2021 Young Playwrights Anthology

Spring in the Underworld © 2021 by Shelby Powers
Bird Without a Nest © 2021 by Sophia Khan
A Boring Street in the Middle of Nowhere © 2021 by Lucy Potts
Never Too Late to Change © 2021 by Ayanna Bennett
Published by City Theatre Company
Marc Masterson, Co-Artistic Director
Clare Drobot, Co-Artistic Director
Monteze Freeland, Co-Artistic Director
James McNeel, Managing Director
Pittsburgh, PA
CityTheatreCompany.org
These plays are protected by copyright. Any public performance
or reading is prohibited unless presented with the author’s written
permission. All inquiries should be directed to the playwrights in care
of YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL, City Theatre Company,
1300 Bingham Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15203.
Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of classroom study,
research, or review, no play may be performed, reproduced, or copied
by any process. City Theatre Young Playwrights Anthology 2021
collection © 2022 by City Theatre Company, Inc.
Cover art & design: Landesberg Design
Page design: Tyler Crumrine

2021

City Theatre Company
Pittsburgh, PA
2022

Contents
Contest Staff ................................................................ 5
Festival Staff ................................................................ 6
Program Support ......................................................... 7
Introduction by Katie Trupiano .................................... 8
Spring in the Underworld by Shelby Powers ................. 10
Bird Without a Nest by Sophia Khan ........................... 28
A Boring Street in the Middle of Nowhere by Lucy Potts .. 54
Never Too Late to Change by Ayanna Bennett ............... 97
Honorable Mentions ................................................ 121
Participating Schools ................................................ 123
About City Theatre .................................................. 124
City Theatre Staff ..................................................... 126
City Theatre Board of Directors ................................ 128

4

EQT Young Playwrights Contest 2020 Staff

city theatre education Director of Education
Katie Trupiano Literary and Education Intern
Katy Zapanta
Julia Levine Education Intern
Rita M. Dorsch Teaching Artist
Maggie Sulka Teaching Artist
Monica Stephenson Teaching Artist
Ali Hoefnagel Teaching Artist
Annie DiMario Teaching Artist
Joseph McGranaghan Teaching Artist
Mora Harris Teaching Artist
TJ Young Teaching Artist

literary committee

Andy Kirtland Lindsay Barr
Anne Amundson Madison Hack
Ashley Martin Marissa Edmiston
Marsha Mayhak
Caitlin Skaff Matt Henderson
Carrie Mannino Mora Harris
Chris Dimond Nicole Gehring
Christa Burneff Nikki Battestilli
Connor Shioshita Pickett Rachel Smith
Rebecca West
David Little Renee Rabenold
David Loehr Rita Dorsch
Deb Sherrer Sarah Powell
Emily Ernst Sarai Warsoff
Emily Lewis Savannah Kyler
Gaby Kogut Scott Barsotti
Hazel Leroy Seth Laidlaw
Jeanne Drennan Shae Wofford
Joanna Weiss Stephanie Chavara
Joel Ambrose Taylor Couch
John DeSantis Taylor Meszaros
Katy Zapanta Timothy McGeever
Kristen Link
Kristin O’Malley
Lana Meyer

5

Young Playwrights Festival 2021 Staff

Linda Haston Director
Malic Maat Dramaturg Spring in the Underworld
Mora Harris Dramaturg Bird Without a Nest
Olivia O’Connor Dramaturg A Boring Street in
the Middle of Nowhere
TJ Parker-Young Dramaturg Never Too Late to Change
Tony Ferrieri Scenic Design & Properties Design
Alexx Jacobs Properties Design
Madison Hack Costume Design Spring in the Underworld
and Never Too Late to Change
Amelia Benson Co-Costume Design Bird Without a Nest
and A Boring Street in the Middle of Nowhere
Nicole White Lighting Design
Britt Pierce Sound Design
Jinah Lee Stage Manager
Mariana Wilson Production Assitant
Harbour Edney Master Electrian & Programmer
Brad Peterson Sound Engineer
Howard Patterson Sound Engineer & Board Operator
Aaron Tarnow Sound Engineer & Board Operator

City Theatre 2020-2021 Teaching Artists
Annie DiMario
Rita Dorsch
Mora Harris
Ali Hoefnagel

Joseph McGranaghan
Maggie Sulka
TJ Young

6

City Theatre Education Programs are
Generously Supported by:

The Donald and Sylvia Robinson Family Foundation
The Jack Buncher Foundation

The Buhl Foundation - Frick Educational Fund
The Philip Chosky Charitable and Educational Foundation
The Anne L. and George H. Clapp Charitable and Educational Trust

The Grable Foundation
The Pennsylvania Department of Education/Intermediate Unit One

Hilda M. Willis Foundation

7

Introduction
Every year, students from across the Western Pennsylvania
region submit one-act plays to City Theatre’s Young
Playwrights Contest. In 2021, we received nearly 300
submissions from teens just like you. We read plays about
bullying, mental health issues, about Covid, and family
matters. The seemingly endless number of topics never
ceases to amaze our artistic staff.
As the winning plays progressed further and further along
in the selection process, it became clear the evolution of
the characters was something we needed to share with our
audiences. Evolution in relationships, self-understanding,
society, and community are all pivotal to the stories you
are about to read. And doesn’t evolution feel timely as the
world begins to emerge into a post-Covid normal?
Evolution is not always comfortable, as you will see
from the plays that follow. But discomfort is what makes
for a prime learning environment. In a way, the Young
Playwrights program puts students in a position of
discomfort as we ask them to try a new art form they are
not usually familiar with. We hope they see themselves
evolve over the course of our residencies (our teaching
artists certainly do!). Playwriting is not easy, and we are
amazed by how willing our students are to try.
Thank you to all the artists and staff who worked so
hard to bring our Young Playwrights Festival back to the
stage this year. Thank you to our funders who continued
to believe in our mission, despite the changes we had to
make. Thanks to our educators who continued to bring
teaching artists to their classrooms in the middle of a
pandemic. And thank you to the students who submitted
to our contest and shared their stories with us.

