first year - Feb. 13, 2014 - Feb. 12, 2015 second year - Feb. 13, 2015 - Feb. 12, 2016 third year - Feb. 13, 2016 - today! *********
I've continued with a monologue a day until the spirit moves me to stop, so if you have any ideas for a monologue you want me to write, please let me know at tigerteam1@gmail.com.
I've continued with a monologue a day until the spirit moves me to stop, so if you have any ideas for a monologue you want me to write, please let me know at tigerteam1@gmail.com.
If you just started this blog and want to read the earlier monologues- for a list of the titles and blurbs from each day, click here There are now over 1030!
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Monologue Mania Day #1054 New Opening (for Caregivers Anonymous) by Janet S. Tiger (c) Jan. 1, 2017
New Opening
(For Caregivers Anonymous)
(Not) A monologue by
©Janet S. Tiger all rights reserved
CAREGIVERS ANONYMOUS
by Janet S.
Tiger © all rights reserved Sept. 28, 2016
tigerteam1@gmail.com
Setting – A room for a meeting, chairs, table, a
coffee machine
As simple as needed, as complex as the budget wants
Time – Now…..very now
Cast of Characters
5 females
2 males
(Some
characters will be onstage at beginning of play and throughout – with
appropriate staging, in this version
several parts are be doubled)
In order of appearance after opening
vignettes
JEANNIE (The leader)
50s -60s
SAVANNAH – (20s, looks older)
CLARK – (70s, dapper dresser, Southern accent)
WANDA (doubles as NEECY enters later)
2 women will play the following
GEMMA – (30s) and MATTIE/JACKIE/ FLORENCE/MARIA – (older)
KYLE – (teenager) pg 21 -will become KARL – (Kyle’s
great-grandfather, 100) pg 22
(actor for Kyle/Karl will double as FRANKLIN
– 70s, dapper- who enters pg. )
(The set is simple to
start, a table with chairs in the corner
of the stage. About 10
minutes before the play begins, a woman will come on.
This is JEANNIE, in her 50s-60s, wearing a jacket with the words
CAREGIVERS ANONYMOUS LEADER and she starts to arrange the chairs and table for
the meeting. This will help
get the crowd in earlier, as the play does not start until lights up, but there can be some interesting business
to watch.
JEANNIE puts the chairs in a semi-circle, with part
of it open so that, effectively, it feels like the audience is in some of the
chairs. She
now starts to brew some coffee, set up a
plate of brownies, cookies - nibble food - and get the cups ready. While
she is preparing, others will start to arrive. The order of arrival will
be different every night, just like it is at a real meeting. There will
be a total of at least seven people, all ages, from teen to 80s, more women
than men, all colors and racial ethnicities can be represented.
While she is getting ready, we can see vignettes from homes
and caregivers at various locations in the theater. One person is making a meal, another getting
a person dressed – we don’t have to see the other person in all these, but in
some we can.
One young man is getting something and we hear him…’Grandpa,
I put your coffee right here, don’t spill it….I’ll be home in a few hours’
A woman is putting a bathrobe on her loved one and we hear
her….’There, that should keep you warm….just don’t take it off!’ And one younger woman is seen holding a
pillow….she hugs it to her and we hear….’It would be so easy…..if you just used
this pillow, it would be so easy to get comfortable……’
As the house lights go down, the
actors look at their people being cared for and all say together…WILL YOU BE
ALRIGHT? House lights down, stage lights
up.
Now everyone is getting coffee and talking amongst themselves. JEANNIE goes backstage and wheels out the final prop, a wheelchair with the sign CAREGIVERS ANONYMOUS.
Now everyone is getting coffee and talking amongst themselves. JEANNIE goes backstage and wheels out the final prop, a wheelchair with the sign CAREGIVERS ANONYMOUS.
SAVANNAH, the woman who had the pillow, now enters, she looks around for a chair to sit in, but they are all filled. Jeannie sees her and zooms over with the wheelchair.)
JEANNIE
- You're
new! And welcome! We always love a fresh face! And this is
your first
time…..some of us remember our first time, don’t we?
(The others laugh and agree.)
CLARK - Ooh, I certainly do!
JEANNIE - Your first time here, Clark! Pay attention!
CLARK - Oh, that’s different…..
WANDA – (Helpful) We even have a
brochure……where’s Franklin, isn’t he in charge of
those?
JEANNIE - Oh, it’s the changing of the shift……he’ll be
here soon…..and so will others, you’ll
see, people come and go here…..the
people watching our people can be late…..or we get
the dreaded…..
(She picks up her cell phone – the
others join her)
JEANNIE
AND THE GROUP
– PHONE CALL!
JEANNIE – Because we can’t turn our phones off! But we all understand, because we are all
caregivers….and we are here to help
each other….to give support, and an ear….
FLORENCE - Or a donut!
Speaking of….where are the donuts?
JEANNIE - Coming!
Anyhow, we are a community, and sometimes….we come because we are
maybe just a little tiny bit annoyed, like when our loved ones do stupid things,
like
diabetics who eat a chocolate cake for breakfast, washed down with a liter of Coke, of course! Or they have back surgery and are
told DO NOT LIFT ANYTHING and they
come home and what do they do?
(She encourages the others to
join in)
GROUP – (TOGETHER)
THEY LIFT!
JEANNIE
- THEY
LIFT! Even though they know it
could end them up with PERMANENT
DAMAGE
or BACK IN THE HOSPITAL! Or
they refuse to take their medicine ...oh, yeah! Or they run out
in the street naked because they are now two years old inside their brain, but
they have adult bodies and no one wants them running around without their
clothing!
