Star Light, Star Bright
A Drama in One Act
by
Michael Thomas Tower
Performance time: Approximately 25 minutes
© 1988-2005 Michael Thomas Tower
All Rights Reserved
Query regarding performance or presentation of this play
in any many whatsoever should be directed to the author
MTTower@aol.com
SL0510a
Synopsis
After shopping and errands, Estelle and Harley, older people with a valuable friendship, rest at a sidewalk café before resuming their journey to their individual homes. In a display of lyrical language and thought, they explore much of the value of the past and the hope of the future. Before the evening is out, Estelle has a most unexpected and unusual discovery of a love she thought was lost forever.
Characters
Estelle -- In her mid sixties.
Harley -- Around the same age as Estelle.
Raymond -- In his mid to late twenties.
The Time
August -- a balmy evening with dusk approaching.
The Setting
A small cafe with a sidewalk area. Two or three small tables, each with two chairs, are in this outdoor space. Each table has on it a candle enclosed within a colored glass holder; the candles are not lighted. The entrance into the café opens onto the sidewalk. There is also a window in the café that gives a view of the outdoor area from inside.
Star Light, Star Bright
(at rise, estelle and harley are sitting at a table, each with a cup in front of them from which they occasionally drink. Two napkins and a fork near Estelle are also on the table.
(estelle's measured, careful movements suggest an acquiescence to something inside her that's both physical and emotional; she is not a well woman, but hides this fairly successfully from most people -- though not from Harley. Her purse is on the table beside her. At times there seems to be a focus of thought or sight that only she can recognize.
(harley is dressed in slacks, a comfortable shirt, and a favorite old sweater that he wears too often. A shopping bag rests on the floor beside his chair.
(In their contact and conversation. estelle and harley reveal a depth of companionship that is very special to them. they smile easily with each other, and enjoy the teasing and cajoling and togetherness enormously.
(The lighting suggests a clear and pleasant day nearing dusk. The sun is just slipping down past the horizon, and daylight is fading. The light changes in only slightly exaggerated real time with the action: the light waning, the sky darkening, the night settling in.
(estelle is staring at something in the sky. she's smiling slightly, enjoying what she sees. harley, paying no attention to her, is silently reading the front of a greeting card in his hand. On the table are several cards. he opens the card he's holding and reads the inside, and then he laughs lightly.)
harley
Estelle, read this. It ...
(Notices her attention is somewhere else)
What are you looking at?
(Turns to look where she's looking)
What?
estelle
(Gently)
That star.
harley
A star?
estelle
Don't you see it? It's not even good dark yet, and it's so bright.
harley
Oh. Yeah. That one.
estelle
Um-huh.
harley
It probably has a name.
estelle
It doesn't need a name.
harley
(Teasing)
You weren't making a wish, were you?
estelle
And what if I were?
harley
What was it?
estelle
Oh, you know I can't tell.
harley
Did it have to do with me?
estelle
No.
harley
(Feigning disappointment)
Oh ...
estelle
I have made wishes for you, Harley. This wasn't one of them.
harley
Do you often make a wish when you see the first star of the evening?
estelle
It's a childhood thing that I don't seem to outgrow.
harley
And do they usually come true?
estelle
Sometimes. Except ...
(A beat; suddenly serious, distant)
Well, sometimes I wish for things that can't come true. I can't help it.
harley
I've known you long enough to know that you are a poet at heart and a dreamer by nature. But you're also the most reasonable and practical person I ever met. A disconcerting combination, by the way. But to dream the impossible dream? No -- that remains a phrase for a song. It doesn't describe the Estelle I know.
estelle
(Regaining immediacy)
Don't be so sure that you really know Estelle. I haven't told you everything.
harley
I've never known you to be so full of mystery.