8

It is truly a joy to read your words.
We look forward to the next evolution. After all, a bit
of discomfort to move our world and understanding
forward is not a big price to pay. Here’s to growth, and
understanding that it is never too late to change.

Katie Trupiano
Director of Education & Accessibility

City Theatre Company

9

Matt Henderson as Hermes, Shakirah Stephens as Demeter,
Brenden Peifer as Hades, and Allen Law as Zeus
in Spring in the Underworld (left to right)
Digital capture from the
2021 Young Playwrights Festival

10

Spring in the Underworld
by Shelby Powers

photo courtesy of the playwright
Shelby Powers is ecstatic to see her play come to life on
stage. She attends Burgettstown middle school. Shelby is
involved in 4H and performs in the school drumline. She
would like to thank Addy, Leeam, Ic and Mrs. Nonack
for helping inspire and bring her play to life, including
her wonderful dramaturg, Malic Maat. She would also like
to thank City Theatre for the wonderful opportunity to
share her play with the public. She has a love for Greek
mythology, which was the inspiration for the play.

acknowledgments

Spring in the Underworld premiered at the City Theatre
Young Playwrights Festival November 6, 2021, where it
was directed by Linda Haston with dramaturgy by Malic
Maat. It featured the following cast:

Zeus Allen Law
Hades Brenden Peifer
Persephone Sadie Pillion-Gardner

11

Demeter Shakirah Stephens
Hermes Matt Henderson
Nymphs Paige Moody
Spirits Paige Moody

characters

HADES: Male, god of the underworld.
PERSEPHONE: Female, goddess of spring.
DEMETER: Female, Persephone’s mother and Goddess

of the Harvest.
ZEUS: Male, father of Persephone, king god, god of the

sky.
HERMES: Male, God of messages, travel etc etc.
HESPERIA: friend/guardian of Persephone.
SPIRIT 1: A spirit that serves Hades in the Underworld.
SPIRIT 2: A new arrival in the Underworld.

settings

Over-world (fields)
Underworld
Mt. Olympus (meeting room)
Hades’s Castle in Underworld
Garden in Underworld

Spring in the Underworld

Scene 1

(ZEUS and HADES are in ZEUS’s office in Olympus.
ZEUS is sitting down on his chair behind his desk.)
ZEUS. Heyyyyy big maaan, god of the underworld, my
favorite brother! My amigo, my homeslice, my-
HADES. (sounding tired) Hello Zeus, seems as if I caught
you in a good mood.

12

ZEUS. Oh man, you have no idea, I hooked up with this
one hot mortal girl and- don’t tell Hera, she’d kill the
poor mortal on sight- but we’re gonna have another
little demigod running ‘round here soon.

HADES. Zeus-I-don’t you think it’s a little irresponsible
to have so many major demigods running around in
the mortal world?

ZEUS. Ahhh, he’ll be fiiiiine. Plus, there’s already a ton
of them out there between me and Poseidon, and
you see how Hercules turned out!

HADES. Hercules literally killed his own family- Ah, you
know, that’s not why I’m here. I need… advice.

ZEUS. Good good, you’ve come to the right place!
What’d ya need?

HADES. Sooo… I like this one goddess.
ZEUS. Woooo, little brother finally finding himself a

lady!? Why don’t you just snatch her? Works fine for
me!
HADES. Well, even if I did consider that option, that
would be a problem.
ZEUS. Why? You’re God of the underworld for...god’s
sake! You could pick up any girl.
HADES. Well you see, Demeter is her mother…
ZEUS. Ah, well yeah that’s gonna be a problem...how are
we gonna do this…

13

HADES. I could tell her how I feel and try and work it
out with Demeter.

ZEUS. Pfffffffft, she’s never talked to you, and that would
be so stalkerish.

HADES. I’m not “stalkerish”
ZEUS. Says the man that watches pretty goddesses from

afar.
HADES. Like you don’t do the same thing!
ZEUS. Well at least I actually talk to them!
HADES. Well… let’s get back on track, what are we

going to do about this.
ZEUS. We could always get Poseidon to go and talk to

her for you!
HADES. I will not be having Poseiden speak for me, you

heard him trying to talk to Aphrodite. She smacked
him all the way to the underworld! I can’t even begin
to tell you the earful I heard from her.
ZEUS. Yeah that makes sense…
HADES. What about Athena? She would know. She’s the
goddess of wisdom and strategy after all.
ZEUS. Hmmm, you could be right, but do you know
what’s better than words from Athena herself?
HADES. (sounding uneasy) What?

14

ZEUS. (pulls out a old scroll from a drawer in his desk)
Look what I have! It’s an old scroll I dug up in the
library.

HADES. You were in the library?
ZEUS. Well, Athena dug it up for me. Why would

ya think I wouldn’t like libraries?! I’m a very
knowledgeable god.
HADES. (sarcastically) Really? I didn’t know you knew
how to read.
ZEUS. What?
HADES. Nothing, anyway, what’s in the scroll?
ZEUS. It has an old family secret, us olympians have
been using for millennia.
HADES. Oh no, I am not—
ZEUS. —shhhhhhhhh, it always works, trust me.
(ZEUS wraps his arm around HADES, and HADES
awkwardly shuffles away from ZEUS.)
ZEUS. Now, we plan our heist.

