Within two weeks of the closure of our theatres and schools’ transition to remote learning, MTC Education launched the Student Monologue Challenge as a way to offer high school students a platform to express what was on their minds and in their hearts. The writing prompt was:
“THERE’S SOMETHING I NEED TO SAY TO YOU.”
We received over 350 entries from across the country this spring.
Now, we’re thrilled to share some of the most exceptional entries brought to life by some of today’s most exciting acting talents.
Watch the video below to learn more, and scroll down to learn more about the high school students who wrote each monologue, and the actors who brought them to life.
WATCH JORDAN PERFORM BRIANNA’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Brianna Chavez, Frank Sinatra School of the Arts (Queens, NY)
Brianna Chavez is a rising senior at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in Queens, NY. She is a writer with TDF’s Young Playwrights Group. Brianna is working toward a career in journalism.
THE ACTOR
Jordan Boatman
Jordan Boatman originated the role of Zoe in the world premiere of Eleanor Burgess’s The Niceties at Huntington Theatre Company, Manhattan Theatre Club, McCarter Theatre Center and The Geffen Playhouse. A graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, she played Elsbeth in Simon Stone’s Medea at The Brooklyn Academy of Music. She Boatman appeared in Hulu’s “The Path” and on “The Good Fight” for CBS All access. Winner of the 2019 Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Actress.
WATCH TAYLOR PERFORM NICK’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Nick Merritt, Allen High School (Allen, Texas)
Nick Merritt is a rising senior at Allen High School in Allen, Texas. He has played Scuttle in The Little Mermaid and Galileo in We Will Rock You, both at Allen High School, and he played Barfee in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at The Stage Door.
THE ACTOR
Taylor Trensch
Taylor Trensch’s Broadway credits include To Kill a Mockingbird; Dear Evan Hansen; Hello, Dolly!; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time; Matilda; Wicked. Off-Broadway: Bare, Rent. First National Tour: Spring Awakening. World Premieres: Dallas Theater Center, Williamstown Theatre Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, Barrington Stage. Television: “Archibald’s Next Big Thing,” “Nella the Princess Knight.”
WATCH BABAK PERFORM TAHMIN’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Tahmin Ahmed, Lower Manhattan Arts Academy (New York, NY)
Tahmin Ahmed recently graduated from Lower Manhattan Arts Academy. He has been developing new work as a participant in City Lore’s Urban Explorers playwriting program. Tahmin aspires to work in the entertainment industry either as a writer or behind the scenes.
THE ACTOR
Babak Tafti
Babak Tafti’s NYC Theatre credits include The Profane (Playwrights Horizon), Othello (NYSF/Public), Small Mouth Sounds (Ars Nova/Signature), The Bachelors (Lesser America/Rattlestick), The North Pool (Vineyard), The In-Between (Noor). Regional: Selling Kabul (Williamstown), O.P.C (ART), Scorched (ACT), Guards at The Taj, Blood and Gifts (La Jolla Playhouse); The North Pool, Much Ado About Nothing (Barrington Stage Company) Winters Tale, Arabian Nights (HVSF). TV: ”Succession”, “Ramy”, “Legacies”, “Bull”, “New Amsterdam”. Film: Swallow, Tu Me Manques. M.F.A: Yale School of Drama.
WATCH MARQUIS PERFORM DARIO’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Dario Vazquez, Cardinal Hayes High School (The Bronx, NY)
Dario Vazquez recently graduated from Cardinal Hayes High School in The Bronx, NY. He has been involved with theatre since he was five years old. Dario aspires to become a stable working actor.
THE ACTOR
Marquis Rodriguez
Marquis Rodriguez is a Black New York City based actor. Recently, Marquis was honored to be a part of telling the important story of When They See Us. Marquis also starred in a Game of Thrones prequel pilot for HBO, directed by SJ Clarkson. Previously, Marquis starred in Damon Cardasis’ coming of age musical drama Saturday Church, which premiered at the Tribeca Film festival. He shared the screen with Jenny Slate and Abby Quinn in Landline, which premiered at Sundance. Additional film credits include Gaby Dellal’s independent feature 3 Generations, Universal’s Definitely, Maybe and Daniel Barnz’s Phoebe In Wonderland. On television, Marquis played “Daryl” on the Marvel Studio’s Netflix series Luke Cage, and subsequently recurred on Iron Fist. He recurred on NBC’s Chicago Fire, NBC’s Manifest, and CBS’ Hostages, and made guest appearances on Showtime’s The Affair, TV Land’s Younger, CBS’ Blue Bloods, and NBC’s Law & Order: SVU. Getting his start on stage, Marquis played “Young Simba” in both the Broadway production and National Tour of The Lion King. Marquis is honored to be a part of the MTC Student Monologue Challenge.
WATCH TALA PERFORM ZALISH’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Zalish Abbasi, Forest Hills High School (Queens, NY)
Zalish Abbasi is a rising senior at Forest Hills High School in Queens, NY. She aspires to be a successful director, writer, and actress.
THE ACTOR
Tala Ashe
Tala Ashe’s Off-Broadway credits include The Vagrant Trilogy, Troilus and Cressida, Urge for Going (The Public Theater), The Profane (Playwrights Horizons), The Who and the What (LCT3); T41: Barrel Wave (Signature). Regional: Head over Heels, The Happiest Song Plays Last, Troilus and Cressida (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Welcome to Arroyo’s (The Old Globe); Love’s Labour’s Lost (The Huntington). TV: “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow,” “American Odyssey,” “Smash,” “Law and Order: CI,” “Covert Affairs,” “30 Rock,” “Law and Order.” BFA: Boston University.
WATCH GATEN PERFORM JEREMY’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Jeremy Negrin, Robert Louis Stevenson School (New York, NY)
Jeremy Negrin is a rising sophomore at Robert Louis Stevenson School in Manhattan. They aspire to perform on Broadway.
THE ACTOR
Gaten Matarazzo
Known for his memorable portrayal of Dustin on the fan favorite – Stranger Things, Gaten Matarazzo has solidified his place as a breakthrough actor of his generation. Recognized by The Hollywood Reporter as one of the top 30 stars under the age of 30, Gaten began his professional career in the original Broadway production of Priscilla Queen of the Desert as Benji. He also appeared as part of the Godspell cast of 2013 and drew rave reviews as Gavroche in the 2014 revival of Les Misérables, a role he also played on the 25th Anniversary North American tour. When he is not filming, the 17-year-old devotes his time to raising awareness about cleidocranial dysplasia – a condition that affects the development of bones and teeth. With the help of a Utah-based doctor, Gaten launched - CCD Smiles - a Foundation built to help families pay their children’s dental bills. He recently visited Capitol Hill to speak in favor of a new piece of legislation called the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act (ELSA). This bipartisan legislation will provide insurance coverage to individuals born with congenital abnormalities or birth defects. Season 4 of Stranger Things is currently in production. Gaten also hosts and is an Executive Producer on Netflix’s Prank Encounters.
WATCH KARA PERFORM SOPHIE’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Sophie Mode, Millennium Brooklyn High School (Brooklyn, NY)
Sophie Mode is a rising senior at Millennium Brooklyn High School. She has performed at school in a musical theatre role and has worked on stage crews for other plays. Outside of school, Sophie spends much of her time doing advocacy work around educational integration and equity. She hopes to pursue political science and public policy in the future.
THE ACTOR
Kara Young
Kara Young is Harlem born and raised. She appeared at New York City Center Stage II in The New Englanders (dir. Saheem Ali). Film/TV: Chemical Hearts (Amazon, dir. Richard Tanne), After Yang (A24, dir. Kogonada), The lead in Hair Wolf, winner of Sundance 2018 Short film Jury Award: US fiction, Random Acts of Flyness (HBO), The Punisher (Netflix). Theater: All The Natalie Portmans (dir. Kate Whoriskey, MCC) Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven (dir. John Ortiz, Atlantic), Revolving Cycles Truly and Steadily Roll’d (dir. Awoye Timpo, The Duke), Syncing Ink (dir. Niegel Smith, Alley Theatre, The Flea), Pretty Hunger (dir. Martha Banta, The Public). Live Voice Over Announcer for 2018 & 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, MTV’s Girl Code (4 seasons).
Photo credit: Tim Okamura
WATCH TYLER PERFORM CHASE’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Chase Yano, Harrison Central High School (Mississippi)
Chase Yano recently graduated from Harrison Central High School in Mississippi. He discovered theatre during his senior year by working as a stagehand. Chase will study computer science at Columbia University beginning this fall.
THE ACTOR
Tyler Alvarez
A native New Yorker, born in the Bronx and raised in Long Island, Tyler Alvarez stars as the series lead in Netflix’s critically acclaimed original series American Vandal, as well as the fan-favorite Orange is the New Black, where he played Benny Mendoza, Gloria Mendoza’s son. Most recently, Alvarez can be seen in a great supporting role in the Hulu revival of Veronica Mars, opposite Kristen Bell. Alvarez also debuted on the off-Broadway stage in a leading role of the Roundabout Theatre play 72 Miles To Go… On the film front, Alvarez will soon be seen in a co-leading role in the upcoming American High feature film Sid Is Dead. Additional film & TV credits include: John Henry, The Pretenders, The Fosters (Freeform), Fresh Off The Boat (ABC), and High School Lover.
WATCH ANA PERFORM NAOMI’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Naomi Young, Rye Neck High School (New York)
Naomi Young is a rising senior at Rye Neck High School in New York. She has performed in musical theatre productions from a young age and has recently tried her hand at playwriting. Naomi is interested in human rights, environmental studies, and the arts.
THE ACTOR
Ana Villafañe
Ana Villafañe has been named one of the New York Times’ “30 under 30”, and honored by the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts for trailblazing Latinx representation in entertainment. Currently plays Diana Barea on “Sunnyside” (NBC/Hulu) and Doctor Valentina Castro on hit medical drama “New Amsterdam” (NBC). Ana originated the role of Gloria Estefan in “On Your Feet”, directed by Jerry Mitchell and starred in the hit musical throughout it’s entire run on Broadway, receiving across-the-board rave reviews for her ‘supernova’ performance. Since then Villafane went on to star as Nina Rosario in the Kennedy Center’s production of “In the Heights” by Lin-Manuel Miranda, and made her Off-Broadway debut in MCC’s critically acclaimed “Collective Rage: A Play in Five Betties”. Theatre World Award winner for Best Actress and two-time Drama League Award nominee (2016 and 2019). Official ambassador for Viva Broadway at the Broadway League, and national spokesperson for the Arthritis Foundation. Instagram: @anavillafaneofficial Twitter: @aanavee
WATCH ALPHONSE PERFORM ELIJAH’S MONOLOGUE
THE AUTHOR
Elijah Nelson, Forest Hills High School (Queens, New York)
Elijah Nelson recently graduate from Forest Hills High School in Queens. He has both performed on stage and worked backstage as a stage manager. Elijah will attend Georgia State University to major in theatre performance.
THE ACTOR
J. Alphonse Nicholson
J. Alphonse Nicholson is an American born actor and percussionist. Notable credits include TV/FILM: Series Regular on “P-Valley” (STARZ),”Just Mercy” (Warner Brothers) “Madam CJ Walker” (Netflix), “Blue Bloods (CBS), “Mr. Robot Season 2” (USA), “Shots Fired” (FOX), “Marvel’s Luke Cage” (Netflix), “Tales” (BET) “The Blacklist” (NBC), “Chicago PD” (NBC). Other credits: OFF-BROADWAY: Signature Theatre’s PARADISE BLUE (Blue), DAYS OFF RAGE (Second Stage) and “FREIGHT” (NFT). Love to my boy my girl and my Nafeesha.
Selected Monologues for June 27, 2020
SETTING: Backseat of an Uber at night.
EMMA, 18, is caring, empathetic, and strong.
For Emma? 89 Cambridge Place, thank you.
(She sees the driver’s face.)
Um, don’t worry he’s fine just—just tired.
(Silence. She looks at brother to the left).
I honestly can’t believe this happened again. No, no. Sit back, don’t worry.
(She leans over, out of the camera range, as if to push something.)
I said sit back okay just calm down… I won’t tell mom and dad just— just stop. And don’t turn, I don’t wanna get puke on this guy’s car.
(Pause.)
How did this happen again? Like really how did this happen… You do this to yourself, and I have to clean it up every time— lean back! God, I have to leave my friends and come get you like I always do. Please just— please stop crying, it’ll be okay. I-I thought you would have learned from the first time. Do you remember that? Do you even remember me standing there when they took you out of the ambulance, barely conscious? Do you remember cops telling me who my own brother was? I-I don’t wanna lecture you, and I know you probably won’t even remember me talking to you when you wake up tomorrow it’s just— god I can’t watch you do this to yourself any longer.
(Pause.)
I don’t even know how you got into all this… when I look at you I see my 10-year-old brother, with big shining eyes who would play Legos with me, making up worlds for hours. I see the boy who would have sleepovers with me in my room and stare at the glowing stars stuck to my ceiling— I know you remember that it’s just, it’s hard to see that now, to see you—you’re just—where’d you go? I haven’t looked into your clear eyes in a year now, I haven’t talked to who you really are in a year, I-I just-I miss you, I guess is what I want to say. And it hurts me to see you falling down this hole that’ll only be harder to climb out of if you keep ignoring it
(Pause. She takes a breath, shakes her head, and looks at the ground.)
