Artist's Statement
This creative piece of writing that is presented to you was meant to show the distrust and disdain amongst the U.S population towards our president and how the president is endangering people every time he holds a briefing. The writing delves into statements that the president in real life has made and explores what would happen if a majority of Americans were to follow and listen to what Trump is saying.
I decided to go for a piece of writing as I feel that is the best way for me to convey a message or point to another person. I wanted this to look like the reader was listening to a stream of reports coming in about the tragedy that is this pandemic. The pattern that appears in this story is hate and disdain. This says a lot about our current time as most Americans believe that their state govenors are doing better than the president. My intention for viewers who see this piece would be to understand what is happening, because most people listen to the president’s advice and they could end up dead because of that.
Pandemic
April 26:
John, a thirty year old male, was admitted to Fortune General Hospital on April 20th 2020. He was administered following a briefing given by the president about injecting house cleaning products into the human body. As the amount of cases surge throughout the country, many people are asking themselves, “should we listen to our president?” For more on this we turn over to Senior poltical advisor for CMN, Harper Pax. Harper?
“Well, as we have seen so far, the president has been doing an absolute, word I can’t say on TV, a job which has forced Americans to stop paying serious attention to the president.” “We’ve also seen the president suspend ports of entry for immigrants while this pandemic is rolling through the country.” Harper says with little breath, “If the president doesn’t restrict states like Georgia from opening up to soon, We could see a spike in cases in the southern part of the country.” Back to you Lyndis.
We come to you with a new story, the total number of coronavirus cases has exceeded 2.5 million and the numer of lives lost during this period is showing eerie signs about what the president is saying. Our guests today are conspiracy theorist, Gunther Leones, CMN analyst David Yeh, and All out with Tim Mc.Donald, Tim Mc.Donald.
What do you think about how coronavirus is being handled Gunther?
“Well, the government is paying all of the damn celebrities to come out and say that they have coronavirus when people are being seriously infected by 5g. The government has been planning this for years and is trying to control the population by killing off the boomers and we need to figure out why.” “The media has lied to us for years and this fake news channel is doing the same as a way to drag our president through the dirt. They said that impeachment would get him and now they’re trying to get him with the coronavirus, which isn’t working” Exclaimed Gunther.
Ok… “Let’s cut him off,” said Lyndis to the producers. We’ll be back with more interviews, right after this commercial break.
May 21:
We are reporting to you today about the rapid climb in covid-19 cases, and the alarming things the president has said this week. I’m Lyndis Caldwell, and welcome to Prime Time. Today in the U.S there are more than 300 million coronavirus cases and 95 million deaths attributed to the virus. We are tracking the number of deaths attributed to the president's advice which has now added up to 100 million coronavirus cases. Our country has now seen the end of our world as we know it and the start of a dark age.
Artist's Statement
My piece is supposed to show how different generations react to the same problem emotionally. Those with more experience, especially problematic ones that may include dealing with illness, are trying their best to think about all the different problems they and their loved one’s could face. When they do this, they feel they have more control over keeping their loved ones safe because they have created a plan. The younger people are finding it hard to find variation in their life because they are not allowed to go outside or meet other people, and because of their lack in such experiences, they may not be as paranoid as others. The piece is supposed to show that if someone has had a certain event play out in their life it is more likely for them to react in a very cautious manner. If the older generations had not gone through many experiences like these (e.g.dealing with a parent who has a type of cancer), it is more likely they would be like the younger generations are (and vice-versa).
I knew I wanted to create a story because writing is something that I enjoy. I also know that if I enjoy something more, I will be able to bring across my view more understandable to others. What I liked best about the piece is that it shows two different perspectives, both in first person point of view, but without telling the reader. The reader has to figure it out by themselves that the person is someone else. If I were able to change something, I would probably change the parent’s part to include some aspects of the parent working through the pandemic. This may add more stress to their lives making it harder for them to try and stay in control of everything.
COVID-19 Pandemic: Generations
“Can you hear me now? Hello?” my head snaps up when the teacher gets the audio to work. Some people nod, others say yes and some comment in the chat. Then all the microphones are off again, as well as most of the cameras.
