Welcomeby Richard Stuart Dixon
© Richard Stuart Dixon, 2007
(Note: Performance of this play requires the author’s permission. Please contact Good School Plays for details.)
Production Notes:
• running time: approx. 60 minutes.
• style: gothic drama
• suitable for general audiences
• 23 characters (17 female, 6 male)
• black-box staging (no set required)
Summary of Script Content:
• “Sundenfall” is a tale set in a remote castle in Germany during World War One. A countess in the grip of madness summons her resources and her will to bring about the creation of monstrosity in the service of grief.
(This play was first performed on April 3, 4, 5, 10, & 11, in the year 2007, at Gleneagle Secondary School in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada.)
Go to:
Act One, Scene 1
Act One, Scene 2
Act One, Scene 3
Act One, Scene 4
Act One, Scene 5
Act One, Scene 6
Act Two, Scene 1
Act Two, Scene 2
Act Three, Scene 1
Act Three, Scene 2
Act Three, Scene 3
Act Three, Scene 4
Act Three, Scene 5
Act Four, Scene 1
Act Four, Scene 2
Act Four, Scene 3
Act Four, Scene 4
Act Four, Scene 5
Act Four, Scene 6
Characters:
Countess Frieda Von Sundenfall, 36
Hella Von Sundenfall, 38, Countess Frieda’s sister
Manuela Schutzengel, 34, Hella’s nurse
Tatiana Eiskalt, 42, the Countess’s housekeeper
Theresia, Eiskalt, 14, Tatiana’s daughter
Frigga, the Artificial Ubermadchen
Wotan, the Artificial Ubermensch
Anika Putzen, 22, the Countess’s maid
Ermentraude Raumen, 21, the Countess’s maid
Fritzi, 10, the little girl from the village
Sepp, 10, the little boy from the village
Princess Sophia Von Vornehmberg, 38
Saskia Hofling, 22, her lady-in-waiting
Doktor Val Hirncraft, 44
Doktor Thor Geistege, 42
Corporal Dieter Ladestock, 26
Private Gerhardt Schlacthaus, 25
Hedwig Kohlkopf, 45, a greengrocer, Fritzi’s mother
Gudrun Fleischwolf, 51, a butcher, Sepp’s mother
Katherina Altwerden 76, Frieda’s aunt
Dorothea Altwerden 75, Frieda’s aunt
Ilsa Kirsch, 18, a village maiden
Clara Kuchen, 18, a village maiden
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act One, Scene 1:
(HELLA VON SUNDENFALL is onstage with her nurse, FRAULEIN SCHUTZENGEL.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
This castle is a cage, nurse, and I am a bird.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
The castle is not a cage, Hella. It’s a refuge that keeps you safe.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
From what?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
From the world, from the war, from everything that could harm you.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Why can’t I fly among the flowers in the forest?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Try to understand: you are not a bird.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
(looking at her arms)
Why have my wings turned into arms?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Your arms have never been wings.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
But I’m a bird in a cage, nurse.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Nonsense, Hella.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Why does my sister make me stay in the cage?
MANUELA SCHTUZENGEL
It’s not a cage.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Why does she make me stay here?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Must I tell you over and over again?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Yes, you must.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Your sister the Countess wants to keep you from harm.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
If only my arms were wings again! Then I could fly from this cage.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Please, Hella, don’t keep repeating things. It gives me a headache.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
But I am the one who is supposed to be sick.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Yes, and I am your nurse…but even nurses get headaches.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
This poisonous cage is to blame.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
It’s not a cage; it’s a castle.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Take me away from here, nurse…please.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Do you want me to read you a story?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Which one?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Perhaps the one about the wolf who gobbled the yellow canary.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
No, no…that one’s frightful!
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
It is a cautionary tale that will teach you something, my dear.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
What will it teach me?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Not to stray from this so-called cage.
(COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL enters.)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
How is Hella doing today, Manuela?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Stubborn and repetitive, I’m afraid, Countess.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
When was her last injection?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
At fourteen hundred hours.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Hella, what’s wrong?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
I have no wings, my dear sister…only these useless arms.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Useless? But Hella, at dinner your greedy arms were first to reach for the strudel.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
(refusing to look at anything except her arms)
Useless…useless. I cannot fly.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
(taking Manuela aside, leaving Hella to stare at her arms)
Manuela, Princess Sophia von Vornehmberg will arrive this evening.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Yes, of course. We are all so excited.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I want you to display Hella to her.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Display?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Show the Princess how sick my sister is.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
May I ask why, Countess?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I am planning an experiment and I require Princess Sophia’s patronage.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Is Hella to be the subject of the experiment?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
No, but she will benefit from it.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
I see.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
…and so will the Fatherland!
