A SNIPPET FROM SEEDS
"So Eleanor - anything new happening with Sylvia and, her plight to get recognition for pigeons and best friend, M. Bird, in particular?"
The play is moving along and although I've arrived at the half-way point and slightly beyond, plotting the story line requires focus and imagination. Not that I lack either one but getting into the head of M. Pigeon is a challenge. I mean, human psyches are difficult enough to figure out but pigeon minds require a special type of thought process.
In discussing the play with acquaintances who, most likely ask out of politeness, what I'm writing, the expression on their faces says it all.
"I'm actually writing two plays, "Seeds" and "Spider"," I tell them, thrilled that anyone is asking for an update. "Seeds' is about the friendship between a woman and her best friend who happens to be a pigeon, who may or may not exist and her devotion to pigeons everywhere. The other play focuses on a spider who's been sharing a house with a female resident, and its (i.e. the spider) effort to understand the reason for her fear. They're both semi-comedic and their conversations are very entertaining."
By the time the brief synopsis is over, their focus has drifted. Talking pigeons and spiders may not be high on people's wanna-know-about list.
Be that as it may, here is yet another snippet of the play. In an effort to help deal with oncoming cold weather, Julie (Sylvia's new-found friend) has offered to give her a pair of her winter boots. Upon seeing her try them on, M. Bird expresses a desire to acquire a pair for himself. All, including Hal, the park supervisor, who has his own motive for finding Sylvia, head for a pet store accompanied by a flock of pigeons, to buy winter boots. Chaos ensues. As always, comments welcome. Cut and paste directly from Word.
you would.”
voices singing: “We shall, We shall be
moved..."
A man walks in holding a placard that reads: ‘birds of a feather, we stick together’
The play is moving along and although I've arrived at the half-way point and slightly beyond, plotting the story line requires focus and imagination. Not that I lack either one but getting into the head of M. Pigeon is a challenge. I mean, human psyches are difficult enough to figure out but pigeon minds require a special type of thought process.
In discussing the play with acquaintances who, most likely ask out of politeness, what I'm writing, the expression on their faces says it all.
"I'm actually writing two plays, "Seeds" and "Spider"," I tell them, thrilled that anyone is asking for an update. "Seeds' is about the friendship between a woman and her best friend who happens to be a pigeon, who may or may not exist and her devotion to pigeons everywhere. The other play focuses on a spider who's been sharing a house with a female resident, and its (i.e. the spider) effort to understand the reason for her fear. They're both semi-comedic and their conversations are very entertaining."
By the time the brief synopsis is over, their focus has drifted. Talking pigeons and spiders may not be high on people's wanna-know-about list.
Be that as it may, here is yet another snippet of the play. In an effort to help deal with oncoming cold weather, Julie (Sylvia's new-found friend) has offered to give her a pair of her winter boots. Upon seeing her try them on, M. Bird expresses a desire to acquire a pair for himself. All, including Hal, the park supervisor, who has his own motive for finding Sylvia, head for a pet store accompanied by a flock of pigeons, to buy winter boots. Chaos ensues. As always, comments welcome. Cut and paste directly from Word.
JULIE
They’re back!
PET STORE OWNER
Not in my store, they ain't. This isn't Capistrano and they’re not swallows.
Lady, it’s time for you and your feathered friends to take flight, fly away home, up-up-and-away, out’ta my store
SYLVIA
You're acquainted with some local swallows living in the area?
PET STORE OWNER
Lady, it’s time for you and your feathered friends to take flight, fly away home, up-up-and-away, out’ta my store
SYLVIA
You can’t make me leave. I’m not doing anything
wrong and me and my friends, here, are possible paying customers
PET STORE OWNER
I can live with the guilt. Wherever you go, your friends and their poop will
follow. You’re scaring away customers
SYLVIA
What about shoes for my friend?
PET STORE OWNER
My eyes ain't what they used to be but I don’t see anyone else here except the four of us.
Perhaps when your friend comes back...
JULIE
The man has a point, Sylvia. You did say that M.
Bird is away for the time being. Why don’t we go back to my place and wait for
him? You know – I think I have some more nuts...