Scene 2
(In field with PERSEPHONE and HESPERIA.)
DEMETER. Stay safe Persephone! I’ll see you in a little
bit. Oh, and make sure you stick with your friends!

15

PERSPHONE. Ok mom, I’ll be back by sundown, bye!
DEMETER. Bye honey!

(PERSEPHONE walks off with HESPERIA. Time
pass where the bright morning turns into a dim
afternoon, PERSEPHONE and HESPERIA are in a
big field. HESPERIA starts to look tired and lays in the
grass.)
PERSPHONE. Hey Hes, can you come with me to go
and find some mushrooms in the forest? I want to
use them for tomorrow’s picnic!
HESPERIA. Persephone, you know your mom said we
can’t go farther than the fields, it’s dangerous.
HESPERIA. And you wouldn’t want to disobey your
mother! Plus, she’ll kick me out of the garden if you
get hurt!
PERSEPHONE. C’mon Hessss! There’s nothing out
here!
HESPERIA. Oh really? You know how many scary gods
are out there?!?
PERSEPHONE. Scary gods?
HESPERIA. Yeah! Like… umm… Oh, Hades!
PERSEPHONE. Hades? He doesn’t sound scary!
HESPERIA. No no, he’s the god of the Underworld! He
kills people!

16

PERSEPHONE. Really?!
HESPERIA. Yeah! And he eats children and kicks

puppies! And steals candy from babies!
PERSEPHONE. That’s sick!
HESPERIA. Yeah! I wouldn’t want to run into him if I

was you.
PERSEPHONE. Oh ok, he does sound really scary, and I

wouldn’t want to get you in trouble...
HESPERIA. Thanks Persephone, I knew I could rely on

you.
Scene 3

(PERSEPHONE is sitting down in the grass and
watches HESPERIA fall asleep in the grass, then looks
up at a bright flower field, looks back at HESPERIA.)
PERSPHONE. Hmm.. should I go off? I mean, I’ll only
be gone for a couple minutes...I’ll just pick a couple
flowers and come back before she wakes.
(PERSEPHONE gets up and walks towards the field.)
Huh, I wonder why my mom and the nymphs don’t
let me go past the fields, there’s nothing scary out
here!
(PERSEPHONE walks through the field and picks
flowers, while HADES and ZEUS stand off to the side
of the stage.)

17

ZEUS. (in a hushed tone) C’mon Hades, just go tell her
you love her, that you think she’s hot!

HADES. (in a hushed tone) Women are more than that
Zeus, what about personality, opinions…

ZEUS. Just shut up and go talk to her.
(ZEUS pushes HADES out into the field, and
PERSEPHONE looks up.)

PERSEPHONE. Uhh H-Hello?
HADES. Uh, hi, I’m Hades, I think your personality is

nice and… and... I-I love you?
(PERSEPHONE screams, and HADES looks back at
ZEUS.)
ZEUS. Ok plan B.
HADES. You sure?!
(PERSEPHONE still screaming.)
ZEUS. Yeah, it always works for me!
HADES. Oookay...
(HADES grabs PERSEPHONE and drags her off
stage, PERSEPHONE still screaming.)

Scene 4
(We are in the underworld in HADES’ castle
in a bedroom and HADES is trying to talk to

18

PERSEPHONE, PERSEPHONE is sitting on a bed
and HADES is standing in the door frame.)
HADES. Look Persephone, I’m sorry about all of this, I
mean to be fair it was Zeus’s plan. To be honest, I do
really like you and I appreciate how confident and
caring you are
PERSEPHONE. (angry) No! Nonono! You’re sick! You
know when my mom gets here you’re in big trouble!
You- You dodo head!
(PERSEPHONE throws a pillow at HADES’ chest
and it bounces off of him. HADES lets out a sigh.
SPIRIT 1 enters from next to HADES.)
SPIRIT 1. My lord?
(HADES turns to face the spirit.)
HADES. Yes?
SPIRIT 1. There is trouble at the gates.
HADES. I’m in the middle of something at the moment,
can it wait?
SPIRIT 1. There’s riots at the gates.
HADES. Riots again? Just get Thanatos on it.
SPIRIT 1. No my lord, Thanatos is doing the best he can
collecting souls as they expire in the mortal world,
so I suggest you come to your throne room at this
instant.

19

(HADES turns to look at PERSEPHONE and leaves,
closing the door behind him.)

Scene 5
(PERSEPHONE is left in her room sitting on her bed.)
PERSEPHONE. I can’t believe I’m stuck here! You know
maybe I should try and escape, I’ve been here for 3
days already. Maybe…. Mom is just on her way here
now. I can meet her in the middle!
(PERSEPHONE gets up off her bed and grabs the
doorknob and opens it, seeming surprised it actually
opened. She wanders through the halls of the castle and
stumbles upon HADES’ throne room where HADES
and SPIRIT 1 and talking.)
HADES. My gods, how many?
SPIRIT 1. The front lines are counting 5000 so far, with
more on the way.
(HADES looks annoyed/overwhelmed.)
HADES. And Demeter won’t give this up?
SPIRIT 1. No, she’s been on this rampage for days,
killing farmers, destroying fields, it’s a massacre.
(PERSEPHONE gasps from around the corner and
turns to go and try to find a way out.)
PERSPHONE. Oh my gods, I can’t believe mom would
do this! She wouldn’t even hurt a fly! I need to get
out of here!

