by

Yanick Champoux (38%)

Lee Watts (18%)

Josip Nað (17%)

Michel Lacombe (16%)

Dorian (4%)

goldkngt55 (3%)

Andrew Avila (2%)

Marten (1%)

Oliver (1%)

Part 36

Lee Watts (1/3/2002)

Children's Matinee: The Sacred Fish

Scene 1

The lights rise to the sounds of a brass gong clanging and small bells ringing. A man in rags appears from the right, his face concealed by a theatrical mask. His sad eyes peer out from beneath his long forehead and his mouth is turned down in a most sad of expressions. He is carrying a fishing net and a long pole. He walks to the center of the stage and throws down the net and bends to untie an imaginary boat.

Then a loud clang on a deep gong announces the arrival on stage of another actor. A woman, in rags as well, stomps her way to the center of the stage, with each step the deep gong sounds. The man cowers as she approaches. A mask conceals her face, it's eyes are narrow and close together, her nose, long and pointy, her mouth is a straight line drawn tightly between two round cheeks. In her hand, she carries a long rod, often used for the beating of rugs.

She brings the rug beater back and strikes her husband to the ground. She shakes her finger at her husband and points at her rags and points off stage, shaking her head. He nods in agreement and picks himself off the ground as she exits the stage to the right, each step echoes with the beating of the deep gong. He sighs, raising his hands to his chest, for he truly loves his wife. And he turns to the audience and holds his hands out wide, nodding his head. That is the size fish that he is going to catch today.

Taking up his pole, he begins to push his boat out, moving slowly across the stage. Every three movements, he would reach over the stage and pull up a empty fishing line. As he would shake his head and the line, a cowbell would ring. After poling his boat across the stage, he began to pole his way back.

Reaching mid-stage again, he reached down and pulls on the line. The end of the line does not appear. He pulls again and still nothing. His head bobs up and down, first one hand and then the other. Then he rubs his hands together and he plants his feet firmly on the stage. He pulls and he pulls, a high brass gong sounds, repeating faster and faster until...

Another actor, dressed in green and black sequins robe with the mask of a fish-head appears from beneath the stage, flying up into the air. The fisherman stumbles about the stage, remaining under the fish until he catches the dwarf actor in his arms. The fish actor flops about in the fisherman's arms, trying to make it back under the stage. But to no avail. The fisherman has caught him, so he stops struggling.

The fisherman shows the catch to the audience, nodding his head up and down with great excitement. He places the fish into the boat. Again he turns to the audience and rubs his stomach. The fish gets on its knees, placing its front flippers together. The Fish actor points to the fisherman with both flippers and motions over board. The fisherman shakes his head, "NO". Again the fish actor motions for the fisherman to let him go. Again the fisherman shakes his head, "NO".

The fish actor grabs the feet of the fisherman and kisses them three times and again motions overboard. The fisherman cocks his head sideways. Again the fish kisses the feet of the fisherman three times and motions over board. The fisherman hold up three fingers and looks at them, finally shaking his head and picking up his pole. The fish repeats the offer, and the fisherman stops poling. Again he looks at his right hand and holds up three fingers. The fisherman looks at the fish and back at his three fingers. He strokes his chin with his other hand.

Raising his index finger of his right hand, the fisherman reaches into his pockets and pulls them inside out. He holds both hands open, showing that he has nothing. He points off stage and draws the shape of his wife with both hands (head, breast and big stomach. The audience erupts in laughter.) He then rubs his head where she had struck him that morning. The fish nods and points overboard, then motions for the fisherman to check his fishing line again.

Following the lead of the fish, the fisherman pulls on the line, but it does not move. The high brass gong sounds. He pulls harder and the gong rings louder but still nothing. He spits into his hands and rubs them together and pulls harder and harder and harder. The gong resounds in rapid succession, but still nothing. The fish grabs hold of the fisherman and pulls on him as the gong goes crazy. Then from below the stage, a chest appears. Slowly, the chest rises falling onto the stage with a loud thump, casting the fish and fisherman to the stage in exhaustion.

Collecting himself, the fisherman climbs over the chest and pops open the latches of the old beaten chest. Opening the lid slowly, he peers inside. He then throws open the chest and runs his hands though the silver and gold colored coins. Tiny bells jingle as the coins fall back into the chest. The fish picks itself off the stage and dusts itself off. Tapping the fisherman on the shoulder, the fish points at the chest and holds up one flipper. Acknowledging the exchange, the fisherman nods his head. With a back flip, the fish flies over the head of the fisherman and disappears off stage.

Poling back to mid-stage, the deep gong announces the approach of the wife, each step appointed with a loud sounding of the gong. In her hands is the large rug beater. The fisherman flies to the side of his wife dancing as he stands before her. Until the rug beater smacks him across the head, driving him to his knees. He begs to his wife, to not hurt him again, but to come and look within the boat. He rises and dances across to the chest and begins to dance circles around it. The wife strides forward, the loud gong sounding at each footfall.

Arriving at the chest, she puts her hands on her hips, and begins tapping her foot. Each foot fall marked by the sound of the loud gong. The fisherman stops dancing and points to the chest. The wife holds out her arms, signing the size of the fish that she had told him to catch. The husband laughs, and holds his hands showing the size of the fish that he had caught. The wife brings her hands to her chest and leaps into the air. She then begins searching for the fish. She moves the husband back and forth, looking everywhere for the fish. Finally, she throws her hands up and looks directly at her husband.

He stops dancing and points at the chest. The wife holds out her hands apart equal to the length of the fish. The husband laughs and motions that the fish went overboard. Her hands go to her hips as her head tilts down. The husband points again to the chest. The wife takes a step forward, marked by the sound of the loud gong. The husband begins moving around the chest, pointing at it as his wife begins chasing him around the chest, her every footfall marked by the loud gong and the narrow misses of her rug beater by a high twang of a lyre.

They continue to run circles around the chest, until the wife begins to tire. She wobbles and kicks the chest, turning it on its side, spilling the gold and silver coins onto the stage. She stops running and looks at the coins. She looks at her husband who stops running. She looks back at the coins. She picks up a coin and looks at her husband. She throws her arm out wide and leaps high into the air. She lands in her husband's arms as he drops to one knee. She hugs him tightly and rests her head in his chest as the lights go out.