Hey everyone. Well, I had to write a 10 page short play for my Theatre class for the end of the semester...and this is what I just finished. I must admit, the play is darker than I originally planned for...but sometimes a dark piece of writing is essential to describe what's really going on underneath the surface. I think my play could possibly surprise those of you who are so used to my poems (whether lovey dovey or sad or angry), because it has a whole different aspect going for it.

I actually wrote this off of a short story I put up here last semester for my Creative Writing class... I think I remember mons commenting on how she thought it needed to be expanded into a movie or something MORE...and I agreed. That's why I chose the storyline for my play. I hope you guys enjoy, and that maybe you'll get something from it even though it's so dark. Thank you for reading...I know, it's long.

~Gabber
============


EMERGING COLORS

TIME: The middle of May – tornado season, the present.
PLACE: Katrina’s place of work as a photographer – a darkroom – in Dallas, Texas.
CHARACTERS:
KATRINA, twenty-five years old, the oldest and only sister.
RICHIE, eighteen years old, the youngest brother.
PABLO, mid-thirties, the father.
YOUNG KATRINA, nine years old, younger version of main character.

It’s night time and the weather outside indicates a storm. It’s tornado season in Dallas, so Katrina keeps a radio on in the darkroom just in case anything happens to touch down near her place of work. Katrina is moving back and forth within the darkroom as she begins to develop a new role of pictures for one of her customers. The stage is covered in red light (as a darkroom would be), although the red light symbolizes also the mood that’s to come later in the play. The darkroom is set up mostly on the left side of the stage, which the audience will understand why later. Katrina smiles softly and looks out into the audience...

KATRINA: This is my escape. Everyone has one and this is mine -- only mine. It seems to be the only way I can ever truly get away from the drama that seems to occupy my every minute. (grins a bit) You may wonder why I’m locked away in this room at night, if I possibly could have anything better to do with my time, but the truth of the matter is I don’t. I wouldn’t dare plan anything else around this time, because this time is mine.

(Katrina puts a sheet of paper into a tray on the table and then looks off a bit nowhere in particular. It’s obvious she is thinking.)

I never really had something that was mine. Purely just mine. I guess this is why I love going to work. Other people would prefer being at home at this time of night, but that’s not me. I enjoy getting out of the house and getting away from everything. Here I am able to be surrounded by my passion. The process of developing a photograph is a joy in the making. (passion in her eyes) And like I said, it’s MINE. Too many times I’ve been told things can’t be mine. Too many times I’ve even been without relationship because I’m not allowed this like most people. Everybody thinks I just go to work to make money, but I don’t. This is MY time. MY place. MY escape. And no one can take that away from me. I’ll be damned if I let him take it away from me again.

(A flash of white light goes across the stage with a loud thunderclap, and then the stage goes dark for 30 seconds while the actors quietly take their places on the right side of the stage. This will be know as the “white flash” sequence throughout the rest of the play. The flash will be a sign for the audience as the play goes along that they are witnessing a flashback scene from Katrina’s memories... When the light comes back up, this time it is not red – it has a slight blue-ish tint to it to signify the mood. Pablo and Young Katrina are on-stage on a set that resembles a small family room. Young Katrina is on the ground crying while Pablo looks down at her menacingly.)

PABLO: Oh, stop crying you worthless daughter of mine. Do you think you’re going to get any sympathy from me? Do you?!

(Pablo moves his leg in a fake-out kick towards her stomach and Young Katrina’s body obviously reacts, making Pablo laugh a bit.)

PABLO: You always were a coward. And you always will be. No daughter of mine is a coward.
(pause)

PABLO: I guess that makes you no daughter of mine, huh? Why would I want you anyway?
YOUNG KATRINA: (whimpers) Daddy...don’t...
PABLO: (disgusted) Don’t “Daddy” me! You’re without a father! I couldn’t care less about what happens to you now. See if anyone will take you in. You and your little brothers will most likely die on the streets.