(Teasingly flirtatious)
I like it.
estelle
I'm sorry, Harley. Being a little silly, I'm afraid. But ever since we sat down here, I've felt ... well ... strange.
harley
We come here often.
estelle
Still ...
harley
We walked too much, I think. Pumped too much blood to your hair follicles or something.
estelle
I feel fine. Now, what was it you wanted to show me?
harley
Hm? Oh, it was just one of these cards. Here -- this one. I thought it was funny.
(estelle takes the card -- reads the front and the inside. she assumes a puzzled look as she reads the card again, front and inside.)
estelle
My word, Harley. That's dirty, isn't it?
harley
Suggestive. My grandson will like it. His birthday's next month.
estelle
Which grandson?
harley
Phillip.
estelle
Harley! For Pete's sake, he's only a child.
harley
He'll be sixteen. He's got a deep voice -- hairy legs. He'll like it.
estelle
Maybe you better clear it with his father first.
harley
His father is the one who wouldn't understand it. Don't know how he ever sired three kids.
estelle
You sure he's sixteen?
harley
(Still reading through cards)
Who?
estelle
Phillip. You took me to his birthday party a few weeks ago. He was fourteen. I remember -- I put the candles on the cake.
harley
Yes, I took you to his birthday party. And, yes, he was fourteen. But that was one year, ten months and three weeks ago, Estelle -- four months and eight days before they moved twelve hundred and forty-nine miles away.
estelle
Why is it you always sound like an accountant?
harley
Because I always am an accountant.
estelle
You're retired.
harley
Accountancy is congenital, not occupational. Like being near-sighted or bald. It's a curse.
(harley has looked through all of the cards and pushes them aside.)
estelle
No more funny ones?
harley
Two mildly amusing. Two I don't get.
estelle
Don't you read them before you buy them?
harley
If I like the front, I buy it. Sometimes I'm disappointed.
estelle
Oh, Harley, you must have lots of unused cards around.
harley
Not a one. I send them to people I don't like -- and hope they don't get it either.
estelle
I remember the card you gave me last birthday.
harley
And you got the joke, didn't you?
estelle
All right, I admit I laughed when I opened it. But I wasn't going to let you know that.
harley
I also gave you that other gift ...
estelle
A plate with a poem on it. I'm sorry the cat broke it.
harley
I told you I'd glue it back together.
estelle
And I told you: I like good poetry; I don't like decorative plates.
harley
(Quoting from memory)
"Roses are red,
“Violets are blue.
“While you're eating dinner
“I'm thinking of you."
estelle
Boots has good taste, don't you think? ... in what she breaks?
harley
And I was planning to buy you the entire eighty-two-piece set of china! ... emblazoned with the complete works of Edgar Allen Poe.
estelle
Nevermore! The first edition of Edna St. Vincent Millay did nicely. That I did appreciate.
(harley picks up the greeting cards and drops them into the shopping bag.)
(continuing) estelle (continuing)
Do you think our food might be ready?
harley
It's a slow night and Tony's short-handed. I'll go check on it.
(harley exits into the café. No sooner has he gone in than raymond emerges, carrying two plates of food. While it may not be immediately noticeable, raymond's dress is that of a period forty years past. raymond is not within Estelle's view as he sets the plates on the table, but estelle seems to have some kind of inward reaction to the man's presence -- a reaction that causes some uneasiness in her. Although estelle can't see it, raymond's gaze is steady on her. When he speaks, he's friendly and courteous; yet estelle seems to be puzzled in some way that neither she nor we can understand.)
raymond
Can I get you anything else?
estelle
(Not looking at Raymond; uncomfortable with him)
Uh ... no, I think we're fine.
(harley comes out of the café. he notices the food on the table; he does not, apparently, see Raymond.)
harley
Ah, good, it is here. Tony said he thought it had been brought out.
raymond
(Genuinely pleasant; to Estelle)
Let me know if you need anything.
