Stefan and other plays: A Collection of Theatre Plays

Garden

Stefan

1

by F. Matthew Caswell and Daphne Thomas

Scene 1

The play opens with the theatre in darkness. Suddenly there is a sound of loud vigorous knocking on a front door (i.e. a street/heavy door). After a few seconds the sound level drops and continues In the background while the introduction music of the BBC 9 o’clock news is heard (this must be the introduction music in use at the time of the events in 1975) – and over the receding knocking is heard the news reader’s voice

NEWS READER (V.O.)  This is the nine o’clock news. Good evening

In Luxembourg today the Council of Foreign Ministers agreed to break off trade negotiations with Spain while providing standby credits to Portugal

In Moscow a reliable diplomatic source has revealed that Mr Brezniev is suffering from cancer. He is limiting his work to a few major areas of policy

In Blackpool, at the first Conservative party conference since Mrs. Margaret Thatcher was elected Leader, the party leadership has affirmed that the next Conservative government will restore direct grant schools

The Bank of England’s Base Rate is lifted by one% to twelve%

The body of a young girl was found today on Saddleworth Moor. The body has yet to be officially identified but it is thought to be that of an eleven year old schoolgirl who went missing three days ago

As the reader’s voice goes into the next item it fades out gradually while the background knocking becomes louder again – and Mrs. Kiszko’s voice is heard over the knocking as she hurries to open the door. She is not particularly alarmed – she is mystified, and responding as quickly as possible.

Mrs Kiszko                   Who is it?

(sounds of her beginning to unlock the door)

Police officer’s voice     Police. Open the door please.

Mrs K.    Just a minute.

(sound of door opening)

PO          Is your son in?

Mrs K.    Stefan? He’s upstairs. Why?

PO          We want to ask him a few questions, Madam.

Mrs K.    What’s it about?

PO          Nothing for you to worry about – just a few questions.

Off you go, you two.

(sound of heavy feet going upstairs)

Would you mind us searching the house? We do have a warrant (as if holding it out) Here.

Mrs K.    No, I don’t mind. But why?

(sound of feet coming downstairs)

PO          Right. In the car. Not you, Madam.

Mrs K.    That’s Stefan there. Where are you taking him?

PO          Just to answer some questions – to help us in our enquiries.

(sound of car engine starting and car being driven away. Mrs K.’s voice heard over the noise)

Mrs K.    When will he be back? He hasn’t had his tea.

(light goes out – stage in darkness)

End of Scene 1

Scene 2

Blue lights flash sporadically for a second or two. A spotlight comes up on one area of the stage, concentrating on two teenage girls who stand in the spotlight close together, one with an arm around the other. They are whispering and giggling together. One of them points out into the darkness across the stage and both look intently at where she is pointing. The spotlight goes out.

This is quickly followed by the return of the flashing blue lights and the addition of several police sirens.

End of Scene 2

Scene 3

The spotlight comes on again. The two girls now have a police officer standing with them; he is writing in a notebook.

PO          You’re quite sure about it?

Girl 1      Yeh, ’course. He was right across from us.

PO          Are you quite sure?

Girl 2      I saw what he was doing.

PO          You’re quite sure it was him?

G 1          Yeh! He was fat and sort of funny-looking.

G 2          Just like him. It were ’im.

PO          But you didn’t tell your mum.

G 2          She wouldn’t believe he were doing that.

(spotlight off)

End of Scene 3

Scene 4

The stage is in total darkness. There are two seconds of silence, then a loud wave of shouting, shrieking, baying, as of an angry mob. Sounds of fists banging on the sides of a metal van. Shouts of ‘bastard’, ‘pervert’, etc. Sound of window smashing. Altogether, this is a short burst of very loud and very savage sound, which must last no more and no less than five seconds, after which it suddenly cuts out completely; there is silence.

(spotlight off)

End of Scene 4

Scene 5

A spotlight comes up on Mrs K. This needs to be a follow spot, and capable of being manually operated so that from time to time during the action, as required, the aperture can be varied. At this point, all that is seen is Mrs K.’s head and face, and the upper part of her arms and body. Also seen is the top of a bunch of flowers that she is holding just above the level of her chest. They must be the type of flowers associated with graves and cemeteries, e.g. lilies. This is a very tight spotlight and at this juncture nothing more is seen of her.

Mrs K.    (her tone is matter-of-fact)

Only me to-day, Joseph. Next time Stefan too. But only me to-day. He’ll come soon. They made a mistake. They came for him and took things from the house. It was all right – they had papers. They had the right papers. I said it was a mistake but they made such a noise. I said they were mistaken – he was here with me. We brought you the flowers, Joseph, like always. First to church, then here, then home to tea. He’ll tell them and soon he’ll come.

(Her tone grows slightly more mystified.)

But I don’t know why they took him. I just don’t know. Some mistake.

(Her tone becomes more matter of fact again.)

I said, ‘Answer the questions. It’ll be all right.’

(Her tone becomes proud.)

He can look after himself. He’s a man now. With his good job – a government job – and his own car. Such a good boy. But I worried a bit. I thought, ‘What about his work?’ So I telephoned. I said, ‘He can’t come to work to-day.’ They said OK.