(Pablo spits on the ground next to her.)

PABLO: I say good riddens.

(Pablo takes a photo out of his wallet of his kids and rips it to shreds before throwing it on the ground next to her.)

YOUNG KATRINA: Daddy! Don’t leave us! I can’t do this, I can’t take care of my brothers, I’m just a little girl, I can’t--
PABLO: (cold look) Do you think I care? Huh. You’re as stupid as I thought. (motions around him) Take one last good look, Kat.

(Pablo leans down in toward her face and speaks to her in a growl.)

PABLO: You’re never going to have a home again.
YOUNG KATRINA: No, Daddy! This is my home! Don’t take me from my home! No, Daddy, no, don’t--

(With that, Pablo picks her up by the arm and drags her offstage. Young Katrina’s cries can be heard echoing before the “white flash” sequence begins. Katrina appears once again on the left side of the stage in her darkroom. The red light illuminates that side. She is looking down into the tray with a painful look on her face before looking up and off again.)

KATRINA: Pablo took what was mine. My home, my safe place. (looks around her darkroom) This is the only home I’ve got now. The only place of safety. I can escape here into other worlds, worlds not my own, because (smirks) as you can see, my world’s not exactly the best place to live in.

(Katrina lifts out the photograph from her tray and places it on the line above her head before taking another sheet of paper and placing it into the tray. As she does this, her mood seems to lighten and she is smiling.)

KATRINA: (happy sigh) I enjoy looking at the many pictures that come into my darkroom.

(In the background, there are random pictures being shown on the wall, projector style. This is for the audience to see the difference between the memories of Katrina’s life and the world she escapes into -- the difference between dark and light.)

I’ve seen everything from kids playing with their toys, to happy families, to strained families, (playful look in her eyes) to couples in their bedroom taking pictures I’m surprised they’d want some random developer to see. There’s always something interesting in a work day, always something that stands out to me and offers up a story – offers up a world unlike my own.

(The pictures stop in the background, and Katrina takes another photo out of the tray and places it on the line with a smile before placing another sheet in the tray.)

No one would want my world, that’s for sure. Growing up with three brothers and having to take care of and provide for them was never easy. However, it certainly got harder when one of them ended up in a gang, on the streets, and ultimately in jail for robbery. (a trace of sadness in her voice) It got even harder when another one ended up in prison for sexually assaulting a woman. (sighs for a moment before continuing) The only brother I have left is the youngest, Richie, and thank God, he’s our family’s pride and joy. He’s the one who gives us hope because of his purity and wonderful heart. (warm smile) He gives ME hope – something that nobody has ever been able to accomplish in my 25 years. Besides developing pictures, he’s the only sane thing I have left in this world, the only thing that can bring me calm.

(Another “white flash” sequence as Katrina quickly changes her shirt to appear in the flashback. Then a regular sun hue lights the right side of the stage. A picnic basket and blanket are on the floor, and the audience can hear other kids laughing faintly in the background. Katrina and Richie are sitting on the blanket eating lunch together, laughing as the lights come up. Katrina gently hits him on the arm.)

KATRINA: I swear, Richie, you can be such a pain in my butt sometimes.
RICHIE: (grins mischievously) It’s because I have to kick it to get you to move on anything. I swear, sis, if you wanna be a photographer, go for it!
KATRINA: (smiles but hesitates) I don’t know, Richie. Maybe it’s just a stupid dream. We of all people should know by now that dreams don’t come true.

(Richie takes her hand into his and squeezes it. He looks at her with love in his eyes.)

RICHIE: But they do, Katrina. Watching you begin to make a life for yourself after taking care of us all those years? That’s a dream come true for me.
KATRINA: (laughs) You just want to get rid of me.
RICHIE: How’d you know?

(Katrina hits him on the arm again.)

KATRINA: You smart--

(Richie holds up his hands and laughs.)

