A play by Angela Gant
Character List
JILL is in her late teens/early twenties. She is currently institutionalized for night terrors.
MARY PEARCEY is in her late twenties, but she seems much older. She is a strong, tall, plain woman.
MAN is in his early thirties.
CELIA is an African American in her early twenties. She has a street edge about her.
PSYCHIATRIST is in her late thirties.
MOTHER is a kind woman in her early thirties.
Note: The primary characters excluding JILL are intended to double as minor ensemble roles. Though their names are changed, they are still based on their primary roles.
JILL
MARY PEARCEY/ CROWD 1
MAN/ DAD/ LOVER/ CROWD 4/ INVESTIGATOR
MOTHER/ VICTIM ONE/ CROWD 2
CELIA/ VICTIM TWO/ CROWD 3
PSYCHIATRIST/ VICTIM THREE / WOMAN
Playwright’s Note: Anytime a / is seen in the dialogue it indicates overlapping dialogue with the next line. The / in the following line indicates where the overlap begins for the second actor.
(As the scene opens we see a life-size INVISIBLE WOMAN made of plastic which allows us to see through to her organs if possible the organs should light up. If this is not possible the INVISIBLE WOMAN can be substituted for MARY. The MAN enters and circles her with pointer in his hand.)
MAN
As we can see the most vital organs are more readily accessed through the chest cavity. You will note that the female of the species has a physiology similar to the males.
INVISIBLE WOMAN (Voice over of MARY’S voice)
Physiology. All the functions of a living organism or any of its parts.
MAN
The female form is more slight than the male, and the brain slightly smaller. This partially accounts for the inferiority of the female. This allows the woman to be caught up in emotions often found irrelevant to the male. The hands are much more likely to tremble for reasons unbeknownst to us at this time. Additionally, the female is often more likely to leak fluid from the eyes than the male. Still, you can see all the organs are in roughly the same place, minus the most important one, of course. (He laughs at his own joke.) All right. All right. Settle down. Attention please, it is almost time to begin the vivisection.
INVISIBLE WOMAN
Vivisect. The act of cutting a body open while still alive.
MAN
We are working solely with the female specimens today. Your specimen should be in a five point restraint, at least initially. Remember if they are moving around, it is still no good excuse for shoddy work. I suggest that you put in the ear plugs, if you are sensitive to noise. The specimen’s are often less than enthusiastic about this procedure, but remember we are doing this for the betterment of humanity.
(MAN thrusts his pointer parallel to his body.)
Besides, they usually quiet down after a few minutes. I hope you all put on your lucky gowns. Today we are working jointly, but in future when you have an audience I expect you to use a bit of flourish. They always think more of you, if you can add a bit of pizzazz. The initial incision should be clean. You may use ether if necessary, however, five points will be taken from your final score.
INVISIBLE WOMAN
Ether is an agent used as an anesthetic.
MAN
Remember to control your breathing. I don’t want anyone passing out the first time. Take your time. (To someone unseen) Fascinating specimen. Red hair is such a rarity. Uniformity amongst variety is not all it’s cut out to be, eh? I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one. Let me know if you need any assistance. (To the room at large) I’d like you after you initial incision to work your way toward the heart. Fascinating organ.
INVISIBLE WOMAN
The heart will continue to beat for up to several minutes after its removal.
MAN
We will want to remove the heart first. There is nothing like holding a live pulsing heart in your hand. You may wish, in a moment of power to destroy it; however, this is where your intellectual brain needs to take over. Be strong. You must remove it with the surgical skill I know you all possess.
MARY
(If not already on stage enters. Accent switches from Standard American to British)
I possessed that skill as a mere woman, a midwife. I wasn’t the first to use this power, but perhaps I became the most famous. The whole city was in an uproar. Women were being slaughtered. Women, they said. They actually called them women. Can you imagine? The only thing you need to be called a woman is just the physiology. They weren’t women, they were prostitutes, whores. The lowest form to which a female can fall.
MAN
(British accent.)
They were women. It didn’t matter what they did. They still deserved to live a life. They were human beings for Chrissakes.
MARY
Now that sounds like a man who’s seen a few working girls in his time. Great defender of the whore, are ya? I shoulda guessed it to be the same with all men.
MAN
(British accent.)
Their bodies were ravaged by a mad man, someone who had surgical training, strength, and control. It would take a monster to do these things. A monster of the most heinous proportions.
MARY
Funny, they suspected me. Interviewed me. Questioned me at length…but they were looking for a man. Still the lead investigator said that…
MAN
(British accent.)
I have never seen a woman of stronger physique…. her nerves were as iron cast as her body.