20

(PERSEPHONE continues wandering through the
halls and comes across a garden.)
Oh my gods! What is this? I didn’t think anything
could grow in the underworld!
(PERSEPHONE goes over to a pomegranate tree and
takes one, then sits down on a bench. She starts eating
it, only getting half way through before HADES enters
from the left of the stage.)
HADES. Hah, well of course not, but I had these
especially made.
PERSEPHONE. Is this all for me?
HADES. Well of course! I don’t know much about
gardening.
(PERSEPHONE looks at HADES endearingly, and
HERMES runs onto stage from the right side, and
when HADES notices him, he lets out a long sigh.)
HADES. Hello Hermes, what’s the bad news this time?
HERMES. Hello Hades! Oh sorry, am I interrupting
something?
(HADES takes a step back from PERSEPHONE.)
HADES. Ah, not at all, not at all! How can I help you?
HERMES. Zeus has invited you to Olympus!
HADES. You’re kidding.

21

HERMES. I wish! And he didn’t sound like he was in
a good mood when he told me! You better get up
there.
(HADES sighs and looks back at HERMES.)

HADES. Tell Zeus I’ll be there in 5.
HERMES. You got it big man! Oh and you’re aware of

all of those souls at the gates
HADES. (sounding annoyed) Yes, I am aware.
HERMES. Woah ok then, see you there then.

(HERMES runs back off the stage, and as he leaves,
HADES sits down on the bench.)
PERSEPHONE. What was that?
HADES. Zeus doesn’t seem to be too happy with me.
PERSEPHONE. I thought the whole kidnapping thing
was his idea?
HADES. It was, but it seems as though it backfired on
him now. I bet most of the goddesses up there are
throwing a hissy fit. Also, what happened to me
being a dodo head?
PERSEPHONE. Hey! I’m not good at insults, I grew
up in a very sheltered environment. Also, honestly, I
was just mad I couldn’t bring my favorite plant down
here. You’re not as bad as I’ve heard.
HADES. Oh? What sort of things have you heard?

22

PERSEPHONE. That you kill people and steal candy
from babies.

HADES. Hah, I wish my job was as easy as that.
(HADES scoots closer to PERSEPHONE on the
bench.)
Also you said something about your favorite plant?

PERSEPHONE. Yeah, my hyacinth.
(HADES smiles while looking at PERSEPHONE.)

HADES. Well I’m sure I can get my gardeners on
temperature adjusting for all the hyacinths you want.

PERSEPHONE. That’s so sweet of you, but you might
want to get them to redecorate the castle, it’s looking
very gloomy.

HADES. Yeah I haven’t redecorated in a while…
PERSEPHONE. I was thinking a little color on the

walls? Maybe red.. Or purple would work too
HADES. I would love to hear more about wall

decorating, but I need to get up to Olympus before
Zeus drags me up himself.

Scene 6
(Ent. Olympus where ZEUS, HERA, ATHENA,
POSEIDON, APHRODITE, HERMES,
DEMETER, and HADES are sitting at a large
discussion hall. DEMETER and HADES are at

23

opposite sides of the hall.)
(DEMETER YELLS.)
DEMETER. I don’t know why you can just give her
back! My baby won’t survive the lousy pit that you
call the underworld! My baby could never truly love
him.
HERMES. I don’t know Demeter, she seemed pretty
content when I ran down there…
DEMETER. Absolutely not! She couldn’t love someone
that kills people for a living!!!
(HADES with head in hands.)
HADES. For the last time Demeter, I don’t kill mortals, I
just do the paperwork.
DEMETER. (yelling) I don’t care about that you, you…
Agh! I swear if you don’t give her back, I’ll kill all the
mortals on the Earth!
ZEUS. Hey hey, calm down everybody. There will be no
more mortal killing, you’ve already overstepped your
boundaries with that. Look Demeter, if you really
want your daughter back in your possession, you
could always wage a war on the Underworld.
(Everybody at the table is shocked.)
DEMETER. What?! Have you gone mad!?-
HADES. I’d be willing.

24

(HADES looks up at DEMETER.)
DEMETER. You’ve actually gone mad! I’m not starting

a war! Just give her back and we won’t have any more
problems.
ZEUS. (looking tired) Please Hades, could you just give
her back? I don’t feel like dealing with this.
HADES. Well even if I wanted to, I couldn’t give her
back to you Demeter.
(DEMETER raises her eyebrows.)
Persephone ate a pomegranate while in the
underworld.
(EVERYBODY shocked.)
DEMETER. She ate… the whole thing?
HADES. Only half.
ZEUS. (excited) Good, Good!
DEMETER. (angry) How is that good?! You know
that once you eat food in the underworld you stay
there… (sounding upset) …forever!
ZEUS. Well, since she only ate half, she can spend half of
the year with you, and half with Hades! Perfect!
HADES. I’d be fine with that, It only seems fair.
DEMETER. I still can’t believe you’re ok with this Zeus.

25

ZEUS. Demeter, come on, it’s a fair deal! She’ll be fine.
DEMETER. I just worried about her. The Underworld is

a scary place, riots on the beach, Styx overflowing…
HADES. Believe me Demeter, she will always be safe in

my hands. I love her.
DEMETER. I doubt that…

Scene 7
(We see a slightly older looking HADES, and
PERSEPHONE sitting in the throne room.)
SPIRIT 2. Please don’t send me to Tartarus! Please,
please, I wasn’t that bad-
HADES. You know I suppose he could go to the fields,
next—
(PERSEPHONE lightly slaps HADES on the arm.)
PERSEPHONE. Hades! You can’t just send people to the
fields all willy nilly! He had 3 affairs! I say we make
up a punishment for him.
SPIRIT 2. No
HADES. And what would the punishment be?
PERSEPHONE. Hmm, I say we make him sit under an
apple tree and next to a pond for the rest of eternity.
HADES. Mhmm

26

PERSEPHONE. But get this right, every time he goes to
drink water it vanishes.