(raymond goes to exit, but turns and hesitates to take one last look at estelle before he goes. There's a hint of a tender smile on his face. harley's eyes have stayed glued to estelle, who is recovering from her unexplainable reaction. raymond exits.)
harley
Are you all right?
estelle
I'm sorry -- just one of my little dizzy spells. I'm fine now.
harley
You sure?
estelle
(Takes deep breath to reinforce her recovery)
You've already paid for this, haven't you?
(Reaches for her purse)
How much do I owe you?
harley
Thirty-six dollars and eighty-seven cents.
estelle
What?
harley
They raised the prices.
estelle
Harley!
harley
We'll settle when we get back to your place, like we always do. You bought my colander, I paid for your light bulbs. That squeaky rubber thing is a gift for Boots. We'll split the Newsweek -- fifty-fifty, even though you'll read it first ...
estelle
(Ignoring him)
Where's my fork?
(harley finds the fork and hands it to her without missing a beat.)
harley
And God only knows who'll pay the cab fare if we don't continue the walk.
estelle
What's that?
(Pointing to his sandwich)
harley
Sandwich.
estelle
What kind?
harley
What difference does it make?
estelle
It reeks of cholesterol. Red-meated animals and saturated fats. You should be more careful.
harley
I think it's the horseradish you smell. I told him extra.
estelle
What's this?
(Poking at her salad)
harley
Salad. That's what you said you wanted. Spinach, I think . . . some other stuff, green and ... whatever. I don't know -- it's got a clever Italian name of some kind with no basis in reality. Isn't it okay?
estelle
The dressing?
harley
Wine vinegar with flotsam and jetsam.
estelle
Sounds marvelous.
harley
You don't really like that stuff, do you?
estelle
Of course not.
(Referring to Harley's sandwich)
I could eat two of those without coming up for air.
harley
(Removing sprouts from sandwich)
Why do sprouts taste the way they do?
estelle
Because they are what they are.
harley
Like compost that's unraveled.
estelle
Well, I like them.
(estelle takes the discarded sprouts and puts them in her salad.
(raymond comes out and begins rearranging chairs at the other tables.)
harley
I don't believe that. It's your martyr complex festering.
estelle
(Referring to his sandwich)
You didn't put salt on there, did you?
(they eat as they talk.)
harley
On corned beef? I wouldn't do that.
estelle
Well, you put salt on cheese sandwiches.
harley
Only if it has tomato.
(raymond nears the table where Estelle and Harley are sitting; estelle again experiences her unusual and unexplainable reaction. raymond moves back to the door, again turning to look at Estelle before he exits.)
(continuing) harley (continuing)
Are you all right, Estelle?
estelle
I don't know, I ...
(Takes a deep breath)
I'm okay. Whatever it was ...
harley
I think we've walked enough. We'll take a cab from here.
estelle
I'm fine. Really. I want to walk.
(A beat as they try to again focus on their food.)
harley
What did the doctor have to say today?
estelle
Nothing.
harley
He refused to speak to you?
estelle
Nothing new. You know how doctors are. Once or twice in your lifetime they'll say a thing or two that catches your attention -- it usually has something to do with birth or death. In between, it doesn't matter much.
harley
Don't get maudlin on me.
estelle
Well, does it?
harley
Matter? Of course it does. Doesn't it? ... to you?
estelle
When you've reached the far end of the promise, the question gnaws.
harley
Don't friends matter?
estelle
Friends like you, Harley?
harley
Friends like you.
estelle
Yes, of course. Friends matter -- and the friendship. And love matters, too, I'm sure -- for those who find it, and keep it.
harley
You talk as though you've been short-changed.
estelle
I never married, Harley. I told you that.
harley
Yes ...
estelle
You were blessed with that experience.
harley
But you must have been in love -- sometime.
estelle
(More to herself)
Such a distance traveled.
harley
And certainly you've been loved -- passionately, closely. You, of all people, couldn't have been passed over on that.
estelle
A badly-worn memory.
harley
(An unemotional statement of fact)
I love you, you know.
estelle
Of course you do, Harley. And I love you. Like the river loves the boulders, because it's something to lean against as you drift along.
