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monologue mania day # 190 by janet s. tiger  value  (for crime) (c) aug. 21, 2014

8/21/2014

0 Comments

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here
Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
-------------------------------------------------------------- 
Monologue Mania Day  # 190 by Janet S. Tiger    Aug.21, 2014                                                               Value
                                                   (for Crime)

                                         A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com --------------------------------------------------
                (Lights focus on a woman coming onstage, smiling, waving.  She is dressed for a presentation - professional, not too flashy. She is rolling a cart of carefully organized papers)  

Thank you for that lovely introduction......and please forgive the big pile of files.....but I'm going to need them to illustrate a point.....if I don't get too nervous, that is!             

           (She brings out one of the folders and looks at it, straightens her shoulders.)   I know that, while most of you out there are  Crime Scene professionals, I know there are a lot of family members here as well, so I am going to try to explain my last case....which is actually my very last case....to those of you who ....I like to think of you all as.....assistants to the pros.   When I was asked to present this case, I was a little hesitant, not just because I am not fond of public speaking, but also, this was a very unusual case, one that I did not expect to have a good ending. 

I suppose if you look at these murders closely, the murder is not a good ending, it is actually a very bad beginning, but my associates and I are entrusted to find if not a happy finale, one that brings justice to the story.

  Because we are a cold case group, this type of finale is very rare.  Unlike television, where virtually every case has the team solving the crime, we all know that  success rates for these older cases are very low.   I remember when I first started doing this work, the detective who got me started said, 'If we don't find the killer in the first 24 hours, the odds go down exponentially every day, until they are almost zero.'   I asked him, 'Why do you keep trying then?'  And his response was, 'Because almost is not an excuse.  And the victims are never almost dead....they remain dead, and their families are in a kind of purgatory until something is definite.'   So I was introduced to the real world of Crime Scene Investigations - a world not seen on television.  When I tell people what I do, their eyes light up, until I inform them that most of what I do is beyond tedious, that the TV shows they watch cram thousands of hours of work into 48 minutes, and that I have never been threatened, nor have I had my family kidnapped to stop me from  doing a case, and that the scenes where I work are very smelly most of time.   I started in archeology, which has been a huge help.  On a dig, there is a deep need to be meticulous, and to follow hunches, and to keep very exact records.  The same in this field.  Only, in archeology, everyone is dead, which means if you make a mistake, it only affects history.  But  with real life crimes, the dead have lives, and real families, and .........people cry.  

So, with this cheery introduction, I would like to tell about how I came to be on this cold case, a case that I took on AFTER I officially retired......so, if you will, please get comfortable, and Jody, hit the lights.......as we head to the small town of Reynolds, Nebraska......where, on a blowy Sunday morning, one of the favorite inhabitants.....was found in her home.......murdered.            

(She waves for the lights to go down, and they do on this scene.)   (to be continued)     
--------------------------------------
Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315 www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com Member Dramatists Guild since 1983 Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
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monologue mania day # 189 by janet s. tiger  cat days of summer (c) aug. 20, 2014

8/20/2014

2 Comments

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day

                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here
Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            




-------------------------------------------------------------- 

Monologue Mania Day  # 189 by Janet S. Tiger  Cat Days of Summer   Aug.20, 2014

                                        Cat Days of Summer

                                            (for the play BEN)

                                         A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved

                                                    tigerteam1@gmail.com

              (Benjamin Franklin enters, rolling a car with test tubes filled with liquids, a bellows and some thermometers.  He stops  and wipes his forehead with a handkerchief.)

 Is it warm enough for you?  I hope so!  Because this little experiment is something I've been working on with my dear friend, John, a professor at Cambridge.  

Do you see this? 

            (He holds up a test tube)

This is alcohol.  Not the kind to drink, but the kind which evaporates rapidly.

Our belief is that this can be used to lower temperatures rapidly......and that is what we will be testing today.....

           (He now holds up a thermometer.)

Heat.  Cold.  We so desperately want to be in control of the elements.

          (He starts to set up the bellows)

My lightning rods have saved many homes from burning and many people from death.....but as I age, some of my goals become more....personal.  I like to be warm, hence I invented a stove.  But I also like to be cool, hence I love London.    

But how to create a way to be cool when it is hot?  

        (He sets the thermometer near the bellows and starts to put the alcohol onto the thermometer.)

When alcohol evaporates, it removes heat from the object it is on.......