“Good. Well then, how has everyone been?” the teacher asks. It’s silent. None of us really want to answer, I’m not really sure why. Maybe it’s because it’s the same question we hear from every other teacher, and even though we probably should’ve come up with a good answer, most of us haven’t. Some people say fine, others say I don’t know, but even more just continue to stay silent.
“Well then,” the teacher goes, “I guess we should start our online lesson, right?” Again, no one answers. But, by now, most teachers just move on. As we start the lesson, everything starts to fade into the background again, and the only thing I’m left with is my thoughts, not that there are many. Most of them are nonsense anyway, just trying to make the things around me sound interesting.
I try to focus back in on the lesson, it’s probably one of the most interesting things that I’ve done all week. I know that as we were still in school, some people would’ve disagreed that class was interesting, but it seems like now it’s one of the only things that is. Maybe it’s because everything is constantly the same, there’s a pattern, but not much to it. There’s only so much you can do when you’re not supposed to go outside and meet other people.
And with new news coming out every day, whether it be miracle cures that cause harm without benefit or more information about how quickly this thing has managed to spread, it just seems like this pattern is gonna keep on going. That adding on to the fact that we are the country with the most deaths, cases, and chaos makes this all the more stressful. I’m not even sure you can call it that anymore though.
“Now if we take this triangle, and draw an altitude, then…” I try my best to copy down notes and pay attention, doing something in order to distract from the loop of thoughts that circulate my head day in day out. But the class seems to fly by and soon enough everyone is saying goodbye and leaving the meeting. Suddenly I hear something blaring outside my room. It’s one of the trucks the city sent out telling people to stay inside. It repeats the same message over and over again, but so poorly that I can never really make it out.
I sigh. Yeah, I’m used to a pattern because that’s what going to school or going to practice every day means. Usually, though, the pattern isn’t this empty and this regular. You know, you’d go to school and sometimes you’d see new people in the halls or those people you only see every couple days. Or maybe it was going to a science class and actually being able to do an experiment that could end up going wrong. Now, we can watch videos of people doing experiments, but we don’t have anything hands-on, we haven’t really figured out how to have a group discussion that could lead to a debate in the class.
And maybe it will get better, and we’ll be able to do all those things in a little while, but at the moment it doesn’t seem like it. It seems more like we’re just gonna sit at our desks, do our work, then maybe exercise, and watch way too many things online. This pattern, it just seems to get boring after a while. I know, that sounds inconsiderate, and I know that there are people out there that aren’t doing well. But you hear about other countries opening back up their doors, and then you’re just expected to sit inside and listen to people talk about how the schools will probably still be closed in fall.
It feels like every day, all I do is the same unproductive pattern, and I can’t seem to get out of it now that I’m stuck. I keep saying that I’m gonna do things, that I’m gonna get stuff done, but it just never seems to happen. Instead, I sit in my bedroom and watch way too many hours of some dumb show that I’ve already watched three times. And then there’s the thoughts like, maybe if we had shut down earlier this would be over already, or maybe if people hadn’t gone to all the beaches right after quarantine started then this would’ve calmed down. Not that these thoughts help anyone.
It’s common knowledge that people seem to want things they can’t have. I think this is the same. Because we can’t go to school, we want to go to school, or because we can’t meet up with friends, we want to even more. The only problem is that it’s dangerous, in this situation, to do the things we want. So instead, we stay inside, bored, worried, and wondering. A lot of my friends used to complain about going to school, but right now, it’s almost like we want to actually work just to have something to do.
But all the other emotions that go through us in these moments, they even stop that from happening. Sometimes I’m so bored, lost in my thoughts, or worried, that trying to get schoolwork done is really difficult. The motivating yourself to do things almost seems pointless from where I stand. I don’t have to work as hard to get through the school year, I don’t have to exercise every day for the sport I’m playing, I don’t have to research for the club I’m in, I don’t even have to get up early in the morning.
There’s a lot of things I don’t have to do anymore. So nowadays, I go to bed later because I wake up later, I don’t have to do my schoolwork in a small time period. What used to be my boring routine is completely destroyed because I don’t have to try as hard.
