The Collected Shorter Plays (27 page)

Chime even a little fainter still. Pause for echoes
.

Fade up to even a little less still on strip
.

No trace of May
.

Hold ten seconds
.

Fade out
.]

Curtain

A play for television

Female Voice (V)

Male Figure (F)

   I Pre-action

  II Action

 III Re-action

Å Room: 6 m × 5 m

1 Door.

2 Window.

3 Mirror.

4 Pallet.

5 F seated by door.

6 F at window.

7 F at head of pallet.

A Position general view.

B Position medium shot.

C Position near shot of
5
and 1, 6 and 2, 7 and 3.

1.   
Fade up to general view from A. 10 seconds
.

2.
V
Good evening. Mine is a faint voice. Kindly tune accord ingly. [
Pause
.] Good evening. Mine is a faint voice. Kindly tune accordingly. [
Pause
.] It will not be raised, nor lowered, whatever happens. [
Pause
.] Look. [
Long pause
.] The familiar chamber. [
Pause
.] At the far end a window. [
Pause
.] On the right the indispensable door. [
Pause
.] On the left , against the wall, some kind of pallet. [
Pause
.] The light: faint, omnipresent. No visible source. As if all luminous. Faintly luminous. No shadow. [
Pause
.] No shadow. Colour: none. All grey. Shades of grey. [
Pause
.] The colour grey if you wish, shades of the colour grey. [
Pause
.] Forgive my stating the obvious. [
Pause
.] Keep that sound down. [
Pause
.] Now look closer. [
Pause
.] Floor.

3.   
Cut to close-up of floor. Smooth grey rectangle 0.70 m × 1.50 m. 5 seconds
.

4.
V
Dust. [
Pause
.] Having seen that specimen of floor you have seen it all. Wall.

5.   
Cut to close-up of wall. Smooth grey rectangle 0.70 m × 1.50 m. 5 seconds
.

6.
V
Dust. [
Pause
.] Knowing this, the kind of wall—

7.   
Close-up of wall continued. 5 seconds
.

8.
V
The kind of floor—

9.   
Cut to close-up of floor. 5 seconds
.

10.
V
Look again.

11.   
Cut to general view from A. 5 seconds
.

12.
V
Door.

13.   
Cut to close-up of whole door. Smooth grey rectangle 0.70 m × 2 m. Imperceptibly ajar. No knob. Faint music. 5 seconds
.

14.
V
Window.

15.   
Cut to close-up of whole window. Opaque sheet of glass 0.70 m × 1.50 m. Imperceptibly ajar. No knob. 5 seconds
.

16.
V
Pallet.

17.   
Cut to close-up from above of whole pallet. 0.70 m × 2 m. Grey sheet. Grey rectangular pillow at window end. 5 seconds
.

18.
V
Knowing all this, the kind of pallet—

19.   
Close-up of whole pallet continued. 5 seconds
.

20.
V
The kind of window—

21.   
Cut to close-up of whole window. 5 seconds
.

22.
V
The kind of door—

23.   
Cut to close-up of whole door. Faint music. 5 seconds
.

24.
V
The kind of wall—

25.   
Cut to close-up of wall as before. 5 seconds
.

26.
V
The kind of floor.

27.   
Cut to close-up of floor as before. 5 seconds
.

28.
V
Look again.

29.   
Cut to general view. 5 seconds
.

30.
V
Sole sign of life a seated figure.

31.   
Move in slowly from A to B whence medium shot of F and door. F is seated on a stool, bowed forward, face hidden, clutching with both hands a small cassette not identifiable as such at this range. Faint music. 5 seconds
.

32.   
Move in from B to C whence near shot of F and door. Cassette now identifiable. Music slightly louder, 5 seconds
.

33.   
Move in from C to close-up of head, hands, cassette. Clutching hands, head bowed, face hidden. Music slightly louder. 5 seconds
.

34.   
Move slowly back to A via C and B (no stops). Music pro gressively fainter till at level of B it ceases to be heard
.

35.   
General view from A. 5 seconds
.

II

All from A except 26–29

1.
V
He will now think he hears her.

2.   
F raises head sharply, turns still crouched to door, fleeting face, tense pose. 5 seconds
.

3.
V
No one.

4.   
F relapses into opening pose, bowed over cassette. 5 seconds
.

5.
V
Again.

6.   
Same as 2
.

7.
V
Now to door.

8.   
F gets up, lays cassette on stool, goes to door, listens with right ear against door, back to camera. 5 seconds
.

9.
V
No one. [
Pause 5 seconds
.] Open.

10.   
With right hand F pushes door open halfway clockwise, looks out, back to camera. 2 seconds
.

11.
V
No one.

12.   
F removes hand from door which closes slowly of itself, stands irresolute, back to camera. 2 seconds
.

13.
V
Now to window.

14.   
F goes to window, stands irresolute, back to camera. 5 seconds
.

15.
V
Open.

16.   
With right hand F pushes window open halfway clockwise, looks out, back to camera. 5 seconds
.

17.
V
No one.

18.   
F removes hand from window which closes slowly of itself, stands irresolute, back to camera. 2 seconds
.

19.
V
Now to pallet.

20.   
F goes to head of pallet (window end), stands looking down at it. 5 seconds
.

21.   
F turns to wall at head of pallet, goes to wall, looks at his face in mirror hanging on wall, invisible from A
.

22.
V
[
surprised
] Ah!

23.   
After 5 seconds F bows his head, stands before mirror with bowed head. 2 seconds
.

24.
V
Now to door.

25.   
F goes to stool, takes up cassette, sits, settles into opening pose, bowed over cassette. 2 seconds
.

26.   
Same as I.31
.

27.   
Same as I.32
.

28.   
Same as I.33
.

29.   
Same as I.34
.

30.   
Same as I.35
.

31.
V
He will now again think he hears her.

32.   
Same as II.2
.

33.   
F gets up, lays cassette on stool, goes to door, opens it as before, looks out, stoops forward. 10 seconds
.

34.   
F straightens up, releases door which closes slowly of itself, stands irresolute, goes to stool, takes up cassette, sits irresolute, settles finally into opening pose, bowed over cassette. 5 seconds
.

