Jaime Robledo
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by Jaime Robledo www.stagerights.com WATSON AND THE DARK ART OF HARRY HOUDINI Copyright © 2013 by Jaime Robledo All Rights Reserved All performances and public readings of WATSON AND THE DARK ART OF HARRY HOUDINI are subject to royalties. It is fully protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America, of all countries covered by the International Copyright Union, of all countries covered by the Pan-American Copyright Convention and the Universal Copyright Convention, and all countries with which the United States has reciprocal copyright relations. All rights are strictly reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, by any means, including mechanical, electronics, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author. Publication of this play does not necessarily imply that it is available for performance by amateurs or professionals. It is strongly recommended all interested parties apply to Steele Spring Stage Rights for performance rights before starting rehearsals or advertising. No changes shall be made in the play for the purpose of your production without prior written consent. All billing stipulations in your license agreement must be strictly adhered to. No person, firm or entity may receive credit larger or more prominent than that accorded the Author. For all stage performance inquiries, please contact: Steele Spring Stage Rights 3845 Cazador Street Los Angeles, CA 90065 (323) 739-0413 www.stagerights.com ORIGINAL PRODUCTION NOTES Watson and the Dark Art of Harry Houdini originally premiered at Sacred Fools Theater Company, Los Angeles, California on June 21, 2013. Originally produced by Brian Wallis Cast: Scott Leggett as Dr. John Watson Joe Fria as Sherlock Holmes Donald Thoms-Cappello as Harry Houdini Carrie Keranen as Violet Hunter Eric Curtis Johnson as Mycroft Holmes Cj Merriman as Mary Morstan Watson Graham Skipper as Sigmund Freud/Pike Ensemble – Lisa Anne Nicolai, Mandi Moss, Brendan Broms, Aaron Mendelson, and Perry Daniel Director – Jaime Robledo Assistant Director – Monica Greene Associate Producer – Abraham Benrubi Stage Manager – Suze Campagna Assistant Stage Manager – Dana DeRuyck Composer – Ryan Johnson Production Designer – Michael James Schneider Lighting Designer – Matt Richter Costume Designer – Linda Muggeridge Stunt/Fight Coordinator – Andrew Amani Movement Consultant – Natasha Norman CHARACTERS 5F, 7M HARRY HOUDINI / HERLIHEY: Mid 30s-mid 40s; The world’s greatest magician. He is a dark unsettling presence. Must have a passable Irish brogue (plays a secondary role as Lt. Herlihey). Magic skills are not a requirement but a magician/escape artist is preferred in the role. VIOLET HUNTER: Late 20s-mid 30s; A strong willed governess who captures Watson’s attention and affection. 5 STAGEHANDS: Ages 18-50; 2 male and 3 female; all ethnicities. The ensemble will play a variety of roles including Bess Houdini and are the driving force of this physically demanding piece. Movement and dance training are a plus, but not required. JOHN WATSON: Late 30s-mid 40s; The bumbling porcine sidekick turned hero in the first “Watson” is now a tortured soul in this tale. SHERLOCK HOLMES: Late 30s-mid 40s; Watson’s brilliant colleague; arrogant and brash. Must be a skilled physical comedian. SIGMUND FREUD / LANGDALE PIKE: Late 40s-early 50s; Must have exceptional comedic timing and a passable Austrian and High British accent. MYCROFT HOLMES: Early 40s; Sherlock Holmes’ older smarter brother. He is quick witted, irritable and a sloppy dresser. MARY WATSON: Late 20s-mid 30s; Watson’s wife. Movement training is a plus. Must sing. SETTINGS Various locations in and around London; The docks of Liverpool; The RMS Cedric; Various locations in and around Coney Island. RUNNING TIME 1 Hour, 45 Minutes WATSON AND THE DARK ART OF HARRY HOUDINI – PRODUCTION SCRIPT 1 PROLOGUE: A KILLING A tremolo string quivers unnervingly as the lights come up on a round candlelit table. SEVERAL PEOPLE sit at the table; their backs to the audience. A WOMAN is in a seat set apart from the table, her back to the audience. The lights come up on the one figure facing forward. It is HARRY HOUDINI, 30s, dark and commanding. HOUDINI There is death in the clouds, There is fear in the night For the dead in the shrouds, Hail the sins turning flight. And chant wild in the woods as they dance round a Yule-alter Fungous and white. Lights up on SIGMUND FREUD, 50s, sitting in a chair on the other side of the stage from Houdini. Two STAGEHANDS flank him with mirrors. FREUD To no gale of Earth's kind Sways