And for some reason,
I hate that…
⠉ ⠕ ⠧ ⠊ ⠙
“With the U.S. reaching over one million cases of COVID-23, the reopening of certain states is being criticized. That number, one million, being more than four times as many cases as any other country. People are looking to the governors to–” I shut the TV off, not wanting to hear the same news again. It seems like we might be stuck in here for a lot longer than we thought. I look over at my youngest son, Noah, who just finished his classes online for the day. He looks tired, and he’s been slightly sick for the past couple of days.
My oldest son, who is 18, was meant to graduate this year. He still is, but I know that he’s not happy with the way he’s graduating. I mean, a couple weeks ago he was still going to graduate in a big hall full of all the rest of his class, and now it seems like it is unknown how he will graduate. When they closed school for the whole year, he was so disappointed. He’s going to college next year and probably won’t be able to see many of his friends because many of them are going somewhere else. That’s when I get a call.
“Can you help me? I’m at the front door,” says my partner. He went to the grocery store as we were somewhat low on everything. I tell him yes and make my way to the front door, pulling on the gloves that are kept next to the door as I do. I also pull on a mask, just to make sure I don’t touch my face. As I open the door, we start to put bags inside the house, but not far. Once we have them all in, we shut the door and start to wipe everything down.
The kids think it’s a bit too much what we’re doing. But if we can do it, and it will keep us safer, then why not? After a good while, we manage to wipe down everything, even the doorknob. We’ve placed all the shopping bags in a corner near the front door, all the shoes are put away, and jackets that were outside had also been stuffed in a corner. We throw our gloves in the trash and pull off our masks as well. After this, we go to the bathroom and wash our hands, at least 20 seconds.
It was tedious at first, but we’ve done it so often now. And while you may think that it’s too much, we’ll do it to keep us safe, to keep our children safe. As we step back into the entrance hallway, it reeks of rubbing alcohol, but we pick up the groceries that are neatly placed in boxes.
“Kids, try not to touch anything near the front door for a while, okay?” I say as we walk into the kitchen. It seems like everyone has finished school as both our oldest son and middle child have also made it into the kitchen. Alex, our youngest, goes to reach for one of the apples, but I’m quick to pull it away.
“Fine, I’ll go wash my hands,” he says, seeming to be in a grumpy mood. He returns and eats his apple, seemingly in a slightly better mood.
“Grandma called,” I go. Everyone looks at me and stops what they’re doing.
“How’s she doing?” Alex, the oldest, asks.
“She says she’s doing fine, but it seems like your aunt and uncle have contracted the virus,” and before I’m hit with all the questions about how they’re doing, I go, “They’re fine for now, but your grandma is worried because they’ve been bringing her groceries.”
“Can we go visit?” asks Noah. I laugh a little, trying to break the tension in the air before shaking my head.
“You know we’re not supposed to go outside Noah, and what if we’re sick? Then grandma will get sick too,” I try to tell him. I can tell he’s upset though.
“But I want to see grandma!” he goes, but before it goes on Alex intervenes.
“Hey, let’s go play video games, okay?” he says.
Everyone except me and our middle child leaves the room. I can tell that all of the kids are finding online school difficult. Not necessarily the academic aspect, but more so the motivation to learn. Yesterday, we got into a huge fight when Noah didn’t want to get online for his class. And of course, the yells resonate through the house, and then no one else can focus either. He seems to be fine now, though.
“Will grandma be okay?” a voice asks from my right. I try to smile and nod my head, but the truth is, I have no clue. And I’m trying, to make sure everyone stays safe and happy, but it’s not always that easy. I can’t exactly help my mother, who’s an at-risk person, when she lives halfway across the world, can I? I’m worried about her, and about what will happen if she does get sick.
Do they have enough ventilators at the hospital? How much of a chance does she have of surviving with her history of lung cancer? What happens if she does end up passing, will there be a funeral? Will I even know if she passes? There’s so many things to think about, and not enough time. I mean, I sit at home now, trying to get work done where I can for my job. And even still, with all the worries in my head, it seems like time flies by and I’m running to catch back up.
