Three Plays: Six Characters in Search of an Author, Henry IV, The Mountain Giants (Oxford World's Classics) (14 page)

This said, distraught at the memory, she breaks into a loud despairing lament as she drops her head into her arms outstretched on the table. The emotion is general. The
DIRECTOR
comes up to her, paternal and comforting
.

DIRECTOR
. We’ll have the garden, we’ll have the garden, don’t you worry. You’ll like it, I promise. We’ll set all the scenes round the garden. [
Calling a
STAGEHAND
by name
] Hey, lower me down a few tree pieces! Two cypresses in front of this fountain.

Two cypresses descend onto the stage. The
TECHNICIAN
hurries in to nail them down
.

DIRECTOR
[
to the
STEPDAUGHTER
]. Something simple for now. Just to give an idea. [
Calling the
STAGEHAND
again
] Now give me a bit of sky.

STAGEHAND
[
from up above
]. What?

DIRECTOR
. A bit of sky. A backdrop, coming down here behind the fountain. [
A white cloth is lowered onto the stage
] But not white! I said sky! Oh well, never mind. Leave it. I’ll fix it. [
Calling out
] Hey there, lighting. All lights out and then give me a bit of atmosphere …
moonlight … dark blue, use the blues in the batten, and a blue spot on the backdrop … Like that. That’s it!

His orders produce a mysterious moonlit scene which leads the
ACTORS
to speak and move as they would at evening in a garden under the moon
.

DIRECTOR
[
to the
STEPDAUGHTER
]. There, look! And now the young boy, instead of hiding behind doors in the house, can wander here in the garden and hide behind the trees. But you can see it will be hard to find a little girl who can pull off that flower scene with you. [
Turns to the
YOUNG BOY
] Come here, come up here, we’ll start with you. Let’s see how it works out. [
And since the
BOY
does not move
] Come on, come on. [
Pulling him forward and trying in vain to make him lift his head
] He’s a real problem, this lad … What’s up with him? Oh, for God’s sake, he’ll have to say something … [
He goes up to him, lays a hand on his shoulder and leads him behind the stage trees
] Come on, come here a bit. Let’s see. Hide yourself here a moment … like this … try to stick your head out a bit, to spy on them … [
He steps back to look at the effect; the
ACTORS
watch, impressed and rather worried, as the
YOUNG BOY
performs the action
] Splendid … splendid … [
Addressing the
STEPDAUGHTER
] And what if the little girl catches him spying like that? Couldn’t we have her run up and wrench a few words out of him?

STEPDAUGHTER
[
getting to her feet
]. There’s no hope of him speaking as long as that fellow’s around [
indicating the
SON
]. You’d need to send him away first.

SON
[
advancing decisively towards the steps down from the stage
]. Right now! My pleasure! I couldn’t ask for anything better.

DIRECTOR
[
holding him back
]. No. Where are you off to? Wait!

The
MOTHER
jumps up in alarm, worried that the
SON
is really about to leave, and instinctively she raises her arms as if to hold him back, though she does not move from her place
.

SON
[
already at the footlights, to the
DIRECTOR
who is holding him back
]. I’ve got absolutely nothing to do with all this! Let me go, will you! Just let me go!

DIRECTOR
. What do you mean, you’ve got nothing to do with it?

STEPDAUGHTER
[
calm and ironic
]. No need to hold him back. He won’t leave.

FATHER
. He has to act out the terrible scene in the garden with his mother.

SON
[
prompt, resolute, proud
]. I shall act out nothing. I said so from the start. [
To the
DIRECTOR
] Let me go!

STEPDAUGHTER
[
hurrying to the
DIRECTOR
]. Do you mind, sir? [
Making him let go of the
SON
] Let him go! [
Then, turning to him as soon the
DIRECTOR
has released his grip
] Well then, go!

The
SON
remains where he is, straining towards the steps but unable to descend, as if held back by some mysterious power; then to the amazement and concern of the
ACTORS
,
he moves slowly along the footlights towards the other stairway leading down from the stage. But there too he remains transfixed, unable to go down. The
STEPDAUGHTER
,
who has been watching him with a defiant look, bursts out laughing
.

STEPDAUGHTER
. He can’t, you see, he can’t. He has to stay here, he must, bound fast to the chain. When what has to happen happens, I will fly away—precisely because I hate him so much, precisely because I can’t stand the sight of him. Well, then, if, for all that, I’m still here, putting up with his face and his presence, it’s unthinkable that he could clear off. No, he has to stay, really stay here with that fine father of his and that mother there who has no other children left but him … [
Turning to the
MOTHER
] It’s your turn, Mother! Come along … [
Drawing the
DIRECTOR
’
s attention to her
] See, she got up, she got up to hold him back … [
To the
MOTHER
,
attracting her as if by magic
] Come on, come on … [
Then, to the
DIRECTOR
] Imagine if she has the heart to show her feelings to your actors. But her craving to be near him is so great that—there, you see? She’s ready to live her scene!

In fact, the
MOTHER
has gone up to the
SON
and, at the
STEPDAUGHTER
’
s last words, opens her arms to show her consent
.

SON
[
quickly
]. Oh no, not me! If I can’t get away, then I shall stay here; but I repeat: I’m not acting anything.

FATHER
[
worked up, to the
DIRECTOR
]. You can make him, sir.

SON
. Nobody can make me do anything.

FATHER
. I’ll make you.