the forest of oak, A MAN at Houdini’s table shifts in his seat. HOUDINI attempts to calm him. MAN I don’t believe it! HOUDINI Mr. Holmes, please! FREUD Where the sick boughs entwined By mad mistletoes choke A small pool of light illuminates JOHN WATSON, early 40s, standing alone center stage. He clutches a worn red diary. HOUDINI continues his ritual. WATSON For these pow'rs are the pow'rs of the dark, from the graves of the lost Druid-folk. FREUD Ein poem. Spooky. WATSON A poem, Doctor Freud. Dark and foreboding. Rife with pain and fear. I don’t know from when or whence it came. There’s nothing in the literature. Those words… those words chill me to the bone. FREUD Und zis is how you choose to begin your next tale. WATSON I didn’t know another way. It’s as good a place as any to start, I suppose. FREUD You are ein poet und didn’t even know it. 2 WATSON AND THE DARK ART OF HARRY HOUDINI – PRODUCTION SCRIPT WATSON Herr Freud— FREUD cuts him off with a wave of his hand. A WOMAN stands up at Houdini’s table, incredibly upset. HOUDINI attempts to console her, but she buries her head in another man’s shoulder. A SECOND MAN stands, clearly angry, grabbing Houdini by the lapel. The lights fade out on them. FREUD If you are here, mit me, there is clearly something very wrong mit you. Zis is what you wanted; to open zis up. You are moving on. You are creating something from nothing. Zis is what you wrestle mit. So… thrill me. WATSON slowly opens the diary and reads. FREUD recedes into the shadows. Watson flips back to the first page of his diary and reads directly to the audience, while the lights slowly, hauntingly illuminate the stage. WATSON And so it began, a decade since I published my last work, darkness would pierce the light and threaten to snuff it out for good. For you see, one could never make their living wading into the blackest recesses of human nature without the Cimmerian shade reaching up and pulling one down into it. Most tales begin with a bang. Ours, dear friend, would begin with a scream. A high pitched scream rips through the air as A YOUNG WOMAN bolts onto the stage in a panic as if being pursued. Large foreboding shadows seem to snake across the set framed by the framed wooden lattice of an amusement park. An array of Edison bulbs hang from the ceiling like a chandelier. Along the back wall is a scaffolding structure supported by black steel and wooden beams, like the innards of a demented amusement park ride or the underside of a boardwalk. These beams are lined with incandescent light bulbs. There are two stair units that begin at the top level and meet on the bottom of the stage. A grid of steel beams hover above the stage connecting to an exposed catwalk. The WOMAN runs to one side of the stage but is blocked by two STAGEHANDS wearing dark shirts and black vests. She backs away and attempts to exit the other direction but is thwarted by two more stagehands. The four assailants closing in on her, pushing her back until she makes a mad dash for the VOM. She is grabbed before she could escape and tossed back into the center. ANOTHER enters from the top level, making his way down the steps as the woman makes one last ditch effort to break free. She is thwarted and tossed back into the scrum. A STAGEHAND steps in, reaching up an empty hand and stabs downward to her stomach. He pulls away and takes with him a long crimson ribbon, releasing it to the ground. The lights turn red as the whole scene becomes slow motion. The OTHER STAGEHANDS have a go, each raising up and plunging an empty hand into the WOMAN, pulling back a ribbon. WATSON AND THE DARK ART OF HARRY HOUDINI – PRODUCTION SCRIPT 3 The WOMAN weakens with each blow and is left near lifeless, desperately crawling from danger. The FINAL STAGEHAND has now made his way into the maelstrom, pulling away the woman to her knees by her hair. The STAGEHANDS back away into the darkness leaving the two of them alone. As if performing a magic trick, he pulls up his right sleeve and flashes his open palm before reaching around the woman’s neck. With a single violent motion, he slices her throat raining down a shower of red confetti. He keeps her from hitting the ground, laying her carefully on her back. The lights fade and we transition to WATSON. WATSON (CONT’D) It was this brutal incident that would spark the tale I call Watson and the Dark Art of Harry Houdini. The tabloids would have a field day with these shocking acts and would attract the attention of a once great detective. For you see, with no one to chronicle his exploits, the man once considered the greatest mind in all of London would languish.