         (He now uses the bellows on the thermometer.)

This room we are in is 64 degrees.....but with the alcohol on the thermometer, the temperature on the thermometer's bulb is dropping.....

        (He looks closely, smiles)

50 degrees!

       (He continues to use the bellows, looks again)  

25 degrees!

       (He holds up the thermometer)

And if you can see it, there is now a small coating of ice on the bulb!

This is something that is important to understand - when working with certain substances - and people, too - it is better to rapidly cool them off, rather than wait for them to calm themselves.  

        (He looks at the thermometer)

Sometimes, the cooling process works too well - the temperature is now down to 14 dwegrees Centigrade, and hence, I will stop this experiment because the thermometer may crack.  But it is very interesting to note, that from this experiment one may see the possibility of.... freezing a man to death on a warm summer's day.

One day soon...I think it is in about twenty years, we will have very cold days.....hard days in our history.  Valley Forge....funny name for a cold place isn't it?  But that winter of cold will forge our nation.

Dog Days of Summer - that is a funny idea as well.  Whatever does it mean?  The hot weather corresponds to the star Sirius in the night sky.  The Romans had strange ways of looking at things, didn't they.  I think that the days in Valley Forge, where the men died like dogs in the freezing cold, that....that was more accurate.

But the summer- that is a time for cats!  Cats are naturally lazy in the heat, and they lie about anyhow...so the summer is truly their time - I believe the expression should rightfully be -  Cat Days of Summer........

I have other important questions that I am working on.  How can you make sense where there is nonsense?  How can you pass gas that smells good?   .....And there's one I fear will always allude me - How to make men of politics tell the truth!

        (He laughs as he collects the items from the experiment and starts to take them offstage.  He turns and looks back)

I think it's possible....but it just may be....a cold day in hell!

       (Lights dim as he exits laughing.  End of scene)

 --------------------------------------------------




Note -   This is based on one of Franklin's experiments http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_conditioning  

Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence
Swedenborg Hall 2006-8

----------------------------------------------

2 Comments

monologue mania Day # 188 by janet s. tiger  a horror story  (c) aug. 19, 2014

8/19/2014

0 Comments

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here

Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
--------------------------------------------------------------  Monologue Mania Day  # 188 by Janet S. Tiger  A Horror Story Aug.19, 2014                                      
                                                       A Horror Story
                                         A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com

            (A woman sidles onstage, cringing, then runs up to the center of the stage, looks through the peephole and opens the door quickly.)

Thank God it's just you!   I'm sorry, but you have to come in quickly, hurry!  Before it's too late!

           (She ushers the person in, sits them down and re-locks the door with several locks, takes a deep breath.)

I've never been afraid like this before!  It's like a nightmare come to life!  It's so frightening when you don't know who's going to be there......at the door!  I mean, I knew you were coming, but even so....they could be watching here......

           (She goes to the peephole, looks out.  Can't see enough, so she moves a curtain aside.)

It looks safe, but I don't know......it's like.....the end.....because it is the end.  It's just a matter of time, I can't hold out much longer.......did you bring some food?

           (She opens a bag, takes out a candy bar, and chews it happily.)

Ooh, thank you!  Chocolate always helps in moments of terror....I'm surprised they don't have the people in all those horror movies eating chocolate.  Very relaxing.

          (She hears a noise, shudders.)

I don't even want to look.

What if I actually came face to face with one of them?  They look like real people, but I know the truth.......they are not human.  Who else could take a job like this?  Who could chase down other human beings, like we were animals, and then.....(hard to say)....and then....SERVE us?

What time is it?  They don't come after dark now......maybe I can venture out, get some fresh air.

           (She puts on a sweater, but then takes it off.)

I was warned this could happen.  Paranoia sets in.....and you make a mistake, you answer when there's a knock at the door.......

          (She freezes, and this time she hears footsteps.  She peeks through the window and she is now practically in tears.)

It's too late.  I knew it would be today, I just had a feeling........

All right!  I can't take anymore! 

         (She flings open the door and removes some papers that have been stapled on.  She reads them and sinks to the floor.)

I guess, I just didn't believe it could happen......(reading) ...'Service completed by attachment to door and by mail. '  (sighs deeply)  After 3 weeks, they have the right.......to serve me.......not in person, but by posting and mail.......well, the attorney warned me they could do this now.....Eviction....we have 21 days to leave.......21 days after 21 years......(laughs)......who would have thought I'd be so afraid of.....