I-I’m sorry, I’ll stop, you won’t even remember this so what’s the point. You won’t remember me coming to get you, you never do… Just— (goes into a purse and brings out a water bottle) just drink some water, we’ll be there soon.
(Looking out the car window.) You won’t even remember…
SETTING: A kitchen.
LIA, 18 years old, is hard-working, optimistic, and brave.
LIA enters from stage right into the kitchen. She’s starting to shake and is breaking out in a sweat. She stops, almost about to turn around but she stops again and keeps walking. MOM is center stage loading dishes to the dishwasher. She’s humming her favorite song, while DAD is on center stage left looking confused about where his medicine is. He is now opening every cabinet quickly.)
LIA: There’s something I need to say to you. Can we sit at the kitchen table? Okay, so I don’t know how to say this but, please don’t be mad at me. I don’t want to become a doctor, I know I’ve told you that in the past that I do, and I did initially but, I realized I was only doing it for you guys. Mom, Dad, I really want to become a photographer. I love taking photos, setting up photoshoots, and I want to do it professionally. Photography is my passion. I know it’s not a stable income, but if you give me time I can grow this business. I love you guys a lot and I’m grateful for everything you gave me, but I’ve always done what’s asked of me, and it’s time I listen to myself. However, I know that this is not what you dreamed for me, so I’ll make a deal with you guys. Give me one year, and if I can prove to you that I can get a salary, and grow then you have to accept this choice, but if I don’t succeed I’ll go to college and do pre-med, I promise. Just please give me a chance, I know I can do this.
SETTING: On a bench outside a church after ANNE’S grandfather’s funeral. She is sitting with her cousin.
ANNE, in her late teens or early twenties, is loyal, stubborn, an advocate, and a survivor.
ANNE: There’s something I need to say to you and I’ve been waiting a long time to say it. I have imagined this moment for years, I’ve practiced what I would say in a mirror, hoping that I would get the chance to talk to you again. The truth is there are too many feelings and too many things I need to say but no possible way to string them together in a way that makes sense. I have accepted that no matter what I say there will always be things I won’t be able to voice. So I’ll say as much as I can now, and you’ll listen to all of it. You owe me that much and more. It took me a while to be able to sleep through the night again, sometimes I still can’t. I used to keep myself awake for as long as I could because I was scared to sleep. When I did sleep I had nightmares, I still do some nights. Some days I couldn’t breathe, some days I couldn’t eat. Some days it hurt to exist. There were too many times I wished I could step out of my body and find a new one to live in, and for god knows how long- I took all of the blame. I continued to live in this body — my body — feeling broken. Feeling dirty. Feeling shame and guilt and anger… and I convinced myself that it was my fault. I almost destroyed myself trying to keep you innocent when in reality it was your fault. I spent years hating myself because it was easier than hating you and even now I don’t hate you. You were my best friend, I could never hate you, but I do blame you. It’s on you, everything, all of it, I hand it over to you. I hope it weighs heavy on your shoulders. I hope you feel shame and anger towards yourself. I hope you are kept awake at night because the guilt you feel is so strong it makes your stomach hurt. It’s what you deserve. Finally, I hope for your sake, you take responsibility for what you did. I hope you do better and I hope you don’t put anyone else through what you put me through. You owe me at least that much if not more.
Selected Monologues for June 22, 2020
SETTING: An AA meeting in a community center.
STEPHANIE, 28-35 years of age, is desperate, overwhelmed, and scared.
STEPHANIE: Hi I’m Stephanie and I’m an alcoholic.
(Beat.)
Aren’t you all supposed to say “Hi Stephanie” in a monotonous and drone-like voice? No? Okay well, I’m gonna be honest because I’m a lot of things, but a liar isn’t one of them. I’m here because my boyfriend forced me to be here. He’s sitting in the parking lot in our 2001 Toyota Camry with a cracked windshield and dented door. He’s holding my one year old daughter who’s probably screaming and crying wondering why her mom isn’t there and why they’re sitting in a hot car on a July evening. Well, actually she’s probably not thinking that, she’s probably thinking about how hungry she is or—
(She realizes she’s talking to herself she looks at the ten other people who are also sitting in the humid grey room.)
I’m sorry, I’m just a little… I don’t know, I just— (takes a deep breath) He says if I don’t “get my act together” that he’ll start the car and leave me. He’s taking the one thing that’s ever made me happy and leaving me to rot. Look, I’m not an alcoholic, okay? I’m not. I’m here so I won’t lose— well, everything. My life is literally hanging by a thread and he’s holding the scissors, ready to cut.
(Silence.)
Yeah I have a few drinks a day and sometimes have trouble making it up the stairs but that doesn’t make me an alcoholic. Once, I— I dropped my daughter on the living room rug because I tripped on my Smirnoff bottle, but that still doesn’t mean that… it doesn’t make me a….
(She looks at the people again who are all giving her a glare. She starts sobbing into her hands.)
Okay, maybe I have a problem. Maybe they’re sitting in that car for a reason. They’re sitting there waiting for me to get better. To improve. To change… But what if I can’t change? You, (she points across the circle) umm, Susan. You said you’ve been coming to these meetings for five years. Five years! What if my daughter grows up and her first memory is coming to AA meetings with her family and waiting in the goddamn car! (Silence.) And she becomes an alcoholic… (Silence.) My mom died last year from alcohol poisoning. She didn’t even get to meet my daughter and I’m just scared deep down that I’ll never meet my grandkids and that if I do they’ll be ashamed of who I’ve become.
(She is very upset but takes a few deep breaths and tries to compose herself. She looks around and then reaches down to take something out of her bag. She takes out a black flask and looks at it. She tosses it into the center of the circle and looks down at her empty lap. She gestures to her right.)
Your turn.
SETTING: A hallway at Crenshaw High School in Los Angeles
EMILY is 17 years old.
EMILY: Hey Ashley, there is something I need to say to you. I know me and you just started getting close but there is something on my chest that I need to address. I understand that your other friends feel like I’m from poverty and that I’m not rich like y’all, but that don’t give you or your friends the right to treat me any less than y’all. Ashley, I already explained to you my struggles and why I moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles and you were very supportive and a good friend to me. I just don’t like how when you get around your friends you start treating me differently.
I just wanna know one thing: why do you and your friends feel like it’s okay to treat me differently just because I come from the hood. I’m the same just like the rest of y’all. Just because I don’t wear fancy clothes and I don’t own a car like your friends doesn’t mean I’m less of a person then you and your friends. Did you think I wanted to move here??? No, I had no choice. My mom and dad split up and my mom got a job opportunity here to give me and my siblings a better life. Every day when I get up in the morning and come to school I just think about what else would you, your friends and other kids tease me about next you and the whole school makes me so sad that I don’t want to come to school.
Now that I have friends in my neighborhood that accept me for who I am I no longer care or think about what you or the school feels about me. Now I can afford the things you and friends used to tease me about and now I’m saving up for car. I love being around my new friends because they are not followers like you. I just hope one day you realize that you lost a good friend… and one more thing: just because I come from poverty doesn’t mean you should treat me like I’m garbage because we are all human beings and we all have feelings.
SETTING: Anne’s sister’s bedroom. Sarah is best friend’s with Anne’s sister and Anne is 5 years younger than the two girls. Sarah just saw a sappy message from someone’s boyfriend that they posted online. Sarah rolls her eyes, and Anne sees and is confused as to why Sarah is so annoyed by this.
SARAH is a 17 year old girl. She is a hopeless romantic, but has been numbed by the meaningless dating that frequents the society of her generation. She is very maternal, and wants to use the lessons she’s learned as a guiding path for those younger than her. She is also very bold, and has no problem speaking her mind.
SARAH: (doing her makeup) Anne, there’s something I need to say to you… I just think you misunderstood. It’s not that I don’t look at that and think the words aren’t sweet… it’s just that, in today’s society, they’ve lost meaning. I look back to when our grandparents, even our parents, were teenagers. When love was real. When, if someone said they loved you, they meant it, and there was no doubt in your mind. But now, boys say that crap to every girl that gives them a chance. Even when they don’t even think they mean it. Because they want to show off. Because they want to keep a girl around. Because they want to keep a girl happy. Well, when you break her heart because you’re in too deep, and she thinks you love her, when you never wanted her for all that she was, I’m sure she’ll be really freakin’ happy. Because they’ll say just about anything for you to do what they want. Whatever that may be. Because when I talk to a boy, who I know for a fact, knows nothing about me, and he tells me he loves me, what do you think is going to go through my head, when maybe, someday… (voice breaking) someone says it for real? It’s not that… I don’t want to get messages like that… every girl does. It’s just that, in our generation, relationships are so… Commercialized. The people in them often care more about showing their relationship off, and making sure everyone knows about them, and sharing every single moment with the rest of the world… than actually loving the other person, and sharing intimate moments. And that’s why, I feel, the more girls share pictures and screenshots of what their boyfriend says to them, the more they show off… the less love there is in the relationship… because they constantly need to be validated by others. Therefore, most of those things are just for show, and feelings are only a small percentage. Annie, you have no idea how much I want someone to text me they love me, or they miss me, or they never want to let me go… but, I need it to be real… Not because someone else is watching. Not because they feel pressured into it. just… real. But these boys don’t really know how to do that anymore. So don’t be fooled. Talk is cheap.
Selected Monologues for May 30, 2020
SETTING: A high school auditorium in California. 2017.
ANA, 19 years old is a singer and an artist. She loves animals and cares about people.
There is something I need to say to you about America:
The people here are different. They don’t dress the same as me or talk the same as me, but ever since I moved to America everyone has treated me differently with respect and morals. But there is always going to be that one person that will try to ruin my day because of how I’m dressed or how I look or how I talk.
Before I came to America my life was very hard. I had to walk to a well with a bucket just to get water and then I had to walk back with it on my head. I had to sometimes make my own shoes out of mud, sticks, and water. And I say sometimes because most of the time I had to walk barefoot. There were also times when I had to walk and look around for a very long time just to find food for me and my siblings. I’ve been through tough times. I’m just glad that I was able to get through it because other people from where I’m from would give up because of how much work it is. There were days when we couldn’t even find food so we would go days without eating.
There is something I need to say to you about America:
I’ve tried my hardest to get to where I am today and I wouldn’t have done it without the motivation and courage from my siblings. We have all tried very hard. But everyone is not the same. We might not have the same color skin, or be the same religion, or have what each other has, but I know we breathe the same air and we all have the same blood coursing through our veins. But that doesn’t make us totally different. The way I dress, look, or talk shouldn’t give anybody the advantage to make fun of me.
I have been bullied before but after that I just thank them. I thank the people that bully me because that’s just giving me more hope for myself to continue doing the things I do. Also when people bully others they are just jealous, want what they have, or there is something that is going on with them in their life. People that have been bullied have made a great outcome in their life because that gives them the motivation to keep pushing themselves and keep on going forward with life.
The only thing that’s different about me is I wasn’t born here.
SETTING: At the graveside of Liam Abelman in Mount Sinai Cemetary.
ANITA ABELMAN, 32 years old, is determined, strong, and compassionate.
ANITA: (while peering down at the coffin holding her dead husband in the ground) There is something I need to say to you.
I never believed in love. I was hurt so many times before, that it just seemed like a fairy tale more than it did a reality. But then I met you. And as I stand by your graveside in the pouring rain, I know I will never fall in love again. You made me feel as if I was worth something. As if all of the pain of my past had gone away. With you, I was happy and I knew that everything would be alright.
But as the cancer struck, that was all taken away. It took away my home. You were my home.
And now, as I live in our empty house alone, I know that life will never be enough anymore. No amount of luxury could make up for the fact that our house is just a house and that will never change. The late-night runs to the kitchen for Trix cereal. The binge-watching streams of old western movies. Your loud snores at night that I wouldn’t change for the world. Everything about you. You were my home, and now that that’s gone away, I can’t find any light left of this world.
I love you, and I know these years will be difficult without you. I love you, and I can’t wait until we meet again. May you rest in peace, baby. Your suffering is over.
SETTING: An empty bedroom at a high school house party.
ELSA, 15 years old, is clever, emotional, and worn out.
ELSA and HER ANXIETY are at a school party. It is loud and there are lots of people crowding the ground floor. ELSA gets more and more anxious, and when she cannot take it anymore, she runs upstairs to an empty bedroom and shuts the door. ANXIETY follows, because she must. ELSA turns to face ANXIETY, standing quietly by the door
ELSA: What?! What do you want from me? Why won’t you just leave me the hell alone? Haven’t I suffered enough for you? Every single day, I wake up, and there you are, hanging over me like some sort of dark cloud. Every day, I go to sleep exhausted like someone who’s been climbing Mount damn Everest, because you are just too much! You exhaust me! I’ve never gotten enough sleep in my life! And I can’t even go to a goddamn party without you! You go everywhere with me! And I hate it! I hate you! My skin is a mess and it’s your fault! People think I’m crazy and hysterical and then they dismiss me and it’s your fault! I will never, ever know what it feels like to be truly calm, and it’s YOUR FAULT!
ELSA is quiet now, close to tears.