I’m not sure if it’s because I’m a parent or if it’s because I know more. Either way, it seems like the worries never end. I just need everything to turn out alright. I’m not sure if it’s fear or a sense of responsibility. My kids, they’ve never really lived through anything like this, they don’t know what to expect. And honestly, neither do I. But someone needs to try and keep some sort of balance, and in this case, that’s us adults. You would never ask a teenager to look after everyone and keep them safe, would you? But if it’s an adult, we’re here to give advice and help others through problems. That’s what our jobs do, it’s what we’ve learned how to do through experience and simply just living.
But no one ever tells you how scary it is to hold that kind of responsibility. Especially not when life and death come into the play. So, we try to keep things safe, not get it to that point. That’s what all the fuss is for. That’s the reason we stay indoors, and make sure to wash our hands properly. Or why we wipe down all the groceries. It’s just us trying to be as safe as possible with something we don’t know how to handle. I can only hope that scientists somewhere will find a cure or vaccine or anything to slow this down.
Because it’s scary,
trying to keep people safe without knowing how…
Artist's Statement
My play is about some citizens struggling to adapt to using Zoom to run a town meeting. It communicates the message of adaptation during this pandemic and how hard it can be. I decided to write a play because I think it’s fun. I like all the characters I created and their interactions. For example, I like how Jo-anne and Harold interact, and their rivalry. I think it’s a good example of petty fighting. If I could change something, I would make the play longer. I think there’s some more interactions to develop and explore. Some patterns that appear are the difficulties of technology and intergenerational differences. I see this a lot, because my grandparents need a lot of help when we have our family Zoom calls. I think this is relatable to a lot of people, as well, because parents and grandparents sometimes need help with technology. We also have some overly comedic intergenerational differences. For example, the whole ‘punks’ debacle. The conflicting opinions, while for comedic effect, do show an intergenerational disagreement. I just want the people who read this to experience a moment of levity, because I know a lot of people need that currently.
The Town Meeting: April
A dark stage. Lights up on The Right Honorable Nigel Horton III. He sits on something, talking into the audience. He is standoffish, and speaks in a phony English accent.
Nigel: Welcome one, welcome all, to the monthly Winchester-upon-Smythe town meeting. On the docket today: Covid-19 response, and the petition to turn the former SewFisticated into a store selling (dramatic pause) records!
A gasp somewhere.
Nigel: Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this meeting is being conducted with teleconferencing. Thank you all for being here. Mr. Rambles?
Lights up on D’arcy Rambles, Nigel’s right-hand man and general secretary of the town. He is smart and no-nonsense.
D’arcy: Hello everyone. Let us take attendance. Selectwoman Jo-anne O’Brien?
Lights up on Jo-anne O’Brien. She is a middle-aged woman with short blonde hair in a ‘lob’.
Jo-anne: I’m here, D’arcy. Hello everyone! Hi!
D’arcy: Hi, Jo-anne.
Nigel: Good day, Jo-anne.
D’arcy: Selectwoman Edith Swab and Selectman Dan Swab?
Lights up on Dan and Edith, an old couple. They are moving their mouth, but no sound is coming out.
D’arcy: Dan? Edith?
Still silence.
D’arcy: Are you on mute?
An electronic click.
Dan: Hello? Hello?
D’arcy: Hi Dan.
Dan: Oh! Hi, D’arcy.
Edith: D’arcy! Ah, hello! How are you?
D’arcy: Good. Now-
Edith: How’s your mother, D’arcy?
D’arcy: Very good. We-
Dan: And your sister?
D’arcy: Everyone is doing well. Now, let’s continue.
Edith: Ok.
D’arcy: Selectman Nathan Heckles?
Lights up on Nathan Heckles. He is a mild-mannered man, afraid of conflict.
Nathan: Hello, everyone.
Everyone: Hi, Nathan.
D’arcy: Selectman and Owner of Russo’s Restaurant Kurtiss Russo?
Lights up on Kurtiss Russo, the well-liked owner of Russo’s Restaurant. Everyone likes him, and he knows it.
Kurtiss: Hello! Yes!
Everyone: Hi, Kurtiss! (etc)
D’arcy: Dr. Betty Lister?
Lights up on Dr. Lister, a southern woman.
Dr. Lister: Hello there everyone, how we all doing today?
Everyone: Good, Dr. Lister, etc.
D’arcy: Heidi Hope?
Lights up on Heidi, a woman. She sits with her son Hugo, who is on his phone.