RICHIE: Hey hey now, watch the arms, the muscles are sensitive!
KATRINA: (laughs) You’re such a wimp.

(Richie takes another bite of his sandwich and shrugs nonchalantly.)

RICHIE: I was raised by a girl. Of course I’m a wimp.
KATRINA: (shakes her head and grins) You can be such a brat, I swear. But I mean c’mon, out of everyone in the family, YOU’RE the one who’s making it. Not me. You’re in college, you have a top notch job starting next week, you have an amazing girlfriend. You’ve got the wonderful life.
RICHIE: (shrugs sheepishly) I wouldn’t have had it if it weren’t for you pushing me to succeed. I owe it all to you.
KATRINA: No, you simply owe it to yourself.

(Katrina grabs an apple from the basket as Richie grabs a bag of chips. They each take a couple of bites and then toss it to each other, like it’s an old familiar routine they’ve done for years.)

KATRINA: I’m proud of you, Richie, I really am. You make me believe in something better, something beyond this past which could potentially haunt us forever. You make me believe I can be better too.

(Katrina’s voice shows she’s choked up a bit but she controls her emotions, a defense mechanism she’s learned through the years.)

KATRINA: Maybe there’s hope for us after all. Maybe...maybe Pablo was wrong about us. Maybe--
RICHIE: Of course he was wrong about us, Katrina. We’re nothing like him. NOTHING. Especially you. He was wrong about you the most.
KATRINA: (smiles softly) Y’know what? I think he was.

(Richie reaches out and squeezes her hand again with a warm smile.)

RICHIE: See? That wasn’t that hard.
KATRINA: (has to laugh a bit and then looks at her brother with a smile) I think I’m going to become a photographer after all.

(Another “white flash” sequence. Return to darkroom setting.)

KATRINA: You know how sometimes you hit a point in your life where you encounter a fork in the road? Where you have to choose whether or not to continue down the same destructive path you’ve always been on -- with yourself or with others -- or to go down a new one full of love and happiness? That was MY moment. My chance to embrace something new. A way of thinking that said, “Y’know what... YES, I deserve the best. YES, I deserve a happy life. Essentially, YES, I deserve to be happy.” I had to choose whether or not I wanted that, and wow, I did. I was so tired of the life that was handed down to me, the voice inside my head that told me I was not good enough and didn’t deserve happiness – my father’s voice. I was so tired of it, and I wanted something new. I made the choice. And I chose ME.

(Katrina pauses for a moment in silence and then she smiles.)

KATRINA: That’s where it all changed for me. Richie helped so much with that. He still does. He’s my soul believer. He brings the color to my life... my world can seem like black and white so often, but when he enters the room, it all goes to color. The color even lingers when he’s gone... especially when I’m here, living out the dream he encouraged me to pursue. The person he encouraged me to be.

(Katrina takes her wooden stick and begins to poke at the sheet in the tray to bring out the colors a bit more in the photograph. She does it a bit absentmindedly as she continues to talk.)

KATRINA: I think that’s why to an extent I don’t like developing black and white pictures. Granted, on a professional scale, they can hold a certain class that color never could. But I see beyond the professionalism and see the beauty in the blossoming of colors. To me, when I develop these pictures, I remember all the color Richie has brought to my life...and how I don’t ever want that taken away.

(Katrina looks down at the picture in the tray and smiles as it begins to fully develop, continuing to poke at it a bit as it does. She continues to look down as she speaks.)

KATRINA: I love it when the color comes alive. It’s as if finally the image becomes clear – it’s no longer confined to the negative’s point of view. It’s allowed to develop fully, to show it’s true potential. Look at it...

(At this point, an image appears behind Katrina on the wall – much like the slide show from before but this time, it’s from a camera’s point of view that is up above the tray out of sight. It is centered on the picture as it develops and this image is displayed on the wall for the audience to see – to see from Katrina’s point of view as the photo begins to develop.)