I want you gone. Why won’t you leave?
SETTING: The living room of RONNY’s house.
RONNY, 16 years old, is lazy, hopeful, and quiet.
RONNY: Mom, there’s something I need to say to you. Ever since the change in the house, nothing has felt the same. Everyone left and I’m the last on here. I feel like I have no purpose, I feel like I’m useless. John and Linda both went to become engineers, jobs that would develop the world. Sammy went off into politics, and wants to change the grip our government has on us. I’m 16, and have no idea what I want to even do in my life. I spend endless hours outside biking with friends, and watching the hours pass. My past two years in high school have been a waste, and I don’t even know what to do in the future. I shouldn’t lose anymore time, and I know I’ve lost most of my chances at a future that you all wanted to see me have. I can now only work hard for the next year or two, and see if my chances could improve. I never thought I’d end up such a failure, like our uncle Leonard. Now standing here in this empty living room lets me see my whole life before my eyes. I had bigger plans, and somehow ruined them with terrible decisions and low self esteem. I don’t know how I can even develop some form of courage and respect for myself. I guess the only way I can make you proud is if I improve my terrible work ethic, and make MY dreams come true. I can’t be the son you wanted to have, but I can be the kid you never thought you would see do something. I’m going to turn my life around.
SETTING: The bathroom.
MYA enters the bathroom and looks at her mirror and her FUTURE SELF starts to talk to her.
MYA: Hey there’s something I need to say to you. (looking surprised and beginning to panic) You did not just speak to me. No, no how did you even get in my bathroom. Before I freak out why the hell are you here. Who told you about my missing assignments, YOU STALKER! Yeah, I have been watching Netflix so that I can do whatever I want. I know my assignments won’t complete themselves. I just like taking my time. The question I’m asking myself right now is how many years in the future are you in because I never thought I would be so annoying getting older. (Freaking out and getting close to the mirror looking at her reflection) 10 YEARS!! That’s impossible, how do you look younger than me? Me living in the streets. I know I was procrastinating but that’s temporary, I know I need to pick myself up. For sure, I’m going to go finish my five week old due essay and math problems.
MYA leaves the bathroom and turns the TV on, then turns it back off and goes back inside the bathroom and starts speaking to the mirror.
But can I start tomorrow?
Selected Monologues for May 23, 2020
SETTING: The living room in the Diaz’s house.
JULIA DIAZ, 18 years old, is independent, nonconformist, sensitive
JULIA: Papi! I got in! I got into Montclair! This is going to be so exciting! I can be independent, I can drive myself to school, but I can still be able to come home. I’ll be ahi mismo, just like you and Mami wanted. I’ll still be able to make it to family parties, and still be with you. Isn’t that great? But before we celebrate, I need to tell you something. The major I chose was acting. I know, I know, it’s not what we talked about, it’s not what we agreed on but I think this is the right choice for me. Please don’t just stand there and not say anything. Please don’t be mad. I know that what I did was wrong, and I know that I should have listened to Genesis when she told me to tell you about the audition. I’m sorry, but I think I made the right choice. It’s a very hard program to get into, and I did! I worked so hard, Papi. Aren’t you proud of me? I’m doing what I love, don’t you want me to be happy?I just want to make you proud. I just want you to be able to brag about me with all your coworkers. I want you to see all of my hard work, and say, “Wow, esa es mi hija.” I’m not being ungrateful or malcriada, I just want you to understand. I can’t do something I don’t want to do. I just don’t see myself in a classroom, teaching the ABCs to a bunch of annoying little kids who just whine and complain all day. That would be terrible for me. You’ve seen me in shows all the time, you know I love acting. Whatever happened to… do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life…? Isn’t that what you wanted for me? I thought you would support me, no matter what, because I’m your daughter. I thought that’s what dads are supposed to do.
SETTING: Charlie’s wedding, right before her marriage is official.
THEO, 25 years old, is shy, loyal, and kind.
THEO: I object.
(Theo stands up and looks around at everyone staring at him.)
Charlie. I know this is a dick move because you are literally in the process of getting married, but I’ve held this in for too long and I need to get it out.
Do you remember the first time we met? Because I do. I was sitting, alone, at lunch because I had started at your school about a week before and hadn’t made any friends. I was listening to music when you came up behind me, took off my headphones, and just started talking as if we’d known each other for years. I didn’t think you knew I existed, but you went on and on about Mr. Carlson, our Chemistry teacher, and how you spent your time watching me draw in my notebook when you were bored. And you stole some of my chips and I didn’t care because someone was actually talking to me. And “Heroes” is still my favorite song because that was the song that I was listening to when you came up to me… and the point is, I remember every single detail about that moment. And for the rest of high school, you were always there for me, no matter what, and every single second that I spent with you became the happiest moment of my life because, that moment you came up behind me and stole my headphones, I immediately fell in love with you. And I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to ruin it and I’m sorry that I waited until your wedding, but please. Don’t marry him.
SETTING: A graveyard.
JULIA, 18 years old, is visiting her mother’s grave.
JULIA: Someday, when I’m 97 and old and wrinkly, I’ll still be thinking about you. I’ll be settled down with a nice husband and with kids and grandkids, and I’ll love them all dearly, but I won’t have forgotten you. How could I forget a mom like you? (pause) The grandkids will love the stories you used to tell. The ones that weren’t about knights in shining armor, but instead about princesses who were strong enough to save themselves. The princesses who had nice dragons guarding them, and who went on their own adventures without a prince. I always wanted to be like those princesses- on my own, without anyone to tie me down. I tried. I thought being alone was fun, and I’d get to go on all the adventures I’d like, and I wouldn’t have to worry about anything. But there’s dragons like house payments, and heartbreak, and bad people. (pause) Mom, the dragons aren’t anything like the ones from your stories. The dragons bite. I know you’d be able to beat them if you were here. You knew how to beat everything. You had the remedy every time I was sick as a kid, you helped me through the loss of my best friend in fourth grade, you always knew how to make the best of everything, no matter how bad it looked. (pause) Someday, I won’t be telling the grandkids your stories about princesses with perfect lives who didn’t need anything but adventure. I’ll be telling them about you.
SETTING: A cool summer’s night in an open grassy field, stars shining above.
WINONA is 18 years old. She’s impulsive, a bit of a mess, and can never seem to stop herself from rambling once it starts. WINONA and her best friend CA’TRA are laying in the grass, looking up at the stars.
WINONA: There’s something I need to tell you, C. You’re probably looking at me all confused, and honestly, I would too. Maybe it’s the atmosphere we’re in right now, or, or maybe it’s my impulsiveness speaking, but I just gotta, wait no, need to tell you something.
Do you remember the first day we met? Gym class? You were absolutely killing it at kickball! Being on the other team, I thought, “Geez! This guy’s bound to hit someone.” And well, you know, you did… me! What a funky way we met, you just ran right over while the game was going, making your entire team mad. With a hit as strong as yours, I felt out of it! Now you may be thinking, “Hey, Win? Where’s this going?” Now, now Ca’tra, I am getting there! When you helped me up, went out of your way to see if I was okay, I dunno, something… ignited in me? That make sense? Something in me told me that you and I were going to be friends, and hey, we are! After meeting you, dumb as this sounds, my life changed.
Every single day, I looked forward to just hanging with you, being with you. We’ve grown so close these 4 years, and I felt like I’ve known you for forever. Y’know, Ca’tra, I’ve said this a million times, but you mean the world to me. Nowadays though, uh, that feeling has grown a teensy bit more. Okay, I’m just going to, uh, spit it out because the rush I’m getting from this word vomit is insane.
(She lets out a sigh, covering and closing her eyes as if that’ll prevent Ca’tra from hearing her.)
Ca’tra… I really, really, really like you. I, uh, I just think you’re neat.
SETTING: A prison visitation room.
Separated by a glass wall and a vent that transmit sounds, ANTHONY, a 26 year old inmate and new father, has some troubling news for his wife.
ANTHONY: Ever since I was a boy, I dreamed of being a father. You know how important it was to me. I told you all the stories about how my dad never visited me, never called, never even sent me a birthday card, you remember that right? And I vowed to never be like him. I told myself, I would be there for my child. And provide for him. You want to know how long they sentenced me for? You want to know how long I won’t be able to touch you, or my son? How long I won’t be able to kiss his soft skin, and tell him that “Daddy’s here.” 63 YEARS. The judge said that number, pounded his gavel, and it shattered me! I WEPT FOR DAYS! All I could think about was giving my family one last hug. Now, the only way I’ll see him is through a blurry glass wall. How can I raise my son through a glass wall? How can I be the best father behind a glass wall? How can I be different from my father, when I’m in SHACKLES? (pause) You don’t understand how much I love you guys. I regret everything I’ve done, and I’ve ruined this family.
(ANTHONY begins to sob quietly.)
I just need you to promise me that you’ll raise him right. Even though I won’t be home until his 68th birthday, I want him to know he has a father, and his father loves him. Teach him how to defend himself. Teach him to stand up for himself. Teach him how to teach others. Teach him love. Show him who I was before the crimes. Show him that he had a father who could do it all. Tell him how much I cherished him. Call him king. Be who I wish I could be. If either of you need male advice, I am one call and one visit away. It pains me deeply to not be able to raise my child, but it would pain me even more if he didn’t know me.
Selected Monologues for May 16, 2020
SETTING: The ASPCA dog shelter.
TAYLOR is a hardworking and thoroughly exasperated twenty-something.
TAYLOR: So, the dealbreaker was the cats. I am not a cat person. I am not opposed to cats, sometimes they can be cute in a vindictive evil overlord way. But, Sam was dropping all these hints about doing something big and romantic for our six month anniversary. And let’s just say he was on thin freaking ice already, but I was willing to forgive and to be swept off my feet. Most of the stuff was just the usual arguments anyway. Who puts the toilet paper roll that direction, can’t you just do the dishes when you’re the one who used them, that stuff. Newly cohabitated stuff. But then. Oh my god then. Do you know how utterly mortifying it is to get home from work expecting to find something romantic like flowers or dinner, and see cats? Five. Cats. With bows around their necks, and Sam just grinning like he was the smartest boyfriend in existence. Mind you, this wasn’t like something we’d discussed. Hell, we hadn’t even really gotten used to just living together! This was Sam trying to be romantic. And he adopted, not one, not two, five grown-ass cats. I don’t mind cats in theory, but that was the moment I realized that me and Sam would absolutely never work out. I know it’s not nice to dump someone on your anniversary, but I swear to god I could have screamed. I’m getting a freaking dog.
SETTING: A courtroom in New Jersey.
KATIE, 22 years old, is healing, strong, and a survivor.
KATIE: There is something I need to tell you, something you need not to forget Mr. Steven. I suppose you must expect me to stand here, trembling and afraid as I was on April 19th. The day you shredded my innocence with the tips of your fingers and the engraving of emotions in my mind. I have not stopped replaying the sounds, the motions, the pain I have harbored since that day and beyond. As I walk the streets today I can no longer see innocent men as men who do not want to touch. I cannot see a man who will love me beyond my body, beyond the makeup on my skin.
I suppose today you realize the injustice you have corroborated. I have spent years wondering who was among your number of victims to ask them for help. I was alone. I was afraid. I was a small, weak girl.
I have spent years rubbing my skin with alcohol in hopes your touch would be erased, but I could still feel your hot flesh gliding past mine as I told you to stop. I have spent years wondering how no one heard me, looked for me, but most of all where my voice had gone beyond that night. But today, I stand in a pool of survivors; ones who stand with me. And I remember, in seven years from April 19, 2015, you’ll have never touched the skin on my body from that night. And I will forgive you for my own peace by then, but I will never forget.
There is something I need to tell you. Honestly, I feel that this year is totally bonkers and not in a good way. Coronavirus has become a pandemic; an Australian wildfire happened that put so much wildlife in danger; Asian Giant Hornets have invaded North America. We have to shelter-in-place and we are EVEN doing online school from home; people are losing their jobs because businesses are closed and so some businesses are trying to reopen during the pandemic. At the grocery stores we have to stand in line to get in. We have a shortage in toilet paper, paper towels, cleaners and NOW even meat!!! It’s crazy!
We all have to stay at home, but a lot of people are protesting against that since they want to go out and do whatever they want. People are becoming too naive with the virus to the point where they act like the coronavirus pandemic is a hoax. I went to stores and I saw very few people wearing masks. That proves that they are not taking the Health Department’s warnings about the virus seriously. It’s alright, thought. It’s gonna be their fault when they get infected by the virus because they were too stubborn.
At least I am staying at home, so that’s a good thing. It’s been very boring, especially since I can’t see my friends. I miss going out to restaurants to eat and talk. I miss going out to swim.
At least I can still take the dogs out for walks and they love it. They love having me home all day, playing with them. They sit on the couch with me while I do my homework as if they are learning with me. For once in a long time, I can’t wait for this year to be over so that I can finally get away from all of the madness this year has brought to us. I’m not usually one who wants years to go by so fast, but this time, I want it to happen.
I want this pandemic to be over. I want the stupidity of mankind during this pandemic to be over. I want to go to Greece and Port Aransas. I want to see my friends again in real life. And I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I want to go to school and see my school friends again. But most of all, I want me, my family, and my friends to be safe and healthy and not have to worry about how close we get to others, what we touch, are we wearing a mask? What about gloves? Or any of that stuff in general. I just want this madness to end. You get where I’m coming from, right?