Heidi: Hey everyone! Hugo, say hello!
Hugo: (dully) Hullo.
Hugo leaves.
Heidi: Let me just say, I am so excited to be here with all you wonderful people.
D’arcy: Thanks. Mayama Johnson and Sam Kowalski?
Lights up on Mayama and Sam. They are a couple, and attend town meetings for fun.
Mayama: Hi all!
Sam: Hello!
D’arcy: Harold Peterson?
Lights up on Harold. He is old and curmudgeonly.
Harold: H’lo.
D’arcy: And our petitioners, Caden Eisenhower, Marty Schwartz, and Brad Lincoln.
Lights up on Caden, Marty, and Brad. They are college students, and all share an apartment. They are rather nervous. Caden is stressed and confused.
Caden: Hello, everyone, the-
D’arcy: Well, I think that’s all of you. Let’s hear from Dr. Lister about Covid-19 preparations.
Dr. Lister: Well, the most important thing to remember is stopping the spread. You all here in Winchester-upon-Smythe have been doing a good job, but there could be some improvement. Now, we have our basic hand-washing precautions, but we also have-
Dan: Excuse me?
Dr. Lister: Yes?
Dan: Is this about the coronavirus thing?
Dr. Lister: Yes, sir. It’s about the precautions you can take to prevent the spread of the disease.
Dan: When will we be able to leave our houses, Miss?
Dr. Lister: It’s Dr. And we honestly don’t know.
Edith: Ugh! I want to leave my house! It’s my right as a citizen!
Dr. Lister: To put it to you straight, Edith, you and your husband are at a high risk of dying from the disease. Now you can’t be citizens if you’re dead.
Dan: I never!
Dr. Lister: Now, the CDC recommends that you stay at least 6 feet away from others when going out.
Heidi: Excuse me?
Dr. Lister: Yes, ma’am?
Heidi: Who is the CDC?
Dr. Lister: The Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The government division that works with diseases.
Heidi: Where is the P?
Dr. Lister: One of life’s greatest mysteries.
Kurtiss: How could I increase the safety of my beloved employees?
Dr. Lister: Well, have your employees wear PPE, and switch to a take-out system.
Kurtiss: (magnanimously) Thank you. In this time, I want to continue serving my beloved community with the food you all know and love.
Jo-anne: Thank you, Kurtiss!
Heidi: Aww!
Nigel: How nice!
Kurtiss: Of course, I love you all.
Dr. Lister: Now, the CDC also recommends that a mask should be worn. If you do not have a mask, you can write to the town hall, 152 Main Street, and they will mail you a mask.
Jo-anne: How do we donate masks?
Dr. Lister: Now that is a question pertaining to your town. I will deflect to Mr. Rambles.
D’arcy: You can seal the masks in a box and drop or mail them to the Town Hall.
Jo-anne: I have a lot of masks to donate.
D’arcy: Drop them off.
Jo-anne: A lot of them. Like, I made a LOT.
D’arcy: (annoyed) Well, Jo-anne, you can just drop them off.
Jo-anne: All 2,034 of them?
D’arcy: Well, Jo-anne, maybe you could send some to another town, since ours is so small.
Harold: Jo-anne, how’d you make so many masks? Are you putting your kids to work?
Jo-anne: Ha ha, Harold. No, I’m just productive.
Nigel: Come, let us not fight. In these times, we must come together and be-
Jo-anne and Harold: Shut up, Nigel!
A click, lights off on Nathan, as he has disconnected.
Nigel: Nathan? Hello?
D’arcy: His WiFi must have gone down.
Nigel: Hmmm…
D’arcy: Ok. Any other questions for Dr. Lister?
Heidi: When are we getting those stimulus checks?
D’arcy: That is not a question for Dr. Lister. And the time could vary.
Heidi: Ah, damn. I’ve been trying to buy more lawn gnomes.
Dr. Lister: (slightly scared) Well, I have to be off. But I hope all of you keep safe. You can email me at b.lister@gmail.com if you have any questions. Goodbye!
Everyone: Goodbye!
Lights down on Dr. Lister.
Jo-anne: Hmm. That woman.
Harold: Well, it’s not her fault she doesn’t know what to do with your 2,000 masks.
