Time and Fortune

by Birdie Jaworski

Madeline (left) and Ani help stage the play.

UWC Theatre Instructor Tim Crofton handed me a wrapped fortune cookie last Saturday night. I pierced the cellophane with my teeth, let the cookie tumble into one hand. Sixty pairs of nervous eyes watched as I cracked the brittle treat and read the message out loud.

"Look at the moon. Show only your bright side to the world."

I handed the slip of paper to second-year UWC student and budding playwright Holly Jones. She raised her eyebrows above black rimmed glasses. The room echoed with the laughter of writers, directors, and actors as each fortune was read. In twenty-four hours eleven cookies would grow into eleven original written and staged performances. I would direct Jones' play exactly twenty-four hours after meeting her, twelve hours after being handed her brand-new script.

Some say God swept His hand through the void, creating firmament and fire. He had seven days, though, 168 leisurely hours to mold something from abject nothing. Crofton's writers had but twelve overnight hours and one cryptic Chinese phrase. Writers know what it is to gather expelled breath, knit it into a hope-spiked scarf. To do this under pressure, in twelve hours better spent in study, in dream, is quite another thing.

Cookie crumbs gathered under a growing disarray of gray folding chairs. A forgotten brown blazer rested on scarred wooden floorboards near the velvet curtains. Some playwrights retired to their dorm rooms. Some found cozy corners in the UWC campus and hunkered down with tall shot cans of Starbucks espresso. Jones made her way to familiar quarters, my fortune in the pocket of her plaid pajama pants. I watched her saunter out the double door, her blonde bob swinging in a declaration of bravado.

Twelve hours later, red-eyed writers filed into Kluge Auditorium. I sat with the two youngest actors in the event, my son Louis Jencka, 13, and his friend Max Robertson, 12. Jones arrived early. She handed me her script - two filled sides of one paper with the enigmatic title "Don't Look at My Finger; Look at the Moon."

I quickly read both sides of the page. I read it again, slowly, tried to make sense of the Kafka-esque storyline. A woman sits in confession with her priest. He is bug-like - literally bug-like - with antenna and a penchant for scurrying across the floor on all fours. The woman has an affair with her student. Her husband finds out, calls the police. A wandering angel in white steps onto stage, spouting words not-quite-from-the-bible. The woman is silenced by the Hand of God, the angel standing above her lifeless body. At least I thought that was the sequence of events. Told in flashback from the confessional, the dialogue only hinted at what transpired. I glanced at Jones, wondering what midnight terrors fell from our combined fortune. She smiled.

"Directors! Cast your plays!"

Crofton's voice boomed across the hall. More than once exhausted writer winced. I consulted with Jones, and cast UWC students Madeline Noteware as the fallen teacher, Eldar Undheim as the priest, Carlos Grandet as the student, Anirudh Baveja as the mysterious angel, and my own young, yet incredibly tall, son as the husband. We were off and running!

Two hours into rehearsal, my team realized that Jones' script was simply too unusual. Off came the priest's antennae. We erased his floor-scuttling behavior and replaced it with a traditional cleric's collar and the sign of the cross. Young Max Robertson passed us in the hall as we rummaged for props and costumes.

"I'm the Radiation Kid. I think it's a science fiction play. It's weird," he explained.

"You don't know weird." Louis muttered his response, his mind clearly challenged by our racy, avant-guard dialogue.

I struggled with the role of Director, with whether to play it serious or camp. Noteware pointed out that if we delivered our lines without irony, it would probably be funnier. She borrowed clothes to dress her part - a button-down sweater and a librarian's skirt. Baveja added one special low-tech effect - a flaming cross meant to represent the swift justice of the Lord.

During technical check, we watched the ten other five-minute plays. It became obvious that ours was the most unusual, the most controversial, the one play that might offend and bewilder the audience. We continued to rehearse, refining line and movement, until our play became a synchronized swim of confession and flashback.

"Maybe this isn't so bad," I giggled, after one particularly good run through the script. "At least our actors are pretty good."

"Mom, I still don't get the play." Louis raised eyebrows in perfect mimic of our playwright.

At 8 p.m. Sunday, exactly 24 hours after opening the cookies, the auditorium was packed with UWC students and a few people from outside campus. It felt like a week since we first met, since we first read Jones' play. We waited in the wings, pushed our makeshift confessional onto Stage Left when it was our turn. Undheim responded to his sinner with expertly acted furtive glances, with a quick thumb through his bible. Noteware fluttered mooning eyes at Grandet. The audience giggled. Baveja stood backstage with me, waiting his cue to take the floor with his winged majesty, his glowing cross. As he strode to Center Stage, one hand lifted in flaming splendor, the audience held a collective breath.

The curtain fell on our strange morality lesson. I wandered to the audience with my actors. I caught Jones' face in profile as I found my seat. She smiled, the same knowing look she gave me when I first read her work, and I realized she discovered what it meant to swipe one's hand through the void, to collect the light from the moon.

