A Property of the Clan

Nick Enright

• Publisher: Currency Press
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781925210262
• Topic: Letteratura
• Subtopic: Teatro

When a young girl is murdered at the hands of one of her male contemporaries, what is the aftermath? How will her friends cope? How can such violence be understood? Written for Freewheels TIE Theatre Co, A Property of the Clan deals with these issues with honesty, sensitivity and intelligence. This play was later adapted to become the play Blackrock.

GLEN reads an assignment in a Year 11 classroom.

GLEN: ‘…Young girls could be taken away from their homes, and put into orphanages, even though they weren’t orphans. They’d be given a low-grade version of a white girl’s education. Then they’d be sent out to work on stations, or in white people’s houses in country towns. The excuse for this was that their own families couldn’t bring them up properly to make a place in white Australia. So young Aboriginal women were made into servants. They were separated from their own culture and its traditions. And they were conditioned to think they were the lowest of the low… black, female and unskilled in a white man’s world.’

I’ve got some slides. I photographed some stuff from a few books.

TEACHER: Good, Glen. Go ahead.

STUDENT: Spock.

GLEN: I’ll just set up the projector.

* * *

JARED stands in the middle of the schoolyard, calling for the ball.

JARED: Here, here! Scott! Scottie, here!

RICKO’S VOICE: Hey, Elphick! Hey, Jared!

JARED looks beyond the fence and sees BRETT RICKETSON passing in a van.

JARED: Shit. Ricko. Hey, it’s Ricketson. Ricko! Hey, Ricko!

JARED/RICKO: How… does… it feeeeeel!

JARED: You’re back, mate.

RICKO: No, I’m still up in Surfers, you dropkick.

JARED: Didn’t you like it up there?

RICKO: It was choice, mate. The waves, the women, everything. Goin’ off.

JARED: Why’d you come back, then?

RICKO: Cause I thought youse all had to be ready for a boot up the arse.

JARED: Yeah?

RICKO: Yeah. Saturday night, mate. I’m throwing myself a welcome home.

JARED: Shit, why?

RICKO: I’m back home.

JARED: That’s nothing to have a party about.

RICKO: Saturday night at the Rock. Spread the word.

JARED: Spread the word? Everyone in the yard’s heard about it.

The school bell rings.

RICKO: Into class, girls and boys.

JARED: How’d that heap get you to Queensland? Looks like it couldn’t get you across town. Sell it for scrap, Ricko.

He leaves as JADE walks towards the fence.

JADE: Hey Ricko! It’s me. Jade. You back, Ricko? Back to stay? See you round.

* * *

RACHEL and JARED are at the ferry wharf, city side, with their school bags.

RACHEL: There’s no point arguing. They don’t want me to go.

JARED: Why’d you tell them?

RACHEL: I just did. And they said no.

JARED: Because it’s with me?

RACHEL: No, Jared. They said you could come along with us.

JARED: Come where?

RACHEL: Camping. We’re going up to the Inlet.

JARED: Since when?

RACHEL: Since months ago. I forgot. We said we’d spend the weekend together before my brother goes overseas.

JARED: You said you’d go?

RACHEL: Yes.

JARED: Shit, Rachel. Why?

RACHEL: Because I like Philip. And he’ll be away for years.

JARED: You like me. Don’t you?

RACHEL: No, I hate the sight of you, you dag. Come with us.

JARED: With your Mum and Dad and them?

RACHEL: Well, with me. We don’t have to be with them every minute.

JARED: Ricko’s my best mate. It’s going to be mega. Everyone’s going.

JADE arrives with her schoolbag.

JADE: Where? Where, Jared?

JARED: None of your business.

RACHEL: Brett Ricketson’s party.

JADE: Oh, that. I know about that. Saturday night at the Surf Club. You going, Rachel? I’m going.

JARED: No way.

JADE: You said everyone. Didn’t he say everyone?

JARED: Not little kids.

JADE: Get stuffed. I’ll be there….

JARED: Get on the ferry, Jade.

JADE: I’m going if Tracy’s going. And Tracy’s going.

JARED: What if Tracy wasn’t invited?

JADE: She’s been invited.

JARED: Bullshit.

JADE: She has. Scottie’s asked her.

JARED: Scott Abbott’s a bloody little root-rat

JADE: He told her he likes her! And she really likes him.

JARED: And she’s a moll. A fucken-

She swings at him with her schoolbag.

JADE: Don’t swear at me. I’ll tell Mum.

JARED: Yeah? Well, first you tell her you want to go the Surf Club Saturday night, and see...