SETTING: At home.
CHARLIE, 27-34 years of age, is scared, impulsive, and very unsure of himself.
CHARLIE sits center stage, he looks frightened. He looks around, making sure nobody else is there, he stands.
CHARLIE: I-I have something to tell you. Now, please don’t be mad. I opened the lizard portal.
(frantically)
I’ve unleashed the lizards! All of them! They’re everywhere! Iguanas, geckos, alligators, crocodiles, chameleons! Every lizard you could imagine!
(He starts getting defensive.)
Now, now I swear it wasn’t on purpose! It was an accident! It was late and raining! I just needed to find shelter! No! Listen! There was this cottage, the woman who lived there was very polite, she let me stay! But, my curiosity got the best of me. Why would someone just let a stranger into her home? So after she fell asleep, I snooped, I peeked, I didn’t mind my business!
(Beat. He starts to cry.)
And there it was. A book. I started reading, and I couldn’t stop, if I looked away my eyes burned! And that’s when it happened. The lizards. They started pouring out of everywhere.
(He breaks down, he’s a mess.)
Out of the shelves, the books, the drawers, I go to check on the woman, there are lizards coming out of every orifice of her body. It’s as if I was unaffected. She starts to scream. All I can think is: I did this, this is my fault.
(He stops and his eyes widen.)
They’re here. The lizards. And they aren’t happy. It’s too late for you, go.
SETTING: An office.
SAM, 25 years old, is charismatic, clumsy, and hungry.
SAM: I never would have thought this is goodbye. It seems like it was just yesterday when we first met each other at a coffee shop and I accidentally spilled my drink on you. The look on your face was definitely unforgettable, like I had just slapped your grandma or something. We both thought that was the last time we’d see each other but little did we know the chaos bestowed on us. I was so excited for my first day at work until I saw your face, what’s worse is that our desks were right by each other. Day and night all you said were things like “You’re not doing that right.” or “Are you really sending that to our boss?” I bet you would have made me make your coffee if you weren’t afraid I’d purposely spill it on your head. (Which I would have by the way). However as time went by things started to change, we first bonded on the fact we had cats then we had similar taste in movies, next thing you know we can’t stop laughing at our prank towards our other co-workers. But all good things must come to an end. I got a new job where I’ll have to start this process all over again, but before I leave there was something I wanted to say: those sandwiches of yours that went missing were all me.
SETTING: San Francisco, California. SYLVIA’s kitchen.
SYLVIA, 23 years old, is angry, upset, and regretful.
SYLVIA: I know. I’ve known for a while now. If I’m being honest, I didn’t want to bring it up with you ’cause I knew that as soon as I brought it up with you, that it would be real. And I don’t want this to be real. Not now. When I was younger, yeah. It would have helped me through life. And you know what— I understand why you kept this from me for so long. I mean, I grew up, my WHOLE LIFE trying to find out who I was— who my mother was. I took out all of my anger and frustration on people who didn’t deserve it. I bullied people for YEARS because of the pain that I felt. You didn’t even care, not about helping the other kids, not about helping me. You saw, everyday that I was spiraling down hill and you just sat there. And, you know what, it’s FINE. It was my fault, I understand that I take blame for my actions. But, you could have told me four words that could have changed my life completely. “Your mom is alive” — FOUR WORDS! And that— is on you.
Selected Monologues for May 9, 2020
There is something I need to say to you. I remember when you used to come home late from work, and I would stay up, waiting for the familiar sound of your jingling key in the door. Even on nights I was exhausted, I would strain my closing eyes so I could give you a kiss and tell you about my day. And it was always worth it.
I would tip toe out of my room as quietly as I could as soon as I heard the key so I would be there when you opened the door. I whisper-screamed your name, giving you a big hug as you picked me up and I felt your cool skin against my cheek. You would give me a kiss and tell me how much you missed me. Some nights you would tuck me back into bed. Most nights I would walk with you, never letting go of you, telling you about the math problem I did today or the way I played on the jungle gym with Ella at recess. You told me about your boring meetings, even though I know you love your job, and you love that you love your job.
Even when you started coming home earlier and earlier, home everyday for dinner and sometimes home when I got back from school I always loved these times. It was just the two of us, talking about anything and everything, from school and work to politics and movies.
Some nights, I’d be up late and couldn’t sleep, but I knew you’d have the same problem. I’d sneak through the dark hallway into the living room only faintly lit by the tv where you were watching the Daily Show or a John Hughes rerun. I’d snuggle up next to you and we would watch tv and eat microwavable popcorn or yellowtail sashimi or olives with pimentos and talk until you thought I was ready to go back to bed. It was our special time.
Sometimes, I lie in bed, listening for the sound of your keys in the door. The little black phone ringing that your food was here. The beeping of the microwave. The faint sound of the tv in the living room. The dim light clicking on just enough to peek through the darkness. The clinking of ice cubes in a fancy glass. I know it won’t come, but I still wait.
SETTING: Mom’s room in a small apartment in West New York, NJ around 2am.
ROSE is eighteen years old. She is a smart, determined, and creative young adult.
ROSE: There is something I need to say to you… I know what I said at dinner wasn’t what you wanted to hear, but it’s the truth. When you’re little everyone wants you to …tell the truth… Well here I am telling the truth! And now you don’t want to hear it. It’s funny, I try to do what you say even if it hurts me. I’m tired. Every day I feel like I’m going to war with myself. Every waking moment I am having an argument with myself. Do I do what makes you feel proud? Or do I do what makes me happy? MOM, ALL I WANT IS TO BE HAPPY! But you only care about what people think of me. You’re selfish. …Oh, what will they say about me if they don’t LIKE MY DAUGHTER?!… AND ALL FOR WHAT?! I WANT TO BE A SOLDIER!! Mom, I’ll get free school! I bet they’re gonna pay me for my time too. Think about the time I have wasted! Why can’t you be happy for me?
Look at me! I am amazing! You can’t ever take that away from me. I hope one day you will be proud of me. Hm! Isn’t it sad to think that one day someone else will be more proud of me than my own mother? But hey, listen to your parents, right?
When you hear about me on the streets, don’t come crawling back to me saying that you were wrong, I don’t want to hear it. I’m going to make it in the world, with or without you.
SETTING: A hospital waiting room at Emerald Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.
ADAM, a 22 year old med student, is waiting in the family room for his fiance’s doctor. He is a caring, strong, loyal young man.
ADAM: Sir, I know what you’re about to say and please don’t say it, not yet. This isn’t true I refuse to believe that, and if you say what I think you’re about to say then it’s real.
(He pauses and takes a deep breath.)
I can’t lose her, too. Amelia is the only one that has ever cared for me… or even ever truly believed in me. When my parents left, she was there. When everyone at school decided I was the easy target, she defended me, every time, even if they picked on her too. She cared for me when the kids at school got violent, when the threats became more than words. She was there for every up and every down. At the end of the day, Amelia is the one who took me in. Amelia loved me the way I couldn’t love myself, she kept me on track.
(He pauses before standing and looking Dr. Lenovoson in the eyes.)
So, please, don’t do this: don’t make it real, do not destroy me. I don’t know if I could handle hearing the words. Amelia, the girl lying in that hospital bed, is my person, my best friend, my fiance, the one I know I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with. So, if you say the words, you make all of this real… You can’t unsay it, You can not take it back. If you say those words, then Amelia is actually gone and I have no one.
SETTING: REI’s front porch.
LEAH, 22, has been dating REI for six years. She is soft, firm, and exhausted.
LEAH: Rei— I just don’t know how to tell you. I don’t know what to tell you. How am I supposed to explain— how am I supposed to summarize what feels like years of my own mistake? How can I explain that you did nothing wrong? All you did was love me. And I thought I loved you. All you did was make me feel safe, make me feel understood, make me feel like finally, maybe I was worth something. And maybe it was intoxicating. I chased a feeling that I shouldn’t have, because you loved me more than I could have ever loved you, and gave me more than I could have ever given you, and I loved the attention and I was so stupid. And how am I supposed to say that I’m sorry? That I’m— that I really, really, am so sorry. I’m sorry because we were so young, and I thought that this was enough and I thought— well, I thought a lot of things. I thought you were perfect and I thought you were the world, and I thought you were the kiss of rain on my dry, cracked pavement, and I thought you were the only one I needed. And I’m sorry, that I thought I’d maybe grow to love you, and that through no fault of your own I failed.
(Pause.)
I tried so, so hard to love you. Please, I really did. And I know you’ll ask me to stay, that we can make this better, because I know you, Rei, and I know that you’re so beautifully, hopelessly optimistic. But I’m so tired, Rei, I’m so tired. So please, can this just be easy? Please, let me just go.
SETTING: The early 1800s, on a seafaring ship about to set sail.
AUGUSTE is a stubborn, confident, charismatic general in his late forties. He is speaking to the general of the kingdom that defeated him.
AUGUSTE: I congratulate you, General. You have served your country well, loyally defending your people and helping defeat me. You and your people have even found it within their hearts to exile me, rather than execute me, for the ruin I caused your kingdom. Perhaps this was kindness…” or perhaps it was pity, for the once-powerful leader who now has nothing. But before I am sent away, there is something I need to say to you: you have lost. I see it in your eyes: you think you have won. Everything I had, all my riches and kingdoms and glory have gone to you, so how could you have lost? How are you anything but victorious? I will tell you, general, I will tell you that no one will remember you in the hundreds of years to come. No one will remember the measly efforts of the weakened kingdoms, or the names of the officers who captured me. In time, they will forget the suffering they endured, and the bravery of their kingdom’s soldiers; the blood and the tears will fade from their memory and onto the dusty pages of a history book, left alone on a high shelf. What they will remember, general, is me. They will remember the glory of the empire, my glory, as I charged onto the battlefield and slaughtered my foes…” they will remember their admiration and awe, their fear and their hatred, and while they will forget the kings that ruled them, they will remember me, always. So think on that while you are complacently eating dinner with your wife and children, and I am wasting away on a deserted island…” however far away I am, I will never disappear. I am immortal in the minds of the world, and that, general, is how I have won. Think on that.
SETTING: The Royal Throne Room, Kingdom of Mylandor.
MALIK is a young 20-year-old prince living in the shadow of his father, the king. He can be outspoken, lively, and at times unruly EXCEPT when in public and especially not when in the presence of his father.
(MALIK sits slumped in his junior throne as the Chancellor directs the next offender on the list into the room. Upon first glance, MALIK’S demeanor dramatically shifts to a worried interest.)
MALIK (barely louder than a whisper): Your Grace…
(MALIK watches uneasily as his father begins motions to sentence the chained young man kneeling before them, who looked around the same age as MALIK, to life imprisonment without so much as a falter in his speech.)
(He uncomfortably clears throat then in a confident, demanding tone:)
Father!
(He resumes normal tone and stands up to meet the King.)
This man is not guilty of the crimes for which he has been called to stand trial for here today— if you can even call it that.
(A pause.)
This is not one of my silly games, father. You’ve been grooming me since I first saw the crown atop your head and drilled in me …my destiny… I have been your yes-man for far too long. Trust me when I say this man is NOT GUILTY.
No, I am not finished. I warn you, do not take these statements lightly. I mean no disrespect, Your Grace, but surely any king of any great realm should be expected to act swiftly on what he deems to be the truth when the case presents itself so. As future king of Mylandor, I should be no different. I can fully account for the whereabouts of the accused the evening the crimes were reported to have been perpetrated. This man…
(A pause. He slowly brings eyes to those of the accused and assumes a new level of confidence.)
This young man before you is an honest man. He is an old soul, mature yet goofy, wise beyond his years, and undoubtedly one of the most moral and loyal people I know. He can easily beat me in a game of chess, but doesn’t make me feel bad about it. This young man is my best friend. Our friendship has been kept in secret for over 7 years. We’ve met, we’ve celebrated, we’ve laughed, we’ve cried, as best friends do, but we’ve done it all in secret, because of my duty to uphold …a certain reputation… as prince and the fact that he is common. Status doesn’t matter. I know him like I know myself and on the evening of the crimes he was with me.
(A pause.)
Yes, I know I said I had fencing practice… I mean, I still did fence, just with him instead of the instructor. Nevermind that, I assure you it is truly impossible for this man to have committed these crimes. I will personally see to it that the case is actually solved, if that is what it’ll take, for I am a firm believer in his innocence and am neither ashamed of it or our friendship.
(A pause.)
Really?
(He runs over to hug his best friend who is now free and is still speaking to his father.)
You are not making a mistake, trust me.
(A pause. He looks father in eyes with a glint of admiration and resolve in his own and smiles.)
One day, I hope to become a fraction of the man you are and meet the standards expected of me. I will make a fine king. I am sure to, as I’ve always had a great one to be both my example and father.
Selected Monologues for May 2, 2020
SETTING: Jay’s doorstep at 1am.
JIMMY, 18 years old, is fed up, overprotective, and a romantic.