          (She grasps the papers to her chest.)

.....afraid of paper........

          (She looks around the house)

And so it begins.....this may not be the end, or even the beginning of the end, but it is definitely....the end of the beginning.

          (She looks around, stands up and starts to walk off, stops looks back)

I will miss you, my house of many years.......

         (She exits, dropping the papers as she leaves.  The end.....of an era in a house.)

--------------------------------
Note to actors - the level of props is something you can choose for whichever monologue you are doing.  Here I would recommend that you have at least the papers available, as they are integral to the monologue.

Suggestion fpr auditions-  if you can get a copy of the script, and can memorize something, that's the best best.  But if you can't, and you know a little about the character being played, choose a  monologue that has the same elements of the character you will be auditioning for - is it someone with a comic flair, a serious piece?  This blog has something for everyone - just check out the blurbs.  Will try to give more details when I get a chance. And remember, have fun at the audition, you'll probably be doing more auditions than anything else in this business, even after you're successful!
------------------------------
Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com

Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
0 Comments

monologue mania day # 187 by janet s. tiger  napping (c) aug. 18. 2014

8/18/2014

0 Comments

 
  Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here

Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
-------------------------------------------------------------- 
Monologue Mania Day  # 187 by Janet S. Tiger    Napping Aug.18, 2014                                          
                                                             Napping
                                         A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com

              (A woman carrying a blanket and pillow comes onstage.  She smiles, rubbing the blanket against her cheek.)

I like this week's assignment!  Last week, doing the unpleasant memory, that was painful.  I did not like recreating the horror of being stuck on a ride in an amusement park - at the very top! - for over four hours, and having to pee the whole time!  And then actually....

            (Hears something, shrugs)

Sorry, I'll stick to today's assignment.  (Smiles)  It makes me happy to think about it!  My pleasant memory....one that I can share at least.....is....

           (She holds up the blanket and pillow)

You guessed it.....napping!

Now, sleeping is different - everyone HAS to sleep!  I read that if you don't sleep, it's called sleep deprivation, and they used it to torture people, and when you can't sleep after a few days, you can start to go crazy....

          (Listens again)

Okay, okay, I'm getting to it!

Anyhow, napping is fun.  I remember when I was a little girl and my mother would take me into the city, but before we went, we'd have to take a nap, because we couldn't take our afternoon naps in the city, because they didn't have beds in the subway...so we would get dressed and ready, but not put on our shoes.........and I would lie down next to my mother......

          (She puts the pillow down and hugs it, laying on the blanket and looking at the audience.)

And it would be so warm....

          (She snuggles in.)

And she would smell so good......and I would be so comfortable.....

          (She lays down and starts breathing slowly, a leg shakes, she starts giggling.  Then, she starts to snore, quietly to start, then louder and louder until she is shaking with the sound.  Suddenly she shudders to wakefulness.)

Boy, I really needed that!

           (She gets up, stretches and yawns)

Funny thing is, I had lots of fun in the city, but it's those naps I truly remember!

          (She picks up the pillow and cover, starts to walk off, stops, looks back)

Sleep tight!

         (She runs off, trailing the cover behind her.  The end - but not of naptime!)
--------------------------------------


Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
0 Comments

monologue mania Day # 186 by janet s. tiger pancakes! (c) aug. 17, 2014

8/17/2014

1 Comment

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here

Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
--------------------------------------------------------------
Monologue Mania Day  # 186  by Janet S. Tiger  Pancakes   Aug.17, 2014
                                                     Pancakes!
                                         A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com

            (A  man wearing a hat from the 1940s comes onstage with a big smile and a very large napkin, a fork in one hand, knife in the other)

I've never seen a place like this before!   It's the most beautiful place in the whole world!

           (He looks around)

(Bursting with joy)  Pancakes!  I love pancakes!  You just gotta love pancakes!  They are simple, and simply delicious!  And they are good with butter, and with syrup, or all alone!  Three different ways to eat a simple pancake!   And this is a whole restaurant just for......pancakes!

            (His eyes light up, someone is putting pancakes on the table in front of him.  He sniffs in the delicious aroma.)

Mmmmmm!  They smell better than they look!  And they look sensational!

           (He puts on butter and pours some syrup on, cuts a big piece and looks at it with admiration)

You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen!