KATRINA: It’s so beautiful as it develops. Red...blue...black...and green jump before my eyes, (full smile) and it just makes me smile. I can’t help it, it’s so freeing – this is always the best part of developing. It’s like watching magic happen, real magic. Where else could a white sheet of paper from a black and white world suddenly turn into something so beautiful and colorful? It has to be magic.
(pause)
Wait a second...

(Katrina’s hand pauses in its routine as her eye catches something in the picture – the audience can see that the picture has stopped moving in the tray from the image on the wall. Her tone changes to one of curiosity and surprise.)

KATRINA: This is odd...

(Quickly, Katrina takes the picture out of the tray as it has fully developed and hangs it up on the line above her to dry. Another camera is capturing the picture on the line and displaying it on the wall once again for the audience to be able to see it as Katrina is seeing it. Katrina looks at the picture for a moment, and slowly but surely her eyes widen.)

KATRINA: It can’t be...

(Katrina shakes her head a bit in disbelief and rubs her eyes a bit with her hand.)

KATRINA: It’s simply another couple posing in the mountains, that’s all. Stop seeing things, Katrina.

(Katrina stops rubbing her eyes and looks at the picture again, shaking her head in the process.)

KATRINA: No...

(Katrina appears puzzled as she begins to examine the picture and talks outloud to herself.)

KATRINA: It looks like a man and woman are in the background, behind the couple...the man is holding the woman, but that’s an odd position, isn’t it? You wouldn’t normally see a man holding a woman like that in public. He’s standing directly behind her and... and... he’s holding a knife to the woman’s throat... (suddenly frightened) Oh my god!

(Katrina grabs a magnifying glass from the table and places it over the photo to get a closer look – the camera zooms in as well to give the audience the same closer look... They see what Katrina sees.)

KATRINA: (urgently) Oh my god, they may have captured a crime on film!

(Katrina continues to hold the magnifying glass up against the photo and narrows her eyebrows in concentration. Her voice begins to get a bit higher and urgent the more she realizes what happened before and during the picture.)

KATRINA: Oh no... the woman’s skirt is ripped up the side!

(Katrina places her hand to her heart and looks very unnerved.)

KATRINA: Calm down, heart of mine...a heart attack would do you no good right now...

(Katrina takes a deep breath, removes her hand from over her heart, and focuses on the picture once again.)

KATRINA: Who could DO such a thing to an innocent woman?

(Katrina drops the magnifying glass to the ground and it shatters loudly as another thunderclap can be heard from the storm and lightning flashes. The camera zooms in EXTRA close to reveal the man in the picture.)

KATRINA: (a soft whimper) Richie...

(Katrina’s eyes look off into the distance and from the look on her face, the audience can see everything becoming lost that she spoke off before – her hope, her dreams, her belief in love and happiness. It ALL leaves her face in this moment, a very critical moment in the play.)

KATRINA: (low and almost monotone voice as she looks off into the distance) Richie... my favorite brother... my only TRUE brother... my light... my joy... my love and my happiness... my... my... hope. He...committed a crime, hurt a woman, r--r--raped a woman... (flash of anger) He has an AMAZING girlfriend for Christ’s sake! Why the hell would he do that?!

(Katrina’s anger leaves just as quickly as it came and her voice returns to a low monotone, with her eyes looking off into the distance once again.)

KATRINA: He...hurt a woman. And never once showed it in his eyes.
(pause)
Who knows what else he hasn’t shown...

(A few thunderclaps and a few flashes of lightning suddenly happen and the stage goes dark before one single blue light shines down on a lone figure on the right side of the stage. The light only illuminates the top half of his body. It is Richie. This whole next sequence needs to be done at a semi-fast pace, back and forth from Richie to Katrina. It signifies a memory of the things Richie said to her throughout her life – the things that gave her hope and encouraged her.)