MARY
Jack the Ripper, a woman? Your modern society scoffs at the idea. Somehow it deeply wounds the modern world that the infamous Jack the Ripper could have been a woman. That it could have been me. But you know, don’t you?
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
(Australian accent.)
Jack the Ripper, a Sheila? What will those feminists think of next?
FEMALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
Maybe she was a hooker trying to take out the competition.
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
Must a’ been an ugly one.
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
How many hot hookers were there in England back in the day?
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
(English accent.)
Jack the Ripper, a woman? Might as well have been a Yeti, then.
MARY
Kinda funny that it offends the manhood of some to think that a woman was Jack the Ripper. As though they think of him as kind of a ladies man.
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
Preposterous.
FEMALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
Women are just incapable of such things.
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
Unbelievable what people will do to spice up an old story.
MALE OFFSTAGE VOICE
Frankly, who cares?
MARY
New DNA evidence, though it is inconclusive, showed that one of the stamps from a letter believed to be sent by Jack the Ripper contained female DNA.
MAN
Careful there, lad. Once you find your own way of doing it, you can repeat it as many times as you want, but when you’re learnin’ the trade, you should take your time and really examine what you’re doing. Precision is the key; you can’t be hacking away at it. You’ve got to figure out what it all means to you.
MARY
Of course my victims… our victims… I feel like I can share them with you. Well it required skilled precision to do what I did. That’s not why I did it. There was logic and compassion to the madness. You should know that.
MAN
You’re a real natural. You say you just took this up to get better at your art? You sure you want to just draw this… or do you want to experience it? It’s different when it’s warm, innit? Makes you feel powerful. Makes you feel like a real man.
MARY
Idiots. They think they know so much. Cuttin’ gives ‘em what they mistake for prowess. Hell, it’s almost in fashion nowadays to do such a thing. Never thought of myself as a trend setter, before. Still, you know why I did what I did. You understand don’t you, Jill? That’s why I picked you, because you’ll listen. I knew you’d understand.
MAN
If your specimen seems uncooperative, you may consider strangulation as a possible alternative.
MARY
I strangled them. I did. Why the post mortem mêlée you ask? Everyone thought it was to throw the police off the trail. It had nothing to do with the police. You know why I did it, you understand, don’t you girl?
MAN
Yes, deep breaths boy. You need to breathe through it. /The first one is always the most difficult.
MARY
The first one is always the most difficult, always the most personal. It gets easier after that. You’ll see. After the first one… you’ll be fine. I promise you never forget your first.
(JILL begins to moan. MARY crosses to her.)
MAN
This is the delicate part. Sure you have to rough house it a bit to get through the chest cavity, but after that is open, /then the delicate work begins.
MARY
Then the delicate work begins. Why under the cover of darkness? It is only in complete darkness where I find clarity comes to me. I worked mostly by feel. It’s in those moments when I found I really began to know myself. It’s how you’ll learn too.
(MARY is now standing over JILL. JILL screams and wakes up. MARY exits. CELIA sitting on her bed. She looks bored.)
CELIA
You do that a lot you know.
JILL
What?
CELIA
Scream. It gets old.
JILL
It’s not like it’s my favorite thing to do.
CELIA
So you new here, huh?
JILL
Maybe.
CELIA
Maybe, my ass. I saw them bringing you in.
JILL
Why would you bother to ask me a question you already know the answer to? I don’t see what difference it makes to you.
CELIA
It don’t give me no nevermind. I’m just trying to help you. Show you the ropes around here, ya know.
(Yelling at the wall.)
You remember what I’m talking about, don’t you, Cynthia?
JILL
The ropes. I can see that kindness in your reconciliatory nature.
CELIA
Yeah, well, whatever you said. I don’t mine the screamin’ too much. It’s okay I don’t sleep that much, anyway. You, you sleep all the time, though. Why you do that? Sleep and scream. Sleep and scream. Why sleep? Why not just scream? That’s what everyone else does around here.
(Banging on wall.)
Isn’t that right, Cynthia? I said, isn’t that right, Cynthia? (Quietly.) I know you can hear me. I can here you over there. They’re going to get you, you know. They say that they aren’t, but they are. They told me. They’re coming to get you.
(CYNTHIA screams off-stage).
See what I mean?
JILL
Why do you do that?
CELIA
She’s crazy… and it’s kinda fun.
JILL
Well it’s certainly not going to improve her craziness if you berate her through a wall.
CELIA
It’s fun to mess with crazy people.
JILL
Well, you’re crazy, or you wouldn’t be here.