          (He puts the bite in his mouth and is in ecstacy, finishing the rest quickly and lifting his plate.)

May I please have some more?

           (He takes the next plate even faster, reaches into his pocket for some money, which he leaves on the table.)

What time do you close?

          (Listens)

Eight o'clock - that's fantastic!  I get off work at 5:30 pm and I can be here in five minutes!  I'll have more than two hours to eat more pancakes!

           (Listens)

So you open early, too?  Oh, my God, I must've died and gone to heaven!  Pancakes morning noon and night!

          (Listens, smiles)

Yes, sir, it's my first job away from home, and if I want to eat pancakes all day, that's just what I'm gonna do!

          (He exits, and now re-enters, without the hat, eating more pancakes, fast, still smiling, and repeats this again with the hat tilted back until you see he is starting to slow down a bit.
He staggers off, removing the hat, smiling)
And I did, I had pancakes for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a whole week!  It was one of the best weeks of my life! 

Pancakes are my favorite food, and my mother would only make them on Sundays, before church, so when I got to Philadephia, and there it was, the Pancake Cafe.....right down the street from my first job.....I ate until I was ready to burst!

           (He puts the hat on, he is older now)

(Quieter)  That was the beginning of December....it was cold and the pancakes were always hot!  It was December .....of 1941.  On Dec. 7th, after Pearl Harbor, I had a big plate of pancakes and then I took the train and went home to New Jersey and enlisted.....and I didn't have a decent pancake until after the war.......Sometimes, I think of that place....and how I ate pancakes for a whole week!

And I tell my friends and that includes all of you!  Find yourself a pancake and eat it!  And then eat as many as you want!

         (He turns to go and looks back)

 Because you never know when there's gonna be a war!

         (He exits, laughing and we hear him almost singing)

Pancakes!  You gotta love them pancakes!

----------------------------------------------------------------
Note- Thanks, Dad, for a great story about pancakes! 



Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
1 Comment

monologue mania day # 185 by janet s tiger  ella's side revised (c) aug. 16, 2014

8/16/2014

0 Comments

 
Monologue Mania Day # 185 by Janet S. Tiger Ella's Side revised Aug.16, 2014 Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here

Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
-------------------------------------------------------------- 
Monologue Mania Day  # 185  by Janet S. Tiger  Ella's Side revised  Aug.16, 2014
      Note-  This is a different monologue from Day # 184 - expanded, actually almost doubled.  Am trying to decide which version is most effective- the shorter one from yesterday, or today's with more details?  Please leave a comment if you have a preference.  Thank you!



                                     Ella's Side (revised)          
                                                    A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com

           (Ella comes front and center.  All eyes are on her as she looks at T and rubs her hands together.  She stands straight, then swallows hard and opens her mouth.  Nothing comes out.  She takes another deep breath, and yes, she, too, has a Southern accent.)

I don't mind writin these stories down.  And I don't mind T sharin these stories.  But the only person on this earth who has ever heard me tell this story is...T.  And I still don't like havin to tell it...but it's time.  Maybe cause we waited so long it's like (searches for the words)....like an egg boiled too long..... but I'll do my best......

       (She sighs heavily)

You heard about ……the fingers.  Well, it started when I made a mistake.

       (She takes a deep breath)

Funny after all these years how hard it is to admit that.  But it’s true.  A mistake that is still affectin us all these years later……

My daughter, Lena, went to help out at Fitzhugh’s place startin when she was eleven.  We needed the money for Lena’s brother’s operation.  He wouldn't have been able to ever walk again without that doctor from up North fixin his feet after he broke his thigh bone jumpin into that dry river bed like a damn fool.....We heard the rumors, but ....he woulda been a cripple.  So..... I didn’t pay as much attention as I should have.

But I ended up payin in the end.

And Lena paid more.  And we are still payin for my mistake.

You see, Lena was a good girl, and she liked Mr. Fitzhugh, who gave her not only money, but candy, which Lena loved dearly.  It's amazin she has any teeth left at all......And she liked....all the attention she never got from her own Daddy, who left when she was nine.

When I found out what was goin on……well, the rest you know about, except for the part about....Lena.  She was young and didn’t know what was gonna happen but when she didn’t have her time of the month, I knew.  And I sent her away up north, to Detroit, to stay with my sister.  Nowadays it’s different.  Movie stars and people in the hair place all have babies that have no daddies, and there is no shame anymore.  But that’s what people did in those days, they went away, so no one would know what happened.