RICHIE: (a warm smile) You make my world a much happier place, Katrina.

(The blue light turns off as that side of the stage goes dark, and the red light shines down on Katrina on the left side of the stage where we just left her -- it only illuminates the top half of her body as well. This sequence of blue and red lights as the scene bounces back and forth between Richie and Katrina continues.)

KATRINA: (a blank expression) My world has stopped...

(Katrina looks around at the photos still hanging on the dry line.)

KATRINA: Even the worlds of the people’s photos I shared in has stopped. I can’t even take joy there anymore.

(Light flashes back to Richie.)

RICHIE: You’re your own person, Katrina. You’re nothing like Dad. He’s a tyrant who took pleasure in controlling us and manipulating us. Why give him anymore control? You need to take control of your own life and your own happiness. It’s the only way we’ll ever break free of this cycle of anger and hate.

(Light flashes back to Katrina.)

KATRINA: (a single tear begins to slide down her cheek and her voice cracks a bit, but her expression refuses to change) You’ve only contributed to that cycle of anger and hate, Richie. How can you say those things when Daddy obviously never stopped controlling you? (another crack in her voice) I wish we could have broken free. We were so close, Richie. So close. You ruined that though. For both of us.

(Light flashes to Richie.)

RICHIE: (holds up a photograph and smiles warmly) See? I always told you you were going to be a great photographer. Look at the way you brought out the color in this picture. You’re a natural. Color comes naturally to you after all.

(Light flashes back to Katrina.)

KATRINA: (looks at the photograph of the crime still hanging on the line above her) I think this photo should have been in black and white.

(Light flashes back to Richie.)

RICHIE: (laughs a little bit and then smiles warmly once again) You need to believe in yourself, Katrina! You’re a beautiful woman who’s just waiting to break free and show the world all your wonder. Believe in yourself, have some hope, I know I do.

(Light flashes back to Katrina who is visibly shaking by this point.)

KATRINA: (suddenly angry and sobbing) You took away my hope! My belief in something good! How DARE you! How DARE you destroy the one good thing I had! How am I supposed to get that back? How is everything supposed to be okay? How in the hell am I going to be able to move on? How in the hell am I going to be able to believe in YOU ever again? I won’t, Richie. I can’t. If I can’t even believe in you, how can I possibly believe in me? ANSWER ME!! (sobs in a gut-wrenching manner) If they find out about you, if they... if they... my life will never be the same, it’ll be ruined... it will ALL be ruined.

(The single, solitary red light continues to shine down on Katrina as she sobs into her hands. She suddenly hits the table with her fists, wipes away the tears from her cheeks and looks off into the distance for awhile. Her face displays the range of emotions she’s feeling... from anger... to sadness... to despair... to suddenly, nothing. Simply nothing. A blank, unreadable expression crossed Katrina’s face. Slowly yet very surely and steadily, she reaches up and takes the crime photograph in her hand, pulling it down from the line. She looks at it once more as a look of resignation crosses her face.)

KATRINA: I know now what I have to do.

(In slow but steady motion, Katrina pulls a lighter out from her back pocket. She flicks on the flame and holds the flame underneath one corner of the photograph. Inch by inch, the flame begins to devour the picture until she tosses it into a trash can next to her and it disappears completely. Katrina continues to stare down at it until the fire completely goes out. Her eyes are devoid of anything.

With that, the red light follows her as she picks up her purse and walks off to the side of the stage and places her hand on a light switch before looking back at the trash can once more.)

KATRINA: No one will ever know.

(Katrina flicks the light switch off and the single red light turns off. The stage goes dark.)

THE END.


--5/30/04 Copyright Keri S. (Gabber)

WOW!!!!

that's all I can really say. I didn't get to read the short story that lead to this, but...wow!!!

And dark is always good. Sometimes we have to write the darkest things we're normally afraid of facing to get the light to come through again.

*claps* wonderful!!!

