Week #1 Summary

This week, Euginia began writing a two-hander play titled Quarantine. Referencing the news reports globally on familial and personal relationships putrefying during isolation, she sets the premise around a mother and daughter trapped in their house amidst a state much like ours. We will be publishing pages on the blog as she writes these few weeks. Euginia will be focusing her writing on the format of two-hander plays as the minimal setting and characters not only reflect the time of isolation we are in at this moment, the challenge of the two-hander is to play out conflict and tension through the text with minimal "visual" padding. Do head to the comments section down below to provide some feedback, comments or words of encouragement to Euginia!

WIP for Quarantine: Day #5

Quarantine the play will be posted on here for public feedback and review as Euginia writes for the next few weeks. 
The Google Doc can also be accessed here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eKNAeAFOjgluewXPGfNissWO6meg5p6VKgsfFxZq_pk/edit?usp=sharing

Quarantine

A daughter attempts to negotiate a murder on her mother during their time of quarantine.

Mother

Daughter

Scene 1

(continued from previous entry)

Daughter attempts to leave the room. Immediately, as she steps out, guards appear and push her back into the room.

The room clouds with some smog/ gas (to disinfect).

Mother: (coughing) Don’t do that ever, ever again! Stop that!

Daughter is hyperventilating.

Daughter: I can’t take this anymore! I can’t take being in here, with you, and your… cups… and sounds…. Anymore!

Daughter catches a glimpse of the broken cup shards. She makes a cut on herself.

Daughter: Ouch!

Mother: What are you doing?

The first spot of blood stains the daughter's clean, white dress.

Mother: Stop that! Now we have to clean it up.

Daughter: It hurts… It hurts….

Daughter begins to cry.

Mother: Stop… stop….

Mother stops daughter’s blood flow from the cut.

Mother: They said, we can’t make a mess. For now.

Daughter: Who cares about the mess! I’m trapped in here with you! It hurts too much to…

Beat.

Daughter: To get rid of myself.

Mother: You cannot die in here now.

Beat.

Mother: If you die, they will come in, and take you away, just like that… and you will be gone.

Daughter: I know, okay? I fucking know! And nothing would have meant anything at all.

Beat.

Daughter: Not my dreams, not who I was… but the mess I left behind.

Mother: So don’t do it.

Mother walks around the contained room, doing exercises.

Daughter studies Mother.

Daughter: That’s right.

Beat.

Daughter: The mess doesn’t bother me. It only bothers you.

She finds a knife. She holds it to the back of her mother.

Daughter: You’re the cause of my misery. Not me!

Mother: What are you doing?! Get off me!

Daughter: Don’t move. Or it will really hurt you. And there’ll be more blood. And the mess will be bigger.

Mother freezes in fear.

WIP for Quarantine: Day #2

Quarantine the play will be posted on here for public feedback and review as Euginia writes for the next few weeks. 
The Google Doc can also be accessed here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eKNAeAFOjgluewXPGfNissWO6meg5p6VKgsfFxZq_pk/edit?usp=sharing

Quarantine

A daughter attempts to negotiate a murder on her mother during their time of quarantine.

Mother

Daughter

Scene 1

A hyper clean, contained, air-conditioned room. White surfaces. Almost like a lab space.

No windows are open.

Mother and daughter are occupying the room. Each seemingly have their own tasks at hand to do. They are both wearing white, and it is spotless also on their clothes.

They meticulously keep the place clean, to a fault.

Daughter stands up to take a drink. Mother switches on a radio at the loudest volume.

Daughter: (suddenly slamming cup) I’ve had it with that!

Mother notices the spilled liquid from the cup. She rushes over.

Mother: Shhh! Why are you spilling things everywhere?

Daughter: Turn it down, will you?

Mother continues to clean., ignores daughter.

Daughter: I said. Turn it down!

The mess is cleared. The radio is still not switched off. Volume remains the same.

Mother: There. Better.

Daughter: Did you hear what I said?

Mother continues listening to the radio at full blast.

Daughter walks over and switches the radio off.

Mother: What…

Daughter: And keep it that way!

Mother: How am I supposed to know what’s going on out there then?

Daughter: You don’t have to know everything, all the damn time!

Beat.

Mother: We’re in a crisis. I do need to know. Or how would we survive?

Daughter: Just… Will you just….

Daughter attempts to leave the room. Immediately, as she steps out, guards appear and push her back into the room.

(to be continued)