Young Playwrights

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JUST ONE MORE by Deanie Vallone

This play was a winner of the second annual Metro Milwaukee Young Playwrights Festival. The author, Deanie Vallone, attends Thomas More High School. The play was directed by Patrick Holland.

Contact the author via e-mail .

The original cast is as follows:
MR. GRACE: John Van Slyke
MR. DARCY: Brian Miracle
ANNALISE: Julie E. Shiely
ISABELLE: Toni Inzeo
TOBIAS: Doug Jarecki
ADAM: David Rothrock

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Just One More
By Deanie Vallone

Character Roster
Mr. Grace: Age in 50s. Quiet and practical. Has been in the village a long time.
Mr. Darcy: Age in 20s. Charming and manipulative.
Annalise: Age 18. Excitable and nosy. French.
Isabelle: Age in 30s. Friend of Mr. Grace. Russian.
Tobias: Age in 30s. Friend of Mr. Grace. Husband of Isabelle.
Adam: Age in 20s. New arrival in the village. British.
Villagers

ACT I
Scene i. A large village.

[A group of people is gathered around the doorway of a small cottage. An older man in his fifties, MR. GRACE, is pushing his way through the crowd. He is dressed in a black suit. Everyone is talking excitedly, but MR. GRACE seems annoyed. Finally, he pulls himself from the crowd and makes his way to the top of a nearby hill. Nestled right atop the hill is a stone well with the word “lived” carved crookedly in to the side. MR. GRACE stops in front of the well and stares down at it, hands in the pockets of his dress pants. Behind him, a young woman in her late teens, ANNALISE, approaches. She stands behind him a moment, hands clasped behind her back, smirking. When MR. GRACE doesn’t turn around, she jumps in front of him.]

Annalise. Boo. [sits down on the edge of the well]

Mr. Grace. Hello, Annalise.

Annalise. [Speaking in a slight French accent] Why, Mr. Grace, what are you doing here all by yourself? Aren’t you going to see the Perrys and congratulate them? I mean, after all, Isabelle wasn’t able to have children, and here she is, a mother. It’s a miracle.

Mr. Grace. Hardly.

Annalise. [A small smile appearing on her face] Oh?

Mr. Grace. Annalise, you know just as well as I do that nine months ago Isabelle threw herself down, right where I am standing now, and begged to have a child. Just one child.

Annalise. We all ask for things, don’t we, Mr. Grace? Even you ask for things.

Mr. Grace. I have asked for things. Many things. And I received them all, didn’t I? All the riches of the kings? They were mine. But we all know there aren’t any stores here. So if you can’t buy something…

Annalise. Wish for it.

Mr. Grace. I had grown greedy. We all had. This whole town. That is why we set up the Treaty.

Annalise. [sighing and rolling her eyes] Oh, yes, the Treaty. That little thorn in our sides.

Mr. Grace. Annalise, you know that setting up the Treaty was the only thing we could do. We had to save ourselves.

Annalise. [standing up, angrily] Save ourselves from what? We were given this gift for a reason. Why shouldn’t we be able to use it?

Mr. Grace. [almost quietly] It is turning us into him.

Annalise. [after staring at MR. GRACE quietly for a moment] You should go see the Perry baby, Mr. Grace. [walks away down the hill]

[MR. GRACE stares down at the well for another moment, then walks slowly down the hill again towards the Perry house.]

ACT I
Scene ii. Perry household.

[MR. GRACE walks down a hallway in the Perry house and opens the door to the nursery. A slender, pretty Russian woman, ISABELLE, is sitting in a nightgown on a rocking chair near the cradle. A tall, fairly handsome man, TOBIAS, is standing on the other side of the cradle. TOBIAS looks up when MR. GRACE enters the room.]

Tobias. [striding over to MR. GRACE and embracing him warmly] Mr. Grace! I’m so glad you’ve come. Isabelle, Mr. Grace is here.

[ISABELLE is slowly getting out of her rocker and walking over towards them.]

Mr. Grace. [Grabbing her elbow and escorting her back to her chair] Isabelle, you shouldn’t be moving around so. You need to rest.

Isabelle. [speaking in a Russian accent] Oh, Mr. Grace, you are too kind. I’m afraid I do need to sit down. I haven’t had much sleep lately.

Mr. Grace. Naturally.

Tobias. [motioning towards the cradle] Come see her. She’s the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen.

Mr. Grace. [walking towards the cradle] A girl is it?

Tobias. A precious daughter indeed. I couldn’t ask for anything more.

Mr. Grace. [in a quiet, almost mocking tone] Oh, no, of course not. So, have you named her yet?

Isabelle. No name yet. We can’t seem to agree. I like Jenica, a good, solid Russian name. But Tobias is so picky. He loves Dolly. [laughs] Honestly, you Americans have such silly names.

Mr. Grace. [laughing] I must say I like Jenica much better.

Tobias. [shrugging] We’ll see, I guess.

[Noise outside suddenly stops.]

