Source Material
Excerpts from Laughter under the Bombs by Sharif Abdunnur
Scene 4: The Friends Reunion
D): okay that was very good, very good, now scene four, Assistant Director (honk honk)
D): call Actors 1, 7, 12, 15, 17
AD): ( honk ) No
D): ( surprised and furious ) what do you mean NO!
AD): ( honk ) I mean I can't they didn't come
D): so who did come?
AD): ( honk ) 12 is absent, ( honk ) 14 is absent, and 15 is ( honk ) only 1 and 7 are here
D): well set up the five chairs get them in their places I will find some other actors. (turning towards the audience) we have lots of actors here. This is gonna be fun. Okay Assistant Director get me him the one hiding in the corner, ( honk as he runs up to ask the audience member to join them on stage ) and those two girls over there that are pretending not to so me looking at them. ( honk - honk )
( it is recommended to always pick on the shy audience members as usually once coaxed they are more entertaining - usually audience members that are eager to act - will get stage fright once up on stage or will over act )
D): now that we are all on stage let me explain a few things: ( the director starts to speak insanely fast - all of this should be in one breath ) this play is a new old type of show, its experimental, tragic, comic, social and abstract, it contain everything and has really nothing, except you, it is life without meaning and yet all that means anything ( takes a deep breath ) now that you don't understand what I mean let us continue. The scene is a bunch of friends getting together, so I want you all to tell me about yourselves - just your name, where you come from and what you do and why you do it... just talk but make it interesting.
( as each audience member starts to speak - about themselves the director gives comments and direction - about speed, tone, voice. Once all 5 have done a brief introduction one time, now is time to have fun: the director starts to ask each to develop some odd quirks, twitching while speaking, stuttering, saying everything as if it was a rude sexual innuendo... the scene should not go on for more than a very maximum of 10 minutes it really depends on the audience interaction and the director's improvisation .)
Scene 6: The News
D): alright good now that I wrote all that down, we go back to the play back to the news
Actor 6): Good evening, today in the news, is the same as it was yesterday, the invasion continues, the air-strikes continues... greed and stupidity still run the world, blood is still being spilt... kids are being sacrificed for the sake of the mighty dollar.
[...]
Actor 3): Thank you for your words... we now move into the audience to see if they have anything to say. ( she moves into the audience with the mic in her hand and takes comments and opinion from audience members - this goes on for about 10 minutes ).
