Forty-something Owen Reid’s wife left him because he couldn’t cope with her success. One Friday night, he wakes up in the emergency department after falling and bumping his head at his new, very young girlfriend’s place. After examining him, the young ER doctor worries he may have heart problems and keeps him for tests. Danny, Owen’s best friend, assumes Owen is on his last legs. He comes and goes offering both condolences and support. In the times between visits from Danny and the doctor, the audience sees several ER events take place behind the curtain, all in silhouette. These include a thief, a clown and a woman giving birth. We find that many of the stories of these people are intertwined not only with Owen but with each other. In the end, Owen makes a big decision.
Cast: 3M/1F (Note: There are 14 characters in Behind the Curtain, but they can be played with as few as four actors.)
Here’s how it opens:
Characters in order of appearance
Owen Reid A man in his early 40’s
Dr. John A very young male doctor
Danny Owen’s friend about the same age as Owen
Nurse Drinkwalter An older female nurse
The following characters all appear in silhouette from behind the curtain and could be played by the actors from the characters listed above:
Mrs. Skinner, an older woman, Vernon: her son, Henny Drinkwalter: Nurse Drinkwalter’s ex-husband, a woman visiting her husband, Dave Burns; Danny’s neighbour, Maddie; who is giving birth, Jack; Maddie’s boyfriend, a police officer, Charlie; a thief; Mr. Happy Feet; a clown
Setting
The setting is the emergency department of a hospital. There is a hospital bed centre stage with two chairs for visitors and some medical equipment typical of an emergency room. Behind is a curtain through which some of the action can be seen in silhouette.
ACT I Scene I
The lights come up to Owen Reid lying in the hospital bed.. He is asleep. A very young doctor approaches reading a page on a clipboard. He wears a white lab coat on and has a stethoscope around his neck. He stops in front of the bed.
DOCTOR: Mr. Reid?
OWEN doesn’t stir. The doctor re-checks the chart.
DOCTOR: Mr. Reid? Can you hear me?
OWEN doesn’t stir. The doctor moves over beside OWEN and shakes his shoulder to wake him. OWEN stirs. He’s still almost asleep.
DOCTOR: Mr. Reid, wake up.
OWEN: (groggy) What? Where am I?
DOCTOR: You’re in the emergency room of Saint Andrew’s Hospital.
OWEN: Hospital? What happened?
DOCTOR: You passed out.
OWEN: I did?
DOCTOR: Yes, and when you did, you bumped your head.
OWEN: Where?
DOCTOR: The occipital region.
OWEN: Where’s that?
DOCTOR: (Pointing to the back of his head) Right about here.
OWEN: No, I mean where did I pass out?
DOCTOR: Oh, ah … (checks chart) it doesn’t say.
OWEN: Who are you?
DOCTOR: Your doctor.
OWEN: You’re a doctor?
DOCTOR: Yes. I’m Dr. John.
OWEN: Dr. John what?
DOCTOR: What?
OWEN: What’s your last name?
DOCTOR: That is my last name.
OWEN: Isn’t there an age requirement to be a doctor?
DOCTOR: Don’t worry, if I wasn’t the real thing, they wouldn’t give me one of these (stethoscope). So tell me, how are you feeling?
OWEN: Okay, I guess.
DOCTOR: Could you sit up for me?
OWEN sits up. DOCTOR examines his head.
DOCTOR: You’ve got a bit of a bump here, Mr. Reid.
OWEN: Call me Owen. I only get called “mister” when I’m about to be hired or fired. (DOCTOR finds the bump) Ow!
DOCTOR: Does that hurt?
OWEN: You have impressive powers of deduction, doc. Am I okay?
DOCTOR: We’re concerned you may have a bit of a concussion.
OWEN: How can I have a bit of a concussion? Don’t I either have one or not?
DOCTOR writes a few words on the chart on his clipboard.
OWEN: What are you writing?
DOCTOR: Notes.
OWEN: What kind of notes?
DOCTOR: Nothing important.
OWEN: If they weren’t important, you wouldn’t be writing them. What are you saying?