CELIA
Not that crazy, not crazy like you. Not screaming in your sleep crazy. What do you see in your sleep that make you scream like that? Share with your, Celia.
JILL
I’m not feeling the sharing mood at this moment.
CELIA
Whatever. We’re gonna spend a lotta time together. I’m your roommate now. I use to room with ol’ Cynthia there, but they thought I was “not encouraging the improvement of her mental status”.
JILL
I could see how they might come to that conclusion.
CELIA
So were you born with a stick up your ass, or do you always talk like this? Is that why you’re screaming? Somebody trying to take it out?
JILL
Unless you would like this same stick to perforate your delicate derriere I suggest you find something else to talk about.
CELIA
Whatever. Can you talk normal or what?
JILL
Fine. I will put it in a more common vernacular so you can understand. I’m gonna take a stick and run it straight up your ass into your throat, so I don’t have to hear you talk every second of every fucking moment. Better?
CELIA
(Laughing and pleased with herself.)
Yep. You all right. I knew you could talk normal. Well as normal as you can get for a crazy person.
JILL
What makes you think I’m crazy?
CELIA
Well, you’re up in here ain’t ya?
JILL
By that self same logic, you would also be “crazy”.
CELIA
But not crazy like you.
JILL
I’m not crazy.
CELIA
It makes you crazier if you deny it, you know. Just admit it. Gets it out of the way.You might as well get comfortable we’re going to be here for a while.
JILL
I’m not crazy.
CELIA
It’s always the white ones that are the craziest. You’re real quiet too. ‘Cept for the screaming, of course. Yep, always the quiet ones. Don’t hardly make a sound when you walk. You got use to tiptoein’ around didn’t ya? Let me guess. You a cutter?
JILL
No.
CELIA
You strike me as a cutter.
JILL
I’m not a cutter.
CELIA
Yeah, cuttin’ is a good upper class white girl problem.
JILL
I don’t know if you noticed this or not. You would also be white.
CELIA
Why you gotta go judging somebody like that?
JILL
Besides, I’m not some rich girl.
CELIA
Well it ain’t exactly cheap up in here.
JILL
You’re here. Are you rich?
CELIA
They gotta give back to the community somehow. Oh look, I’m the community.
JILL
I’m not rich.
CELIA
You talk rich.
JILL
You look white.
CELIA
Let me see your arms.
JILL
Don’t touch me.
CELIA
Let me see them. Well I’ll be…clean, huh? How about those legs of yours? You can’t fool your Celia.
JILL
Get a way from me.
CELIA
Damn. I was sure you were a cutter.
JILL
If you touch me again, you will draw back a nub.
CELIA
Don’t like the touchin’, huh? What are you daddy’s little girl or mommy’s? You seem like a daddy’s girl to me. Were you daddy’s precious girl?
JILL
Listen to me you psychotic bitch. One more word about my parents comes out of your mouth and I swear to God…
CELIA
That’s what I like to see. A little spice with that sugar. You’re alright there girlfriend. Guess I was wrong, about the cutting anyway. (Calling out) Isn’t that right Cynthia? See sometimes I’m wrong. ‘Course that doesn’t mean they’re not gonna come get ya!
(Whimpering is heard offstage. CELIA laughs.) That never gets old to me.
JILL
Anything that entertains you that does not involve me is a plus.
CELIA
(Laughing.)
So why you here? Why you in the nut house? Open up to your, friend Celia. You want us to be friends, don’t you? I can hear in your mind. I can hear inside peoples’ minds, you know that?
JILL
The idea that you think you can do that makes you at the bare minimum crazy, if not a complete freak.
CELIA
Why don’t you tell me? You can trust your Celia. Why you here daddy’s girl?
JILL
It’s easier than being out there. Why are you here?
CELIA
I’ll be here until they decide I’m not a danger. Could be a while, though. Man some people got some long ass grudges. ‘Course I ain’t done nuthin’ in forever.
JILL
What about that girl, Cynthia? I wouldn’t call that nuthin’.
CELIA
Havin’ a mean streak ain’t enough to keep you up in here. We’re in the dangerous part of the nuthouse. All I want to know is– what’s dangerous about you? It’s always you skinny ass white bitches that done the weirdest shit.
JILL
Yes…it’s always us white bitches.
CELIA
What’d you do?
JILL
(Sighs.)
I didn’t do anything, thank you very much. I have bad dreams. Really bad dreams.
CELIA
Bad dreams. You expect me to believe that? You up in here on bad dreams. Ain’t no way a dream gonna get you up in here.
JILL
It’s more complicated than that. I wouldn’t expect you to understand, so let’s call it bad dreams.