JIMMY: No! I’m not leaving, not this time. I’m not going to let you push me away twice. I’ve watched you hurt yourself too many times without doing anything about it. I can’t sit here and watch anymore. I have to do something… I have to say something. You constantly argue that he’s going to change. You constantly argue that he’s getting better, that he didn’t mean to. I won’t let you defend him anymore. I care about you too much to watch you hurt yourself again. I know the truth, no matter how much you try to hide it, I know what he did. I know how much of a terrible person he is to you when you two are alone. When are you going to stop lying to yourself? Stop pretending like everything is just fine, stop acting like you’re happy because I know on the inside, you’re miserable. One day you’re going to have to face it. He doesn’t love you, he’s just using you and you know it. But you don’t want to accept that. So, of course, you stay with him because you don’t know what else to do. You have to stop falling for men like him who treat you like garbage. It’s about time that you understood your self-worth. You know, when I first met you, I thought to myself, “Wow, how did I ever find someone quite as beautiful, as smart, as funny as her.” You’re as precious as gold, and right now you’re letting him treat you like you’re no more than a piece of dirt. You’re perfect and you don’t deserve to be treated as an object. You deserve so much more… Jay, there’s something I need to say to you, something I’ve been holding in for a long time. The truth is, that day we first met, as soon as I looked into your eyes, I-I think I fell in love with you.
SETTING: After school.
ROSE, a 15 year old high school student, is kind, smart, and caring. She sees the ghost of a friend.
ROSE:
There is some thing I wanna tell you
I miss you
It hasn’t been the same
I’ve made it to 2020
I’m doing so much better than when we last talked
I wish you didn’t leave me
I miss your smile
Your laugh
Your hugs
Your voice
You
I almost joined you there but I made it past that
I wish I could have just some more time with you
You were amazing
I miss you so damn much
I wish I would have told someone
It could’ve prevented this
I still can’t believe even after all these years you’re really gone
I still wanna believe you’re gonna come back
I’m sorry I didn’t tell someone
I’m sorry I wasn’t there in the end when you needed me
I have the guilt of not being there
Why can’t you just come back
You made life better
I wish I could see you again
Why did you leave
Why
It’s not fair
Come back please
Just for one day
I want you back
SETTING: ANGIE’s childhood home.
ANGIE, 18 years old, is about to leave her home for the last time. She is confrontational, loyal, and kind.
ANGIE: I need to tell you something but I don’t know if I’d be saying it just to be cruel. I actually have a family now. I have someone I consider a father now. I’d like to think he considers me a daughter. I spent so long trying to be enough. I spent so long trying to make myself into a version of myself that you could love. Hell, I just wanted you to care about me. I just wanted to be your daughter. I tried; I really did, but love doesn’t fix everything. It doesn’t excuse everything you did to me. Years of abuse can’t be erased with an admission of love. It isn’t enough. I had to grow up at nine years old because of you. I had to run a household at nine years old. I had to raise your children at nine years old. When I graduate I’ll be glad to see two empty chairs instead of you. You didn’t even bother to fulfill the basic duties of being a parent.
If I ever decide to have children I’m glad they’ll never have to meet you. If I walk down the aisle one day I’ll be glad that you won’t be beside me. You’ll never be my parents.
SETTING: A hospital room in 2002.
DEREK is 29 years old. He is emotional, heartbroken, and in shock.
DEREK: Hey there little guy. There is something I need to say to you. You’re too young to even understand what I’m about to say, but right now I don’t have anyone else to talk to.
Your mother is no longer with us, it’s just going to be the two of us moving forward and even though she never got the chance to hold you before (slightly chokes) you know, she loved you very much and would’ve sacrifice anything for you even if it cost her her life. She knew the risk of having you… we both did, but we decided that we wanted to give life to something new, we wanted to give you your best shot in this world. I know you won’t be able to feel the warmth of her arms wrapped around you or feel the love she would’ve given you, but just know that every hug I give you and every time I tell you that I love you, I’m passing it on from her to you. Even now, standing here and holding you, It still feels like she is here, as if she didn’t leave us, but instead put a bit of herself in you.
There might be days where I might not be at my best, but just know that I’m trying. For as long as I could remember, it was me and your mother against the world and now for the first time in a long time:
It’s only me.
You and me.
SETTING: Midnight at the Three Island Crossing Park, in Glenns Ferry, Idaho.
KATHERINE is a caring 17 year old who is honest to the point of bluntness. She believes in doing what is right, and wants the best for everyone, but especially her lover, JULIA.
KATHERINE: I think it’s time to do it. And I know what you’re thinking, because, well, I know who you are. You’re thinking about how crazy it is for two people as young as us to actually go through with moving to Oregon, of all places. And most of all, you’re thinking about how uncertain it is to move to a new state, without even as little as a plan.
But do you know what else is crazy? The fact that your own family would neglect you in the time that you needed it most. Or the fact that they hit their own niece, then blame their own disgusting, abusive actions on you somehow. And maybe, you’re right. Maybe our future is uncertain, and it’s crazy to even try to fix it. I mean, think about all the uncertainty in our lives. With world hunger, the economy completely plummeting, pending World War Three, climate change, nobody knows what’s really going to happen. But, the one thing that I am certain of is my love for you. I love you so much Julia, and I can’t do this anymore. I can’t just pretend to be okay with what’s going on in your life. I care about you more than everything, and everyday that we stay here is another day where you end up hurt. I don’t care what happens, I don’t care if I have to work four jobs to provide for us, or have to sell my hair on the black market. As long as I’m with you, as long as you’re healthy and safe, we will find a way to live.
Julia, please. I can’t stand another second being here, knowing the consequences that come with it. And I know that you don’t want to stay here any longer either. We can really escape this town, forget all of it, and create a beautiful new life of our own. The life that you actually deserve.
SETTING: A bedroom around 2am or 3am over a FaceTime call with her recently distant best friend.
JULIANA, an 18 year old, is feeling very scared, apprehensive and needy.
JULIANA: Okay, okay please wait. I just want to tell you one more thing. You’re such a great friend to me, you know?
Yeah, like, I know you would probably be sleeping right now if it weren’t for me and I just really appreciate that.
I don’t know why I’m being so mushy all of a sudden… It’s just that these last few days I couldn’t fall asleep because I was constantly being kept up by my thoughts and what not. (happily) We are about to graduate, I’m supposed to be happy but all I can think about is the fact that I’m just going to lose all of my friends… lose you, you know?
Yeah, I know but I feel like everything is up in the air right now. People are committing to their colleges, everyone is getting ready to leave. Everyone around me is moving so fast and I want it to slow down! (softly) I just need everything to slow down.
HECTOR WILLIAMS is 16 years old. He is lonely, fed-up, and brave.
It’s a chilly evening in May, and you’re at your school’s choir concert. They have just begun their harmonious song, and it is heavenly! A wave of bliss flows over you; you are surrounded by the angelic sound of all of these students working together in perfect matrimony. You think you can hear every golden note, and it overwhelms you with joy… But news flash, you can’t! Have you ever noticed the kids standing on the bottom bleacher? The kids that are shrouded upon by each and every choir member above them? Yeah, those are the basses. The choir students whose voices are drowned out by all others. They are the forgotten ones. My name is Hector Williams and I’m here to make known the pains of all basses around the globe. As a bass myself, I have experienced the loneliness and discrimination of my kind first hand! You’ll never see a lead singer in a band be a bass. Oftentimes, we merely serve as the subtle backdrop to your favorite songs, every once in a while singing a low and faded ‘ba ba da dum’ to give a little extra kick. But that’s all it is, a little kick. We get no credit for what little work we can contribute, and it can be really defeating at times. But the worst part of all is that it doesn’t end in the music industry! No matter where we go, discrimination will follow. You want to go into theatre and become an actor, but you’re a bass? Well, I hate to tell you, but your voice is too menacing to be the good guy, and it’s too monotone to be the villain. You want a lead role? Well, the closest you’ll ever come is by getting the role of the narrator; set apart from the story, apart from everyone else, only used for your lonely, booming voice. In fact, a disembodied voice is all we basses are really good at! People will come up to us and ask “Do you do audiobooks?” or “Have you ever considered making a podcast?” It becomes a dulling request, but we all give in eventually. After all, what else are we going to do? Work in an environment with actual people? As if that’s going to happen. Please, next time you listen to an audiobook, be mindful, and think about the lonely bass, just trying to make a living, on the other side.
SETTING: A children’s hospital in the Midwest.
ALICE, 16 years old, has been battling a terminal illness for several years.
ALICE: That’s what everyone always says. “Keep fighting,” that’s a good one. “I’m praying for you.” And my personal favorite, “I’m so sorry.” Everyone is always “so sorry” that it makes me sick. (beat) Well, I guess that could be my meds, not the sorries. Whatever. Here’s my point. I don’t care how sorry you are. Sure, I’ll react to your social media posts about my “battle” — gross — and send thank you cards as a response to your get well soon ones. And, yeah, I’ll accept those gift baskets with open arms. But your “sorry?” It means absolutely nothing to me. It’s empty. What are you apologizing for?
(She sits up in her hospital bed and looks at her doctors.)
I don’t want their “sorry” anymore, you know? It would honestly mean more if they told me about their complete lack of care. I’m so tired of living my life on apologies and IV drips. It’s not even living anymore; it’s surviving, and surviving means more and more “I’m sorry”s. I truly can’t even bring myself to care about the well wishes any longer. Can you guys prescribe any meds for apathy?
(A pause. Everyone in the room looks around. ALICE sighs and sits back on her bed.)
That was a joke.
(Another pause.)
So, what’s for lunch today?
SETTING: A cemetery.
ELENA, 22 years old, is confident, spontaneous, and kind. She is visiting her grandmother’s grave for the first time since the funeral 8 years ago.
ELENA: I promised myself I would not come here and talk to the air, but I have to believe you can hear me because there’s so much I want to tell you. So many things I should’ve told you. (pause) So I was walking down the street today and I smelled something that made me stop in the middle of the street. It took me a minute to figure it out but then I remembered. It smelled like your house. A mix of Spanish food, cigarettes, and a rose scented air freshener that you thought covered the cigarette smell. I felt kinda sad. I had forgotten the smell of your house. It got me thinking, what if I forget your laugh, or smile, or the weird fruit magnets you had on your fridge. What if I forget the taste of your food. What if I forget the sound of your voice calling me, “Elenita.” Slowly you fade away more and more and I can’t stop that from happening. (pause) Anyways I got pushed because I was standing in the middle of the street. So I went on with my day. But I kept thinking, (crying softly) I don’t wanna forget you abuela, b-because you. (pause) You are the best person I’ve ever met. And I never told you that but I want you to know it’s true.
(As Elena walks away, the wind blows and she smells the same scent of her grandmother’s house. Elena smiles.)
Selected Monologues for April 25, 2020
SETTING: Bagh Village, Kashmir.
HUBBA, 24 years old, is free, strong, and understanding.
HUBBA: There is something I need to say to you… Before you kill all of us I want you to know that these mountains will remember us. They have seen our children running in their fields and drinking from their streams. They will remember how they gave us fruits from their trees, in return getting smiles of thanks and trust which you no longer see today. They will remember asking for our laughter to echo through them and into their meadows and out to their valleys letting the world know that we belong to them and only them. But what a shame that they will only hear screams and cries of the children that once played in their fields and that they will see the horror in the eyes of the people who used to eat from their trees… And then they will see the pools of blood in which mothers hold their children screaming for justice while the world walks right past them. When they have seen all that you have done they start to shake and rumble in anger breaking all the borders around them because you took what was so precious to them… You took away the laughter that gave their silence relief, you took away what was beloved to them, you turned their heaven into hell, and you did this all in the name of greed! When we are all gone these mountains will never welcome you! THEY DON’T WELCOME MEN WITH GREED IN THEIR EYES! THEY DON’T WELCOME MEN WHO KILL CHILDREN IN THE NAME OF POWER!
SETTING: Ruby’s bedroom.
RUBY is an independent, strong-willed, and determined eighteen year old. She is talking to her best friend Chloe on video chat about her future.
RUBY: UGHHHH. I am so tired, like so sick and tired of people telling me that my dreams are unrealistic. Like who are you to tell me I won’t make it! Right? Claire, you are literally the only person in my life that believes in me. Not even my own parents do, which is just so, I don’t even know. Disappointing? I am going to be on Broadway, and that’s it. End of the story. A lead on my dream show Dear Evan Hansen. And I am going to prove to everybody, literally everybody that I am talented, that I am and will be successful. Most importantly, I am going to prove it to myself. These people that I call my “friends,” you know all they do is talk crap about me. They don’t support any of my ideas, any of my goals. And they bring me down twenty four seven. All I need to say to you is that I am so grateful you are in my life. Without you Claire, I just don’t know what I would do… Can I tell you a secret? A few weeks ago I felt so hopeless and I did not want to be here anymore, I did not want to live this life anymore. I don’t even have my family’s support for anything. And right before I made that gut wrenching decision to… You know? I thought about you. I thought about you and how we are all we have and I could not and would never ever leave your side. And I have not had thoughts like that since. I love you best friend.
SETTING: A bar down the street from a destroyed factory.
JUGO, 23 years old, is charismatic, trustworthy, and a genius.