DOCTOR: If you must know, I’m noting you’re being argumentative.
OWEN: I’m not being argumentative.
DOCTOR: You’re not?
OWEN: No!
DOCTOR: I see.
OWEN: I’m not; I just asked a simple question.
DOCTOR writes a few more words on the chart.
OWEN: Now what are you writing?
DOCTOR: Do you have a headache?
OWEN: No, but my head hurts where you pushed it.
DOCTOR: Are you feeling nauseous?
OWEN: No.
DOCTOR: Dizzy?
OWEN: No.
DOCTOR: Blurred vision? Dazed? Confused?
OWEN: None of those things. How did I get here?
DOCTOR: I believe a friend dropped you off. You were marginally coherent.
OWEN: What friend?
DOCTOR: It doesn’t say.
OWEN: Where is he now?
DOCTOR: Probably trying to find a place to park. Saturday nights are always busy here.
OWEN: Should I have made a reservation?
DOCTOR: How could you do that? It was an accident. You wouldn’t know in advance.
OWEN: Oh, right.
DOCTOR: Your concussion, if you have one, is probably mild, which is what I meant by a bit of a concussion. Our bigger concern –
OWEN: “Our”?
DOCTOR: Collectively speaking. We work as a team here; the doctors, the nurses, the orderlies – our concern is your heart.
OWEN: What’s my heart got to do with anything?
DOCTOR: Your heart rate is elevated, even for a man of your age.
OWEN: Elevated? How el- … wait, a man of my age?
DOCTOR: Yes, it says here you’re 44 years old.
OWEN: That’s not old.
DOCTOR: It’s a relative term.
OWEN: Compared to you, maybe. How old did you say you were?
DOCTOR: Your resting pulse is high and your blood pressure is a concern. Are you taking any medication?
OWEN: (beat) No.
DOCTOR: You hesitated.
OWEN: No I didn’t.
DOCTOR: It sounded like it.
OWEN: I didn’t hesitate.
DOCTOR writes a note.
OWEN: And I’m not being argumentative.
DOCTOR: We’ll need to run some tests to see what might have caused you to black out.
DANNY enters quickly.
DANNY: Owen, thank God you’re alive. (to the DOCTOR) He is alive, right? I mean, I’m no doctor, but he looks alive to me. Don’t let that stunned look bother you. He’s always like that after he blacks out. (to OWEN) Say something, Owen. Anything!
OWEN: Danny?
DANNY: Yes, yes, it’s me! (to the DOCTOR) He recognizes me. That’s a good sign, right? I would think it is. (to OWEN loudly) It’s okay, buddy. I’m here now. Don’t you worry, everything’s going to be just fine.
DANNY turns to the DOCTOR.
DANNY: He is going to be fine right, Doc? I mean, if he’s gonna croak, I shouldn’t give him false hope by telling him he’s going to be fine. If he’s about to take the big sleep, maybe I should tell him to accept it. Close his eyes; go to the light. Or do I tell him to fight like he’s never fought before? Help me out here, Doc. I don’t know what to do. Whatever I say could make the difference between life and death.
DOCTOR: I doubt it’s that serious. We just need to do some tests.
DANNY: Tests? Ah, geez, no! That sounds serious. But I don’t want to scare him. I’ll show him a brave front (To Owen loudly) Okay buddy, don’t you worry about anything. They’re just going to do some tests. Totally routine stuff; probably not life or death.
OWEN: You don’t have to yell.
DANNY: (to the DOCTOR) Oh, man, I don’t know if I can handle this.
OWEN: Relax, Danny.
DANNY: Relax? How am I supposed to relax? I get a call telling me you’ve hit your head and are unconscious. Now they’re going to do tests. It sounds like you’ve got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.
DOCTOR: The tests are just a precaution. How was he on the drive to the hospital?
DANNY: When I dropped him off, he was marginally coherent.
OWEN: What’d you say?
DANNY: I heard that on TV once. (to the DOCTOR) Did I get it right?
DOCTOR: That’s the exact term used on this (points to the chart). Look, right here … marginally coherent.
DANNY: Really? Hey, I’m better at this than I thought.
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