Star Crossed one act play script

ONE ACT PLAYS

STAR CROSSED
A challenging two-hander for two 17 year-old girls set in Belfast during the Troubles.

Plot summary
It is Belfast, in 1980. Two young girls from opposite sides of the religious divide meet at a community project to read a play: William Shakespeare’s “Romeo & Juliet”. Elizabeth is Protestant; Bernadette is Catholic and in a wheelchair. Their relationship, stormy at first, gradually matures as they read. Throughout, the play resonates with their own situation. But is their friendship doomed too, like that of the ‘star-crossed lovers’?
ISBN 1 904930 80 8

CAST 2 GIRLS
Bernadette, 17 years old, a Catholic and wheelchair-bound
Elizabeth, 17 years old, a Protestant

SET - a street in Belfast
TIME - 1980
DURATION - approx. 35 minutes

Script Sample - The Drama Day

The lights come up on Bernadette, who is seventeen and in a wheelchair. She is reading a script. Elizabeth, also seventeen, enters onto the raised area behind her. She stays there, reluctant to go too near Bernadette

Bernadette (reading) ‘O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.’
Elizabeth Are you talking to yourself?
Bernadette (turning to see who has spoken) I am not!
Elizabeth That’s what it sounded like to me. (Pause) What were you doing then?
Bernadette I’m reading from a play.
Elizabeth What play?
Bernadette If you must know it’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’.
Elizabeth Oh!
Bernadette It’s by William Shakespeare.
Elizabeth I bloody knew that, I’m not completely bloody stupid, you know!
Bernadette I didn’t say you were!
Elizabeth You didn’t need to.

Pause

You here for the drama day, then?
Bernadette I am.
Elizabeth Don’t you think it’s a bloody stupid idea!
Bernadette No, actually I don’t.
Elizabeth What? Trying to put together Protestant and Catholic teenagers? Getting them to act in some drama in the vain hope that it might create some mutual understanding. Do they think that after a day of this we’ll stop hating each other? That we’ll stop lobbing bricks and petrol bombs at each other! That we’ll take down the barriers and invite each other to tea! Some bloody chance!
Bernadette I don’t think they expect that much, it’s just to show that by working together we can get on, even if it is just for a day.
Elizabeth (sarcastically) Get on? Hah!

Pause

Bernadette Did Mr Mahoney send you over here?
Elizabeth If you mean the balding do-gooder with the limp, yeah he did!
Bernadette You must be my partner, then.
Elizabeth No I am bloody not! I’m nobody’s bloody partner! Especially some bloody teg!
Bernadette You are such a bigot! You want to catch yourself on!
Elizabeth Bigot? I’m not a bigot, you stupid Catholic bitch! I’m not having you say that! I’m away to speak to your man, get a decent Proddy partner!
Bernadette You do that then! (Shouts after her) Bigot! Bigot!

Elizabeth storms out. Bernadette returns to reading the script

(softly) ‘‘Tis but thy name that is my enemy; thou art thyself, though not a Montague. What’s Montague? It is nor hand nor foot nor arm nor face, nor any other part belonging to a man. O be some other name! What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.’

Elizabeth re-enters and stands silently seething. She is clutching a script

A pause

Without looking round Bernadette senses Elizabeth is there

Bernadette What did your man say then?
Elizabeth I don’t want to talk about it!
Bernadette Talk you round, did he?
Elizabeth He did not! He bloody threatened me! Told me they’d stop my dole if I didn’t attend the day. I’m to follow his instructions and read part of this bloody play, which, and here I quote, ‘ … will be performed to a small select audience of local political and religious leaders and interested parties.’ I said to him, I said, that’s fine, just find me another partner! He said the whole bloody point was to work with a bloody Catholic! Told me everybody else was paired up anyway! Told me I had to work with you!
Bernadette I’m not ecstatic about it either!
Elizabeth That’s two of us then.

from Star Crossed

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