Mr. Grace. I… [stops when he realizes it is silent outside]

[MR. GRACE walks over to a window and peers outside, looking to see where everyone went.]

Mr. Grace. Where on earth…

[MR. GRACE turns around to see ISABELLE and TOBIAS frozen in their positions. MR. GRACE turns to see a young man, in his early twenties, leaning against the doorframe, holding a black top hat in one hand. He’s very handsome, with fine white blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He, like MR. GRACE, is also dressed in a black suit. He is MR. DARCY.]

Mr. Darcy. Isabelle.

[ISABELLE lifts her head to stare at him. MR. DARCY hands her his top hat and then turns to TOBIAS.]

Mr. Darcy. Tobias. So good to see you again. I believe you’re keeping well?

Tobias. [not looking directly at him] Quite, Mr. Darcy.

[MR. DARCY strolls into the room lazily and saunters over to the cradle. He looks down in the cradle and then quickly pulls away with an exaggerated gasp.]

Mr. Darcy. [glancing back and forth at the parents, who aren’t reflecting his gaiety, and remarking with exaggerated excitement] Well, I’ll be! She is the prettiest little girl I have ever seen.

Tobias. [in a thick voice] Thank you.

Mr. Darcy. Do you have a name for her?

[TOBIAS shakes his head.]

Well, maybe I should name her.

[TOBIAS and ISABELLE both look up quickly, a fleeting glance passing between both of them, but neither speak out.]

Mr. Grace. I think that’s a good idea.

[ISABELLE and TOBAIS shoot a panicked glance at MR. GRACE. MR. DARCY ignores him, and instead reaches into the cradle and picks up the baby. ISABELLE makes a strangling sound in the back of her throat and grips the arms of her rocking chair, but neither she nor her husband protest.]

Mr. Darcy. [holding the baby out in front of him] Well, let’s see now. She needs a nice strong name. How about Desdemona? I think I like that.

[MR. DARCY sets the baby back down in the cradle and turns to ISABELLE.]

What do you think of the name?

[ISABELLE doesn’t respond and she won’t meet his gaze.]

Tobias. [quickly] I think it’s a lovely name.

Mr. Grace. Just lovely.

[MR. DARCY looks away from ISABELLE and turns cold eyes on MR. GRACE. MR. GRACE looks away quickly.]

Mr. Darcy. [voice hard] Leave us.

[MR. GRACE flinches at the younger man’s tone, but turns and leaves the house.]

ACT I
Scene iii. Outside the Perry house.

[MR. GRACE is leaning against the outside wall of the Perry house, right near the door. Around him, people are slowly coming back to life. A group of women are gossiping nearby, men are chatting, children are playing. MR. GRACE sighs heavily and leans his head against the house. Suddenly, the door to the Perry house opens and MR. DARCY comes sauntering out, pulling the door shut behind him, and setting his hat on his head. When he sees MR. GRACE he tips his hat at him.]

Mr. Darcy. [mockingly] Good day, Reverend.

Mr. Grace. [before he can think otherwise] I don’t go by Reverend anymore.

Mr. Darcy. [smiling] Ah, yes, well, that’s our little secret, isn’t it?

[Before MR. GRACE can react, MR. DARCY disappears onto the other side of the house. MR. GRACE sighs again, and slowly goes back into the Perry house.

ACT I
Scene iv. The Perry house.

[MR. GRACE walks slowly down the hall to the nursery, where the door is is slightly open. He stops, though, when he hears crying coming from inside and he realizes the crying is not coming from the baby.]

Tobias. [reassuring and soothing] Don’t cry, darling. Please stop, Isa.

[ISABELLE starts crying harder.]’

Isabelle, you should be happy. You have everything you could ever want.

[ISABELLE stops crying and gives a small gasp-sob.]

Isabelle. [whimpering] Oh, Tobias. It’s not fair.

Tobias. [his voice suddenly hard] Isabelle, you knew what you were doing when you signed on to this. You agreed to this. That was the deal.

Isabelle. [crying once again] I want to take it back, Tobias. I want to take it all back.

[MR. GRACE, with a defeated and sad sigh, turns around again and leaves the house once more.]

ACT I
Scene v. Outside the Perry house, in the village.

[Most of the villagers are now gathered excitedly in a huddle. They are shouting and talking loudly. MR. GRACE pushes his way into the group to reveal a young man in his twenties, ADAM. Out of the group, ANNALISE comes over to MR. GRACE and grabbing his arm, pulls him away.]

Annalise. [in a stage whisper] He’s new. He just arrived moments ago.

Villager 1. [loudly] He must make a wish!

[The other villagers get very excited by this idea begin shouting all at once. They say things like, “Yes, it’s only proper” and “Of course, right away.” They begin to herd ADAM towards the well at the top of the hill. When they reach it, everyone turns expectantly towards the man.]

Annalise. [sidling up beside him] Make a wish!

Adam. [speaking with a British accent, his voice slightly cracking] A wish? What…

Annalise. [over the crowd’s murmuring responses] Anything you want! Just say it and you’ll get it.