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
The Fatherland!
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I wish to kill two birds with one stone, as our enemies the English like to say.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Kill two birds, Countess?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
If my experiment succeeds, I will kill the bird of madness fluttering in Hella’s mind…
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
And what other bird must die?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Why, the French cockerel, of course, who stands in opposition to our German eagle.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Your experiment could help us defeat the French?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
And the Russians and English…
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Then with all my heart I will do my best to reveal Hella’s madness to Princess Sophia.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
It is your patriotic duty, Manuela.
(to Hella, who is still staring at her arms)
Hella, we should be grateful for our shoulders, elbows, wrists, and fingers.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Why, my sister?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Because in conjunction with our opposable thumbs, they let us create any wondrous thing our fertile minds care to imagine.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Even wings?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes, wings made of canvas and wood. If you want something that has never existed, my dear Hella, you must build it.
(She exits.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Nurse, I’m afraid for my poor sister.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Whatever for, Hella?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Can you not see that she is a madwoman?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
No, Hella…she is brilliant, not mad.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
She thinks I am a stone that kills birds, and you say she’s not mad?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
That was only a metaphor. Now it’s time for your next injection. Come along.
(She begins leading HELLA offstage.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Soon I will see the Princess. I wonder if she will set me free from the cage?
(They complete their exit.)
End of Act One, Scene 1.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act One, Scene 2:
(TATIANA EISKALT, the housekeeper, enters with ANIKA PUTZEN and ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN, the maids.)
TATIANA EISKALT
Princess Sophia will arrive soon, and we must be prepared, Anika and Ermentraude.
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
(curtseying)
Yes, Frau Eiskalt.
TATIANA EISKALT
On no account is the Princess to see the Countess’s secret laboratory.
ANIKA PUTZEN
But what if the Princess asks to see the laboratory, Frau Eiskalt?
TATIANA EISKALT
Then you must politely tell her it is forbidden.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
But she is a Princess, Frau Eiskalt. We dare not refuse her commands.
ANIKA PUTZEN
To disobey a Princess invites disaster!
TATIANA EISKALT
I am the housekeeper, and you are the maids. You will do as I say.
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
(curtseying)
Yes, Frau Eiskalt.
TATIANA EISKALT
I detect in both of you a certain resistance to authority. If you want to keep your jobs in the castle, you will have to demonstrate greater humility and obedience.
ANIKA PUTZEN
It is Ermentraude, Frau Eiskalt. She whispers things in my ear and before I know it I am lured into her little games…
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
(interrupting)
She lies! I am the one who is lured. Anika is older than me. She bullies me and tricks me and…
TATIANA EISKALT
(harshly)
Halt!
(ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE realize they’ve gone too far.)
Do not be so stupid as to think I believe a word either of you says! And if you ever try to go in the secret laboratory, I’ll have you turned over to the police!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
The police! But it is only a room, Frau Eiskalt, and our keys do not fit the lock…
ANIKA PUTZEN
Ermentraude!
TATIANA EISKALT
So you tried to go in there!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Only once, because there was a funny smell.
ANIKA PUTZEN
We thought something might be on fire.
TATIANA EISKALT
(roaring)
Stupid girls! The Fatherland is at war!
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
(stiffening into patriotic attention)
The Fatherland!
TATIANA EISKALT
…and I must tell you something that you must swear never to repeat.
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
We swear!
TATIANA EISKALT
The Countess is working day and night on a secret weapon to help the Fatherland achieve victory.
NIKA PUTZEN
Then it is our duty to help her!
TATIANA EISKALT
No! You are a pair of silly maids. You must not go near the laboratory. If you do, or if you repeat anything I have told you, I will report you to the Countess and you will be shot as spies!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
(grasping ANIKA for support)
My god!
ANIKA PUTZEN
Shot!
TATIANA EISKALT
You are both extremely stupid, and that makes you almost as dangerous as those who are extremely clever. Now go to the dining hall and prepare the Countess’s table for the banquet.
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
At once, Frau Eiskalt!
(Curtseying and exchanging looks, they exit.)