SYLVIA
No way am I leaving. We have as much right to be
here as everyone else
PET STORE OWNER
And since this is my store, I can serve you or not.
Could you do something to remove the pigeons!
FX: PIGEON SOUNDS
SYLVIA
Will you let us stay if I get them to go?
PET STORE OWNER
Maybe. That’s more than an outright
no
SYLVIA
I’ll see what I can do. They tend to be stubborn
when they believe they’re in the right
SYLVIA stands up on a chair and motions to the pigeons with her hands
and arms to gather close to her.
SYLVIA
‘Dear, dear, friends. This is not the first time
we’ve encountered resistance from human-kind and it certainly won’t be the
last. We must try to make our plights known not through confrontation, but
through passive resistance. There will be other times and occasions when we
will be in a position to make our plight known. You must leave here now and
return to the park...’
HAL
Let them move on to another part of the city altogether
SYLVIA
This is their home. Where I am, they are and will
be
SYLVIA places one arm around JULIE and
the other around invisible friend (M.
Bird)
and sings “We Shall Overcome”
TURNS HER HEAD TO
THE SIDE: “You’ve heard that
they want
us to leave but we
will resist. You agree, then. I knewyou would.”
PET STORE OWNER
Look lady. I tried to be understanding, really, but
I have a business to run. I’m an animal lover, too, but you gotta go
SYLVIA
So you’re refusing to serve us?
PET STORE OWNER
There’s another pet store down the street and the
owner, I hear, is a great bird lover. I’m sure he carries shoes for pigeons. My
stock of bird shoes is down to nothing
SYLVIA
TURNS HER HEAD TO
THE SIDE: “That a fact? I’ll
tell him…”
You do realize, sir, that it’s illegal to refuse
service
PET STORE OWNER
It’s not that I don’t want to serve you but my
supply of bird shoes is negligible. In any case and being close buds with your
pigeon pals, you’ll clean up all their poop of course
A loud noise interrupts their conversation,
increasing in volume revealing a
chorus ofvoices singing: “We shall, We shall be
moved..."
A man walks in holding a placard that reads: ‘birds of a feather, we stick together’
SYLVIA
I was hoping you’d come to our rescue
CRAPP
We never abandon our friends in their time of need
SYLVIA
Thank goodness for all you CRAPP people
PET STORE OWNER
Tell me you’re not looking to
buy bird shoes
CRAPP REP.
Our presence, here, is to support Sylvia and all
avian species.
PET STORE OWNER
And you are?
CRAPP REP.
We are CRAPP
JULIE
Excuse me? Not exactly an endorsement for your
group
CRAPP REP.
We’re a legitimate lobby group looking out for the
well being of the pigeon population. More specifically, Council Representing All Rights of Pigeons. We act whenever and
wherever pigeon rights are threatened
HAL
Seriously? As a person who sees the repercussions
of your so-called protectionism, children are at risk of picking up disease because
of the pigeon poop they leave
SYLVIA
I keep telling him it’s not their fault. They
merely respond to the call of nature. Perhaps if there were places specifically
created for pigeons to do their thing…
HAL
Brilliant idea. I’ll be sure to bring that up at
the next park commission board meeting. I’m sure members will want to put aside
money for pigeon bathrooms
SYLVIA
That would be great! I new that if we put our heads together, we could come up with a solution
TURNS HER HEAD TO
THE SIDE: “You heard what he
said. Bathrooms just for us! What? Of course he meant it. Didn’t I tell you we
have to believe that there is good in people?”
PET STORE OWNER
Can we get back to the situation, here?
SYLVIA
Of course. Now how shall we go about this? Perhaps
you could show us some shoe samples?
PET STORE OWNER
Let me make this perfectly clear. I have never, nor
do I ever plan to stock shoes for birds of any kind, including pigeons. This is
the most ridiculous request I’ve ever heard of or likely to hear. What next?
Squirrel slippers?
SYLVIA
I could spread the word throughout the park, if
you’d like
PET STORE OWNER
Look lady. I don’t know who told you that I sell
bird shoes but I don’t and never will, so you and your feathered…whatever take
yourselves out of here or I’m gonna call in some hunter friends of mine to
handle the situation, if you get my drift
