2nd Place Winner – Flash 405, June 2023: “Crescendo”
Stageplay
CHARACTERS:
MAN (Any age)
WOMAN (Any age)
SETTING:
A bus stop in your town.
TIME:
Late at night.
* * *
LIGHTS UP on MAN and WOMAN:
MAN: She is in a pool of moonlight.
WOMAN: She—
MAN: She is smacking her gum like a little girl.
WOMAN: She doesn’t chew gum.
MAN: She is talking real fast—
WOMAN: She talks at a normal speed.
MAN: She is in a pool of moonlight.
WOMAN: She is under a street lamp.
MAN: She gives me a look—
WOMAN: She tries to look busy.
MAN: She gives me a look that says, “Hey.”
WOMAN: She avoids eye contact.
MAN: She is nervous—
WOMAN: She gets out her phone.
MAN: She pretends she doesn’t see me.
WOMAN: She pretends to text.
MAN: She is shy—
WOMAN: She looks around for another woman.
MAN: She sees me—
WOMAN: She looks away fast.
MAN: She sees me looking at her.
WOMAN: She wonders when the bus will get here.
MAN: She bites her lower lip.
WOMAN: She stands still.
MAN: She turns to me.
WOMAN: She looks for the bus—
MAN: She turns to me.
WOMAN: She weighs her options.
MAN: She says, “It sure is cold.”
WOMAN: She could walk to the next block—
MAN: She says, “It sure is cold tonight.”
WOMAN: She remembers the store around the corner—
MAN: She says, “I sure am cold.”
WOMAN: She looks for the bus again—
MAN: She waits for me to come to her.
WOMAN: She sees another woman walking to the bus stop.
MAN: She needs me.
WOMAN: She waits, not watching.
MAN: She wants me.
WOMAN: She whispers to the woman—
MAN: She really wants me—
WOMAN: She leans in close and whispers to the other woman—“Please pretend we’re friends.”
MAN: She— She laughs.
WOMAN: She laughs.
Judge’s Comments:
I was already intrigued by the third line of dialogue, with that sharp interruption suggesting the shape of the interpersonal dynamic to follow. I love how this piece depicts tension as a set of misreadings and misjudgments—accumulating in the space between two people at a terrifyingly fast pace, as one person completely fails to see and acknowledge the other. This piece felt very relatable to me.
Playwright Rachael Carnes received a 2020 Oregon Literary Fellowship, a 2020 Oregon Arts Commission Grant, a 2021 Lighthouse Writers Workshop Advanced Dramatic Writing Fellowship, and the 2021 Jane Stevens Award in Theatre. Her work is produced across the U.S., U.K., Middle East, Canada, and Asia; featured in many literary journals; and developed at myriad conferences and festivals. She and her family live in Oregon. www.rachaelcarnes.com
Photo Credit: Warren