SPIRIT 2. Wait
HADES. I like where this is going.
PERSEPHONE. And every time he reaches for an apple,

it rots!
HADES. Oh I love that.
PERSEPHONE. I knew you would.
SPIRIT 2. NOOOOOOOOOOOO.

End of Play.

27

Paige Moody as Aisha (left)
John Dolphin as Old Man (right)

in Bird Without a Nest
Digital capture from the
2021 Young Playwrights Festival

28

Bird Without a Nest
by Sophia Khan

photo courtesy of the playwright
SOPHIA KHAN is a middle schooler at Sewickley
Academy. She has a love for first edition books and hopes
to obtain a collection of them. This play is dedicated to
Snow-white, and to everyone who has ever tried to talk
to animals. She would also like to thank her teachers
for allowing her to be one of the butterflies in her first-
grade play Mariposa (butterfly in Spanish) which began
her fondness for plays. She would also like to thank
everyone who read and cared about this play, especially
her dramaturg who was very patient with her.

acknowledgments

Bird Without a Nest premiered at the City Theatre Young
Playwrights Festival November 6, 2021, where it was
directed by Linda Haston with dramaturgy by Mora
Harris. It featured the following cast:

Old Man John Dolphin
Fred/Red/Ed Matt Henderson

29

Aisha Paige Moody
Mom Laura Karner
Girl Scout Sadie Pillar-Gardner.

characters

OLD MAN: Wise and around his 70s, he’s also very
mysterious.

FRED/RED/ED: Crazy and friendly.
AISHA: Young and judgmental but also thoughtful.
MOM: Understanding and compassionate.

props

Ice cream, two dollars, a penny, a backpack, some clothes,
dish, stick, a bench, trees, rocks, birdhouse, bed, cutting
board, knives, stuffed zebra, toy, bow, box.

notes

Whenever a bird is mentioned, it depends on just sounds.
Bird Without a Nest
Scene 1

(AISHA is in the kitchen with her MOM.)
MOM. Aisha put that down.

(AISHA ignores MOM and continues to play with a
toy then someone rings the doorbell and MOM gets it.)
GIRL SCOUT. Hello, ma’am. I was wondering if you
would be interested in buying some cookies from us
today.
MOM. Sure, but come on in. It’s freezing out there. I’ll
be right back.

30

(Girl scout comes in the house and goes by AISHA,
AISHA looks her up and down then focuses on her bow
that she’s wearing in her hair.)
AISHA. (disgusted while MOM goes off stage) Where’d
you get the bow, it looks really old.
GIRL SCOUT. Oh yeah. My mom gave it to me. It was
my grandma’s. Pretty nice right?
AISHA. (simply) No.
(The girl’s eyes get wide and she looks away. MOM
comes back on stage and hands her a few dollars.)
MOM. Just one box of the coconut ones please.
(The GIRL SCOUT nods and fishes out a box from her
bag. As she’s walking away AISHA sticks out her foot and
trips her then after she falls she bends down and swipes
the bow out of her hair.)
AISHA. Sorry, about that. Are you okay?
GIRL SCOUT. Uh, yeah. Thanks.
(She leaves stage and AISHA goes over to the trash can
looks disgusted by the bow and then throws in away.)

Scene 2
(AISHA walks to the park. The park has trees planted
around, and the lighting is tinted yellow.)
(AISHA starts walking around the park it starts
snowing. AISHA looks up at the sky. She looks at an

31

OLD MAN sitting on the ground with a clear look of
disgust. She moves her eyes onto a bird on the ground.)
AISHA. A bird just laying on the ground, off to a great
start.
(She tilts her head and wonders if it’s dead. She picks
up a stick then goes to poke it. The bird immediately
flys away with a screech. She looks at an OLD MAN
sitting in the park and scoffs as she shakes her head side
to side.)
OLD MAN. Why did you do that?
AISHA. (looks back at the OLD MAN) Do what?
OLD MAN. You just hit that poor bird with a stick for
no reason. Maybe I should hit you with a stick too.
Not to mention you’re not clever.
AISHA. (gets shy) It’s just a bird. Calm down, dude. Plus,
it’s useless. It’s not like it’s even doing or thinking of
anything useful. And I wasn’t judging you.
OLD MAN. Maybe that’s how birds think about us. Or
maybe they pity us more. We can wonder, but we
will never be able to figure it out, even if it’s such a
simple question.
(The stage lightens up OLD MAN points to a bird
perched on a tree branch.)
OLD MAN. That bird might’ve just come to an
epiphany that no human had ever thought of before,
and yet we will never know.

32

AISHA. (looks directly at the audience, rolls her eyes and
sighs) Okay, now I’m confused. It’s just a bird. I guess
he really is crazy. (looks at him skeptically and slightly
concerningly) It’s just a bird.

OLD MAN. Indeed, you’re just a little girl. While I’m
just an old man. Are we still stating the obvious?

