To Sweep, Perchance, a Dream
TO SWEEP, PERCHANCE, A DREAM
A MINI OPERA
SCENE ONE:
A street corner in dim light. Confetti, streamers and deflated balloons lie around the stage, the aftermath of a party. Right of stage, Jake is huddled in a corner with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. He is surrounded by empty lager cans, cigarette ends and fast food litter. The sweeper enters, with a small dust cart and a broom. He sweeps away the party debris, deliberately avoids cleaning the area around Jake, then exits. Fig enters. He pokes Jake. Jake twitches. He pulls Jake’s hair: Jake stirs.
JAKE Who the hell are you?
FIG I’m your deepest fears, your worst nightmare
Scratching at your face and pulling your hair…
Oh what a shame, drugs have fried your brain
So welcome to a world of pain:
A figment of your fevered mind
When you try to hide, I’m not far behind.
I’m your deepest fears, your worst nightmare
Scratching at your face and pulling your hair…
Your eyes are grit, your body twitches
You palms are sweat, your pale skin itches
Now I’ve got inside your head
When you long for peace, you’ll get this instead:
SFX: Sound of snarling invisible beasts
Faceless figures dance in and out of the shadows, barely visible.
FIG The pack softly prowling, the mob, baying, howling,
The silence, the scream.
The sting of the scorpion, the silk of the spider
Cocooning your corpse.
The dragon, the demon, the three-headed monster
Fight over your bones.
A flash flood, a storm drain, a knife in the shower
A river of blood…
The hell fire, the darkness, the method in madness
The wormhole, the void.
I’m your deepest fears, your worst nightmare
Scratching at your face and pulling your hair…
When you cry for help, is there anyone there?
Figment disappears. Jake wakes and looks round
JAKE Is there anyone there?
SCENE TWO:
Ashlyn is at home in bed, dreaming. She hears a noise and sits up.
FX blue spotlight: A pool of water appears on her bedroom floor.
Jake’s voice whispering mingles with the sound of the sea: “ Is there anyone there?”
Whisper repeated three times, echoes around, getting a little louder each time.
Ashlyn gets out of bed and goes over to the pool of water. She peers in and sees a face. At first it appears to be her own reflection, then morphs into Jake.
JAKE Where limpets cluster on the rocks
(voiceover) We both take off our shoes and socks
I fill my fist with golden sand
It trickles slowly through my hand.
ASHLYN In rock pools where we take the plunge
Our bodies bob like pink marshmallows.
We soak each other up like sponge,
Share hidden depths and secret shallows.
JAKE We’re stranded here with our lives to lose.
ASHLYN Where sea meets sky, let us drown our blues.
She dips her toe in the water. It ripples and the image fades.
SFX sea noise fades, blue light fades and disappears
Ashlyn kneels down and brushes the floor with her hand.
SCENE THREE:
The street corner. Daylight.
Jake sits huddled in a corner, calling to imaginary passers-by:
JAKE Spare some change please?…
He stands up and stretches. Ashlyn enters in a rush and almost bumps into him.
ASHLYN Sorry, I’m just looking for the nearest coffee shop?
JAKE points
ASHLYN Thanks… (She moves on)
JAKE Spare some change… please?
Ashlyn turns to look back at him. She exits, then shortly returns with two coffees and hands him one.
JAKE For me? Cheers darlin’.
ASHLYN You look like you need it.
JAKE I’ve seen you before…
ASHLYN Really? You’re sure?
JAKE We shared hidden depths and secret shallows…
ASHLYN In your dreams!
THE SWEEPER enters and sweeps an area away from the couple.
After he has finished sweeping, he props up his broom, rolls a cigarette and smokes it.
Ashlyn watches him, momentarily distracted. Jake slips a tablet into her coffee.
JAKE He’ll be here soon.
ASHLYN (sipping her coffee) Who?
JAKE The demon, the dragon, the three-headed monster
The serpent, the spider, the hell fire, the darkness,
The void and the wormhole. The silence, the Scream.
ASHLYN Sounds like a real charmer.
