts, directed out at the audience, but his voice is up in clouds.

Jacob: “I said I was sorry. I don’t know what else to do for you, I should probably pack up and leave. But I can’t. I want you to understand. I want you to show you, show you everything that I think about when I see you. I want to walk with you, I want to talk with you – no fight, talk...”

Jacob flops down and stares at the ceiling as the lights dim and fade to black.

Curtain.