destruction,âtotal destruction.
She points sweeping with her hand to the stage.
Even of the animals, a few will be saved: two of a kind, male and female, two of a kind.
The heads of CONVEENERS appear about the stage and in the orchestra pit, jeering at her.
CONVEENERS:
Charlatan! Madam Kill-joy! Mrs. Jeremiah! Charlatan!
FORTUNE TELLER:
And you! Mark my words before itâs too late. Whereâll you be?
CONVEENERS:
The croaking raven. Old dust and ashes. Rags, bottles, sacks.
FORTUNE TELLER:
Yes, stick out your tongues. You canât stick your tongues out far enough to lick the death-sweat from your foreheads. Itâs too late to work nowâbail out the flood with your soup spoons. Youâve had your chance and youâve lost.
CONVEENERS:
Enjoy yourselves!!!
They disappear. The FORTUNE TELLER looks off left and puts her finger on her lip.
FORTUNE TELLER:
Theyâre comingâthe Antrobuses. Keck. Your hope. Your despair. Your selves.
Enter from the left, MR . and MRS. ANTROBUS and GLADYS .
MRS. ANTROBUS:
Gladys Antrobus, stick your stummick in.
GLADYS:
But itâs easier this way.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
Well, itâs too bad the new president has such a clumsy daughter, thatâs all I can say. Try and be a lady.
FORTUNE TELLER:
Aijah! Thatâs been said a hundred billion times.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
Goodness! Whereâs Henry? He was here just a minute ago. Henry!
Sudden violent stir. A roller-chair appears from the left. About it are dancing in great excitement HENRY and a NEGRO CHAIR-PUSHER .
HENRY:
Slingshot in hand.
Iâll put your eye out. Iâll make you yell, like you never yelled before.
NEGRO:
At the same time.
Now, I warns you. I warns you. If you make me mad, youâll get hurt.
ANTROBUS:
Henry! What is this? Put down that slingshot.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
At the same time.
Henry! HENRY! Behave yourself.
FORTUNE TELLER:
Thatâs right, young man. There are too many people in the world as it is. Everybodyâs in the way, except oneâs self.
HENRY:
All I wanted to do wasâhave some fun.
NEGRO:
Nobody canât touch my chair, nobody, without I allow âem to. You get clean away from me and you get away fast.
He pushes his chair off, muttering.
ANTROBUS:
What were you doing, Henry?
HENRY:
Everybodyâs always getting mad. Everybodyâs always trying to push you around. Iâll make him sorry for this; Iâll make him sorry.
ANTROBUS:
Give me that slingshot.
HENRY:
I wonât. Iâm sorry I came to this place. I wish I werenât here. I wish I werenât anywhere.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
Now, Henry, donât get so excited about nothing. I declare I donât know what weâre going to do with you. Put your slingshot in your pocket, and donât try to take hold of things that donât belong to you.
ANTROBUS:
After this you can stay home. I wash my hands of you.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
Come now, letâs forget all about it. Everybody take a good breath of that sea air and calm down.
A passing CONVEENER bows to ANTROBUS who nods to him.
Who was that you spoke to, George?
ANTROBUS:
Nobody, Maggie. Just the candidate who ran against me in the election.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
The man who ran against you in the election!!
She turns and waves her umbrella after the disappearing CONVEENER .
My husband didnât speak to you and he never will speak to you.
ANTROBUS:
Now, Maggie.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
After those lies you told about him in your speeches! Lies, thatâs what they were.
GLADYS AND HENRY:
Mama, everybodyâs looking at you. Everybodyâs laughing at you.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
If you must know, my husbandâs a SAINT, a downright SAINT, and youâre not fit to speak to him on the street.
ANTROBUS:
Now, Maggie, now, Maggie, thatâs enough of that.
MRS. ANTROBUS:
George Antrobus, youâre a perfect worm. If you wonât stand up for yourself, I will.
GLADYS:
Mama, you just act
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