(draining her coffee) This coffee tastes weird…
(throwing aside the cup) What did you give me? What did you do?
You want to drag me down with you?
JAKE No. I want you to know how I feel
When the real becomes surreal.
You will see now, see him take shape…
FIG appears
ASHLYN Do you think I’m scared? I’m not weak like you.
She grabs the sweeper’s broom and sweeps Fig away
SWEEPER (Reclaiming his broom) You can’t do that!
ASHLYN But I just did!
SWEEPER What’s a girl like you doing in a place like this?
ASHLYN I was just passing when I bumped into this guy.
SWEEPER You know what passers-by do? They pass on by.
ASHLYN I think he needs help.
SWEEPER You’re wasting your time –he’s a lost soul.
ASHLYN There’s magic in your broom – I felt it.
SWEEPER A temporary fix – those nightmares will return.
He’s caught between two worlds,
He’s seen beyond the veil,
And what he’s seen, it haunts him night and day.
ASHLYN So help me chase his demons away.
SWEEPER Don’t mess with the otherworld.
That way lies madness or death.
ASHLYN Has Death been known to change his mind?
If he’s in a good mood towards mankind..
I believe he could, I believe he would
Does he ever hesitate or waver?
He might spare someone, as a favour.
I believe he could, I believe he would.
Have you heard of a near death experience?
Where is Death then, is he sitting on the fence?
He could change his mind, I believe he could.
SWEEPER We need more brooms.
Ashlyn exits
SCENE FOUR:
JAKE is lying on the floor, comatose. The sweeper stands with his back turned, smoking a roll-up.
ASHLYN returns, sees Jake lying there and tries to wake him, without success.
ASHLYN
(Tapping the sweeper on the shoulder to get his attention)
We really can’t waste any more time.
(Takes out her phone and surfs the web)
I’ve been doing some research: “Spells Online”
Do you have any salt? Or perhaps some chalk?
SWEEPER rummages in his dust cart, looking through a heap of odd objects, and produces a cube of cue chalk.
ASHLYN draws a chalk circle around herself, wielding the sweeper’s broom aloft, she casts a summoning spell:
Through the force of female power
Sweepers, I summon you here and now.
I call on you for the highest good
The noblest goal:
To save a soul!
Clap of thunder, Flash of lightning. Smoke. Three witches appear.
HAGATHA Who invoked the power of the broom?
WITCHHAZEL And what for?
BROOMHILDA For whom?
ASHLYN I did. To save a lost soul.
She indicates Jake. The witches go over and peer at him. Hagatha prods him with her foot.
He doesn’t wake up.
Witches go into a huddle then make a decision. Witches chant:
Our sisterhood will serve you
To show we are not evil
We’ve been maligned, misunderstood
There’s black and white, both bad and good.
They dance with their broomsticks
Tarara broom de-ay, tarara broom de-ay,
We’ll brush your woes aside, We’ll sweep your cares away!
Magic may be used for good or ill
It’s for each to choose, make it what you will
If you choose for good, you’ll be recompensed
If you choose for ill, face the consequence!
Tarara broom de-ay, tarara broom de-ay,
We’ll brush your woes aside, We’ll sweep your cares away!
Broom diddle-diddle-diddle, broom diddle aye
Broom diddle-diddle-diddle broom diddle aye
Treble trouble, squeak and bubble, give this spell some focus,
Super-phallic, fragging broomstick, stir up hocus pocus!
HAGATHA Very well – bring it on!
WITCHHAZEL If anyone can do it – Wiccan!
Fig appears and goes over to Jake. The witches beat him off with their broomsticks. Jake stirs and sits up, still groggy. He sees the witches and puts his head in his hands. The witches win the battle and Fig retreats. The witches fly away on their broomsticks. Jake is cured of his bad dreams. Ashlyn helps him to his feet, they exit arm in arm, leaving the sweeper alone.
The sweeper can finally clear away all the debris from Jake’s dreams. He sweeps the mess into a pile and sets fire to the contents. He watches the fire for a while until it has burned down safely to embers, then exits.