Adam. [almost in awe] I don’t… I mean, I just…

Annalise. [leaning over to whisper in his ear] Anything you want. You can have anything.

Adam. Okay, I wish for…

[MR. GRACE walks away and lights cut before ADAM can finish his sentence.]

ACT II
Scene i. In the village

[It’s night out now and MR. GRACE is sitting underneath a tree, holding an apple. Out of the darkness, ADAM comes walking over.]

Adam. You’re Mr. Grace, right?

[MR. GRACE nods.]

I’m Adam.

Mr. Grace. [smiling] Nice to meet you, Adam. [MR. GRACE tosses the apple in the air to ADAM, and ADAM catches it.]

‘Adam. [motions towards the tree]’‘ May I?

Mr. Grace. By all means.

[ADAM sits down next to MR. GRACE and stretches out his legs with a sigh. They both sit in silence for a moment.]

Adam. How long have you been here?

Mr. Grace. [shrugging] I’ve lost track of time.

Adam. Is that how it is here? Do you just forget?

Mr. Grace. Not completely, but yes. It just happens. When you have everything you want, it’s hard to remember the simple life. [smiling] Once you have seen gold, you forget the color of straw.

Adam. So many people would die to get in.

Mr. Grace. [giving a wry smile] And yet there are so many would die to get out.

‘Adam. [leaning back against the tree and picking at a fingernail] If I ask you a question, do you promise to answer truthfully?

Mr. Grace. [thinking for a moment] Yes.

Adam. [looking up at him] Are you happy here?

Mr. Grace. Truthfully? [pauses for a beat] No.

Adam. [looking away] Yeah, that’s what I was afraid of.

[MR. GRACE looks up to see MR. DARCY slowly walking up the hill to the well. MR. GRACE gets up and follows him. Lights dim and fade to black completely.]

ACT II
Scene ii. The well.

[MR. DARCY is standing in front of the well. He loosens his tie and then rolls up the sleeves on both his dress shirt and jacket. He reaches into his right pocket and pulls out something enclosed in his fist. He presses it between his palms, and a slight glow emanates between his fingers. He smiles broadly.]

Mr. Darcy. [to himself] I like this one. So pure, so perfect, so small; the smallest in my collection. And what a collection it is!

[MR. DARCY puts the object back into his pocket and then pulls something out of his other pocket.]

I like this one too. It’s quite a bit larger than the other one, but that’s to be expected. It’s older. And it has a used feel to it. [laughs softly] Not that I’m complaining.

[MR. DARCY returns the object to his pocket. MR. GRACE appears behind him and MR. DARCY smiles without turning around.]

Hello, Mr. Grace. [turns around to face MR. GRACE] Have you come to celebrate with me?

Mr. Grace. Celebrate?

Mr. Darcy. [begins pacing] Yes, Mr. Grace, celebrate. The town is almost finished. Almost. I only need one more and it will be complete, and I can start a new one. Just like I have so many times before. But I need just one more. Just one more.

Mr. Grace. Mr. Darcy…

Mr. Darcy. [interrupting] I can’t wait to make another town. Not only is it easy for me, but the system is so easy for you as well. You can wish for anything you want, but you can’t wish for things back. Once something’s done, you can’t wish it undone. But besides that, anything you wish for, you get. And in return… [starts to laugh silently]

[MR. GRACE stares at him with a wary expression. MR. DARCY kneels down by the well.]

Come here, Mr. Grace, I want to show you something.

[Mr. Grace walks over tentatively and kneels down as well.]

Do you see this word? Lived? I don’t think any of the townsfolk really know how important that word is. They have everything they could ever want, but now experiencing the village, and mostly the well, they really haven’t lived. Yes, they have experienced a side of the world that no other human being has ever before, but it is far from truly living. And in living this so called life of theirs, they are eventually going to come to realize that the things they desire most cannot be wished for.

[MR. DARCY stands up, but MR. GRACE remains kneeling by the well.]

Mr. Darcy. [touching the object in his pocket] You know, Mr. Grace, I understand that people have doubts. Most do after some time.

Mr. Grace. [whispering] Poor Isabelle.

Mr. Darcy. [turning towards him] What was that? Ah, yes, Isabelle. She isn’t the first to regret. She’ll get over it.

[MR. DARCY begins to slowly walk away down the hill.]

[talking to himself] One more. Just one more. I’m so close. And then I can begin again. It’s always fun to start fresh, to make a new town.

[MR. GRACE turns back to the well and stares at the word “lived” again. Slowly he begins to trace the letters one by one.]

Mr. Grace. D.

Mr. Darcy. [shaking his head and laughing softly] People are so greedy.

Mr. Grace. E.

Mr. Darcy. Anything they wish for.

Mr. Grace. V.

Mr. Darcy. The well is a gift.

Mr. Grace. I.

Mr. Darcy. 665 people living in this village.

Mr. Grace. L.

Mr. Darcy. Just one more soul.

The End.

Copyright © Deanie Vallone. This work may not be reproduced without express, written permission from the author.