JUGO: There is something I need to say to you. Years ago when we started this whole stunt and built a business I did not think it would last a week. However you surprised me. Now look at us. Six years later and we are back to square one. No money, business closed, the entire factory burnt down. It’s crazy how long we worked for all we needed and in a split second it was all gone. Now I’m not here to make this situation more depressing than it is. I want you to realize the impact we had on so many people. Think about what the world would look like if we didn’t help. If we never left a lending hand to that homeless man on the street or the time we bought that family lunch and went shopping for them. So what if we can’t make any more products. What is important is that you always stuck with who you are and nothing ever changed that. Now, I have been by your side since we were both in middle school. I will admit I have always looked up to you. You have this spark that lights up the whole room when you walk in. When you are being a leader or helping someone to their car it comes out and you will do anything for that other person. I’m proud of you don’t ever forget that.
SETTING: Becky’s home during quarantine.
BECKY, sixteen years old, is nostalgic, pensive, and perseverant. She is writing a letter to her Zeide (grandfather).
BECKY (thinking aloud as she writes at her desk): There is something I need to say to you, but I don’t exactly know how to reach you.
At the beginning of this, I wondered how this message could find you with so many obstacles in the way. The masks that covered our mouths, the hand sanitizer slathered all over our sweaty palms, the six feet that keep the whole world at a distance, and the miles and miles that kept us even further apart. And my biggest fear of all — my ability to carry Covid-19 to health-compromised individuals or the elderly, both of which you were.
We saw each other face to face on holidays like Passover, where you would lead the extended family branching from your six sons through these epic “seders” or Passover meals. A few weeks before this Passover, you passed over into “olam habah”, or the next world. Do I have any way to break the impossible boundaries posed by anatomy, mortality, or faith to get to you?
When we sang the notorious lyrics “Ma Nishtana Halaylah Hazeh?”* this year over Zoom as a family, I asked myself: what was different this Passover? Well, You’re not here and it feels like the world is facing its 11th plague. Maybe G-d is testing us all.
Testing us to see how we can preserve through hardships the way you did every day of your life for the past ten years. Through surgery, hospitalization, and near-death experiences, you would say something along the lines of “keep me alive, I can get out of this” in Spanish. Now every morning, I think those words to myself.
You used to always be a phone call away. Despite my trouble hearing you with your raspy voice and your trouble comprehending me, the last time we talked, like most times, we could hear each other utter “te amo” loud and clear. “I love you.” You can be sure that I’m yelling “te amo” over a phone line to whatever world you’re in. That’s what I wanted to tell you.
(Becky doesn’t know the address to send her letter to but she seals the envelope and holds it close to her heart.)
* “Ma Nishtana Halaylah Hazeh?” translates to “What is different about this night from most nights?”
SETTING: Classroom of a Catholic high school.
ISH is a well-read, critical, and mourning 16-year-old. His theology teacher attempts to comfort him after class.
ISH: (repeating mockingly) “This is all apart of His plan.”
(He laughs disapprovingly.)
You know what? There’s something I need to say to you. I don’t believe in Him, not anymore. How will you help me now that you spewing the same “everything happens for a reason” means nothing to me? Huh, tell me, Sister.
That’s right, you have nothing. Everything doesn’t happen for a reason. Tell me, if He is real, why does He make us suffer? Why do you even have to take those mission trips to build wells for those Guatemalans every year? Is it part of his plan that some of his “children” must live and die in a state of poverty? What part of His plan does leaving me and my 3-year-old brother without a Mom accomplish? Tell me, why her, and not me? She prayed every night, never missed church, was filled with compassion. She really was a spitting image of Christ himself. Was she not a worthy Catholic? She was a better Catholic than most of you. What else does He want?
If you think you really believe in God, you’d do well to actually do something to help others besides comforting a kid who just lost his mom by reciting the same old prayers and platitudes. How about you take the advice of a different fictional character for once? “We must cultivate our garden.”
(ISH storms out.)
SETTING: The Bronx. ELIAS’ building stoop at 3am during the coronavirus pandemic.
ELIAS, sixteen years old, is insecure, loyal, and clever. ELIAS is on the top step of the stoop and his partner stands on the sidewalk.
ELIAS: Ayo can you lemme get a goddamn word in? There’s somethin’ I need to tell you.
(There is no response. We are now in a staring contest.)
You know what, I understand planet Earth is in the palm of your hand and you pluck from it what you please but yo, I need you to wake up and realize you’re not the only entity in this world that matters. I know that you know that whenever you ask me to see you, no matter the time, no matter where I am, I come. If you need a favor from me, getting it done is my first priority. Yes, I appreciate you taking the time to try and make what we have a level playing field, but I don’t appreciate you doing this in order to reinvigorate your conscience. So son, lemme break it down for you, when I say no? It means NO. When you call me in the middle of the night asking if you’re valid to slide to the crib and I say no? STAY HOME. I understand all of Westchester County thinks they’re immune to this thing, but this isn’t Westchester County, kid. This is the hood. And, for the first time in our lives, the hood is scared… Yo, I swear to god you even try to BREATHE on me and what you bring home is gonna do a lot more than scare you. And when your older-than-Christ-himself grandparents keel over and die, and you tell the rest of your family how the hell the patriarchs even came in contact with this thing, who’s gonna have the Yonkers Italian mafia at their doorstep?
(A chuckle.)
Not you. ME! ANOTHER HUMAN BEING ON PLANET EARTH THAT FEELS THEIR LIFE MATTERS, AND IS ALSO CAPABLE OF REALIZING THAT SATISFYING A NEED FOR PHYSICAL AFFECTION IS NOT AND NEVER WILL BE WORTH PUTTING THE LIVES OF OTHER PEOPLE IN GODDAMN JEOPARDY!
(Beat.)
Momdukes and I are leaving to P.R. next week, and we’re not coming back until this thing blows over.
(Beat.)
Yo, son, after this little stunt you pulled I don’t want you calling me, texting me, none of that. It’s clipped. And, I swear, if I see you around here… Just don’t let me see you around here. Do me, yourself, the world a favor: stay home.
SETTING: An apartment where TERRY lives with her dog, BUDDY.
TERRY, a professional woman in her late 20s, is sick of being ignored by the men in her life.
TERRY: Alright, buddy here’s the sit. You, me— we have a problem. I mean all I ever do is for you! For YOUR well-being! I cook and I clean and I give and give and give. And what do you do in return? You take and you take and sometimes, occasionally, basically — um — NEVER you give back. But it’s always in your control, on your own time. I just wish you’d learn that I deserve to be respected, y’know treated well. Don’t get me wrong, I can take care of myself, Buddy. Okay, I can handle myself. I am a strong, independent woman. I don’t need the constant attention or approval of a male. I AM NOT SEEKING VALIDATION OKAY! Oh, okay. I get it. You think you can just sit there with those pretty brown eyes and earn my forgiveness. DON’T YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY FOR YOURSELF? WHY AREN’T YOU SAYING ANYTHING? Well, I’ve said all I can to save us. Now it’s up to you.
(The puppy licks her face.)
Awwwww! You do love me!
SETTING: A New York City apartment.
NINA, 19 years old, is vulnerable, distressed, and stubborn.
NINA: You know what always… what always gets me? The fact that I see your face and I… I don’t know what to do to say and right now I just need… to get to the point—there’s something I need to say to you. And it’s more than I want to say and it’s frustrating that I have to do this in person but it’s the right thing and honestly I can’t get out of this because we are literally in quarantine together. But I can’t handle sitting beside you with everything in my chest, Mia. I love you with my entire heart but I don’t think I can do this anymore. The side glances, the not talking, the silent resentment you present to me every time I ask you a question. I am riddled with anxiety everyday and ever since we had to distance ourselves from the outside it’s worse and you can’t see what it’s doing to me. I understand that it has done the same for you, but that’s something you won’t admit, isn’t it Mia? I don’t want to be with you anymore. I don’t want to hurt myself being with you anymore. I want to be happy and in love. I want to be able to wake up to a lovely smile in the morning instead of a scowl, especially if we are going to spend the next three months alone, together, in this apartment that we had bought together that is no longer a happy place. I’ve tried to help you, I’ve tried to get you to do things so we aren’t dying in this place, but you aren’t doing the same and now I’m putting myself at risk trying to put you first. I can’t do this anymore.
Selected Monologues for April 18, 2020
SETTING: Nearly 12 a.m. on a Tuesday night.
CHARACTER: BETTY, an alluring 24 year old with bright eyes. Her voice has a melody that shows her sensitivity and her nontraditional nature. She has a flower like soul, always yearning to grow and explore the world.
(BETTY, drunk with laughter, gazes at the constellations. She spins around herself with the weight of her purse leading her.)
BETTY (giggling): Ah, the stars, the moon, the lights. Watch as the lights prance off the raindrops from the grass as I run. Look, Howard! See how the drops sitting on the grass stick to my legs as I move?
(She continues to giggle flirtatiously as she runs through the open grass, mesmerized by the stars. HOWARD joins her in the middle of the field and stands next to her. Their heads are faced upwards toward the sky.)
Howard Lloyd, look at the way the stars glisten from the moonlight! You know, daddy always tells me my eyes dance with curiosity and sparkle like the stars in the giant blue night sky.
(He slowly brings his head down, watching her animal-like movement skip down the wet grass.)
When I was younger, we would run and play. Mom, daddy, and I. Together as a family.
(She wanders around aimlessly and sits on the dew wet grass. Her weight focuses to her elbows as her weightless knees point upwards. She continues to gaze at the sky. HOWARD joins her.)
I told my friends we would all sit at the dinner table and talk about our days and read the newspaper. Tell stories of our hopes and dreams. Daddy and I would plan date nights to go to the coke shop and maybe do a little dancing. Throw parties and invite the richer, wealthier families around Virginia. It’s funny. I tell my friends this thinking these moments will come true.
(Pause)
We sit at the dinner table in silence. Listen to the scrapping of our silverware cutting our food on the glass plates. I ask my father a question I already know the answer to and his eyes skim the top lining of his mornin’ paper. Our eyes met for only seconds before he looks back down again and mutters evil lullabies under his breath. My mother stares at her plate and picks her nails.
(She is no longer looking at the sky, instead she is staring straight ahead, eyes flickering back and forth from the ground. BETTY opens her eyes wide, longingly as if she is looking at her mother. Her silent plea is unanswered.)
She’s too frightened. To say anything to him. Say anything at all at the dinner table.
(A beat. A realization or spark occurs and there are 4 beats of silence. BETTY’s voice begins to tremble.)
That’s why I have to leave and get away from this place.
SETTING: MARK’s bedroom.
MARK is a procrastinating, sub-par fifteen year old, but he is well versed in excuse writing.
Dear Mrs. Mac,
There’s something I need to say to you, about why you should still consider me for this monologue competition. …Even though I still haven’t submitted my assignment that was due today. You see, I was embarking on a quest to further my creativity and therefore write a better monologue, when I became so deeply entranced with watching inspirational fifteen second videos created by teenagers like me that I completely zoned out and fell asleep. I dreamed of many things, which bettered my imagination for monologue writing. So, really, I was only working outside the box in order to create my masterpiece. But that’s when it hit me- a baseball. My brother decided it would be a good idea to play catch with the dogs inside the house. He used to play baseball in the seventh grade; he was a pitcher, and, well, you can guess how it went from there. My mother rushed me to the emergency room. I begged for her to let me return to me dear old musical theatre class, but the cruel woman would not let me go. And that’s why I’m writing this email- to tell you that I was not able to submit my monologue due to procrastination or lack of effort, but because of my unfortunate circumstances which caused my injury.
With my sincerest regards,
Your favorite student,
Mark
SETTING: Patrick’s doorstep.
KATHERINE is 25 years old. She is confrontational, wants to be tough but is sensitive, and has a hard time describing her feelings.
KATHERINE: I know. I know what you’re going to say. Let me go first. I went driving today. I passed by the old river bank just like we used to do when we were kids, do you remember that? We would spent hours there and then when the sun would set and we were hungry, you’d always have those snack bars in your purse- sorry, bag- you’d hate it if I called it a purse. We would eat probably like 5 or 7 bars before we were full and then drag ourselves back home. How we hated to go home… I guess what I’m trying to tell you is that I hate how you’ve changed. We said we would always come back, why didn’t you come back? Do you know how many hours and how many days I spent waiting for you, hoping that something would click back and you’d come by just like you promised? You were in town for months and didn’t even bother looking for me! I asked everyone if they’ve seen where Patrick was and you know what they told me? They told me you disappeared. I don’t want to wait for someone who disappears out of my life. Although I miss you and it breaks my heart that you’ve changed, but I can’t wait for you any more.
SETTING: An amusement park in 2019.
AMELIA, aged 16, is kind, stubborn, and loyal. She waves at her father and hesitates before speaking.
AMELIA: Wait, I’m sorry, but I have something I need to say to you…
I knew from the start that one day together was not going to fix things, but I had hoped it might. Don’t get me wrong this has been one of the best days of my life, and I will never forget it. Every child dreams of getting to spend a day at an amusement park with their dad, but it doesn’t fill this hole in my heart that I thought it would.
Do you know what it’s like to watch everyone else’s father show up and adore the crappy drawing their kid made for them? You could never understand the pain I felt when I saw the posters for the daddy-daughter dance or daddy-daughter camps that I knew I could never go to. Do you even care about the endless tears I cried? I hope you have some sort of remorse for my mother and my family who were left to pick up the crying child and watch her suffer and watch her feel like she could never belong.