TATIANA EISKALT Foolish things! Such creatures are apt to end up in front of a firing squad!
End of Act One, Scene 2.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act One, Scene 3:
(THERESIA EISKALT enters.)
THERESIA EISKALT
Mama, I have finished my lessons.
THERESIA EISKALT
Then repeat for me the lines from Goethe’s “Castle on the Mountain”.
THERESIA EISKALT
(reciting)
“There stands an ancient castle
On yonder mountain height,
Where, fenced with door and portal,
Once tarried steed and knight.
But gone are door and portal,
And all is hushed and still;
O’er ruined wall and rafter
I clamber as I will.
For burned are roof and rafter,
And they hang begrimed and black;
And stair, and hall, and chapel,
Are turned to dust and wrack.”
TATIANA EISKALT
Very good, Theresia.
THERESIA EISKALT
Mama, what does the poem mean?
TATIANA EISKALT
That even a great castle such as this must one day fall to ruin.
THERESIA EISKALT
A hundred and ten years ago, Napoleon’s troops tried to ruin Goethe’s house in Weimar, Mama.
TATIANA EISKALT
Who saved it?
THERESIA EISKALT
His mistress Christiane. She barricaded the doors.
TATIANA EISKALT
But neither she nor anyone else can save Goethe’s house, or any other house, in the end.
THERESIA EISKALT
Why, Mama?
TATIANA EISKALT
Because of time, Theresia.
THERESIA EISKALT
Is time stronger than war?
TATIANA EISKALT
Much stronger, my dear daughter. In fact, time always defeats us. It is always and forever the victor in our struggle to survive.
THERESIA EISKALT
Then instead of nations making war against each other, they should make war against time.
TATIANA EISKALT
No. We should surrender to time and let it occupy our hearts and minds. It is an occupation from which we might truly benefit.
THERESIA EISKALT
Mama, what’s in the secret laboratory?
TATIANA EISKALT
If I told you, it would no longer be secret.
THERESIA EISKALT
I long to know.
TATIANA EISKALT
Be patient. Time reveals everything, my dear Theresia.
End of Act One, Scene 3.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act One, Scene 4:
(HEDWIG KOHLKOPF the greencrocer and GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF the butcher enter.)
TATIANA EISKALT
Ah, Frau Kohlkopf and Frau Fleischwolf! How timely!
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Frau Eiskalt, we have come from the village with wagons full of meat and vegetables. Now we must collect the money owed to us by the Countess.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
It’s been three months, Frau Eiskalt. Pay us at once.
TATIANA EISKALT
The Countess appreciates your patience, and begs a little more.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
But I have bills to pay myself! A butcher shop is not a charity, Frau Eiskalt!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
And a greengrocer does not give away vegetables.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Meat is scarce. The war is driving up the cost. I must be paid.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
The army takes almost everything, and what’s left costs a fortune.
TATIANA EISKALT
Patience! Patience! War requires sacrifices from us all!
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
When will you pay us?
TATIANA EISKALT
When Princess Sophia of Vornehmberg becomes the Countess’s patron.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Princess Sophia? But why would she give the Countess money?
TATIANA EISKALT
I am not at liberty to discuss the matter, for it involves the defense of the Fatherland. Now excuse me, I must attend to my duties.
THERESIA EISKALT
What am I to do, Mama?
TATIANA EISKALT
Recite some Goethe to these merchants. They could use a dose of strong German poetry.
(She exits.)
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
So give us a poem, and be quick about it.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
It will pay the interest on your mistress’s debt.
THERESIA EISKALT
Very well.
(She recites.)
“They kept me guarded close, while yet
A little tiny elf,
And so I sat, and did beget
A world within myself,
All I cared to see.”
(She curtsies.)
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Not much of a poem.
THERESIA EISKALT
But it’s Goethe!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
I don’t care if it’s the Kaiser himself! It’s not worth a single radish.
THERESIA EISKALT
All you merchants think about is meat and vegetables and money.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Cheeky girl! Where would we be without beef and potatoes?
THERESIA EISKALT
I’d rather eat Goethe’s words than a dead piece of flesh or a chopped-up bit of boiled tuber!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Spoiled brat! Fat and lazy! You’ve never had to work.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
You may be the daughter of the housekeeper in a fine castle, but we merchants are the ones who find the food to feed the armies of the Fatherland!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Look out, little miss! An army marches on its stomach!