AISHA. (gasps) What’s your point?
OLD MAN. (looks up at AISHA with tired eyes) Just

because you think you know the capacity something
has doesn’t mean you really do. You assume things
based on no knowledge beforehand and judge
people.
(AISHA stares at the OLD MAN in disbelief.)
AISHA. It’s a bird!
OLD MAN. Hahaha! You must have worse ears than me.
I’m very aware of this fact.
AISHA. It can’t possibly have thoughts like humans
because it’s not one.
OLD MAN. And I bet you think people can’t have
certain thoughts because of what they are doing or
because of how they look. Okay sure, you definitely
weren’t thinking.
(He puts his hands up in quotation marks and uses a
high pitched voice.)
“Oh what a lazy man sitting in a park looking like
he does. Why not just get a job. It’s not like it’s hard

33

to work in this world, or get a job. Like some people
didn’t have enough money to get an education so
they can’t get a high paying job or anything.”
(Stage darkness and spotlight on AISHA, AISHA looks
at the audience.)
AISHA. Okay first of all insulting. What, why does he
think he can speak to me like that. But what does
he know. He just admitted to not having a job and
being poor. But still….it’s not fair that I’m up against
a jedi.
(Lights go back on as AISHA glares at the OLD
MAN.)
Hey! I’m not like that. I don’t judge people like that!
I’m never rude, and I don’t discriminate against
anyone.
OLD MAN. (looks up at her and his voice dripping in
sarcasm) Really?
(AISHA looks at him with an aghast expression)
AISHA. Are you a Jedi?
OLD MAN. (snorts) Not that I’m aware of.
(AISHA looks at the man with guilt. Everything freezes
except for AISHA.)
AISHA. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing. But I did
have a point about talking to a strange man alone. I
really need to get out of here like now.

34

(Everything unfreezes. OLD MAN looks at AISHA
with a knowing look.)
OLD MAN. You should be heading home now, yes.
(AISHA smiles and nods then starts to head back
to where she left her bike. While AISHA is walking
toward the exit she stops and looks at a bird that was
perched on a tree branch)
AISHA. What are you thinking about? Are you
wondering how humans make their own definitions
of everything important? Or maybe if humans get
scared when it thunders. I guess I’ll never know. But
look at me, talking to birds like a wanna-be Snow
White.
(The bird flies away and AISHA started walking.)
(AISHA starts to walk and head home except she keeps
her eyes on the sky.)
(The sky darkens in color as AISHA continues to stare at
it and birds fly in the background as AISHA continues
to look at the sky it starts to darken.)
(The OLD MAN walks out onto the stage and as
AISHA continues to walk around he starts talking
while looking at her.)
OLD MAN. As she stared into the great abyss above her
or maybe she was staring and the world reflections
and actually looking down. She wasn’t sure but as she
stared into the endless pool she almost swore that she
could see it stare back.

35

Scene 3
AISHA. Mom, I’m home!

(MOM waves and smiles beckoning her to come in the
house.)
(AISHA runs towards the house and goes into the front
door.)
MOM. How was your day sweetie?
(AISHA looks a little concerned and hesitates.)
AISHA. It was............ okay
(Her MOM gives her a look of concern.)
MOM. Aisha, what happened?
AISHA. Nothing?
MOM. Aisha
(AISHA sighs before lowering her gaze.)
AISHA. Nothing happened! I just talked to someone in
the park okay!
(MOM blinks once.)
I’m sorry I yelled.
MOM. Who did you talk to?
AISHA. Just some guy in the park.

36

MOM. Aisha! What’s wrong with you! How hard is it
to remember not to talk to strangers? How is it this
difficult for you to not try to get kidnapped! Why
would you ever talk to a complete stranger all alone?

AISHA. (sighs and keeps her eyes on the floor) I know, I
know. And I’m sorry I just wasn’t thinking.

MOM. No! You weren’t thinking. You know what you’re
no longer allowed to go to the park by yourself!

AISHA. Come on, Mom, that’s not fair.
MOM. Nothing’s fair.

(AISHA sighs and nods her head in acceptance. MOM
had just turned around and went to walk away when
AISHA calls out.)
AISHA. (whispering) Mom do you think I’m a bad
person?
(MOM turns around shocked. MOM walks straight
toward her and bends down so their eyes were on the
same level.)
MOM. Why do you think you’re a bad person, Aisha?
(AISHA looks away.)
AISHA. Because I think I judge people a lot. Like, make
assumptions about them and stuff.
(MOM sighs and moves AISHA’s chin forcing her to
look at her.)

37

MOM. Aisha, of course, you’re going to judge people
sometimes. The very first thought you have is
society’s fault, not yours but the second thought and
your actions are all on you. Aisha, have you ever hurt
anyone?

AISHA. No
MOM. Aisha, have you ever stolen from anyone?
AISHA. No
MOM. You see, you’re not a bad person Aisha. You’re just

figuring out the world. But you do need to work on
even judging less. Everyone does.
(A tear slips down AISHA’s cheek.)
AISHA. Okay.
(MOM pulls her into a big hug.)
MOM. Now, why don’t you relax down here for a bit
while I go do some work.
(AISHA nods and sits down in a chair and waits for
her MOM to leave. After she does AISHA moves over
by the window and opens it up. She looks out at the
trees and sees a small bird. AISHA smiles and rests her
back against the window frame.)
AISHA. What’s your name?
(The bird just stares at her in response.)
I’m Aisha.

38

(The bird chirps once.)
What are you thinking?
(The bird stares at AISHA for a little while then turns
and flies off into the distance. AISHA watches the bird
fly off then gets up she goes over to her closet and opens it
up. She reaches down then brings up birdhouse She goes
over to the window again and puts the birdhouse there
AISHA then gets into her bed and falls asleep.)
The lights slowly darken then stay like that for a little
while then they slowly start to come back on AISHA
gets out of bed slowly rubbing her eyes. She walks over
to the window and sees a bird in the birdhouse. She sits
down next to the birdhouse)
Hello, I’m Aisha. I’m sorry I hit one of your friends
with a stick.
(AISHA sighs and mutters under her breath.)
Yes, that’s great, admit to the bird you hit another
bird with a stick and then the bird assassins will kill
you. Well done, Aisha.
(The bird flies away then AISHA walks off stage.)