I go to school in which everyone in my class has both their parents who lookout and provide for their child with love. Have you ever loved me? I sometimes wonder if you regret leaving me after seeing me in the hospital and if you ever even shed a tear over it. It doesn’t seem like you do, considering you never once apologized. You never reached out to check in on me and my mother to make sure we are alive and well. You never once visited on Father’s Day or even took me to the park. I’m glad today, now that I have grown and am no longer a child that needs direction and love, you decided to finally spend a day with me. I only wish you had thought to do it sooner.
Do you know how hard my mother had to work to keep me alive and well? She had to wake up before the sun, and she would not get home until almost dinner. Every time I needed her, she was there, she is ten times the father than you could hope to be. I hope Isabelle gets all fatherly love that you could never grant to me.
I apologize for taking your time, I guess this is goodbye. I hope you take what I said to heart in case any other child deserves an apology from you.
SETTING: MARIA’s apartment, in the kitchen.
MARIA is honest, spontaneous, and problematic.
MARIA: There’s something I need to say to you…. when you told me someone called and booked your band on the day of my wedding (beat) … .I was the one who called…. and booked. Look I’m sorry, but your band sucks! And your version of ‘I Want It That Way’ by The Backstreet Boys made me rather a disco-themed wedding – and everyone knows disco sucks! (beat) Yes, I know I said I liked it better than the original but, I didn’t wanna hurt your feelings! What did you expect me to say!? That I think it sucked in front of your whole band?
Okay…. fine, whatever – I’ll let you play, but if you try and include your so called ‘stand up comedy’ piece I will kick you out myself. Last time you tried to do stand up I spit my wine out everywhere…. And not because the joke was funny.
SETTING: Boston. 1907.
ELEANORE “ELLIE” BENNETT is 20 years old. She is determined, bold, and caring.
ELLIE: There’s something you need to say to me? Well let me stop you right there, because I have to tell you something. I’m done hearing your excuses for everything. You really have the audacity to come here after all of these years to say that you’re “sorry.” Well guess what? I’m sorry for you… And you don’t think I know that when Mom told you it was a girl, you wanted to leave immediately because what can a woman achieve in this world? They can cook, clean, and have strong boys that’s what they’re good for. Not flying to the moon, or joining the army, or becoming a police officer, right? That’s no place for a girl. Lemme tell you something, that is exactly where a woman fits in this world. Right where no one expects them to, so I’ll see you someday when I change the world. Your “little girl” is going against the grain and rebelling. Wow. Who would’ve thought, a sergeant’s daughter following in her father’s military footsteps… but not in the way everyone expected. Of course the woman takes on the military medical role, right? Nurturing, caring for others, and certainly not on the battlefield. But what you don’t know, is that.. that’s exactly where your daughter wants to be, fighting for our country with pride… if only she were a man.
SETTING: The Intensive Care Unit of a hospital.
Our unnamed character is a very compassionate, gentle, loving old man. He is getting his final words out to his lifelong wife.
There’s something I need to tell you. This whole situation is awful, and I feel for you and everything that you’re feeling, especially because we’ve been together for so long. I’ll tell you this, however: I know you’ll make it out just fine. You’ve never been one to give up on us, and it’ll be the same way for you in the future. Hey, now don’t cry. Doctors did everything they could to try to keep me alive longer. It was only a matter of time. At least things will be better for the both of us. There would’ve only been more pain had things worked out.
Remember the day when we first met? I was running around the whole school building, looking for my math class. I then ran into you on accident. At first, I was afraid that you were going to hit me; you always had that tough exterior on you.
(He laughs.)
But you helped me out, and even held my hand to guide me. The moment you held my hand,
(He reaches out to hold and caress her hand.)
I knew I was in love. I started acting like I was lost every day for a month because of that. You were pretty annoyed with it, but I loved every single minute. We then went from you taking my hand and bringing me to class, to taking my hand in marriage. You’ve also done a lot of giving, too. You gave me amazing kids, the cutest little grandkids, and an eternal peace of mind.
(He starts to tear up.)
You’ve done so much for me, and I just want to tell you, thank you. Thank you for everything. Thank you for putting up with me. Thank you for being there for me. Thank you for existing. And thank you, for giving me the best life I could ask for.
SETTING: The home workplace.
RYAN is 17 years old. He is unpredictable, dramatic, and impossible. He is speaking to his mother.
RYAN: Can you g- WHOA HOLD IT! KEEP YOUR EYES ON ME! Listen! I can explain! It’s weird but let me explain. This whole online school Zoom situation is new to me. I wasn’t prepared emotionally… or fashionably. I woke up to find that class was in 30 minutes and so I made some yogurt parfait. The parfait was delicious. I looked at the clock to find that I had three minutes left and I sprinted upstairs with all my might as my yogurt parfait jumbled in my body. I opened my school laptop as I stared at my screen determinedly, I made it to meeting!… but I was wearing my boxers. HEAR ME OUT, WAIT! I was thinking it would be fine because none of my classes require a video of my body… and so that’s what I thought until I had to dance for my musical theatre teachers. I hear the command… I hear the silent screams of terror and anxiety in my head as I am wearing no pants. I quickly hatch a plan of how to get out of the situation before getting caught in the act of wearing no pants. I look around my surroundings in desperate hope of salvation and I hear footsteps just right outside my door! I adjust my laptop in a specific angle to avoid visual exposure to my lack of fashion. I see or hear the light out of the dark tunnel, that light being you… Can you go grab me pants, Mom?
Selected Monologues for April 8, 2020
SETTING: A FaceTime call taking place during the coronavirus pandemic.
MARISA, a sixteen year old girl who is typically strong and thoughtful, is scared of what is happening in the world at the moment.
MARISA: Hi daddy! Uh, I’m not really sure what to say. Well, I uh, I know what I should- uh wanted to say so I wrote it down on some index cards.
(Pulls out index cards from her pocket.)
Don’t worry about me daddy, seriously, me and mom, we will be alright. I uh, I’ll take care of her while you’re gone. Oh and Buttercup too.
(Slight laugh.)
I’ll make sure I remember to feed her, everyday. I’ll even take her on those long walks by the church, just like you. I’ll take really good care of your baby, I promise. I promise I’ll get better at parallel parking before I drive the car. I know how nervous that makes you. And I promise I won’t almost burn the house with my cooking… again. I promise I’ll carry your spirit with me as I walk down the aisle. I promise I’ll carry you in my heart everywhere I go. I promise I’ll never forget you daddy.
(Stops reading from the cards.)
I’m so sorry you’re going to die in the hospital alone. I’m sorry I can’t be there by your side. I’d get the virus, I don’t care about me. But there’s laws against that sort of thing now. But that’s alright. Right daddy? Because you know I’m there with you, in your heart.
(Beat.)
I know you’re in pain daddy. Shhh shhh. I know. I know you tried to fight it. But you don’t have to fight anymore. I got us daddy. I got us. So you, go on and get some rest. Rest your eyes. Dream of us. I’ll see you soon daddy. I’ll try calling tomorrow. I love you to the moon and back — from heaven to Earth.
SETTING: A castle in the past (like the 1750s).
EEN is 22 years old. He is a minion, like Igor.
EEN: M..Master? Um…hi. It’s me, Een, the friendly loving creature that you adore so much. I, um, have something that I need to tell you. You know that five headed dragon that we were keeping in the big cage that could spit acid and fire that you told me to keep vigilant guard over? Well due to some unforeseen complications, the dragon has… escaped and is destroying the castle.
(Een reacts to master yelling something, something along the lines of “WHAT?!?!?”)
Wait Master, it’s not my fault!
(Act this out while speaking:)
You see, I was drinking my coffee, the one cup you allow me each day, and I accidentally spilled it all over my shirt… and into my eyes! I was blind and I couldn’t see, so I reached around for something to hold. While I was reaching I tripped over the stool that I use to reach the highest shelves where we keep all the torture devices, and I stumbled all around until I fell on the lever that releases the dragon! I was dazed, so I pushed on the lever to steady myself which led to the dragon being released. I barely escaped with my life!
(Master says something)
What’s that? You’re sending me to the dungeon!
(Fear fills Eens eyes) Not the dungeon!
(Trap door opens below feet)
NOOOOooooooo!!!
(Trails off)
SETTING: The rooftop of a sixteen floor building on the Upper West Side of New York City.
IZZIE, 17 years old, is caring, outgoing, and honest.
IZZIE: Alex? There’s something I need to say to you. Look, I know you’re hurt- by me, by the people at school, by your family. I get it — you’re broken. Your dad left when you were five, your mom has to work three jobs, and your brother died just over a year ago because he overdosed. And I know they all tease you cause you’re different. And I know that when I was the one person you opened up to, I threw it all away and acted just like the rest of them. I know things have been hard, and there’s no excuse for what I did, but you can’t jump. You just can’t. And I know you probably don’t care about anything I say, but you can’t quit because you’re the strongest person I know. Your life sucks, and yet you’re still walking down the street like you haven’t a care in the world. But to give it all up because you let other people put you down is not enough. All I’m saying is that you’re worth so much more than you think you are. I don’t care what anyone else thinks and I don’t care that you’re angry with me, cause you’re still my best friend, and I really need you to fight.
SETTING: A living room.
CHLOE is strong, honest, and fiesty. She is talking to her dad.
CHLOE: I have something I need to tell you. I can’t let you keep staying in our house and thinking that I trust you. So I’m gonna set it straight. I don’t trust you one bit. You left a long time ago and nothing will ever change what you broke. When you left, I got the feeling that you never wanted to come back again. I bet you don’t even know what that pain feels like. I think one day soon you will. Because I felt like I was at such a disadvantage not having you around. And that I would never have the courage to tell my family what they need to hear; which is that we were alone once again. You can pull your little façade as long as you want but I’m not falling for it anymore. Because I’m older, smarter, and you’re not gonna fool me twice. It’s going to take a long time for you to earn your way back into this family, and even when you do I still won’t trust you. Because the truth is I’m done pretending that I’m OK with having you around. From now on, every step you take forward I will be one ahead of you. Don’t think that you’re getting off the hook so easily. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I want you out. And if you don’t do it to yourself, then I will.
SETTING: Inside Skylar’s mind.
SKYLAR, 21 years old, is goofy, admirable, and charming.
SKYLAR: You make me so happy. There’s never a dull moment when you’re around. We’ve been best friends for so long, you know my deepest and darkest secrets. I love the way you smile at me, I get butterflies every time. Your imperfections are what make you perfect. I try to show you how much you mean to me but I don’t think you get the hints. My feelings for you go deep like the Atlantic and I truly believe we have something special. We just go together, you’re the bread to my sandwich and I’m the gas in your car. We are inseparable. There’s been something on my mind I’ve been meaning to tell you but I just can’t find the words. My body language screams what I’m trying to say but you never catch on. To me, you are the prince in this fairy tale but I don’t know if I’m your princess. I don’t want to ruin what we have because like I said we have something very special. I scream with all my might but when I look up there you are not listening. There were times I wanted to just give up and lock my feelings away in a little box, but then I get little glimmers of hope like when you stare into my eyes smiling. I’ll ask you “What’s wrong?” and then you would reply giggling with “Nothing.” I’ll just sit and play my game because sometimes silence is the loudest scream.
SETTING: A home in the year 2010.
CAROLINE, 17 years old, is curious, sensitive, and driven.
CAROLINE: Hey Elena, there is something I need to tell you. Last night I had the strangest dream and it really freaked me out. I had a dream that it was 2020 and I was outside going for a walk, but everywhere I turned people were wearing masks and gloves. I tried going up to this one woman to ask what was going on but then she crossed the street to avoid me. I was so confused and scared. I kept walking and found this restaurant with a sign on it that read “Due to COVID-19 we are closed until further notice.” So, I looked it up on my phone and apparently it’s a global pandemic? It was the top headline of every news outlet: stock market crashing, something called “social distancing,” hand sanitizer and toilet paper sales skyrocketing, schools shutting down and learning becoming virtual, supermarkets being the only stores open, and even flights across the U.S. being as low as $15! And that’s when I woke up. Thank goodness it was a short dream cause I couldn’t handle any more of that psychotic stuff.
SETTING: An abandoned clinic in a destroyed world, established now as a camp for two survivors.
MILTON, in his mid-50s, is self-reflecting, regretful, and hopeful.
MILTON: I took a walk yesterday. Not a long one, but a few more blocks than you took me last month in that wheelchair to that bar where I first found you. I was always the lonely type before it all ended, ya know, but something about the aftermath if the world falling apart had me missin’ what I’d never had.
Look, Sam, it ain’t much out there anymore, so maybe it isn’t worth a dime to get out that door no more, but if I’d been able to tell you a couple months ago that I’d be walkin’ again, I think you’d’ve laughed, and see, hearing that’d’ve been more worth it than these legs been to me, because man, I miss that laugh more than I miss the feelin’ of grass between my toes. It’s been temptin’ to touch it with my fingers since I can’t feel with my feet, but we never got around to teachin’ me the whole standing back up part of sitting.