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
And if our German soldiers are not well fed, one day you will find yourself alone with a gaggle of French ruffians who will put a quick end to your fatuous virginity!
THERESIA EISKALT
I’ll tell mother what you’ve said!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
So tell her! It’s true, every word of it!
THERESIA EISKALT
No it isn’t! Germany’s going to win the war because of the secret laboratory!
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Secret laboratory? Don’t be daft, girl.
THERESIA EISKALT
I’m not…the Countess is making something in there that will win the war!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
What, cream pies to throw at the French?
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
You’re making it up.
THERESIA EISKALT
No I’m not. Everyone here knows about it.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Then it’s not very secret.
THERESIA EISKALT
No one’s allowed to go into the laboratory.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Who’s going to pay for this fancy weapon?
THERESIA EISKALT
Princess Sophia.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
(to HEDWIG)
If the Countess really is making a secret weapon, she’ll get rich and we’ll get paid.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
(to GUDRUN)
If it wins the war, our village will be famous.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
I smell money and lots of it. You’ve said more than you’re supposed to, little girl, but I’m glad you did!
THERESIA EISKALT
Please don’t tell anyone else.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Don’t worry, little minnow, we won’t tell a soul.
(She winks at GUDRUN.)
THERESIA EISKALT
I must go and help with the banquet. Please don’t tell…please…
(She exits.)
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Wait ‘til that lazy husband of mine hears this!
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Nothing wrong with telling if what’s told is the truth.
End of Act One, Scene 4.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act One, Scene 5:
(ILSA KIRSCH and CLARA KUCHEN enter.)
ILSA KIRSCH
I’ve finished unloading the beef, Frau Fleischwolf, and Clara’s hauled in the last sack of potatoes.
CLARA KUCHEN
Will you pay us now?
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
No. You’ll have to wait until the Countess pays us.
ILSA KIRSCH
When will that be?
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
When she has made the secret weapon that will win the war.
CLARA KUCHEN
A weapon, Frau Kohlkopf?
ILSA KIRSCH
Here in the castle?
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Yes…the Countess is inventing it.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Don’t tell a soul!
CLARA KUCHEN
Oh, we won’t, Frau Fleischwolf.
ILSA KIRSCH
I wonder what it will be?
CLARA KUCHEN
Perhaps it’s some sort of cloud that rains poison.
ILSA KIRSCH
Or a huge bomb that makes the enemy vanish!
CLARA KUCHEN
What if it goes off by mistake and kills us all?
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
The Countess better be careful; that’s all I say.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
The woman’s a genius. She won’t make a mistake.
ILSA KIRSCH
Where is she building the death weapon?
CLARA KUCHEN
In the cellar?
ILSA KIRSCH
In a secret room?
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Never you mind. Come along, Gudrun, we must get back to the village.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
(to CLARA and ILSA)
You two stay here in case that housekeeper has further need of you.
(GUDRUN and HEDWIG exit.)
CLARA KUCHEN
A death weapon, right here in this castle, Ilsa. Just think of it!
ILSA KIRSCH
Perhaps the government will send soldiers to guard it.
CLARA KUCHEN
Oooh, strong young men…it’s been a long time since I’ve seen one of those.
ILSA KIRSCH
Yes, with the best young men in the village off at war.
CLARA KUCHEN
And half of them dead with the rest soon to follow. How are we supposed to find husbands?
ILSA KIRSCH
If the government does send soldiers, it’ll be a nice, safe job for them.
CLARA KUCHEN
They might even have time for a couple of girls like us.
ILSA KIRSCH
And before you know it, we’ll have them putting rings on our fingers in the village church.
(TATIANA EISKALT enters.)
TATIANA EISKALT
When will you girls learn to put the vegetables on the left, and the meat on the right?
CLARA KUCHEN
Sorry, Frau Eiskalt.
ILSA KIRSCH
Do we have to move everything again?
TATIANA EISKALT
No, I’ll have the maids do it. But don’t let it happen again.
CLARA KUCHEN
Frau Eiskalt, will there be soldiers coming here?
TATIANA EISKALT
Soldiers? Whatever do you mean?
ILSA KIRSCH
To guard the castle…
TATIANA EISKALT
Our young men are needed at the front, not here.
CLARA KUCHEN
But if there was something important going on here, the Kaiser might send soldiers.
TATIANA EISKALT
If you’ve been hearing rumours, it would be best if you ignored them.
