Mrs. Murphy’s Porch: a sample of Wysteria Edwards’ New Dramatic Play
Mrs. Murphy’s Porch
Where does a child retreat when their reality falls apart? Penny is a precocious child, who, much to the dismay of her parents, has experienced a loss. To deal with that which she cannot comprehend, she sets out on imaginary quests with, Henry, her trusty sidekick (who she usually makes all the girl parts) and Mrs. Murphy, the neighborhood matriarch. Together they explore magical lands: Egypt, Never land, the Wild West, Renaissance and Medieval Times. All the while, the world around them grieves and waits for Penny to accept her greatest challenge and find hope.
ACT 1
SCENE 1: A BARE STAGE LIT IN BLUE. PROJECTED ON TO A SCREEN IS THE NEWS FOOTAGE FROM JAN. 28TH, 1986, AND THE EXPLOSION OF THE CHALLENGER SPACE SHUTTLE. AUDIO OF RONALD REGAN’S SPEECH TO THE NATION.
RONALD REGAN’S (V.O.)
Nancy and I are pained to the core by the tragedy of the shuttle Challenger. We know we share this pain with all the people of our country. This is truly a national loss…we mourn the seven heroes: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe. We mourn their loss as a nation together.
(The sound of children playing, screaming, etc. School has just been let out for the day. A small boy, Henry, eight, sits on a bench in a home-made space suit. His head droops as he reflects on his loss. A spotlight illuminates a young girl of 20, PENNY on the opposite side of the stage. She glances over at him lovingly and begins to address the audience.)
PENNY
Memories are a funny thing. They can cover you like a warm blanket or smother you like an intruder. My eyes were opened in 1986. As a child you cannot see the world as an adult does. It’s a time woven together like strings on an ornate tapestry. Interlaced with the magic of my childhood innocence.
(She takes out rubber bands and puts her hair in pigtails. During the rest of her monologue she adorns two unmatched socks, KEDS tennis shoes, a SMURFS T-shirt over her tank-top and a pink tutu, over her shorts.)
PENNY (CONT’D)
(Referring to the boy) That’s Henry Sage. My best friend in the whole world. We met at nursery school when he stole my JELLO and I socked him in the gut. After that we were inseparable. He was completely sexless to me. Never even realized he was a boy until years later. I just knew that he was my friend. He was always willing to go on adventures with me. In second grade he was obsessed with space. President Regan had given a big push to the space program that year so we got to watch live launches in the middle of school. My teacher Mrs. Anderson made sure we were all watching when the Challenger took off…(BEAT)
NEWSCASTER (V.O.)
There has been an explosion! The Challenger has just erupted into flames!
(Henry takes off his space helmet and throws it at the ground.)
PENNY
Henry took it really hard.
(She assumes the role of a second grader now. We have entered her memories. Everything is as she remembers it. Sitting next to him, she swings her legs and doesn’t speak. She offers him a piece of gum and he shakes his head no.)PENNY (CONT’D)
Let’s go get ice cream.
HENRY
No thanks. (BEAT) Do you think they’ll find any of them?
PENNY
Any what?
HENRY
You know.
PENNY
Oh. (BEAT) I don’t know.
HENRY
It was billions of degrees.
PENNY
Yeah. (BEAT) Probably not.
HENRY
What should we do now?
PENNY
Let’s go spy on the witch.
HENRY
We did that yesterday.
PENNY
But she has the magic spell. We didn’t finish!
HENRY
Fine…
(Picking up his space helmet.)
But then I want to eat some OREEOS.
BLACKOUT
If you are interested in acquiring this script for possible readings/productions please contact Wysteria Edwards: wystiematt@hotmail.com.