(Sincerely but not emotionally)
Yes, I do love you, Harley. You're a nice person -- and a very special friend.
harley
I'm really very glad we met.
estelle
Don't make it sound mushy, Harley. We were old when we met.
harley
Good Lord, Estelle, what does age have to do with anything?
estelle
Everything, Harley -- darned near everything! If it hasn't been something else, it will be that! It's the going ... the leaving ... the letting go. Not because you want to, but because you must. And you and I -- so much had gone already when we first met. Youth, time, exuberance ... the desire and the fire and the panting. Long past ...
harley
Thank goodness.
estelle
... by the time we met.
harley
But we hadn't lost it all. There was ... there is life in us yet.
estelle
Embers, Harley. Waning embers. The fire? ... the passion? Smoldering ... and far too gone for the bellows of hope. More ash than inspiration. No more the cozy fire, sweet wine, soft music and close breath. But memories -- always, always spinning -- scratchy from our longing and warped by the heat of the heart; you recognize the far-off tune, but the beat is not for dancing.
harley
To breathe and pray with no distortion? People call that youth, Estelle.
estelle
Why can't we call it life?
harley
There was a time, wasn't there, when we thought we'd been born for eternity?
estelle
And then we discover that it's merely the blink of an eye.
harley
Is that when growing-up really sets in, do you think?
estelle
And then, before you know it, the final line is nearing and the curtain's coming down. You sense anticipation and hope there's some applause.
harley
You're dwelling on inevitability.
estelle
Beyond our capability.
harley
Because the truth, if we dare to admit it, is that we shall die. That's life; just the way it is.
estelle
Hmm, yes. We love the seasons and the changes they bring. But with the passing of years, the flowers wilt . . . the children age . . . the deserts increase and hold tight. Nothing stays the same and all things pass away.
harley
But we deserve to live forever!
estelle
We've tried to play the game, haven't we? ... to love, to care ... not to hurt, never mislead ...
harley
It isn't fair, is it? We've learned so much ... and to be replaced by someone who must learn it all from scratch.
estelle
No no, we do leave something behind, that's captured and used and built on forever. Otherwise, our progress -- no matter the years -- would be measured in seconds and we would have no meaning at all. We have taken larger steps than that.
harley
Still, the building crumbles ...
estelle
Debris is cleared, new bricks go up, new folks move in ...
harley
Unseen cracks sneak through the walls ...
estelle
Foundations settle ...
harley
And the building crumbles. It's a cycle, Estelle. But I can't think of one I'd rather be part of. Can you?
estelle
(Lighter)
Friends like you make it worth it -- bad taste in cards and all.
harley
You're such a special friend to me.
estelle
And you to me.
harley
I was so darned lonely after Catherine died. And then I met you. Sometimes, now, I'm not lonely at all.
estelle
You've told me this before, you know.
harley
Can't I tell you once again?
estelle
Please do. A statement of love always rings fresh.
harley
We've laughed together, cried together; looked at new things; listened to old things and heard something new. Why, you even taught me to appreciate opera.
estelle
And you taught me to play pinochle.
harley
Not well, I'm afraid.
estelle
As well as I taught you to appreciate opera.
harley
I thought you thought I liked it.
estelle
The train ride to the city, the dinner before and the drinks after. That you like. You still don't know Verdi from Wagner.
harley
I like Mozart!
estelle
You liked Amadeus. You slept through Don Giovanni.
harley
I didn't sleep through that one last week.
estelle
That was Wagner! That's how you can tell it's Wagner! Wagner's not for sleeping.