STEPDAUGHTER
. Wait! Wait! First the child at the fountain. [
She runs to pick up the
LITTLE GIRL
,
crouches before her, holds the little
face between her hands
] Poor little darling, how lost you look with those lovely big eyes: who knows where you think you are! We’re on a stage, my love. What’s a stage? Well now: it’s a place where you play at being serious. It’s where they put on plays. And now we’re going to put on a play. I mean really, you know, seriously. You too … [
She embraces her, clasping the child to her breast, and rocking her a little
] Oh my darling, my little darling, what a nasty play for you, what a terrible part you’ve been given! The garden, the bowl of the fountain … It’s a pretend fountain, of course. But that’s just the problem, my love: everything here is pretend. But maybe, after all, you prefer a pretend fountain to a real one—a fountain to play games in, right? But no, it’ll be a game for the others. Not for you, I’m afraid, because you’re real and you play in a real fountain. A nice, big, green bowl, with bamboos reflected in the pool and giving shade; and there are ducklings, lots and lots of them, swimming around and breaking the shade. You want to catch one, one of those ducklings … [
With a terrifying scream
] No, Rosetta, no! Mama’s not watching you because of that wretched son there! My mind’s somewhere else, struggling with my own demons … And that creature … [
Leaving the
LITTLE GIRL
and turning with her usual scorn towards the
YOUNG BOY
] What are you doing, hanging around here like a beggar? It’s your fault too that this child was drowned—your fault for being the way you are, as if I hadn’t paid for everyone when I got you all into this house! [
Seizing his arm and forcing him to take his hand out of his pocket
] What have you got there? What are you hiding? Out with it, out with it! [
She forces his hand out of his pocket and, to general horror, discovers that he is holding a revolver. She gives him a brief satisfied glance, then says grimly
] So. Where and how did you get hold of it? [
And since the
YOUNG BOY
,
wide-eyed and distraught, does not answer
] You idiot! If I were you, instead of killing myself, I’d have killed one of those two; or both of them, father and son.

She shoves him back behind the cypresses where he had been spying; then she takes the
LITTLE GIRL
and lowers her into the fountain, laying her down so that she is hidden from view; finally, she sinks down with her face in her arms that rest on the rim of the fountain
.

DIRECTOR
. Splendid! [
Turning to the
SON
] And at the same time …

SON
[
with scorn
]. What do you mean, at the same time? It’s simply
not true. There was no scene between me and her. [
Indicating the
MOTHER
] Let her tell you herself how it was.

In the meantime the
SECOND ACTRESS
and the
YOUNG ACTOR
have moved away from the group of
ACTORS
so that they can observe closely the
MOTHER
and the
SON
whose parts they will play later
.

MOTHER
. Yes, it’s true, sir. I had gone into his room.

SON
. Into my room. You heard that? Not into the garden.

DIRECTOR
. But that’s not important. We have to reorder the episodes, I’ve told you that already.

SON
[
noticing the
YOUNG ACTOR
observing him
]. What do you want?

YOUNG ACTOR
. Nothing. I’m simply observing you.

SON
[
turning to the other side and seeing the
SECOND ACTRESS
]. Ah—and so you’re here too? To take on her part? [
Indicating the
MOTHER
]

DIRECTOR
. Exactly! Exactly! And I think you should be grateful for their attention.

SON
. Oh yes. Thank you very much! But haven’t you understood yet that you can’t possibly do this play? We’re not inside of you, and your actors only stand and look at us from the outside. Do you think we can keep on living in front of a mirror, and one that is not content with freezing us in our own expression, but sends that image back to us as an unrecognizable caricature of ourselves?

FATHER
. That’s true. That’s true. You’ve got to believe it.

DIRECTOR
[
to the
YOUNG ACTOR
and the
SECOND ACTRESS
]. All right, you get out of the way.

SON
. It’s no use. I won’t have anything to do with it.

DIRECTOR
. Keep quiet now, and let me hear your mother. [
To the
MOTHER
] Well then, you went in?

MOTHER
. Yes, sir, into his room, because I couldn’t stand it any longer. To empty my heart of all the anguish that weighs me down. But as soon as he saw me come in—

SON
. No scene! I simply left, I left so as not to make a scene. I’ve never made scenes. Never, you understand?

MOTHER
. It’s true. That’s the way it is.

DIRECTOR
. But now we really must have this scene between you and him. We can’t do without it.

MOTHER
. For my part, sir, I’m here. If only you’d just give me some way of speaking to him for a moment, to tell him all that’s in my heart.

FATHER
[
fiercely as he goes up to the
Son]. You’ll do it! For your mother’s sake, your mother’s sake!

SON
[
more stubborn than ever
]. I’ll do nothing of the sort.

FATHER
[
seizing him by the jacket and shaking him
]. For God’s sake, do as you’re told. Do as you’re told. Can’t you hear what she’s telling you? Do you call yourself a son?

SON
[
grappling with him
]. No! No! And let that be the end of it.

General consternation. The frightened
MOTHER
tries to intervene and separate them
.

MOTHER
. For heaven’s sake! For heaven’s sake!

FATHER
[
not letting go
]. You must do as you’re told. You must.

SON
[
struggling with him and finally throwing him to the floor near the stairway, to the horror of the onlookers
]. What’s this madness that’s taken hold of you? Can’t she stop shaming herself and us in public? I’ll have no part in it, no part in it! And in that way I enact the will of the author who didn’t want to put us on the stage.

DIRECTOR
. But still you all came here.

SON
[
indicating the
FATHER
]. Him, not me.