Fosse: Plays Six (7 page)

quite short pause

and so far

it’s been a nice walk

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hasn’t it

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at least that’s what I think

and wasn’t it good that we both

finally found the time to do it

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perhaps we should walk a little further

yes before we have something to drink

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before we stop to eat

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yes we should probably do that

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but it was good to sit down for a bit too

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have a rest

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I can feel it in my legs

yes

that we’ve been walking for some time

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can’t you

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can you feel it too

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The Man walk forwards a little

So it was good to sit down for a bit

Rest for while

The Man continues to walk forwards

You don’t want to sit for a bit longer

rest a bit more

yes

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yes we still have quite a distance to cover

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it’s a long walk all the way

to the top of the mountain

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it looks pretty far

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but we’ve got the whole day

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that’s good isn’t it

The Woman stands up and looks at The Man

you don’t want to rest any longer

we can just keep walking

yes

yes of course

The Man continues to walk forwards

I’ll come

too

The Man stops and stands and looks

What are you looking at

What is it you see

THE MAN

But don’t you see

THE WOMAN

looks

No

THE MAN

Don’t you see that it shines

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yes over there

THE WOMAN

No

THE MAN

points

there from over the mountain

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and down the mountain

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and then here

THE WOMAN

No

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no I don’t see anything

THE MAN

That strong light

THE WOMAN

No

no nothing

I don’t see anything

THE MAN

You don’t see that awfully strong light

THE WOMAN

No

The light begins to fade

THE MAN

And you don’t see that it’s like

yes gleaming space

in the light

THE WOMAN

No

THE MAN

And that the light is like

breaks off. The Man walks unsteadily forwards and The Woman walks after him
.

THE WOMAN

I don’t see anything

Wait

wait for me

I’m coming

The Man walks out and you can hear that he collapses. The Woman hurries out after him. Lights down
.

THESE EYES

Characters

FIRST VOICE

SECOND VOICE

THE SHADOW

YOUNG WOMAN

OLD WOMAN

YOUNG MAN

OLD MAN

FIRST VOICE

I am here

I am here always

Quite short pause

And I have always

been here

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but yet

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I must have

come here once

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I came here

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and then I was here

And now I am here

SECOND VOICE

I am always here

FIRST VOICE

I have been here always

SECOND VOICE

I’m just here

FIRST VOICE

We are just here

quite short pause

and this land

where we are

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it is the land from our dream

SECOND VOICE

We came from the ocean

FIRST VOICE

Are we still the ocean

SECOND VOICE

We are the ocean

we too are the ocean

and we can never part

from the ocean

because we are the ocean

FIRST VOICE

And we are the sky

SECOND VOICE

We are the sky

FIRST VOICE

We are the ocean

SECOND VOICE

And even if we are not

quite short pause

where the ocean is

quite short pause

we are still the ocean

FIRST VOICE

And we are still the sky

SECOND VOICE

Yes

FIRST VOICE

Because the ocean is our dream

SECOND VOICE

And the sky is our dream

FIRST VOICE

And the ocean is in our eyes

SECOND VOICE

And the sky

is in our eyes

FIRST VOICE

And in our faces

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in everything which is us

there is the ocean

SECOND VOICE

continues

and there is the sky

Quite short pause

FIRST VOICE

And we shall always be here

Quite short pause

SECOND VOICE

Always shall we be here

FIRST VOICE

We are here

quite short pause

but I don’t want to be here anymore

SECOND VOICE

We are here always

Pause

FIRST VOICE

And we have always

been here

SECOND VOICE

Yes

quite short pause

where it comes

goes away

Short pause

We are here

FIRST VOICE

But I don’t belong here

Pause

You can see that

Quite short pause

Don’t you understand that

Quite short pause

Don’t you see that

SECOND VOICE

We are the world

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where it comes

goes away

Short pause

FIRST VOICE

Yes

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yes I belong here

quite short pause

with you

I belong here

SECOND VOICE

continues

where

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it comes

goes away

FIRST VOICE

Will you hold me please

SECOND VOICE

Yes I will

Pause. The Shadow enters

THE SHADOW

Here

This is where you will be

This is where you will always be

I am here

I am always here

Pause. The Young Woman enters and behind her The Old Woman enters

FIRST VOICE

Oh look

quite short pause

look there she comes

there she is

don’t you see her

SECOND VOICE

Yes

yes I see her

FIRST VOICE

And isn’t she beautiful

SECOND VOICE

Yes

FIRST VOICE

Very beautiful

THE SHADOW

This is where you’ll be

This is where you’ll always be

FIRST VOICE

She is beautiful

Pause

SECOND VOICE

wonderingly

This is the world

This is the land

from our dream

THE SHADOW

This is where you’ll be

I am always here

The Shadow looks at The Young Woman

YOUNG WOMAN

And now

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and now

now

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he’ll soon come now

I know that

that he’ll be here soon

THE SHADOW

I am here

SECOND VOICE

wondering

So this is the world

that we are

FIRST VOICE

This is the world

And this is where we’ll be

THE SHADOW

This is where you must always be

SECOND VOICE

This is the land from our dream

FIRST VOICE

We are the world

YOUNG WOMAN

I am here

and I am waiting

for him

THE SHADOW

I am here

Always am I here

YOUNG WOMAN

I am here now

And soon he’ll come

I know that

Short pause

Because I’m born

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and that’s no small thing

Laughs briefly

But why am I thinking that

I mustn’t think like that

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but it’s quite a big thing

in fact

to be born

I mean

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yes being born

and before that

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before I was born

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no

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no I don’t want to think about that

but then

yes

yes before I was born

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yes where was I then

Short pause

I was born

and then all the other things were gone

Quite short pause

I am just here

I am here

by the ocean

beneath the sky

SECOND VOICE

I am here

I am here always

I must always be here

FIRST VOICE

We shall never disappear

Questioningly

We must always be here

THE SHADOW

You must be here always

FIRST VOICE

I was just here

suddenly I was here

Pause

SECOND VOICE

continues

here

quite short pause

where it comes

goes away

FIRST VOICE

We are always here

YOUNG WOMAN

I am here

And soon he’ll be

breaks off

But I wasn’t anywhere was I

yes before I was born

of course

I mean

Short pause

And still

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yes that’s not possible

either

yes that I wasn’t anywhere

quite intensely

because I am here

breaks off

and I must have been somewhere before

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because from nothing

comes nothing

Because that’s also true

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But I don’t remember anything

yes from before I was born

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or

well

yes

yes

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well I can’t really say I remember anything

of course not

but that’s because the word remember

yes

yes it means something else

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but if I know something

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surely I can say that I know something

she walks around a little

yes

almost dancingly

yes in its own way

in one way

I suppose I know something

yes

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yes that which is me

that which thinks

which moves

around the place

which thinks itself around the place

yes that

yes that knows something

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yes that was there

yes before I was born

somehow

yes

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but no

quite short pause

no listen to me

thinking

SECOND VOICE

We are here

And we must be here

THE SHADOW

You must always be here

FIRST VOICE

We are here

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and here we shall be

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but

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but must we be here

quite short pause

why must we be here

SECOND VOICE

We just have to

be here

YOUNG WOMAN

continues

and I who

yes I who am not used to thinking

who am

yes just

breaks off, giggles

who yes just

breaks off, giggles

and why am I here

quite short pause