(raymond comes out and, with a seemingly purposeless manner, wipes the other tables. he moves quietly and inconspicuously.)
harley
And how about fishing? I taught you the joy of that, didn't I?
estelle
You taught me to sit and wait.
harley
That's fishing. The catch is nothing.
estelle
I suspected as much.
harley
So we've had our little secrets ...
estelle
Which weren't secrets after all.
harley
The honesty of which friendship is born.
estelle
And held.
harley
And treasured.
(A beat. estelle rubs her arms as though another chill passed through her. raymond has wiped the other tables and is about to go back in. he stops and, without looking at the two sitting there, listens to a bit of the following conversation.)
estelle
Did you used to dance? When you were young, did you then?
harley
Oh, my goodness, yes. I used to love to dance.
estelle
I thought so.
harley
Not the way they do nowadays, of course.
estelle
I'll bet you were a regular rounder in your day.
harley
I was a normal, healthy lad. Maybe a little precocious.
(raymond gives a furtive glance toward estelle, then exits back into the café.)
estelle
I don't find that hard to believe.
(A beat)
Do you remember your first kiss?
harley
(A remembering smile)
Hmm. Every man remembers his first kiss.
estelle
Why?
harley
We just do. It's some kind of law, I think.
estelle
Tell me about it.
harley
The law?
estelle
The kiss.
harley
Well ... I don't remember her name ...
estelle
What?
harley
Oh, you don't have to remember her name. Most men don't.
estelle
I don't think I like this law.
harley
It is terrible, isn't it? Such an important occasion, and I don't remember her name.
estelle
What she looked like?
harley
Oh, my goodness, yes. Beautiful, of course, or I would never have kissed her.
estelle
Of course not.
harley
Hair like black silk, eyes the color of walnut -- perfect little mouth drifting into a crooked little smile that made a dimple on her left cheek. Only the left one. It was an impulse -- the kiss; I couldn't help it.
estelle
As it should have been.
harley
Of course, I'd dreamed of the possibility for days. Weeks. But ... well, it was an impulse at the moment of ignition -- in truth, a gathering of all the courage that ever existed in every man, anywhere, throughout all time -- channeled through me, in that lightning moment, so I could accomplish what had to be done. You see, every man's courage is a part of every man's first kiss. I had to do it when I did it -- I had no choice.
estelle
Religions have been built on thinner dogma. Tell me about it.
harley
A Sunday afternoon. Royal Theatre. Claudette Colbert; Fred MacMurray ...
estelle
The Egg and I?
harley
Seventh grade, I think.
estelle
My, you started young.
harley
(Lost in his remembrance)
It was! Seventh grade. Miss McClellan was my teacher. At Friday's recess -- that's when I asked her if she'd go to the movie with me. I'd hit a homerun and she was cheering me on -- I was dizzy with success and forgot to be afraid.
estelle
What was it like?
harley
The kiss?
estelle
Yes.
harley
Quick. Awkward. Terrifying. But in that instant I tasted the velvet warmth of her lips and felt the summer softness of her breath on my face. And I caught the scent -- vague but soul-shifting; a scent that told me, somehow, in that split-second of revelation, I could become a man.
estelle
And you can't even remember her name.
harley
(Suddenly recalling)
Nelda Jean Collins. She lived at the corner of Maple and Third, and her father was the undertaker. They lived in a big house -- the bottom floor was the mortuary -- and drove a Packard the color of carbon paper with the biggest white tires I've ever seen. Her father always smelled of earth and coffins -- but she had the fragrance of life.
estelle
Did you ever dance with her?
harley
No. I hardly even spoke to her after that.
estelle
Oh?
harley
I never hit another homerun. My time of glory was a gasp forgotten; my burst of courage simply chance misplaced. They moved the next summer. I wrote her a letter, but I never mailed it.
estelle
You should have told her. So much of the good of caring is lost if only one person knows.
harley
I kept the letter for the longest time. Addressed and sealed. Postage affixed. With S.W.A.K. in red ink on the back. Much too forward; I could never have sent it.
estelle
So, when did you dance?
harley
In college. There's where Catherine and I met. She loved to dance. Even after we married, every Friday night we'd go dancing. Till the children came along. Then, on Friday nights, we'd put the kids to bed, turn the lights down, keep the music low ... and dance. She felt so good in my arms ... so near a perfect fit ... so much a part of every song I knew.