So I put Lena on the bus for Detroit.....so if I was asked, I could say Lena was not even in town, and it would be the truth, because, even with all of this, the truth is important to me.......   

             (Remembering, holding a knife and touching the edge...it's sharp)
And I went over to Mr. Fitzhugh and told him what happened, and he was drunk.  And he didn’t care.  And I took that knife and chopped off his fingers.  You might wonder why I didn't kill him.  I wondered, too, but even though I hated him …….I just couldn't take the life of a man ...(very hard to say)....that was the father of my first grandbaby.  And somehow I knew, by takin his fingers, it would point a finger at what he’d been doin.

Because people already knew.  And no one tried to stop him, ‘cept me and my knife.

           (She puts down the knife and wipes her eyes)

So Lena, my 14-year-old baby,  had a baby.  Mr. Fitzhugh’s baby.  A lovely baby boy.  And it was a lovely color, like caramel in milk.  And my sister knew a woman who couldn’t have babies, and that woman raised this beautiful little boy....(proud) .my grandson....... and he grew up into a very handsome young man…..a young man who went to college and became a teacher.  And not just any old teacher….but (very proud)…a college professor!  (Deep breath)  And, in one of his classes, he had a beautiful student ...that he married…..and that student …….

          (She puts her hand on T’s arm.)

…….was T’s granddaughter,……your daughter, Vivien.  There was no way she could know when they met – he was adopted by people named Turner…..he never knew he was related to his Auntie Lena, she was just a family friend………

            (She wipes her eyes again)

T and I talked about tryin to stop this happenin, but we couldn’t without tellin the whole story.  So we have been quiet until this day.

And so, because of the fact that we needed money and I ….(still hard to say)…I wasn’t payin attention….and that ….and that my Lena liked her candy……we are all related by blood.

Your daughter is carrying T’s and my blood, and that is the future of this family.

          (She turns to sit down, looks back, sighs deeply, maybe there is even a hint of a smile)

Maybe, just maybe, I didn’t make such a bad mistake……
         (She sits heavily, lights down on this scene)
--------------------------------------------------------------
  Last note - for those interested, there was a very first version that I never showed, but will now - very short!
Starts the same-
----------------------------------------------------
      (Ella comes front and center.  All eyes are on her as she looks at T and rubs her hands together.  She stands straight, then swallows hard and opens her mouth.  Nothing comes out.  She takes another deep breath, and yes, she, too, has a Southern accent.)

I don't mind writin these stories down.  And I don't mind T sharin these stories.  But the only person on this earth who has ever heard me tell this story is...T.
        (She takes another breath)

And that's the way it's gonna stay.

       (She starts to walk off, looks back.)

But T knows the story, and you now have my permission to share it.

       (She sits and the light shifts to T.  End of scene)
-------------------------------------------------------------

The purpose of this was a bit a (hopefully) comic relief.  (When you give an expectation, then something else happens, that's the goal!)  But also, I figure the actress who does Ella may not want to have a big, long monologue - but a memorable moment that is very effective.  Actors - what do you think?


Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
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monologue mania day # 184 by janet s. tiger ella's side of the story (c) aug. 15, 2014

8/15/2014

0 Comments

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here
Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
-------------------------------------------------------------- 
Monologue Mania Day  # 184  by Janet S. Tiger Ella's Side of the Story
Aug.15, 2014      

                                   Ella's Side of the Story                                          A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com 

           (Ella comes front and center.  All eyes are on her as she looks at T and rubs her hands together.  She stands straight, then swallows hard and opens her mouth.  Nothing comes out.  She takes another deep breath, and yes, she, too, has a Southern accent.)

I don't mind writin these stories down.  And I don't mind T sharin these stories.  But the only person on this earth who has ever heard me tell this story is...T.
You heard about ……the fingers.  Well, it started when I made a mistake.

       (She takes a deep breath)

Funny after all these years how hard it is to admit that.  But it’s true.  A mistake that is still affectin us all these years later……

My daughter, Lena, went to help out at Fitzhugh’s place startin when she was eleven.  I knew the rumors about him, but we needed the money for Lena’s brother’s operation on his feet.  So I didn’t pay as much attention as I should have.
So I ended up payin in the end.

And Lena paid more.  And we are still payin for my mistake.