ILSA KIRSCH
Yes, Frau Eiskalt.
CLARA KUCHEN
We know better than to spread rumours in a time of war.
(She looks at ILSA.)
TATIANA EISKALT
Don’t be coy with me, young ladies, unless you want to deal with the Countess herself.
ILSA KIRSCH
No, no, Frau Eiskalt. We don’t mean to upset you.
CLARA KUCHEN
We were just hoping that a couple of young lads might come here.
ILSA KIRSCH
It’s the war…there’s no fellows around for us to court.
CLARA KUCHEN
Surely you understand, Frau Eiskalt.
TATIANA EISKALT
I understand that good, loyal Germans put the welfare of the Fatherland first, and that’s that.
ILSA KIRSCH
Yes of course, Frau Eiskalt.
CLARA KUCHEN
May we go back to the village now?
TATIANA EISKALT
Yes. Off with you. And no more talk about soldiers coming to the castle.
CLARA and ILSA
(bowing to TATIANA)
Yes, Frau Eiskalt.
(They exit. ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE enter and curtsey.)
ANIKA PUTZEN
The table is prepared for the banquet, Frau Eiskalt.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
The lamps are lit and the silver is gleaming.
TATIANA EISKALT
You are given to exaggeration. I will go and see for myself.
(She exits.)
ANIKA PUTZEN
She’s never satisfied.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Must she always be so stiff and formal?
ANIKA PUTZEN
Always acting like she’s so important…do you know what I heard?
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
What?
ANIKA PUTZEN
I heard she used to be a prostitute.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
No!
ANIKA PUTZEN
Yes…a prostitute. Then she got pregnant and had to leave the trade.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
How on earth would a prostitute get a job as housekeeper of a castle?
ANIKA PUTZEN
The Countess has a soft heart.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
A soft heart…and yet the Countess is building a secret weapon that could kill millions!
ANIKA PUTZEN
It’s all because of her sister Hella.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Whatever do you mean?
ANIKA PUTZEN
Hella’s mad, and the Countess wants to cure her madness.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
How will making a secret weapon do that?
ANIKA PUTZEN
How should I know? But I’ll tell you one thing…
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
What?
ANIKA PUTZEN
The Countess is devoted to her mad sister. Everything she does is for Hella…everything.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
There’s something frightening about what you say.
ANIKA PUTZEN
I’d like to see what’s in that laboratory. Wouldn’t you?
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Of course, but if we got caught, we’d be shot! Besides, the door is locked.
ANIKA PUTZEN
But I’m burning with curiosity. I tell you, Ermentraude, if I got my hands on the key, I’d take a look in there. Yes, I’d take a look.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
There’s nothing more tempting than a forbidden room.
(TATIANA EISKALT enters.)
TATIANA EISKALT
You laid the table incorrectly, you stupid girls! Go back and put the forks in the proper order. And put the name cards out.
(ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE stand there looking dumbfounded.)
TATIANA EISKALT
TATIANA EISKALT
At once!
(TIANA claps her hands, and the girls scurry off.)
End of Act One, Scene 5.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act One, Scene 6:
(KATHERINA and DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN enter.)
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Tatiana, is the banquet prepared?
TATIANA EISKALT
It is indeed, Frau Altwerden.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Katherina and I are terribly hungry, Tatiana. We have had nothing since breakfast.
TATIANA EISKALT
Tonight, you shall have fresh venison from the forest.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Venison! Just like in the old days when father used to hunt!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
And who went out to hunt a deer, Tatiana?
TATIANA EISKALT
Your niece the Countess herself, Frau Altwerden.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Our niece! Well, well, what do you think of that, Dorothea?
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
I think that she is a remarkable woman, my dear Katherina.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
So clever. She can hunt and she can make something terrible in her laboratory.
TATIANA EISKALT
It is all in the service of the Fatherland.
KATHERINA and DOROTHEA
(standing to attention)
The Fatherland!
TATIANA EISKALT
I must attend to my duties. Please excuse me.
(Bowing curtly, she exits.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Our niece the Countess seeks to open the purse of the Princess, Katherina.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Yes. That is why she shoots a deer, one of the remaining few, and serves it up to the Princess like a sacrificial offering.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
If the Princess gives the Countess sufficient capital, we will have more to eat.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Unless she squanders it all on those dreadful experiments in that laboratory.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Heaven knows what sort of monstrous creation she is nurturing in there.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
If it helps bring this cursed war to an end, then I suppose we should not complain.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
You and I are old. We are soon to die. It’s the young ones I feel sorry for.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Yes, so many of them gobbled up by the war.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Indeed, Katherina, indeed.