Jo-anne: 2,034, actually.
Harold: I’m sure.
Mayama and Sam silently laugh.
D’arcy: Ok, everyone.
Heidi: Are we going to do that vote?
Everyone: What vote? What? Huh?
Heidi: The one about the conoravirus?
D’arcy: (quietly) Coronavirus.
Heidi: It was about the people and the tulips?
Everyone groans.
Everyone: Oh, Heidi.
Nigel: Now, we will hear from Mr. Caden Eisenhower.
Caden: Hello everyone, The Right Honorable Mr. Horton, Mr. R-
Dan: Hey, kiddo?
Caden: Uh, yes, sir?
Dan: Could you speak louder?
Caden: (louder) Of course. Mr. Rambles, Mrs. O’Brien, Select-
Dan: Louder, sonny!
Caden: (practically yelling) Selectmen and Selectwoman, I am here to-
Dan: I can’t hear you!
Caden: (screaming) I AM HERE TO-
D’arcy mutes Caden.
Dan: Now I can’t hear him at all!
D’arcy: Dan, press the volume button.
Dan: Which one?
D’arcy: The one that says plus.
Dan: Oh! I can hear you!
D’arcy: Good. (he unmutes Caden)
Caden: Ok, um, I hope you all are well.
Jo-anne: Thank you, Caden!
Caden: Uh, yes. Um. This is such a difficult time, and it’s nice to see everyone together.
Harold: Hmm. You don’t even know who I am.
Caden: Oh, uh.
Kurtiss: Oh, Harold, leave the poor boy alone.
Harold: Alright.
Caden: Well, I would like to ask you about our business idea.
D’arcy: Continue.
Caden: Now, during my time at Blanche Horton High School, I noticed a sizable community of music fans, as well as a demand for vinyl records.
Nigel: Hipsters! Those horrid people!
Marty: Hey, man, if you can’t be respectful, we’ll leave.
Nigel: I wouldn’t mind.
D’arcy: (quietly) Nigel, hey. Your reelection. (to Caden) Continue, Mr. Eisenhower.
Caden: Uh, Well, us three saw a profit in this. So, we set out looking for a store.
Marty: Walking down Main Street one day, we spotted a nice storefront, the place of the former SewFisticated.
Jo-anne: Hmm, I knew it well.
Heidi: Too bad it had to close.
Marty: Yes, a great loss. Now, Brad did some digging.
Brad: Yes.
Marty: And he found out that the town actually owned the building.
Nigel: Yes, my grandfather bought it for the city 50 years ago.
Marty: So, we are here today to ask to rent it for our new retail venture.
Nigel: (pretentious) Ha ha. Let me get this straight. You, 3 college dropouts-
Caden: Oh, uh, we go to college, we’re just home because of the pandemic-
Nigel: (interrupting) You 3 non-legal adults arrive back home during a pandemic and decide to open up a record store, during a stock market crash, in a dying record selling industry.
Caden: (stammering) Well, obviously not during a pandemic, we’ll open it after, but-
Nigel: How will you manage to run a store when you’re away at college?
Marty: I’m a senior, so I’ll be free to manage the store, and we’ll hire some employees.
Kurtiss: I have a question.
Marty: Yes?
Kurtiss: As a fellow local business owner, do you think this store will draw business away from other places?
Marty: Well, I think it’s a rather niche draw. It’s not like we’re opening up a thrift store or a cafe.
Kurtiss: Interesting. Interesting. Smart.
Jo-anne: So, what kind of records will you be selling?
Caden: All sorts of records.
Harold: Where will you get the records?
Caden: We have quite a large collection between us, and once we get started we will buy more.
Heidi: Can I donate records? I recently digitized my husband and I’s record collection, and we don’t know what to do with them.
Caden: Oh, that would be great! Thank you!
Nigel: I think we are missing the point here.
Marty: (icily) Oh? What is the point?
Nigel: These upstarts are trying to take the space of a beloved business. And during these trying times!
Jo-anne: Well, Nigel, SewFisticated closed.
Nigel: Right. But-
Heidi: Um, I think it might draw tourists to the town.
Kurtiss: Well. As another business owner and neighbor of the former SewFisticated, I think it’ll be smart to have this new store. Customers can browse at the record shop, and then come and have some good home cooking.
