Antlia Pneumatica (TCG Edition)

Anne Washburn

• Publisher: Theatre Communications Group
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9781559365802
• eBook ISBN: 9781559368957
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: American Drama
• Index: Literature

“Ms. Washburn is a writer of questing imagination and convention-bending technique.” —Ben Brantley, New York Times

In Anne Washburn’s captivating new drama, a group of old friends—who, now in middle age, have mostly lost touch over the years—reunite at a remote Texas estate for the funeral of one of their own. As the former friends confront the memories of their shared past, the walls quickly dissolve (literally and figuratively) into a realm bordering on supernatural. A haunting tale of loss and friendship, Washburn seamlessly blurs the lines between the real and surreal, inviting us into a world of humor, imagination and mystery.

Someone is digging into a metal bowl of ice cubes in the freezer.

A pitcher of lemonade with ice cubes is stirred vigorously.

Ice cubes jingle gently as a full glass of lemonade is carried across the lodge.

The phone rings.

The jingling trajectory shifts.

The phone rings.

NINA: Yello.

Mini beat.

Adrian.

Really?

Mini beat.

How did you know I was here?

Nina has appeared onstage, a cordless phone in one hand, the glass of lemonade in the other.

Don who?

No.

Oh. Yes. Don. Don. Right. How did Don … find out?

No not Suzie. Definitely not. (A sudden thought) Don isn’t coming is he?

Uh-huh. Yeah that’s probably better. (Irrelevantly) How is Don?

She hears herself, makes a face.

Oh, that’s great.

Beat.

Of course. No of course. You’re welcome to. Of course. Do you remember the way?

When do you uh

Okay, great. Yes. (Again: not relevant) We can feed you; we’re making a lot of food.

Hears herself, makes face.

All right, (Waves) bye.

She stands there for a moment. Utterly blank.

Then turns. Looks offstage. Gears herself up to say something:

As she walks offstage

Near panic:

Liz!

Sound of a plunge

Sound of someone surfacing, gasping

LIZ: Cold! Cold cold cold! Good! Cold!

Sound of splashing.

Nina speaks alone to the audience:

NINA: I was standing in my cabin and the Sphinx … thing, was at the back door.

The curtain was blowing in front of it, I couldn’t see it clearly but there was and I don’t know where the light was coming from, but

mane, flank, but then a moment of profile, not maw but sharp: nose, lips, jaw—a woman.

And I turned and I was surprised to find that the front door, the door to the meadow with the quote unquote pecan orchard was wide open and the light was just breaking

And I thought it was the wind had blown it open because in the dream there was this incredible wind the night before.

I stepped forward to close the front door, or to walk through it, and I woke up and it was the middle of the night it had cooled off. I pulled the blanket up from the foot of the bed and went back to sleep.

A bird cheep, very loud, like a small cheep heard right up close, like a little bird leaning into your ear and letting loose.

Another cheep.

A saucy trill.

Lights change.

The island is spread with cookbooks, notes, a few bowls and ingredients already in play.

Ula and Liz are looking out through the window toward the river, talking about a mostly red bird and what it is.

ULA: Sometimes birds like that are loud.

LIZ: I think birds which have just the tiniest piece of red on them are the loudest I’ve noticed that. They’re louder than all-red birds.

ULA: I guess they have something to prove.

Sees Nina, waves list.

Really? We’re really making all this food?

NINA: It’s a funeral Ula. Funeral spells food.

ULA: Yeah but who is this for? Just the eight of us.

LIZ: Nine.

ULA: I love to eat, don’t get me wrong.

NINA: I thought you liked cooking.

ULA: I do. I do. I’m thrilled.

NINA: We’re going to make a feast.

ULA: We are indeed.

NINA: But get a swim in first. Liz jumped off the edge of the Blue Hole.

ULA: Finally.

LIZ (Doesn’t love this): It’s very high up, and it’s very frightening. And, it is not a natural thing to do, to jump into water which you cannot see the bottom of.

NINA: So Major. Your whole life.

LIZ: You were not an early adopter of the Blue Hole leap either, might I add.

NINA: Our whole childhood was our mom telling us absolutely not to jump into the Blue Hole from the edge—

LIZ: Which she always did

NINA: Which she always did! And she spent all the years after that telling us to for god’s sake jump, just jump, what were we so chicken about.

ULA: It is sort of exciting.

NINA: You had the benefit of first coming to it as an adult-sized person, and on mushrooms.

LIZ: Oh god oh god oh god don’t tell me, I don’t want to think, you jumped into the Blue Hole tripping and was it even daytime?

ULA: There wasn’t even a moon.

NINA: We had flashlights.

ULA: Yeah but they weren’t trained at the water at the time; I sort of guessed.

NINA: Oh did you do that?

LIZ: Okay there’s a rocky ledgy thing …

NINA: Yeah I’m glad I didn’t know that at the time.

LIZ: And then, but okay but that’s fine, that’s fine it already happened. Don’t tell me anymore. You’re alive, that’s what counts. You’re alive. I’m alive.

NINA (Going off): No one has ever drowned at the Blue Hole.

LIZ: It probably hasn’t been given a real chance.

Refrigerator door opening.

NINA (From off): Where did all the eggs go??

LIZ: You made that big scramble this morning.

NINA: I didn’t use all of the eggs. There was that big pink carton.

ULA: Oh those eggs were very ancient. I tossed them.

NINA: Oh really...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Production History
• Characters
• The Set
• Antlia Pneumatica