You see, Lena was a good girl, and she liked Mr. Fitzhugh, who gave her not only money, but candy, and the attention she never got from her own Daddy, who left when she was nine.

So when I found out what was goin on……well, the rest you know about, except for Lena.  She didn’t know what was gonna happen, so when she didn’t have her time of the month, I knew.  And I sent her away up north, to Detroit.  Nowadays it’s different.  Movie stars and even people in the hair place all have babies that have no daddies, and there is no shame anymore.  But that’s what people did in those days, they went away, so no one would know what happened.

So I sent Lena to stay with my sister.  And I went over to Mr. Fitzhugh and told him what happened, and he was drunk.  And he didn’t care.  And I took that knife and chopped off his fingers because that way, everyone would know what he’d been doin.

Because people already knew.  And no one tried to stop him, ‘cept me and my knife.

           (She wipes her eyes)

 So Lena, my 14-year-old baby,  had a baby.  Mr. Fitzhugh’s baby.  A lovely baby boy.  And it was a lovely color, like caramel in milk.  And my sister knew a woman who couldn’t have babies, and that woman raised this beautiful little boy and he grew up into a very handsome young man…..

          (She puts her hand on T’s arm.)

…………who is now married to T’s granddaughter,……your daughter, Vivien.  And so, because of the fact that my Lena liked her candy……we are all related by blood.
Your daughter is carrying T’s and my blood, and that is the future of this family.

          (She turns to sit down, looks back)

Maybe, just maybe, I didn’t make such a bad mistake……

         (She sits heavily, lights down on this scene)




--------------------------------------------------------------


Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315 www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com Member Dramatists Guild since 1983 Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
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monologue mania day # 183 by janet s. tiger the tipping point (c) aug. 14, 2014

8/14/2014

1 Comment

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here
Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
--------------------------------------------------------------
Monologue Mania Day  #183   by Janet S. Tiger  Tipping Point Aug.14, 2014       
  
(Note - This is the midpoint of my year of monologues.  Hence, the title.  I have gained much with this project, but these past weeks have some good friends who have just lost dear ones....you know who you are...my prayers are with you at this sad time- this one is for you and your families with much love.)

                                          Tipping Point                                                                          A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com  

           (The actor comes out onstage dressed as a small child, goes to the middle of the stage, and sits as if on a giant seesaw.  Goes up and down, then gets off the plank and carefully puts it at the midpoint and turns to the audience)

(Like a child)  I just love to play here in this park!  And the teeter-totter is my favoritist thing in the whole world!

Watch it!

           (With one hand, the actor pushes the 'plank' and jumps back as it rocks back and forth, laughing all the while.)

My older brother says this is really ...(hard to pronounce)...physics in action.  Which is another way of saying stuff for old people, but I think it's just fun!

No matter how high it goes.....

            (Illustrates again)

...or how low....

It always comes back to the middle.....exactly.

My brother says that when you are playing, the middle, the even part, is when everything is exactly the same on both sides.....but that if you put just one tiny thing on one side, that it tips, and that's called....the tipping point.

I like that!  The tipping point!  It's kind of like with adults, when you keep doing something you know they hate, like throwing the ball against the garage door, and they ask you to stop, and you keep doing it because it's so much fun!

              (The voice becomes more adult now, the childishness is going fast.)

And then, after you are throwing the ball a lot of times, you throw it one more time, and your mother screams!  And loud!  And that is HER tipping point!

             (The actor laughs removes the child's apparel, looks down now at the seesaw.)

 Teeter-totter, I used to love this ......teeter-totter.  But it has another name, what the hell is it?

            (Shakes head)

I can't believe I forgot it!  Maybe if I sit on it for a minute, it'll come back....

            (Sits very gingerly and moves slowly down, then slowly up.)

What was the name?

            (Remembering)

I could play on this for hours, with or without another kid......what did my brother used to say?...he called it.... it was a physics thing, yeah, we knew he always wanted to be a scientist.

Tipping point, one atom too much on one side, and you go down.  One atom too little and you go........ up......

          (Looks up.  Trying not to cry)

One minute a person is..(deep breath)....breathing.... alive, the next.....they're not.....and the thing is, there's no tipping back.  No return.

         (Gets off the seesaw, pushes hard, watches as it goes up and down, then slowly balance, touching the plank as it is now even, not moving)

And then everything goes back to some strange evenness, and ....even the pain seems to quiet, and then you hear something, or smell something, or think of something and ....