Everyone: Hmmm, it is good, etc.
Heidi: Well, I think it’s a good idea. It would also open up jobs for teens.
Marty: Yes, exactly! Teens learning responsibility.
Harold: What I am worried about is the kind of people who will patronise this record store.
Marty: Elaborate?
Harold: Will it bring- (quieter) bad people- to the town?
Marty: Bad people?
Harold: (disdainfully)Punks and hipsters and all that.
Marty: Uh, well. Probably.
Harold: (loudly, with great disgust) Ugh!
Dan: (tiredly, as if awakening) What are we talking about?
Harold: The punks.
Dan: Oh! The punks! Horrid.
Marty: There’s no cause for alarm. Punks are not trying to hurt you.
Heidi: Nothing’s wrong with punks! They’re people too!
Jo-anne: Well, sometimes they can be a little weird.
Mayama and Sam laugh silently.
D’arcy: Please, everyone, we don’t need to fight.
Nigel: But-
D’arcy: (aside, to Nigel) Nigel, you have to be unbiased as a public figure. You mess this up, you might not get reelected.
Nigel: Oh drat.
D’arcy: Just imagine… All these impressionable teens, encouraged to vote against you by three bitter boys.
Nigel: (shuddering) Oh lord!
D’arcy: Go.
Nigel: Now, now, everyone. Punks are not to be worried about. These boys are trying to be young businessmen, and who are we to stop them?
Heidi: Yes! Our young entrepreneurs.
Kurtiss: Start young! That’s how you develop skills.
Jo-anne: Well, it’s not the worst idea for a business.
Harold: As long as the punks don’t meddle with my business.
Nigel: Shall we vote?
Everyone: Yes, ok (etc)
Nigel: All in favor of turning the retail space of the former SewFisticated over to Caden Eisenhower, Marty Schwartz, and Brad Lincoln say ‘Aye’.
Edith: What are we doing?
Nigel: Voting, Edith.
Edith: On what?
Nigel: Giving the store to the boys.
Edith: What boys?
Nigel: Just vote. All in favor say ‘Aye’.
Jo-anne: Aye.
Kurtiss: Aye.
Edith: Nay.
A murmur.
Jo-anne: (mockingly) Why not, Edith? Are you afraid of the punks?
Edith: Punks! Oh, they scare me.
Jo-anne: The only thing you have to fear is fear itself, not punks.
D’arcy: Ok, ok. Dan?
Dan: Aye.
Harold: Nay.
Another murmur.
Jo-anne: (wisely) The old ones are the most afraid.
People nod.
Heidi: Well, it’s-
Heidi freezes.
Nigel: Hello? Heidi?
D’arcy: Heidi? Did you freeze?
Dan: What happened to her?
Heidi unfreezes.
Heidi: Sorry about that, my WiFi sucks.
Dan: Modern technology.
Heidi: But anyway, it’s a big change.
Nigel: Well, it’s some sort of psychological instinct.
D’arcy: Come on, let’s stop. Heidi?
Heidi: Aye.
D’arcy: Aye. Mayama? Sam?
Sam: Can we vote?
D’arcy: Sure, why not.
Mayama: Aye.
Sam: Aye.
Nigel: Aye.
D’arcy: Ok, that’s 8 ‘Ayes’ and 2 ‘Nays’.
Nigel: The Ayes have it.
Much celebration from Caden, Marty, and Brad.
Caden: Thank you all!
Marty: Thanks!
Brad: Thank.
Nigel: Well, I think that’s it for today.
D’arcy: Yes. About the status of next month’s meeting- We don’t know when this pandemic will end, but we assume next month’s meeting will also be online.
Dan: Drat!
Edith: I’m getting out of here.
She stands up and exits the stage.
D’arcy: OK, well, see you all.
Nigel: As your Mayor, I hope you all stay safe during this trying time. Goodbye!
People leave the meeting.
Dan: Wait? Where are you going?
D’arcy: The meeting’s over, Dan.
Dan: Oh! Goodbye.
Dan leaves the meeting.
D’arcy: Is that everyone?
Silence.
D’arcy: (sighs) Another meeting done.
The End.