THE TWENTY-FIRST CHALLENGE
Let’s get back to the
RAIN DANCE
Male indoctrination
rituals.
Hazing
Sexual rituals.
Drugs. Drinking.
Forced submission
Weapons. Bleeding.
Physical exertion. Sexual power games.
But…
Positive in effect
Warrior building
Coming of age.
Hunting parties.
Hunter gatherers.
And vulnerability and
monotony and intimate tender healing love
So what’s the dance
about?
That we were free of
these feelings to run and fight and fuck and eat and grow until we were a god.
Why the ritual?
Suffering in the
moment, yes… but a crossing of the river
A transformation
A barrier to prevent
boys from leading peoples than need men (and women, but those are different
rituals)
HEALTHY
masculinity--- that looks a lot like toxic masculinity--- because men have
corrected, checked, trained, rehabilitated, and also punished, excluded, and
killed other men when needed. Also, I know of the other kind- the more common
kind. If you need to write about that, write about that, but I think freedom
comes from reversing the lens.
Probably: involve old
and middle aged men- don’t have babies teaching babies.
Bonus: involve women.
Secret of once- let
us see healthy and (for the purposes of drama) let us see “that one time
something went wrong”
Bonus: allow for some
unexpected gender nonconformity
Context: I have a
sweet sensitive son who will learn the word “masculinity” TIED to the word
“toxic” and like I’m looking for some epic hope.
Context: I’ve been
around a lot of super strong smart women-led groups with female playwrights and
the males are villians. Like almost moustache twisting. And there’s a catharsis
in the room about it. Everyone is so glad to be rid of men and creating stories
about them and- it feels more like therapy than theater and hell if I don’t
know that I’m the last one in the room who is supposed to be saying these
things but when I talk to artist women over 40 they sound like men on these
issues and I don’t know if they’re also brainwashed or what’s happening but
something is happening and the greater principle has to be that it’s never
going to work to flatten out an villainize half of the population. I know if a
group of men did it with female characters it’d be the dumbest thing ever. Do I
think every word here is true? No. Am I trying to provoke? Yes! Correct me. Be
right. Be the winner. You win. But only if you write. I made a moral mural and
you didn’t like it. Now you make something. And heck, if you’re all blocked up
from EXACTLY the kind of thinking I’ve been warning against I don’t blame you.
Go back and reread the top where it was fine. Forget this part. This isn’t even
about me.
CHOICE: change it all
and write it for women.
******************************
(again, another
fascinating challenge that I’ll be happy to screw around with later; but again,
just trying to push forward on this totally new trajectory in the Spellbound
rewrite – in free fall at the moment, none of this happened before. Building on previous scenes here, here, here,
here, and here)
MICAH and AUGGIE reappear, sitting on the floor together.
AUGGIE’s no longer sobbing.
They’re just sitting side by side, holding hands, both very
subdued in their demeanor.
There’s a knock on an unseen door off in the near dark.
MICAH
It’s open.
SARAH emerges from the dark to join them.
SARAH
Why is the door unlocked?
MICAH
Escape route.
SARAH
The point was to hold
him here, not make it easy to run off.
MICAH
I think we’ve established
he’s not going to be the one running off. He can’t be separated from me right now. It causes him actual pain.
SARAH
Still, I don’t think we
should be tempting fate any more than we already are at this point.
MICAH
You’re telling me.
SARAH
What’s that supposed to
mean?
MICAH
The escape route isn’t
for him. It’s for me.
SARAH
What do you need to
escape from?
MICAH
What do you think?
SARAH
Auggie, what’s going on?
AUGGIE
Nothing.
SARAH
(to MICAH)
What’s going on?
MICAH
Nothing.
SARAH
OK, what *went* on?
MICAH
Nothing happened.
SARAH
If the antidote works, I’m
just going to take him back home, and I’ll ask him again.
MICAH
And he’ll tell you the
same thing he’s telling you, and I’m telling you now, nothing happened.
SARAH
Then why do you both
look like you just watched somebody get murdered?
MICAH
Things got a little –
aggressive, for a minute there, but we handled it.