         (Pushes the seesaw, head nodding as the plank moves quickly up and down again.)

The pain is back.  Loss.   

Funny, no one ever talks about losing pain. 

Losing your glasses, losing your car keys.....losing your mind.....but everyone is happy when pain is gone......maybe there's a tipping point for pain, and maybe it has to be in the middle of it, because that's when it seems worst, just before everything starts to shift, and suddenly, the pain is slipping away, and being replaced with.....I don't know, happy things?

When will that be, Mom?

         (Looks up again.)

You never told me how much it would hurt to lose you.  I mean, we had our arguments, but you know I loved you, and I certainly know you loved me. 

         (Sits on the seesaw and suddenly stops moving.)

I remember!  It's called a SEE-SAW!
Momma, what was that rhyme you used to sing when we went up and down?

(Comes back slowly)

See-saw, Margery Daw,Sold her bed and lay on the straw;Sold her bed and lay upon hayAnd pixies came and carried her away.... (Starts laughing)  Pixies!  I just loved the word pixies!  And I made you sing that song to me a million times.....and you did.  See-saw, Marjorie, Daw....that's why I walked out here, Momma, you took my hand and led me out here so I would laugh.......maybe, just maybe, this is the tipping point.........

        (Stands up, nods, and pushes the plank, watches, then starts to walk off, turns back to watch again.)

I love you, Momma........

        (Salutes the toy and exits.  The physical end for some of the dearest people I have met, but not  for their love for their families.  May they rest in peace.  And for my dear Mom - I'm so glad you're still here!)

--------------------------------------------------------------


Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983 Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
1 Comment

monologue mania day # 182 by janet s. tiger it comes in threes.....(c) aug. 13, 2014

8/13/2014

0 Comments

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here
Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
-------------------------------------------------------------- 
Monologue Mania Day  #182   by Janet S. Tiger  It Comes in Threes... Aug.13, 2014

                                                    It Comes in Threes....                                                   A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved                                                      tigerteam1@gmail.com  

                   (Actor comes in with newspaper, looking horrified.)

(Reading)  'People have lined up at the Hollywood star .....blah, blah, blah.....and there is a rumor the President will attend the funeral....blah, blah, blah........'

                  (Crumples the paper, throws it away)

I don't care that it was the greatest actor of our generation!  I don't care that he was so generous!  All I care about is that.......that......he's the second one!  In two days!

First was the old one, that was bad, but this!  This was a car accident!  A young person!

Two down!

It always comes in threes!

              
             (Runs around room, looks under bed, in closets)

....where can I hide?

They always come in threes.......

One is usually an oldie but a goodie.....one of the deaths they bet on on those Internet sites!   And then one is a horrible accident.......and the third....the third is like the bonus cupcake for the press!

What if it's......ME!

          (Pulls up sleeve, feels for pulse)
  
Have I had all my shots?  Can I catch ebola if I've never been to Africa?  What about a break-in?

             (Goes to windows, shutting them, locking)

(Trying to calm self, breathing rapidly)  Deep breaths, that's what the therapist says....deep breaths......or is it that I need a paper bag?

           (Searches for a paper bag, then stops)

What if I give myself a heart attack and they have to knock down the doors to find me....because I never showed up on the set tomorrow?

            (Returns to the windows and re-opens them, then goes to a bookcase, takes out a book)

Maybe I'll just read a little.......

           (Flips through the pages)

This looks good......'And death walked amongst them, looking for the next victim, and sometimes people could feel his hand on their shoulder, as he checked to see if this was the right one....those near death could almost see him, and everyone knew that one of them was next, but they were happy when it wasn't them.....'

           (Looks at the book)

Who wrote this shit?

           (Takes the book and throws it out the window)

Maybe I should just look at the stars.......

           (Looks out the window, nodding)

Naturally...it's cloudy!

          (Hears something, leans out the window)

What?  What did you say?  Dead?  They're dead! oh, my God!  (Horrified)  And they were so young!

         (Dances around the room)

 Oh, that's wonderful!  I mean, not for them, but it means....I'm not one of the three!
 It's safe to leave because.........I'm still alive!

          (Turns to go,dancing out of the room, looks back)

Who's gonna play that part now?  Maybe I have a chance?

         (Runs out.  Not the end for this person...yet.)