(She sits in the
wheelchair and sighs)
JEANNIE
- Now
this doesn't mean we hate the people we love....but we sometimes hate taking
care
of them! And sometimes we want to run away.......but we can't because
we're all CRAZY! ...and.......we have some strange sense of duty or right
and wrong....or...maybe....love....... and that's why....we come here....
(She now stands up from the wheelchair and
takes it over to SAVANNAH who is shocked)
JEANNIE - So now, we
welcome you to Caregivers Anonymous, where you can say anything
and it
will be kept completely confidential - where you can tell us what you are going
through...because each
of us here is on the same journey, maybe at different places along the
path, but we can give you a heads up about where some of the potholes
are.....and how to avoid them without becoming a pothead!
(The others jeer at this)
(The others jeer at this)
Or a drunk, or suicidal......or ........sick.
(She spins the wheelchair on one wheel)
And this......this is the wheelchair of fortune! Everyone has a chance to sit here and tell their story. Why a wheelchair? Because it's a reminder that, no matter how bad it is to be the caretaker.....it ain't so easy for the ones we are taking care of! And when you are ready, you get to take a ride in it, and tell everyone why YOU are here.......
(She tilts the chair towards SAVANNAH)
JEANNIE -
Welcome! I’m Jeannie, and since
you’re new, how about starting off and telling us
your name?
(SAVANNAH shakes her head ‘no’
and Jeannie is not upset)
JEANNIE - Don’t wanna
talk? Don’t worry….. here…’no’ means ‘no problem’! We can
start
with someone else…..who wants to show her how it’s done? First, let’s tell her who we take care of or
have taken care of……….anybody?
(While
Jeannie gets another chair for Savannah, the group responds talking over each
other)
FLORENCE – My father…..
MATTIE – My mother and my father….and my mother
has Alzheimers!
WANDA - My husband!
CLARK – My lover…..
JEANNIE – My
grandmother and my husband!
(She puts
the chair down and Savannah sits)
JEANNIE - You see, we
have a lot of people taking care of a lot of people! The way it works,
we
have announcements…also known as the Daily Dilemma!……then we talk…about
anything we want to……and it’s anonymous– what we say here….stays here!
(The others cheer this and applaud. WANDA, an older black woman, stands up and walks over to the
wheelchair, takes it and spins it, then sits, as if she is a queen.
She even removes a paper crown from her bag and puts it on her head. )
WANDA – Hello,
everyone, my name is Wanda, and today, I got no Daily Dilemma! Because
I am….
(Singing) Free at last, Free at last, Thank
God almighty I am free at last!
(When she sees the faces of the others she stands quickly, waving her hands)
WANDA - No, not that kind of free! He's still alive, George is still alive! But I am free
(When she sees the faces of the others she stands quickly, waving her hands)
WANDA - No, not that kind of free! He's still alive, George is still alive! But I am free
because (she
laughs) we went to a new doctor, and the doctor changed the medicine
George has been using for twenty-five
years. In two days, George was outta bed! He was prancing
around like a young man, and then, I wake up today and find this note.....
(She opens a paper, reads)
Baby, I want to thank you for all you have done all these years......
(Someone laughs)
Well, no, he didn't write that, I just was hopin'....
(Reads again)
Dear Wanda......I am sorry, but I have to go. I only took my clothes and a little money. We will be fine. Love, George
(Starts laughing)
(Mocks) Love, George! I take care of him for sixteen years of his bitchin' and moanin' in that bed all day.....and he has the nerve to say...'love, George'? What a man!
The best part is, he left me for the nurse that helped take care of him! Ruby Gunn! Better as Rue....Be Gone! And good riddance to the both of them!
(She shakes with laughter)
(She opens a paper, reads)
Baby, I want to thank you for all you have done all these years......
(Someone laughs)
Well, no, he didn't write that, I just was hopin'....
(Reads again)
Dear Wanda......I am sorry, but I have to go. I only took my clothes and a little money. We will be fine. Love, George
(Starts laughing)
(Mocks) Love, George! I take care of him for sixteen years of his bitchin' and moanin' in that bed all day.....and he has the nerve to say...'love, George'? What a man!
The best part is, he left me for the nurse that helped take care of him! Ruby Gunn! Better as Rue....Be Gone! And good riddance to the both of them!
(She shakes with laughter)
WANDA - The best part is I have been prayin' for this for the last ten years, and when the
children helped
to pay for a nurse to help me…….
(At this, Jeannie gets a little
uncomfortable and Wanda sees this)
WANDA - Okay, Jeannie, I admit you helped with that!
JEANNIE - I don’t know if I should get the credit or
the blame!
WANDA - All credit, baby! After you convinced me I deserved some time
to myself….., I
picked that Ruby
and I hoped the two of them would like each other! And now, I got exactly
what I wanted! Hallelujah!
(She goes to her seat and picks up her bag and puts her hat back on, turning to leave)
(She goes to her seat and picks up her bag and puts her hat back on, turning to leave)
WANDA - I know they say, be careful what
you wish for, and maybe tomorrow I will be sad,
but for right now,
I am gonna go out and watch me a movie and sit at the beach until the sun goes
down and for the next week I’m gonna do exactly what I wanna do for the first
time in 16 years! And I am not gonna worry about gettin' home in time to
relieve the nurse because.......the nurse has relieved me!
(She goes to leave, dancing a little jig as she
sings out ‘Free at Last’ as the others cheer with her as they applaud,)
End of the new beginning
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* Note: A few words about 'free' - all these monologues are protected under copyright law and are free to read, free to perform and video as long as no money is charged. Once you charge admission or a donation, or include my work in an anthology, you need to contact me for royalty
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Janet S. Tiger 858-736-6315 CaregiversAnon.org
Member Dramatists Guild since 1983
Playwright-in-Residence
Swedenborg Hall 2006-8
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