(A pause; disengaging the memory)
And you?
estelle
Hmm?
harley
Your memories of dancing.
estelle
You think I have memories of dancing?
harley
You asked about dancing. Some memories were stirring.
estelle
And I don't know why.
harley
Good memories, surely.
estelle
A disquieting nudge that puffs open a door in the shadowy reach of recall. A shard of a tune, a trace of gardenia -- the hush of silk and the sigh of chiffon in a room warm with laughter and alight with joy.
(raymond is standing, inconspicuously looking out toward where they sit. he steps back from view almost as soon as he appears. estelle reacts with another of her unexplainable feelings -- a brief one.)
harley
Are you chilled?
estelle
It passed. I'm fine.
(harley has finished most of his sandwich; estelle has hardly touched her salad.)
harley
(Rising)
We've walked enough. I'll get a cab.
estelle
Harley, for Pete's sake, it's barely three blocks to my apartment.
harley
Five and a half. It's getting dark and I'm getting a cab. Would you like more tea while we wait?
estelle
No, Harley, I don't want any more tea. I just want you to calm down. I'd like to walk the rest of the way ...
harley
Well, I'm tired. All right? I don't want to walk anymore. You sit right here-- I'll find a cab. Back in a few minutes. Sure you don't want more tea?
(harley is moving toward exit.)
estelle
I do not want tea. If you're going to get a cab, go get a cab. But don't take long; I'll walk home without you.
(Calling after Harley)
In which case, call me tomorrow morning. We have tickets for the art show at the college, remember.
(Turns to speak to the departed Harley)
And we should leave by . . . Harley?
(raymond has opened the café door and walked to the table as though to take the dishes.)
(continuing) estelle (continuing)
Oh, he's gone.
raymond
To get a cab, didn't he say? He seems to think you need it.
(estelle is friendly in her conversation, but still definitely not at ease around raymond. she makes a point of not looking at him.)
estelle
Oh, the way he looks after me sometimes, I'm surprised he doesn't lay eggs.
raymond
You seem to be very good friends -- the two of you.
estelle
Yes . . . we are. We met, oh, nearly five years ago. At the laundry, of all places. The one over on ...
(Suddenly estelle grabs her chest, reacting to obvious acute pain. raymond simply stands by and watches, without concern and but not at all detached. raymond allows her a few moments of recovery before he speaks.)
raymond
Do you feel okay now?
murray
Oh, my, that was a good one. But ... yes! I feel fine now. ... Yes. Fine.
(Better than she's felt in years)
Now what was I saying? Oh, yes -- Harley and I; we met at that laundry over on Midford. He'd been widowed a while, just moved here. We're good ... chums. Shopping, movies, lunch or dinner ...
(Hasn't yet really looked at Raymond)
I haven't seen you here before.
raymond
Just helping out this evening.
estelle
Recently moved to town?
raymond
Visiting -- only long enough to contact someone I knew many years ago. I won't be here long.
estelle
You seem much too young to have known anyone "many years" ago.
raymond
Ah, but what you see doesn't always tell the story.
estelle
No ... perhaps not.
raymond
Earlier I saw you sitting here, making a wish on that star up there.
(raymond sits down at the table, and estelle can't avoid looking at him. When her eyes meet his, raymond smiles and estelle's face reveals her astonishment.)
estelle
Oh my God ... oh, dear God! Your voice ... I knew it sounded like you ...
raymond
(Teasingly, tenderly)
Yet you wouldn't look at me.
estelle
But I knew it couldn't be! How ... ? Oh, dear, I don't understand ...