Anyway, you gotta know how much’s changed since you left. I told you I’d never count down them days till you finished making the prosthetics, but I’ve been counting now. Counting days since the last time you left through that door. It’s lonely out here since. It gets dark at night without them candles you took, but it’s the emptiness that’s been getting me feelin’ cold.
I told you I relished in the darkness back then, sometimes I’d see stars if I was out there long enough, but since the lights went out last month, it’s harder now cause them stars became as numerous as people used to be. See so many all over we don’t realize they’re precious no more. Maybe that’s why we killed each other all the time, or lit up the sky so bright with lights the only star we ever saw was the sun. We got used to somethin’ beautiful and thought it wasn’t no more.
I wish you’d bring back them candles, Sam, maybe take a walk down the block awhile, have a drink together, share a laugh with the sky and hope maybe someday people will again outnumber the stars.
SETTING: A phone call between two best friends, unable to see each other due to the pandemic happening outside their doors. MIRANDA has something to say to CHARLIE.
MIRANDA: You know, I showered sitting down today? That’s how freaking sad I was. Everything was falling in around me, and for a second I thought I knew what it felt like to die. (pause) And then, I remembered the day that I crashed my car and you came to pick me up. Do you remember that? On the way home we listened to that song— I forget it now — but that one that you loved and you played it over and over. And we laughed…and stuff. When I thought about that it made me feel like … maybe I wasn’t dying? Y’know? I don’t know if you get what I’m saying, but…well, ok. (pause) Remember last summer when we went to the beach and we spent the whole day in the water just floating around and talking and just…it was so nice. That was the happiest day of my life, maybe.
(silence for a moment)
I don’t know if it’s just me, but…you make me feel like I’m coming undone in the best way possible. And I can’t go another day without acknowledging that, because you’re the only person who understands me at all, and I just need you to know that. I’m trying to say it without saying it so that I don’t get my heart broken, but I hope you know what I mean anyway. (pause) So yeah. That’s all I had to say. I don’t know.
SETTING: A restaurant at about 10pm.
CATHLEEN, 22 years old, is in control, assertive, and possesses a yearning for life.
CATHLEEN: Don’t say anything, please? There is something I need to tell you. I… I am not worthy. I will be moving and not be seeing you again. I’m going out of state, to Wyoming. I know that this came a sudden, but I think it’s for the best. The best thing for me. I need this for myself and a better chance to be independent. To know myself more and create a life for me that wasn’t already made. To see what I’m worth and what I got all on my own.
I need this for me and for me only. Call me selfish if you want but this is what I need and need for a very long time. This is my time to call it quits and get a better and new start in my life. This is it. Have nothing else to say. This is what I needed to tell you and I hope that you have respected my opinion and well being as of now I’m independent and worthy of being on my own and going to where I need to go. The choice I’ve granted for myself is a choice that I know will certainly have a huge and isolated impact on you and my family. Good – Bye……
SETTING: A home.
Our character is a father and a husband.
HUSBAND: There’s something I need to tell you, it’s about you and…you may not wanna hear it. Okay I think I’m just gonna say it. I…um…I didn’t like your rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ that you sang at our son’s party, Martha. I know I should be supporting you as your husband and all but wow, it was bad. I can see that look on your face, that angry, hateful look so I’ll elaborate on my feelings. For starters you held a high note for the word happy for three minutes until you turned blue which was just awful and second of all, you sang to the wrong boy. Our son was next to me while you sang to Jimmy from down the street, and he was not enjoying your little ¨siren song¨ one bit, since y´know, he was crying. So I have a little suggestion Martha for the next time you wanna sing at a kids birthday party: stick to being the clown, that’s what all those years in clown college were for anyway.
SETTING: A graveyard, in front of the grave of Charlie Miller.
CHERYL, 28 years old, is loving, compassionate, and sensitive.
CHERYL: There’s something I need to say to you. I know it’s been a long time since I last visited you, Charlie, but this is important. I’m getting married. In two days time, my dad will walk me down that aisle and hand me off to the man I love. Even though I know that you’re up there in Heaven watching over me, I still think that you deserve to hear it from me. But I didn’t just come here to tell you I’m getting married. I came here to thank you. Thank you for always being there for me. Thank you for the endless nights you spent by my side protecting me from my nightmares. Thank you for all the times you held my hair back after a wild night out. Thank you for loving me even when I hated myself. But most importantly, thank you for teaching me how to love. Ya’know, I always thought you’d be the one waiting for me at the end of that aisle, but life never goes according to plan. Before I get married, I just want to let you know that I will always love you. You were my first love and you’ll always hold a special place in my heart. I love you, Charlie, forever and always.
Selected Monologues for April 4, 2020
SETTING: Midwestern High School locker room in 2015.
ADAM, seventeen years old, is adventurous, loving, and brave.
ADAM: Chase, there is something I need to say to you. I know that we’ve been friends for sometime but I want to clear things up with you. I get it, you don’t like Muslims, from what you think they’re bloodthirsty bunch of people who only look to kill. You’ve been different ever since you saw my mom pick me up from school with her hijab on. I then told you we were Syrian refugees that relocated a couple years ago. Ever since that moment you’ve done nothing but bully me and treat me as anything less than human.
Can I ask, what makes you any different? We breath the same air, we eat the same food, we play the same games, and we listen to the same music. Just because you were born in a country where you didn’t have to worry about airstrikes doesn’t mean I don’t want the same things. Don’t you think I should be able to go to bed without the fear of not waking up the next morning? Don’t you think that a child should be playing in a sandbox instead of burying his dismembered father? I once woke up to the sounds of bombs going off at our local mosque, they were killing us even while praying, for being Muslim. You see my life was a struggle ever since I was born. My mom and I lost everyone but one another.
After immigrating, we are now able to go out without worrying, we celebrate the Fourth of July with fireworks. We even have barbecues with the entire neighborhood. My mom and I even go out to watch baseball anytime we get tickets. We are grateful to start a new life here in America. We try so hard to fit into the American culture, but people like you who blame us for being Muslim saddens us. We are no different from you Chase. The only difference between us is that you were born on the other side of the world…
SETTING: Home while social distancing.
UNNAMED CHARACTER is sixteen years old. They are empowered, hopeful, and willing.
Words have never failed me before, though in this moment the weight to perform is paralyzing. I reach my hand out to grab yours, yet the space where your smile once shone beneath the sunlight was vacant, and left behind is the memory of a lifetime so out of touch. Through all of the chaos our hearts have endured, the moment trauma ensued is untraceable, though it’s undeniable that I’m standing within the aftermath of a modern day Pompeii. It’s as if our time together has turned to porcelain, and the devastation of an earthquake has shaken our beautifully made pottery to the point of no return. All around me are things we had once shared, comforts we’d built from mutual wrong doings. The safety net we knit together had not been prepared to face opposing forces as strong as the one that attempted to tear us apart today. Today, I stand united with all the women before me. I have broken away from the physical togetherness of society and found the unity of isolation. The rubble of Pompeii is dangerous, yet the community has found me in the depths of it’s clutches. The beauty of its destruction has left me scarred, though nothing can sever the strength I’ve found as I gaze at the place where your smile had once shone beneath the sunlight. You’re not there, but you are with me. Because until the end of time, we are all in this together. The human race will always be in it together.
SETTING: The front door at the home of CHARLIE VERA, a successful cardiothoracic fellow in New Jersey. HE hears a knock at the door, gets up and answers it to find his long-estranged father.
CHARLIE: What are you doing here and what could you possibly have to say to me. Are you here to make me your punching bag again? Do you want to raid my cabinets for liquor? I haven’t seen you in about twelve years. I intended it that way. Are you here to apologize? Remember when you kicked me so hard my ribs broke? Or when you threw the TV remote at my face and damaged my retina? That sad and tortured kid escaped that house and your abuse. I turned out alright. I have a wonderful life and a beautiful family. My wife and kids will never know the violence you inflicted on me. My children will never feel like they have to run away from their parents or their home because this is a safe haven, a sanctuary. They will never be exposed to you or your monstrous ways.
(beat)
I was terrified to go home after school every day but I knew if I got home too late I would be challenged followed by a bruised hip or a bloody lip. Isn’t it just hilarious that I became a physician? You never brought me to one growing up because you knew they would get me away from you and charge you with abuse. No one at my horrible school cared enough to ask questions and I stayed in that horrific house of terrors and I wish every day that a social worker would have intervened in our house.
(beat)
You’re not even remorseful. You just want something from me. Did you spend all the rent money on vodka? I should have known. We have been talking for at least two minutes and I haven’t got punched in the face yet. Go home and never bother me or my family again old man. You gave me life but that is it. I don’t owe you anything.
SETTING: Home.
SAMAMA is independent, patient, and communicative.
SAMAMA: There is something I need to tell you. I WILL be whoever I want to be. I’m a 17-year-old girl in New York City and I promise you I’m well aware of opportunity. I’ve listened to your every story and I’ve spent my nights sympathizing for the sacrifices you made to get here. I know you live half the life you could have so that I could live mine beyond the fullest, but I’m not happy. If I’m going to do this, I need to work on my own terms. You want me to be someone, and trust me, I do too. But I’ve come to realize that although we want the same end goal, our roads are miles apart. I want to live like a teenager and figure out what to do through making mistakes. You may want me to be the best and score the highest, but I don’t. I want the full experience, and I want to fall with my friends before I get up on my own. Watch me thrive but don’t push me to do this any particular way. I don’t need a 100 on every exam nor do I need to be making hundreds of thousands of dollars in my job to be successful. I need to be happy, and I will be. I just wanted to tell you that all of this begins with you. You need to convince yourself that I’ll be okay, and I’ll take it from there.
SETTING: A living room. SINAÉ is loving, courageous, and outgoing.
SINAÉ: Well, there’s something I have to tell you. I want you to know that I love you so much and I’d never try to hurt you.. but there’s something I have to tell you. You’re a beautiful and strong lady, with a great amount of confidence and the purest heart out there. Who wouldn’t want to have you in their life? You are a blessing, especially to us but there’s something I have to tell you. You’re an A average student, who attends a great school, does sports, gets involved and is very loving to all. I wouldn’t ask for a better daughter. But there’s something I have to tell you. You carry yourself with such respect that it’s amazing. My little princess knows her worth. It feels like I’m looking in a mirror, but seriously, there something I have to tell you. You’re at the age where you should know certain things about school, life, your goals and… yourself. I promise I didn’t want it to be like this and I hope you don’t blame me after 15 years. I never wanted you to feel this pain. You never deserved it. There’s something we all have to tell you.
SETTING: A bathtub. UNNAMED CHARACTER is trustworthy, understanding, and anxious.
‘Ey beach, um I know you’re busy with life or whatever but I really need to talk to someone because I’m literally going to have another panic attack because I’m so stable, haha. No, I’m kidding um, I have been feeling so weird and scared and I just don’t know what to do and I think someone did witchcraft on me. And I know I’ve joked about this before but this time I’m serious. I’ve been seeing a shadow of a big man behind me constantly, I have sleep paralysis almost every time I try to sleep, every time I lay down I see black orbs on my ceiling and I feel as if I am going to pass out, my room constantly feels cold, even when I hold the baby, when I bring her to my side she stares at the place I see the orbs and starts crying. I don’t feel safe here and knowing there is something in my room that is watching me, trying to get in control of me and I know its a bad soul because mom has felt him too- wait-
now that I think about it, maybe someone isn’t doing something to me, maybe it’s mom’s past decisions coming to haunt me. Like think about it, mom never really dealt with them, just protected and cleaned her house and she hasn’t cleaned the house spiritually in a minute. I don’t know, maybe I’m just tweaking but I know there’s something trying to hurt me and I’m fucking terrified. I’ve tried lighting white candles and burning bay leaves to clean my room and I read this thing mom said would keep me protected but nothing is working. I’ve gotten to the point where I have to cover my mirrors at night because I’m scared that it would open a portal or something or that I would see something I don’t want to. I’m so sleep-deprived and I don’t know what to do, I’m so stressed out that my hair is starting to fall out. I wish you were here to help me out, I miss you. Everything is going to hell after you left.
SETTING: Atop the roof of a building in New York City. SIERRA is passionate, bold, and compassionate.
SIERRA: I don’t exactly know what happened in the moment between where Isaac got on one knee and I shook my head no. I couldn’t have predicted it. And even after, for a second, I didn’t realize what I had done. All I knew was that “no” had been in me for a while, just waiting to come out.
I have never been more in love with someone than I am with Isaac. He’s kind, he cares about people, he makes me laugh until I cry, he has the best smile, and… he loves me. But for some reason, that’s not enough. And it’s not his fault. He can’t do anything to change how I feel. I love him. But I’ve lost a part of myself, and I need to get it back.
I want to explore, see new things. I want to climb mountains, jump into waterfalls, play guitar, find something I truly believe in. I want to quit my job, get on the next plane to who knows where, and live. I want to write, not about what people want to hear, but about truth. I want to share the stories of people who don’t have a voice.
God, I sound so naive. But I can’t do this anymore. I’m done going through the motions. It’s time for me to chase what I love. And I guess that doesn’t include who I love. But hey, Isaac will find someone else, someone incredible, and I’ll be living my dream. I never realized how much dreams hurt.
Special Thanks
To Helen Kornblau for her gift supporting the Student Monologue Challenge.