Scene 4
(AISHA’s at her house in her kitchen, MOM is making
dinner.)
MOM. Hey, I’m making dal.
AISHA. Oh, okay…...um…..do you want any help?

39

(MOM turns around looking shocked.)
MOM. Um….yes...yes of course I would!

(Her MOM erratically grabs AISHA’s hand dragging
her over to the sink.)
Wash your hands. And then you can cut up the
vegetables.
(AISHA does as she is told. She then walks over to the
cutting board and grabs a knife. She starts to cut up
tomatoes and celery)
AISHA. Hey, when’s dad coming home?
(Her MOM sighs regretfully as she shakes her head.)
MOM. Your father isn’t going to be coming home any
time soon.
AISHA. (scoffs) Of course, he isn’t.
(MOM just turns around and starts washing a
dish.)
MOM. Aisha, your father tries.
AISHA. Yeah, he tries. Just not to be a father.
MOM. (sighs) Look, your father is a hero. Life in the
military is hard. You should be grateful we have
the life we do. So many kids would love to have
your life. The opportunities that you have. So stop
complaining and whining. We all have to try.

40

AISHA. (laughs dishearteningly) Sir, yes sir.
(MOM sighs and walks off stage.)
(AISHA looks out the window for a while then sighs
She starts pacing around for a little while then grabs her
backpack and stuff some clothes that were neatly piled
on the counter in it a bird flies to her window.)
Don’t look at me like that…..I mean it I’ll hit you
with my stuffed zebra.
(She points to a stuffed animal zebra in the kitchen.)
You go wherever you want, why can’t I? Okay I really
don’t need a lecture on the differences between the
psychic of birds and humans. My dad left, it doesn’t
matter if he’s saving other people’s lives. He’s not in
mine. Really that’s not fair of ME? I didn’t give him
permission to get up and leave to go join the military.
So I can do the same. If mom can be okay with him
leaving, she’ll just have to be okay with me leaving
too. Anyway, you can’t stop me, Karen.
(AISHA then crawls out the window.)
Scene 5
(There are trees in the background and it’s dimly lit.)
(AISHA walks slowly shivering slightly she sits down at
center stage. She rests her head against a rock and closes
her eyes a noise comes from off stage and she jumps,
she looks around scared then rests her head against her
palms.)

41

(The OLD MAN enters from stage left.)
OLD MAN. Evening stroll?

(AISHA looks up at him then burst into tears.)
AISHA. Just go away.

(She rubs her cheeks with the back of her hand.)
OLD MAN. Why? I don’t think I’m the reason you’re

crying. Am I?
AISHA. (mutters softly) No.
OLD MAN. (clicks his tongue then walks over to her and

sits down next to her) Well then, would you like to
talk about it?
AISHA. No.
(AISHA leans against the OLD MAN’s shoulder. He
sighs and pats her head.)
OLD MAN. Have you talked to any birds recently?
(AISHA giggles and shakes her head up and down.)
AISHA. I had a wonderful conversation with the bird
that was on my window; he kinda looked like his
name would be George.
(AISHA stops leaning on him and turns to face him.)
OLD MAN. Well, did George the bird do or say
anything interesting?

42

(He is truly intrigued by George, the bird.)
AISHA. I mean, we didn’t get very far into our

conversation, but he seemed like a very interesting
and intelligent bird.
Now that I think about it, George seemed quite
confident too. Maybe he was a doctor or a teacher, or
maybe even the president.
OLD MAN. (mutters in disbelief) Fascinating.
(He holds his hands out, making Ls with his hands as if
actually picturing it.)
I can see it now, GEORGE FOR OFFICE.
(They laugh together.)
Well, I’d better be off now, have fun on your stroll.
(He sets up and begins to walk away. AISHA scrambles
to her feet.)
AISHA. Wait! You’re leaving?
OLD MAN. (popping the p) Yup. It’s getting late, and I
have to find a good bench to sleep on.
AISHA. (stutters for words) B-b-but...
OLD MAN. (starts laughing) Calm down, plus I doubt
your mom would like it if I stayed anyway.
(AISHA sighs weakly.)

43

(points stage right) But there’s a pretty good ice cream
place just down the road that I think you would like.
But it closes soon so you better hurry. Maybe you’ll
find some perspective, with the sprinkles. I’ve heard
the chocolate sauce is very eye-opening.
(OLD MAN exits stage left.)
AISHA. Okay. Batman. I don’t even like sprinkles.
(AISHA looks at where the OLD MAN had pointed
and walks in that direction off stage.)
(There’s a sign saying FRED’S FABULOUS ICE
CREAM SHOP in bold letters a small box made out of
cardboard where FRED’s waiting inside.)
(While AISHA’s walking across the stage she mutters to
herself.)
AISHA. Following the instructions of a stranger, what
a brilliant idea! Aisha, it’s not like you just left your
home all alone with a backpack and nothing else.
Yes, this is exactly what you need, ice cream while
you’re shivering. Brilliant plan.
FRED. (eyes light up once he sees AISHA and he begins
speed talking very very fast) Hey little miss! Welcome
to FRED’S FABULOUS ICE CREAM SHOP we
have all kinds of ice creams that come in all kinds
of shapes and all kinds of sizes! Our specials this
fine evening are a captivating coco cinnamon cream
chocolate caramel crumble crunch chunky cherry-
topped with crushed cereal that just makes you
carnivorous. We also have a…

44

(AISHA just stares at him with an open mouth and her
eyes wide and slowly starts walking backward)
...delectable dynamite dangerous dragonfruit Duron
dark diary damson date dinosaur egg marshmallow
mars that is just to die for.
(AISHA finally closes her mouth sighs and stays where
she is)
AISHA. Look, Fred is it? Um...well I can I just get a
vanilla ice cream with sprinkles and chocolate sauce?
FRED. You got it! One ice cream coming right up! Red,
one vanilla ice cream with sprinkles and chocolate
sauce pronto!
(FRED turns his hat around and becomes RED.)
(Before AISHA could even process this RED disappears
into the back in order to get her ice cream.)
(A few seconds later and RED appears with her ice
cream in hand.)
RED. Yo! Names Red, You haven’t seen Ed by any chance
have ya?
(Unlike FRED, RED talks very slow and has a
different tone of voice less professional.)
(AISHA just shrugs her shoulders in response.)
(AISHA’s eyes also widen again and she starts to
look at the ground.)