(Reluctantly, estelle reaches out to touch Raymond -- at first on the hand, then on the face. Grasping the reality of his being there, her touch becomes a lover's touch.)
raymond
It was a lovely wish, Estelle. For all these many years, it's been such a lovely wish.
estelle
I never dreamed it could come true ... but ... I couldn't stop wishing, Raymond.
raymond
Everything heals ... with a little time, a little hope ... a little love.
estelle
Now I know why I had those thoughts earlier -- the memories of dancing.
(Almost playfully, they begin to relive a long-ago memory.)
raymond
The shard of a tune ...
estelle
... a trace of gardenia ...
raymond
... silk and chiffon ...
estelle
... in a room warm with laughter.
(estelle gets up from the table, her head filled with the memory of music and her body remembering the joy of dance. raymond also rises.)
raymond
In a room brimming with love, and music, and friends. Do you remember what the band played that night?
estelle
Each of the many songs. All danced with you.
raymond
I knew I was being selfish, but I didn't care. I wanted you all to myself.
estelle
So many other people there, but all I saw was you.
raymond
And my entire world, I held in my arms. So full of happiness I thought I'd burst!
estelle
Your happiness, Raymond -- that was shared.
raymond
And your pain -- that's been shared.
(Touching her face)
It's so good to be with you again, Estelle.
estelle
You can't know, Raymond, how much I've missed you.
raymond
Oh yes -- I do know.
estelle
Every day through all these years ... to want you, to need you ...
raymond
... wanting only your touch, the sound of your voice.
estelle
It's been so long!
raymond
And the separation needn't have happened at all. It was entirely my fault!
estelle
Raymond, no! You can't blame yourself for that! The other driver crossed to our side ...
raymond
I'd never been so happy in my entire life, as we drove away from that party. You'd said yes. I'd rehearsed the question and prayed for the courage -- and you'd said yes!
estelle
But what happened after that really doesn't matter now, does it? What does matter ...
raymond
What does matter is that you and I are together. We've been apart for much too long.
(estelle slowly withdraws her hand from his and stands, looks at him a moment, then suddenly turns and takes a few steps away.)
estelle
Is this some terrible dream I'm having? For it will be more terrible yet if I awaken and find you gone again.
(With a pitiful desperation)
I wouldn't be able to take another breath! I've seen you, I've heard you! I've felt you! I can't do without you again. Please, oh please, don't let this be a dream too real to awaken from!
(There's a beat, then raymond takes control -- gently and comfortably.)
raymond
It isn't really bad, Estelle -- the leaving -- the letting go. People so often think it's going to be something scary, something terrible; but it isn't that at all.
estelle
(Unsurely, but beginning to realize)
I see.
raymond
I'm here to help you.
estelle
(Then with a smile of complete understanding)
Yes. I see!
(estelle smiles -- with love and understanding. Then, very playfully and flirtatiously, estelle lets something of the young lady dealing with her suitor emerge in her demeanor. raymond opens his arms to her.)
raymond
May I have this dance?
estelle
I thought you'd never ask.
(they move easily into an embrace, then kiss -- comfortably and doubtlessly -- with the passion of lovers rejoined and secure. Ending the kiss, they sway to music that we can't hear -- "their" song, a romantic song, from years long past but never forgotten. With the onset of twilight, the lighting has changed. Around them now is a diffusion of neon color and the unreality of sidelight and shadow. As their embrace relaxes, they blend to the music that we can't hear.
(Almost imperceptibly, estelle glances toward the star for just a moment, then turns her attention back to Raymond.
(With smiles and inner laughter, they glide comfortably into the dance -- two people who know each other's moves and thoughts and being. They are now the ethereal silhouettes of life's expectancies -- not quite real, yet more real than breath and pulse. At first their movement exemplifies togetherness; but it expands, freely and naturally, into something more. A celebration! ... laughter and joy and completion: Life fulfilled. After a few moments of their joyful dance ...
(lights out.)
-- End of Play --