Photo by Yasir from Pexels
Nothing happens in a vacuum ….
– Khaled Hosseini
TIME
Time out of memory.
PLACE
Land of unseen giants. A second floor bedroom and window are atop a riser upstage. Beyond it is the hint of an ocean and a pea-green boat.
CHARACTERS
Many.
SCENE 1
At rise in darkness is the sound of a rubber hose the size of a culvert slapping down, stage left.
In spotlight stage right ALBERT enters wearing a rooster hat, pulling a pirate’s treasure chest on a heavy duty kids’ pull wagon. He opens its lid and exits.
Spotlight on the opened chest and wagon. Then, like a sunrise, the stage is lit.
SCENE 2
The man-size hose at stage left begins to make a sucking sound like the vacuum cleaner it is. The effect can be enhanced by an industrial-sized fan (offstage), positioned in a way to blow papers and the like up into the hose.
BIRDIE enters, stage left, investigates the hose, and is sucked up into it.
CHASE enters, stage left, and does the same.
Then DAISY.
Next ELI – each one disappearing.
Finally, FABLE and GRAY enter, stage left, rolling a man-size hairball. They roll it into the hose to clog it. Thereupon the suction stops, the hose making a weak wheezing sound for the remainder of the play.
FABLE and GRAY give each other a high five and exit.
SCENE 3
HOLLY and IVAN carry a large, inflatable egg on stage and up into the bedroom atop the riser. They roll it out the window into the space upstage the audience cannot see. The egg makes the sound of a gunshot as it hits the ground. All exit.