       ------------------------------ Note - for those not familiar with this expression 'it comes in threes' the reference is to how it often seems like famous people die in threes - this is really an urban myth, but the press builds it up.  Robin Williams died this week, then Lauren Bacall...They were great talents - may they rest in peace.  T


Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
0 Comments

monologue mania day  181 by janet s. tiger  mate tea (c) aug. 12, 2014

8/12/2014

0 Comments

 
Welcome to Monologue Mania- one new free monologue a day
                                                                        - for a whole year!
Note: A few words about 'free' -  all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty info.

 If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues, please
scroll down for the previous days or go to 
http://www.monologuestore.com/ -click on the Monologue Mania button please scroll down.
     To start at the beginning - Feb. 13, - 
click here.
     For a list of the blurbs from each day, 
click here

Help  a playwright and get  more great  award-winning monologues - 
MonologueZone.com
Thank you for your comments - and for liking and sharing this sit
e
                            
------------------------------------------------------------
- Monologue Mania Day  #181   by Janet S. Tiger  Mate Tea Aug.12  , 2014

                      

                                     Mate Tea


                                         A monologue by Janet S. Tiger   © all rights reserved

                                                     tigerteam1@gmail.com 

         (T is speaking with her daughter and granddaughter, with Ella visible, too - and yes, they all still have Southern accents and are drinking tea.)

Of course you want to get married, my dear girl.  It's only normal.

Everyone likes to mate.  Not just animals and humans, but inanimate objects as well, as you will notice every time you are in a rush and need a  paper clip.

There, in a pile of what used to be thousands of the damn things, is a remainder of only the ones who have chosen to procreate.  They are joined together, and not a one of them is ready to help you because of their distracted state.

I try to uncouple them, but they refuse.  The pieces of metal are wrapped around each other in a coitus that cannot be interruptus without a scraping off of the wonderful nail polish you had just had applied earlier today at May Wilson's Beauty Parlor.

Why does this happen to torment me?  I think that we do not appreciate the tiny items we use every day and their lives, which usually go unnoticed until we are forced to pay attention.

It is, of course, not just the paper clips I refer to -  hangers mate, the wire ones in horrible configurations…….  And I also refer to the migration patterns of pens and pencils.  I believe there should be a special on that PBS channel about this phenomenon - they have just about everythin' else, for God's sake. 

         (Looks up at ceiling, contrite)


Sorry, Momma, but I do not think God minds his name in the same breath as PBS - I personally believe God might be behind some of those shows.

        (Looks back at the others)


Don't look at me like you've never seen this migration.  You notice that you have no pens near your telephone.  So you buy new ones.  Within days, they, too, are gone.  The entire package.  Now we are taught that pens, because they are without feet of any kind, cannot move.  This is, like many things we've been taught, quite untrue, and brings many other teachings to doubt.

Where did the pens go?  Upon searching, you find they have all congregated in an empty mug- probably still dirty with the remains of the last coffee dregs - near the desk in the den.  How did they get there?  I feel a complete study would prove what we all suspect- the pens migrate at different times of the month - the exact methodology how should be determined by one of those scientific-like experiments.

But I can tell you - they have migrated in order to multiply, which they have in that mug in the den.  Where you had bought 10 pens, and lost 5 before, now there are 25  - and some are different - you do not recognize them, because, of course, in the matin' process, their children look different from them.

Eldon Johnston and his wife - they are the folks who have that farm with the roadside peach stand - they are good examples.  Neither had red hair, but their third son, Corey, he had the bright orange kind - much like like the farm worker who was there the summer before.

The pens, I fear, are a little adventurous like that - the Bic fine points that are only blue ink suddenly have birthed pens with all types of colors- red, green, you name it. 

No, it does not take much to occupy my brain.  That's what Daddy used to say - T, you are easily amused, and that is a good thing in this life.  Right now, I am blitherin on because I obviously do not want to deal with the obvious issue here - that you are considering marriage to a man who your mother does not want you to marry......and for once, I happen to agree with her.  

         (Listens, shakes her head)

To explain will take a little more than a cup of tea, my lovely girl....

         (She turns and lifts her teacup.)

Ella.....bring in the whiskey!

         (The lights fade.  End of scene.)
------------------------------------------------------------------                           

Janet S. Tiger    858-736-6315
www.JanetSTiger.weebly.com
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence

Swedenborg Hall 2006-8

----------------------------------------------









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