35.   
Faint music audible for first time at A. It grows louder. 5 seconds
.

36.
V
Stop.

37.   
Music stops. General view from A. 5 seconds
.

38.
V
Repeat.

III

1.
Immediately after “Repeat” cut to near shot from C of F and door. Music audible. 5 seconds
.

2.
Move in to close-up of head, hands, cassette. Music slightly louder. 5 seconds
.

3.
Music stops. Action II.2. 5 seconds
.

4.
Action II.4. Music resumes. 5 seconds
.

5.
Move back to near shot from C of F and door. Music audible. 5 seconds
.

6.
Music stops. Action II.2. Near shot from C of F and door. 5 seconds
.

7.
Action II. 8. Near shot from C of stool, cassette, F with right ear to door. 5 seconds
.

8.
Action II.10. Crescendo creak of door opening. Near shot from C of stool, cassette, F with right hand holding door open. 5 seconds
.

9.
Cut to view of corridor seen from door. Long narrow (0.70 m) grey rectangle between grey walls, empty, far end in darkness. 5 seconds
.

10.
Cut back to near shot from C of stool, cassette, F holding door open. 5 seconds
.

11.
Action II.12. Decrescendo creak of door slowly closing. Near shot from C of stool, cassette, F standing irresolute, door. 5 seconds
.

12.
Cut to close-up from above of cassette on stool, small grey rectangle on larger rectangle of seat. 5 seconds
.

13.
Cut back to near shot of stool, cassette, F standing irresolute, door. 5 seconds
.

14.
Action II.14 seen from C. Near shot from C of F and window. 5 seconds
.

15.
Action II.16 seen from C. Crescendo creak of window opening. Faint sound of rain. Near shot from C of F with right hand holding window open. 5 seconds
.

16.
Cut to view from window. Night. Rain falling in dim light. Sound of rain slightly louder. 5 seconds
.

17.
Cut back to near shot from C of F with right hand holding window open
.
Faint sound of rain. 5 seconds
.

18.
Action II.18 seen from C. Decrescendo creak of window slowly closing. Near shot from C of F and window. 5 seconds
.

19.
Action II.20 seen from C. Near shot from C of F, mirror, head of pallet
.

20.
Cut to close-up from above of whole pallet
.

21.
Move down to tighter close-up of pallet moving slowly from pillow to foot and back to pillow. 5 seconds on pillow
.

22.
Move back to close-up from above of whole pallet. 5 seconds
.

23.
Cut back to near shot from C of F
,
mirror, head of pallet. 5 seconds
.

24.
Cut to close-up of mirror reflecting nothing. Small grey rectangle (same dimensions as cassette) against larger rectangle of wall. 5 seconds
.

25.
Cut back to near shot from C of F, mirror, head of pallet. 5 seconds
.

26.
Action II.21 seen from C. Near shot from C of F and mirror. 5 seconds
.

27.
Cut to close-up of F’s face in mirror. 5 seconds. Eyes close. 5 seconds. Eyes open. 5 seconds. Head bows. Top of head in mirror. 5 seconds
.

28.
Cut back to near shot from C of F with bowed head, mirror, head of pallet. 5 seconds
.

29.
Action II.25 seen from C. Near shot from C of F settling into opening pose. Music audible once settled. 10 seconds
.

30.
Music stops. Action II.2 seen from C. Faint sound of steps approaching. They stop. Faint sound of knock on door. 5 seconds. Second knock, no louder. 5 seconds
.

31.
Action II.33 seen from C. Crescendo creak of door slowly opening. Near shot from C of stool, cassette, F holding door open, stooping forward. 10 seconds
.

32.
Cut to near shot of small boy full length in corridor before open door. Dressed in black oilskin with hood glistening with rain. White face raised to invisible F. 5 seconds. Boy shakes head faintly. Face still, raised. 5 seconds. Boy shakes head again. Face still, raised. 5 seconds. Boy turns and goes. Sound of receding steps. Register from the same position his slow recession till he vanishes in dark at end of corridor. 5 seconds on empty corridor
.

33.
Cut back to near shot from C of stool, cassette, F holding door open. 5 seconds
.

34.
Action II.34 seen from C. Decrescendo creak of door slowly closing. 5 seconds
.

35.
Cut to general view from A. 5 seconds
.

36.
Music audible at A. It grows. 10 seconds
.

37.
With growing music move in slowly to close-up of head bowed right down over cassette now held in arms and invisible. Hold till end of Largo
.

38.
Silence. F raises head. Face seen clearly for second time. 10 seconds
.

39.
Move slowly back to A
.

40.
General view from A. 5 seconds
.

41.
Fade out
.

MUSIC

From Largo of Beethoven’s Fifth Piano Trio (
The Ghost
):