(pride still in her voice)

You know, Joseph, when we first came here, I cried to leave home, to come this far. But you said, ‘We’ll be safe in England. You must be strong.’ And I cried to be here – a place so strange. So you said, ‘We’ll have a son – he’ll be born in England. And when he’s born we won’t be strangers here any more. It’ll be home.’ And now Stefan drives a car and works for the government. Just like we hoped, Joseph.

(Her voice takes on a trace of anxiety.)

But if he doesn’t come soon, I must tell them again – he was with me, here. I must tell them again it’s a mistake.

(spotlight off)

End of Scene 5

Scene 6

The stage is fully lit. There is a floor-to-ceiling flat at the back of the stage with two doors. These stand open; beyond, a passage can be seen, with the shape of a window at the end. The shape can be projected to suggest a large window in some shabby public building, such as a town hall or court-house. The passage gives onto the main stage area, which is an empty concourse.

A detective sergeant and his assistant are coming out of the passage onto this area, carrying heavy bundles of files and papers as if on their way to a meeting or a hearing. As they come to the main part of the stage Mrs K. appears at the end of the passage and runs after them into the concourse. One police officer catches sight of her coming – they clearly recognise her.

Detective Sergeant    Watch out. Here’s that bloody woman again.

Mrs K.       (She catches them up at this point, speaking breathlessly as if after running.)

Detective Sergeant. They said you’d be here. They said to come.

DS              I bet they did.

Mrs K.       (speaking urgently, but not stridently)

He’s not home.

DS              I can’t discuss that.

Mrs K.       Why isn’t he allowed to be back home? I told you, he was with me.

DS              It’s out of our hands, love.

Mrs K.       He’s been away days now. There’s his work – and I told you …

DS              Yes, but there’s all the rest of it.

Mrs K.       We went to visit his father.

DS              Look, he held his hand up, didn’t he?

Mrs K.       Hand up?

DS              Signed a statement. Admitted it.

Mrs K.       (dismissively)

How could he? Why would he? There must be a mistake.

DS              (getting irritated)

Look. It’s not up to me. I don’t decide – the court decides. There’ll be a trial. You can tell them all about it at the trial.

Mrs K.       I’ve already said.

DS              He’ll have lawyers. You tell them. It’ll be sorted out at the trial.

(Mrs K. opens her mouth as if to speak again, but the DS takes her firmly by the arm, steers her towards the corridor and pushes her gently into it.)

That’s enough, love. You trying to get me into trouble?

Mrs K.       (genuinely concerned)

No, no. I’m sorry – no trouble.

(Mrs K. goes off up the corridor, and turns a corner – she can turn behind the flat and go back through the wings to pick up her flowers and be in place for the next scene. The police officers move together down-stage into the concourse as if going on their way.)

DS              Bit of a Tartar, that one.

Assistant    Doesn’t she know about the girls?

DS              I’ve no idea. Come on.

A                What about what the doctors did to him?

DS              Doctors?

A                All those bloody injections. Is it all down to that, do you think?

DS              God knows. Never mind now. We’re late.

(lights off)

End of Scene 6

Scene 7

The follow spot comes up, trained on Mrs K. Now we see a little more of her, down to about her waist. Her tone is exasperated.

Mrs K.    Now a trial, Joseph. Now there must be a trial. I asked them, ‘When’s he coming home?’ And then they told me – he told them he did it. How can he say that? Perhaps he was confused. He was there for hours and hours on his own. God knows what they did to him to make him say such wicked things, tell that lie. So now there has to be a trial.

(Her tone becomes determined.)

So at the trial I’ll tell them again – he was here with me. And again I’ll say it. And again.

(growing calmer)

He has lawyers for the trial – two. One of them a Queen’s Counsel – that’s very important and he’s in Parliament, too. I talked to them. I said the police have made a mistake. This confession isn’t true – we were here together. The police have made a mistake.

The lawyers’ll put it right. At the trial they’ll say that Stefan’s a good man and hasn’t done anything. And there’ll be a jury there – ordinary people like us. They’ll listen because they’ve come there to listen. They won’t be too busy, like the policemen are. And I’ll tell the jury he was with me, and they’ll believe me. Everything’ll come right. This is England. Stefan’ll come soon.

(spotlight off)

End of Scene 7

Scene 8

A full spotlight, in which the DS and a forensic scientist stand together in conversation. The DS holds a sheet of paper in his hand and is looking at it.

DS           There must be some.

FS           No. Not one.

DS           Well? It’s no good to us, is it?

FS           There’s nothing else I can say.

DS           Look, you’ve been in forensic long enough. You know I need evidence at this stage. There must be some sperm. Test it again.

FS           I’ve tested it 14 times. It’s not there.

(He taps the sheet of paper with one finger, for emphasis.)

DS           Do it again for God’s sake. I need a result. Get me at least one sperm.

FS           You won’t get it.

DS           Come on! Injections. Masturbation. Flashing. No penetration. There can’t be two weirdos like this one in the same county. Is he going to slide off through sheer luck? There just must be sperm in the semen.

FS           There’s no evidence of that in any of the samples I tested.

DS           Well, for Christ’s sake, say that then – ‘no evidential value’.

(The DS thrusts the sheet