SARAH
Aggressive how?
MICAH
Auggie’s emotions got
the better of him.
SARAH
In what way exactly?
MICAH
In exactly the way you
might think they would.
He tried something. I shut him down.
Nothing happened.
SARAH
But you need an escape
route.
MICAH
Like I said, he got
aggressive.
It was scary.
But it’s done.
And nothing happened.
SARAH
Holy shit.
MICAH
Yeah.
SARAH
Micah, are you OK?
MICAH
Is that it? The antidote?
SARAH
Yeah.
MICAH
Please just give it to
him and go.
AUGGIE
Micah –
MICAH
It’s OK, Auggie. I’m not angry. You didn’t hurt me. We’re OK, buddy. I promise.
AUGGIE
But you’re –
MICAH
I’m just a little
freaked out. You are, too. This whole thing’s just been weird, for both
of us. But we can fix it now.
AUGGIE
OK.
MICAH
You don’t need to be
scared.
AUGGIE
I love you.
MICAH
I love you, too.
SARAH
Auggie, we’ve got the
antidote, so –
AUGGIE
I’m not going to forget,
am I?
SARAH
No, that’s not how it
works.
It’ll just knock your
emotions back into alignment.
But you’ll still
remember everything that’s happened the last – Jesus, has it only been less
than 24 hours?
MICAH
Less than 18.
AUGGIE
And we spent most of it
in bed.
MICAH
(for SARAH’s benefit)
Sleeping.
AUGGIE
Snuggling.
MICAH smiles, almost laughs in spite of himself.
MICAH
You better take that
antidote before you say any more things you’re going to have clarify later.
SARAH
Do you have anyone to
come and be with you after we go?
MICAH
I’m a big boy,
Sarah. I’ve lived alone a long time.
SARAH
You know what I mean.
MICAH
Yes. And I appreciate the concern. I do.
But you’re gonna have your hands full with him. You don’t need to worry about me, too. Honest.
SARAH
Still –
MICAH
The plan was to link up
with Jeffrey after. Debrief.
SARAH
Yeah. Probably a good idea.
They’re waiting at the
store, just in case this doesn’t work and we need to take another run at it.
MICAH
Fingers crossed.
SARAH
Drink it all down,
Auggie. Then just sit and breathe
deeply, wait for it to take effect.
MICAH
I’d say “bottoms up” but
under the circumstances –
AUGGIE
Don’t make me
laugh. It’s gonna come out of my nose.
MICAH smiles, holds up his hands in mock surrender – no more jokes.
AUGGIE drinks the antidote.
Waits.
MICAH
This supposed to be as
fast as the first potion?
SARAH
Supposed to be.
AUGGIE loses his equilibrium just a bit.
AUGGIE
Whoa.
Both SARAH and MICAH help steady AUGGIE.
Then MICAH backs away.
MICAH
How’re you feeling,
Auggie?
AUGGIE
OK, I think.
SARAH and MICAH both watch AUGGIE expectantly.
AUGGIE (cont’d)
Oh, right.
Let’s see.
AUGGIE walks away from both MICAH and SARAH, as if he’s going to
walk out the door into the surrounding dark.
He stops at the edge of the light.
AUGGIE (cont’d)
OK.
AUGGIE turns back to look at MICAH.
AUGGIE (cont’d)
I think you’re just my
best friend again.
MICAH
Sounds good to me.
AUGGIE walks back and envelops MICAH in a hug, his head buried in
Micah’s shoulder.
AUGGIE
I am so sorry, man.
MICAH strokes AUGGIE’s hair in reassurance.
MICAH
It’s OK, Auggie. We’re good.
I swear. You should go.
AUGGIE takes MICAH’s head in his hands and kisses him hard on the
forehead. Then immediately turns and walks
off into the dark without looking back.
SARAH is torn.
MICAH
Go. He needs you.
I’m fine.
SARAH smiles weakly and walks off after AUGGIE.
MICAH pauses to make sure they’re both gone.
Then his legs go out from under him.
He just sits in a disjointed pile, alone.
(to be continued)
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