Play 1

<poem>
The setting is at Erickson’s back room in his classroom. We have the sink on Stage Left and a door near the sink. Here, we see Person A working on a scene on the classic brown table. The table is sitting in center stage, while Person A is sitting toward Stage Right. Person B comes in with his/her water bottle from the back door.

B Hey.
A (Looking up) Hey.
B (Sits down on the remaining work, briefly glancing at A’s paper.) Whatcha working on?
A I’m working on our scene. I’m having some writers block.
B If you want, I can help you out with some ideas.
A Alright. Maybe something that you suggest can create a light bulb in the process.
B Okay.
(B thinks for a minute; A is anticipated.)
B (With a spark of inspiration) I have an idea!
A (With some reaction) Okay! What’s the idea?
B What if you write about a troubled kid who joins a gang because he has a single mother working three jobs?
A Hey, hasn’t that already been done before?
B I don’t really think so.
A Yeah, I think it has.
B Alright…. What if you decide to write about your high school experience and asking a girl out to prom?
A That’s already been used by last year’s class, and probably earlier classes before that. I kinda want some originality.
B Well while you were saying that, I actually thought of some more stuff that’s original.
A Okay, what are the ideas?
B What if you write a scene where twelve jurors are in a room deciding the life of a person, and everyone votes guilty other than one guy. So he has to convince the other eleven jurors that the guy is innocent
A Uh… Hasn’t that been made before?
B What? That hasn’t been used, I just made it up.
A Yeah. I think that would be Twelve Angry Men.
B Okay. Well how about a man who’s interested in ultra-violence, and after he gets experimented on he becomes the opposite and gets so sick that he becomes vulnerable?
A Okay, are you really kidding me?
B I’m really not. Did someone actually do that?
A Yes. A Clockwork Orange has been written in 1962; the movie has been made since 1971.
B How about the setting is in the capital of Cambodia and a reporter for the New York Times-
A I swear to god, if you’re going to say the plotline for The Killing Fields, then you’re being no help at all.
B I’m trying my best here, man!
A You’re trying your best to get me in trouble for plagiarism.
B Well, I’m sorry that someone stole my ideas beforehand.
(B tries to drink his/her water; A slaps it out of his/her hand.)
B What was that for?
A That’s my reaction for all your ideas so far. You’ve been suggesting clichés and movies ever since you came in this damn room!
B I have another suggestion.
A If it’s another cliché or movie plot, I don’t want to hear it.
B It’s not! I promise.
A (Trying to get rid of the splitting headache) Go on. Let me hear it.
B What if we have a group of kids under the age of 17 who got in a plane crash with no adults around, and they act like complete animals just trying to survive?
(A gets so angry that he/she covers their head from the ideas.)
B (Concerning) Are you alright A?
A (Jumps in excitement, like he got an idea) Hey, I have an idea… I finally got an idea for this stupid scene.
B Okay. Let’s hope that it’s “original” like my other ideas that you’ve been shunning.
A How about a scene where a guy is struggling with a scene and his/her best friend is being an idiot at suggesting ideas to his/her scene.
(A throws his pencil and paper down on the floor and walks out. Then a BLACKOUT happens.)