"Musical Chairs" by Mark S.P. Turvin Copyright 1989, 1993-Mark S.P. Turvin and Goldfish Publishers Following is the Summary Information Sheet for the experimental one-act drama "Musical Chairs" by Mark S.P. Turvin. The show is rated PG-13. It contains some violence and adult language. The average running time of this piece is 55 minutes. Characters: 1 - A person outside of their surroundings. 2 - A person who's blind to their surroundings. 3 - A person trapped and moulded by their surroundings. 4 - A person in tune with their surroundings. 5 - A person in control of their surroundings. The Master of Ceremonies (Emcee) - The voice of the surroundings. The Audience - Basically, the surroundings. Setting: A bare stage, save for five dining room chairs lined up in a row. To LCS there is a podium upon which there is a Compact Disc player. There are three entrances; USR, CSR, and DSR. Place: Paradise Valley, AZ: an affluent suburb of Phoenix. Time: Anytime after W.W. II. Notes: The Audience should be lit somehow, since they will have to be seen during the voting sequences. It is best not to allow too much of a differentiation between audience and stage to further enhance the connection that is wanted between performers and Audience. Each character should be dressed according to their 'type' as though they have been invited to a party. So, too, The Emcee should be dressed in this way, preferably in black. The Prologue and the first four scenes of the script are available in the file MC.TXT. A bad experience and fear of copyright infringement keeps me from uploading the rest. If you are interested in producing this script, and would like to see more, you can contact the playwright by e-mail. My address is icmst@asuacad.inre.asu.edu. I am negotiable about fees, depending on your circumstances (i.e., small, college or community theatres, etc.) and I'm sympathetic to budget constraints. I am a member of The Dramatist's Guild, and can use their contracts if needed. I can also be reached by snail mail at: Mark S.P. Turvin Goldfish Publishers, LLC 3106 North 22nd Street Phoenix, AZ 85016-7348 As a last resort, you can also call me between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm MST at (602) 912-0117. I hope you enjoy the piece, Mark S.P. Turvin +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Advertising Description: The setting is quite simple. Onstage are five chairs in a line, and beside them is a podium with a Compact Disc Player. The show begins with a man who is introduced as the Master of Ceremonies. He explains that this is all taking place at a dinner party. He introduces the five people who will be playing the game, and each one comes in and sits in their chair. The Emcee then offers a question that each is going to answer. The first question is "What's Wrong?" From there, the types begin answering. This clever satire views a dinner party as a game, with each of the types represented by the gameplayers vying for the audience's approval. As each question is answered, the players leave, and the Emcee asks the audience to vote out the person that they did not like. The players return, play a game of musical chairs, and the person that the audience voted out is left without a chair. And so the game continues, with four people, then three, then two... Unique in it's use of audience participation, the show is written with any of one hundred and twenty five different endings, based on audience voting. Oftentimes, the audience becomes so involved, discussions and debates will occur during voting. A warning, though...with involvement comes responsibility, a fact often forgotten about in the best of social situations. +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Synopsis: Onstage are five chairs in a line, and on the Stage Right side of them is a podium with a Compact Disc Player. The show begins with a man who is introduced as the Master of Ceremonies. He explains that this is all taking place at a dinner party. He introduces the five characters, who come in and sit in their chairs. Each character is named with a number, in order of their first seating arrangement. The Emcee then offers a question that each is going to answer. The first question is "What's Wrong?" The five people then establish their "types." A monologue is delivered by Number 1 The question is answered in a negative way, using a story about a very gory suicide. Number 2 then gives a monologue and answers the question in an overly optimistic way, talking about how wonderful humanity is. Number 3's monologue answers the question as it concerns the setting of the dinner party, which this person is obviously against. Number 4 is the host of the party, and in his monologue insists that the only thing wrong are "certain people's" attitudes, a veiled allusion to Number 3. Number 5, the hostess of the party, does everything but answer the question, talking nonstop about the party and its preperation. After the five are done answering the question in their own ways, the Emcee sends them off, and then asks the audience to vote on the person they did not like. A vote is taken, and the Emcee calls everyone back in. A game of musical chairs is played, and the person the audience picked is knocked out of the game. The Emcee then poses the next question, "What's the Truth?" The four remaining players answer the question, and once again, after leaving, the Emcee takes a vote on the one the audience does not like. The process is repeated once more, leaving the three remaining to answer the next question, "What Can You Do?" After the three have answered and left, another vote is taken, leaving only two after the game. The Emcee poses the question "What Makes It Better?" The last two people answer the question, and then leave. The Emcee asks the audience to make the decision of which of the two characters best represents them, and vote the other person out. When done, the two remaining gameplayers return; but instead of heading for a chair when the music stops, they go for each other. The one not chosen by the audience, thus, the one they like, stabs the other in the back with a previously concealed knife, and tosses that person to the floor. They then answer the last question posed by the Emcee: "What's the Point?" When that person is done, they leave. The Emcee gives a crisp bow, and clears the stage, except for the body.