45

(AISHA also gets very stiff.)
Oh, right I forgot you’re just a customer.
(RED took off his hat then became ED.)
ED. (leans against the edge of the cardboard, smiles, and
hands AISHA her ice cream) That would be one
ninety-nine, please.
(He’s different from FRED and RED, ED seemed nicer
and had a very friendly tone.)
(AISHA grabs two bucks out of her backpack and
handed them to ED.)
And I’ll be right back while I go get Fred he likes to
do this sorta thing
(AISHA looks up at him about to stop him but it was
too late he had already pulled out his hat and was
wearing it.)
FRED. Hey miss, I’ll go get your change.
(FRED reaches into his pocket and hands her a single
penny.)
Here you are little miss, now don’t forget to leave
a good yelp review and tell your friends all about
FRED’S FABULOUS ICE CREAM SHOP. Now
you have a good day!
(And with that FRED reaches out and closes the
cardboard flaps of his shop.)

46

AISHA. (yells at no one) It’s night, just so you know!
(She then she turns on her heel and walks away eating
her ice cream.)
(As AISHA is walking she looks back at the ice cream
shop.)
(She then starts to giggle.)
(She gets louder and louder until someone yells at her
from offstage to be quiet.)
(AISHA looks a little embarrassed but still smiling.)
(She sits down at center stage again and eats her ice
cream while a bird flies right in front of her.)
Hello, birdie. I just had the most concerning
midnight snack of my life. But at least this ice cream
is A plus. Now, what’s your name? You don’t really
feel anything like George. No, you’re more like a
Leslie. Is that what I should call you? Leslie?
(AISHA pauses as if the bird would actually answer
her.)
Okay then. Leslie. I would offer you some ice cream,
but I’m not hundred percent sure if it would kill you
or not so best not to risk it.
(AISHA stops talking and just stares at the bird.)
Okay don’t look at me like that Leslie, I know I
snuck out, and I know that I just bought ice cream
off of three people who all belong in a mental

47

hospital and I am also aware of the fact that Fred,
Red, and Ed are not the best people to buy anything
that is going into your body. But give me a break,
Leslie, I thought we were friends.
(Leslie the bird chirps.)
Okay, okay okay! Good point I get it. I should really
be more careful and maybe stop talking to strangers.
(AISHA paused again and took a bit of the ice cream.)
Alright, you win. Definitely stop talking to strangers.
(The bird chirps.)
No need to be so smug about it.
(The bird chirps multiple times then pecks at the
ground.)
No, I don’t care that my mom is probably really
worried about me and that she might’ve called the
police.
(AISHA pauses once again.)
Oh shut up Leslie! No one likes you anyway!
(The bird stares at AISHA.)
I’m sorry that was uncalled for but come on Les, I’m
the only kid I know who has to deal with things like
this….Tony’s biggest issue is his cat died three years
ago and Taylor’s biggest issue is her grandma died five
years ago.

48

(The bird pecks AISHA’s foot)
OW! Leslie, not cool, just wait I’ll tell George about
this. We’re cool like that.
(The bird chirps at AISHA again and again.)
Did you really just give me a bird lecture about how
I shouldn’t judge people and how issues are different
for everyone and just because things are happening to
me doesn’t mean other people’s feelings are less valid
because if you did I’m definitely going to tell George
that you’re HARASSING me.
(AISHA said with a straight face looking directly at the
bird.)
(The bird chirps once again.)
Ugh! Fine! You win!
(AISHA flicks some ice cream onto the stage.)
Happy?
This night was really weird though, Les. Like, I
would have never done that before. I would have
never given Fred’s place a chance just because of how
it looks. And don’t even get me started on what I
would’ve thought about Fred himself. Everything’s
just been really strange. I was so mad at everyone and
everything. So quick to judge everything. I just miss
my dad. I know it’s not an excuse but still. He’s off
fighting, but I am too. People act like living in itself
isn’t a war, especially if you don’t know what side
you’re on. This ice cream is also really good.

49

(The bird chirps and flies away.)
(AISHA stands up in outrage.)
Oh, nice one Leslie! You suck you know that! You
just wasted ice cream! That is illegal! You’re going to
jail!
(Someone yells at AISHA to be quiet once again.)
(AISHA yells back at the person off stage.)
No, you!
(AISHA’s eyes widen then she runs off stage right.
AISHA was at the park again it was empty from
everyone except AISHA. She strolls into the park and
continues to eat her ice cream AISHA begins to twirl
and spin just enjoying her ice cream and the silence.
While AISHA was distracted a man and a little girl
snuck onto stage. Dramatic music starts playing as
AISHA stops twirling and see the little girl playing with
her father. Tears start falling down AISHA’s cheeks as
the man twirls the little girl around and she laughs.)
(Then stage fades to black.)

Scene 6
(In the kitchen. MOM comes on stage into the room
stage right.)
MOM. Aisha, are you ready for dinner. Aisha? Aisha!
(MOM gets up and a bird flies to the window then she
sighs)

50