(glad to see you got past your writer's block!)

bards4sharks,

Thank you, really. I'm actually quite proud of this one...too bad it's so long, lol, it prolly scares people away from reading it... So far I've gotten varied responses, *laughs* my best friend read it and was like, "Keri. Don't EVER write something like that again. You screwed up my head!! I'm traumatized now!!" LOL. Course, me being me, I loved the fact that I traumatized her because the play was supposed to be psychologically dark.

And I have now been officially nicknamed DarkGoth!Keri. I'm apparently supposed to write goth poetry now...like:

"Behold the Dark"

Blood dripping
Cut from my skin
Seething red
Crimson stains
On my darkened heart

I fall
Despair wreaks forth
Unfathomable screams
Oh yield this torture
Forgive this sin
Or I shall not remain.

*smirk* Fun, eh?

Hehe, nah but seriously, thank you...that means a lot to me. Oh! The short story is actually still here on the main page...scroll down a bit and you'll see "Emerging Colors" down there. That's the short story form. I wrote it months ago-- same idea, but just...tamer and shortened, lol. The play allowed me to get more into the psychological depth of the character than the short story did. That's why I enjoyed writing it much more. Katrina intrigued me then, and I'm glad I was able to expand on how she got to the decision she made at the end.

quote:

---

And dark is always good. Sometimes we have to write the darkest things we're normally afraid of facing to get the light to come through again.

---

So very true, I hadn't thought of it like that. *laughs* It's kinda funny you say that, because since I finished writing that story, I've been wanting to write lighter, fluffy, happy, lovey types of poetry. Something that's a stark contrast from this story. Not 'cause of the story, but just 'cause. So I think you must be right...getting the dark out does allow the light to shine through.

Thanks again, really. Your reply made me all happy. I feel like I'm putting myself out there a bit with you guys by putting this up-- since I've never done a play before OR put up anything dark for you guys to read (and I have written dark in the past-- the difference is nobody's really seen it-- I keep it to myself usually)...and so to get a positive response? It's nice. Thanks really, I'm glad you enjoyed it...and I'm glad I'm past my writer's block as well!

~Gabber

Heyyy!
Finally got to reading this! I love it! It's so traumatic, so upsetting, so wonderful! I like dark; dark can have so much truth--and we need to visit the dark to get to the light.
it's so amazing, Katrina's hope is all in her brother, and now he's let her down--and now she feels she will never be happy again because of what he did. She burns the picture and now who knows what will happen to her? it leaves so much to the imagination. It's such a gut wrenching story that will probably silence the audience whenever it's performed. Expect a nice lil silence at first, I predict--then a slow, then steady then thunderous applause.
Nice work, girl.

Kate,

Yay, I like it when people read this one...because I'm actually very proud of it. I ended up getting a 100% on this-- my final presentation. My teacher thought it was "outstanding" and that I should continue to write and if I wrote anything else, he wanted to see it in the future.

To be honest, I quite like dark as well. I like reading dark, but I especially like writing dark. You don't see it very often from me, but when I DO write it, it's like getting some of the inner demons out of me. It's a cleansing kinda process. It's like you said, everyone needs to venture into the dark sometimes to get to the light. *grins* And I'm very pleased that you found it traumatic and upsetting, it's supposed to be.

Honestly, this is a story that I could see...continuing, y'know? I could see the story carrying on with Katrina and finding out what happens behind this point. But obviously not as a play. As a play, I think it stands great alone like this. I very much like playing Katrina's thoughts and feelings out with everything... with this format, I feel like I was really able to dive deep into her character and give her a lot of depth in such a short amount of time. It allows the audience to really feel the sting and the hopelessness when she realizes it's Richie and she burns the photograph.

*has to grin* I like silence sometimes. It can be a good thing in this case. I really wonder if I could do something with this though... hm. Thanks sweetie for your comments, I'm so glad you got to read it!

~Keri