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Dog Confessions
The stage is lit by one spotlight, which shines on a mirror
which is a little to the left of the stage center. There is a rug in front of the mirror. A teenage girl/young woman stands in
front of the Mirror, with a dog sitting and watching from behind. Her hair is in braids, with red ribbons
at the end of each braid.
As she stands before the mirror, a male voice (from offstage) reads the
words of a Chinese poem: 床前明月光.[1] Behind her, on the wall, the English
text is projected:
In
the Quiet of the Night (Li
Bai, 701-762 AD, China)
Moonlight reflects off the front of my bed.
Could it be frost on the ground instead?
I look up to view the bright moon ahead.
Thoughts of hometown bring down my head.
Moonlight reflects off the front of my bed.
Could it be frost on the ground instead?
I look up to view the bright moon ahead.
Thoughts of hometown bring down my head.
The girl
speaks:
I’ll never leave home
Not while Grandpa’s alive
If he calls me every day when I’m
at summer camp
Imagine what college will be like
if I go to a school far away
Plus, you’re here.
The girl
turns to look at the dog, then walks off to the right of the mirror, out of the
light.
Another
teenage girl walks into the spotlight, wearing a formal gown/prom dress. Her hair is in an “updo,” with white
flowers woven into her hair. She
looks at herself in front of the mirror, smoothing out her dress and then
putting mascara on. As she puts on
her mascara, she says:
I’ll be home by midnight
That counts as staying safe
It’s not the American high school
experience
If I don’t go to at least one
dance—even if I come home early.
Anyway, you’ll see me later
tonight.
The girl
turns and stoops down to pet the dog’s head, then walks off to the right of the
mirror, out of the light.
A third teenage
girl comes onstage, wearing a soccer uniform with her hair in a ponytail. She wears a blue ribbon in her hair. She begins to stretch in front of the
mirror. She speaks, while
stretching:
I’m the only Asian on the soccer
team
That makes me special—makes me
feel strong
I hope I get to play up near the
forwards
Even if I’m a midfielder
You can lick my sweat when I get
home
The girl
turns and stoops down to kiss the top of the dog’s head, then walks off to the
right of the stage.
The
first young lady comes on stage, wearing “every day” wear. She carries a duffel bag, which she
sets down in front of the mirror, unzips, and fumbles around in, saying:
I’m leaving home, but I’m not
going far
I’ll be home every weekend.
I know you’ll call me every day.
To make sure I’m home by
midnight.
Turning
to the dog, she finishes:
Don’t worry, I’ll see you soon.
As she
hugs the dog, the spotlight dims, and the Chinese words of the poem “In the
Quiet of the Night” project onto the mirror. After 30 seconds, the light completely fades, leaving the
stage dark.
From
offstage, we hear the sound of a phone ringing.
A young
woman’s voice (that of the second actor), answers, in Chinese: Hello?
The male
voice comes speaks in Chinese.
(English translation is projected on the wall): Granddaughter? Are you
well? Do you miss home? Remember to visit your mother. She gets lonely with you gone.
The
young woman replies, in Chinese (with projected English subtitles): I’m fine. No, I’m not too tired or busy. I go home every weekend. Are you well, Grandpa?
The
male voice replies: I’m always well after
I hear your voice. Bye bye.
When the
lights come on again (full stage lights, brighter than the spotlight), we see
the third young woman actor sitting on the ground in front of the mirror. A middle-aged woman is standing next to
the mirror facing the teenage girl/young woman.
The teenage
girl asks: Should we tell Grandpa that
Lucy died?
The
middle-aged woman replies: I told him last night, on the phone.
The
teenage girl says: Okay.
From
offstage, the man’s voice reads the poem in Chinese again, and the lights fade.
When the
lights comes back on, we see three young women (actors we have not seen yet) sitting
on the rug, each holding an object in their hands. The mirror is gone.
Girl 1, reading from a book: In
1949, the Communists took over China.
The Nationalists fled to Taiwan and set up government under martial law.
Girl 2, typing onto a laptop and saying aloud: Grandpa went to Taiwan in 1950, when he was 29 years old…That’s how old
I am now..
Girl 3 holds a wooden box in her hands. The box is about 5x6 inches. She opens the lid of the box, but the audience cannot see
what’s inside.
Two more actors, a man and the middle-aged woman, wheel a chalkboard
onstage. They each stand on one
side of the chalkboard. The three
young women lay down their object, get up, and each take one piece of chalk
from Girl 3’s wooden box. They write,
simultaneously, on the chalkboard, from top to bottom, each writing one column
of letters:
D O G D O G
a f r o f i
u a g r
g n l
h d
t p
e a
r
The young woman who is writing the middle column (“Of”) finishes first
and goes offstage to fetch the mirror.
She brings the mirror to where it can reflect the words on the
chalkboard. In the reflection in
the mirror, we see that a new word is spelled: GOD. The other two young women stand on either side of the
chalkboard, next to the man and the middle-aged woman.
The lights dim, and the spotlight comes on, making a circle on the
rug. The three teenage girls walk
on stage, with their heads looking down.
They stand on each side of the rug, facing the audience.
The first girl says the first line of the poem in Chinese. The English translation is projected on
the wall: Moonlight reflects off the front of my bed.
The second girl says the second
line of the poem in Chinese, with English translation projected: Could it be frost
on the ground instead?
The third girl says the third line
of the poem in Chinese, with English translation:
I look down to view the bright moon ahead.
I look down to view the bright moon ahead.
In unison they say, in Chinese,
while looking up: Thoughts of Grandpa bring up my head.
The
three girls gather around the wooden box, which is on the rug. They each take a fistful of powder-like
substance and scatter it onto the rug.
Lights fade.
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