Resurrection Blues by Arthur Miller

horror!
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    FELIX: What horror, what the hell are you talking about!
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    STANLEY: Well like—excuse the expression—living in this country! Like when he takes a walk and sees some—some guy sending out eight-year-old daughters to work the streets, or those little kids a couple of weeks ago killing that old man for his shoes . . . Or, excuse the expression, the Army opening up on that farmers’ demonstration last spring . . .
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    FELIX: Those people had no permission to . . . !
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    STANLEY, more and more stridently: Well you asked me so I’m telling you, right? A massacre like that can start him shivering and he can’t stop crying! I’ve seen him go for . . . like two hours at a time, crying his heart out. Then he stops and he’s cool for a while. We even have fun. Then he sees something and it like hits him again and he begins talking like in . . . Swedish, sounds like, or Russian or German—he once told me in a joke that he’s trying to find out what language god understands. Then he falls asleep, and wakes up sounding like anybody else—and that’s when he doesn’t know.
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    FELIX: Doesn’t know what?
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    STANLEY: Well . . . whether maybe he really is supposed to die, and . . . like cause everything to change.—I mean, for your own sake, sir, I would definitely think about just letting him go, you know? I mean this can be dangerous!
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    FELIX: I think you know where he is, Stanley. I asked you in a nice way, now we’ll try something else.
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    Goes to the door, grasps the knob.
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    STANLEY: You going to hurt me?
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    FELIX: I’m stashing you away until you make up your mind to lead us to him. And incidentally, there’s some hungry livestock in there that I don’t think you’re going to enjoy. Get in!
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    Felix opens the door and the blinding white light flies
out; he raises his hands to shield his eyes.
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    My god, he’s back!
    Stanley falls to his knees facing the open door. Felix steps to his desk, presses a button, loud alarm bells go off as he shouts into his intercom . . .
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    Captain! Come quick, he’s back, he’s back!
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    Captain and two soldiers come in on the run.
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    Captain and soldiers rush out through the door. Felix
yanks Stanley to his feet.
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    FELIX: Why did he come back? What’s this all about, Stanley?
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    STANLEY, scared, elevated: God knows!
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    FELIX, grabs Stanley, shakes him: Answer me! Answer me!
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    STANLEY, almost lifted off the floor by the throat: —I think he just can’t make up his mind, that’s all—whether he really wants to—like die. I mean it’s understandable, right ?—
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    Felix releases him.
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    . . . with this great kind of weather we’re having?
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    Captain and two soldiers back out of the cell doorway;
they are trembling, trailing their rifles, staring in
at the cell.
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    FELIX: What’s this now!
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    He rushes to the cell, looks in. Then turns to the soldiers.
    How’d he get out!
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    They are speechless. Whirls about to Stanley.
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    Talk to me! Why’d he come back! Why’d he escape?
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    STANLEY: I don’t know! . . . Maybe to get your mind off me? I mean . . . it’s possible, right?—for a friend?
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    Blackout.

SCENE 4
    Café table. Henri seated with a bottle of water and
glass. Skip enters, looking about.
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    HENRI: Mr. Cheeseboro!
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    SKIP: Hi. Sitting . I don’t have much time. What can you tell me?
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    HENRI: Can I order something?
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    SKIP: I’ll have to leave in a few minutes.
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    HENRI: No news, I take it.
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    SKIP: Nothing. And you?
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    HENRI, a shake of the head: I thought an exchange of ideas could be useful—the two of us, quietly . . .
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    SKIP, slaps his own cheeks then lets his head hang: I’m beginning to smell the dead-dog stink of disaster. Straightens up . Tell me—why’d the