Comments

[Shrexy]

Hmm !!

With the authors permission I wouldnt mind reading that script. Sounds deliciously confronting. Nothing like whipping the carpet from under hypocrisy is there ?? :)

I await >:~))

[Lloyd]

this 'bright side'... is that legal in NM... NV I know but..

[Carroll]

Dear Goodness, Woman -- you certainly are not one to shrink from a challenge!

And with a rousing "ka-ching!" another remarkable line gets added to Birdie's resume -- Theater Director!

[Stever]

Simply incredible!

[Carroll]

So, Birdie, I'm curious...were you able to speak with the would-be playwright after the performance to find out how she felt about your interpretation and the actors' delivery of her "message", whatever the heck it was supposed to be? Was she able to elaborate at all on her intentions?? Truly, from what you have told us, even with your ever-generous final sentence in this essay, I'm completely stumped.

[Shrexy]

Carroll...that would be a part two of a story...and we all know what happens with them !!! lol :)

[Carroll]

Shrexy, you never fail to make me laugh :-) I hope we get to meet each other "for real" someday. Any plans for another Grand Tour of the US in your future?

[Shrexy]

will be stateside August... ought to be sufficient time for a certain someone to sit down and write me a dozen "finishes" and save tokens for magarita mix at the local market !! lol
Not 100% sure on itenary yet.

get adddy off of that Bird chick.. :)if she hasnt flown the coop again :)

[Birdie]

Okay, we are going to have an Official Blog Buddies Pajama Party this next August!!! I'm dead serious. Let's start the preparations NOW!

Carroll, I still don't quite "get" the play. Apparently we offended some of the more conservative folks in the audience and a letter was sent to UWC administration. Whoops. Well, I directed what I was given!

Funny but true fact: When ever anyone asked us (while rehearsing) who *wrote* this play, we would answer "Holly." And EVERYONE said, "Oh. Figures."

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

I think she liked our interpretation. She did seem surprised that we altered (ha ha no pun intended) a bit of it.

I very much enjoyed working with the UWC students. It was great to get to know a few of them a little better. And Louie had the time of his life. Even though the play was strange, and we were exhausted, it was a great way to celebrate his Coming of Teen Age.

[Birdie]

In other news, and please please discuss, I am monetizing my Tiny Vegas site. I've added ads, and will be asking folks around town if they wish to sponsor the site. That site gets more hits than even my Avon site did in its heyday! Can you believe it?!

If anyone has any ideas of what I could do with it to bring in more bucks, I'll all ears. I am working up creative solutions to finding a way to write full time (eventually, down the road, no I'm not quitting my job!).

Love and kisses!

[Shrexy]

right on !!!! it's PARTEEEEEEEEE TIME !!! I mean... bloggers get together..lol..

I'll check my 'arrangements' ...I think I previously mentioned to certain parties Id be causing havoc, I mean visiting the town around 3rd week of August.

We can have our own showdown at Birdies Okie Dokie Coral !!! yeeha !! And yes i'm bringing my ass....just leaving the donkey at home :)))

Am all for you "Value Realisation" of your works and sites lil chirpee one.. go for it.
Will that make it easier to finish...I mean ...continue stories?? *wink*

[Shrexy]

p.s
couldnt hurt any could it to get sponsored by a brand of Tequila..??

geez !!!....just asking...sheeeesh!!!! :)))

[lilalia]

What a wonderful story. Great idea, though rather mad as well.

Will get on and click those advertisments!

[Agnieszka]

Just found this blog. So great to "meet" someone who loves pierogi and Las Vegas, NM as much as I do.
I am Polish and after my 2 years at UWC I keep dreaming of coming back to LV or at least NM for good.
I will be a frequent guest here. Thanks for posting.
Greets, Agnieszka

[Agnieszka]

Just found this blog. So great to "meet" someone who loves pierogi and Las Vegas, NM as much as I do.
I am Polish and after my 2 years at UWC I keep dreaming of coming back to LV or at least NM for good.
I will be a frequent guest here. Thanks for posting.
Greets, Agnieszka

[Wandering Willow]

I was too busy to comment when this post was new, but I have to say... I'm washing and pressing my pajamas already, in anticipation of August!! (well, not really, but in my own mind the pj's are washed and pressed.)

[Wandering Willow]

P.S. Since you asked... I'm glad you monetized the Tiny Vegas site. I don't think you should shrink from doing what you need to do. Maybe you can monetize further, by linking to sites that sell related things, and receiving a percentage of what gets purchased. (travel sites, map sites, new mexican jewelry sites, new mexican gift sites, etc.)

[mata h]

miss you. am now in mass, land of personal histories and pierogi.
love,
m

[:)]

i love that barbara, the inflatable sex sheep.. or the "love ewe" is in the background of this picture