(FRITZI KOHLKOPF and SEPP FLEISCHWOLF run in.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Look, Sepp…the two old aunts.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Hello, old ladies.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
No need to be rude, young fellow.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
What brings you two children to the castle?
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
We have come to find our mothers.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Too late! They’ve already dropped off the meat and vegetables and gone on their way, little ones.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I don’t believe you. Perhaps you’ve chopped them up for the Princess’s supper.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Oh, Sepp, how terrible you are! What a thing to say!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
(to the old aunts)
Well? Did you?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Perhaps we did chop up your mothers.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Katherina!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Don’t tease…it isn’t funny. Mummy’s not a meal for a Princess!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
If you chopped up my mother, I’ll chop you up, you dried up old prunes!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Whatever happened to good manners, little man?
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Everyone knows that the people in this castle are mad.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp! You must stop! Why are you being so rude?
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Because I’m too young to be a soldier, and I’m angry about it.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Tough little man, march for us!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Yes, march for us! Show us what a good soldier you are!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Watch me!
(He marches about stiffly, doing a goosestep.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Hurrah, hurrah, for our brave little man!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
See how he struts? Just like a little grenadier!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp! You are magnificent!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I can march like this all day!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Stop, stop, Sepp! You are wearing me out just watching!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
(halting like a soldier, and miming a rifle)
I would march to the battlefield and then…
(aiming the imaginary rifle)
Bang! Bang! Bang! Three dead Frenchmen!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Please, Sepp! No more killing!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Bang! Bang! Bang! Until every Frenchman is dead! Victory to the Fatherland!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
With Sepp in our army, we do not need the Countess’s secret weapon!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
(stopping his play)
Secret weapon? There is a secret weapon?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
My sister is joking with you, Sepp.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
No! She said something true, and now you try to hide it!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
See how he’s also a little detective?
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
He’s a clever one!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Not a word about this to anyone, Sepp…you must promise!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I will not betray the Fatherland!
(pounding his chest)
On my honour!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp, Sepp, my darling!
(She goes to him and takes his hand.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
The two little sweethearts! How I wish I could paint a portrait of them just like this!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Fritzi and I are going to be married in ten years when I am a millionaire.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Then we’ll sail around the world in a balloon!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
How charming! But now you must hurry home for your suppers.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
And remember…do not mention secret weapons to anyone!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
On my honour!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Come, Dorothea, let us inspect the banquet table.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Perhaps there’s something for us to nibble before the guests arrive!
(They exit.)
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I want to find that secret weapon. It must be in the castle somewhere.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
But Sepp, it’s secret. You’d be punished if they caught you.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Nobody will catch me. I’m much too quick. Chase me and see.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
All right.
(She chases Sepp, who easily evades her.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
I give up, Sepp.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
See? No one can catch me!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
But I have caught you Sepp, with my heart!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Give me a kiss, then!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
(going to him and kissing him quickly on the cheek)
There!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
And now I’ll give you one.
(He kisses her on the cheek)
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
What do you think of that?
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
(offering her hand)
Hold my hand!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Of course!
(He holds her hand.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Do you love me, Sepp?
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I gave you a kiss, didn’t I? Now it’s time for supper. Let’s have a race down the mountain to the village.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Yes, yes, a race!
(They bound offstage.)
End of Act One, Scene 6.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Two, Scene 1:
(TATIANA EISKALT hurries onstage with ANIKA PUTZEN and ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN.)
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Oh, dear, the Princess made a face when I spilled the gravy on her napkin.
ANIKA PUTZEN
You spoiled the banquet, Ermentraude. Now the Countess will punish you.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
(dabbing her eyes)
Oh, oh, oh!
TATIANA EISKALT
Stop snivelling, Ermentraude, you stupid girl. The Princess and Countess will enter at any moment. Everything must be in order.
(She runs her finger on a surface and inspects her finger for dust.)
ANIKA PUTZEN
I gave it a good dusting this morning, Frau Eiskalt.
TATIANA EISKALT
(showing the dust on her finger)
Then how do you explain this, Anika Putzen?
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
She didn’t dust, Frau Eiskalt! I caught her snoring in the corner over there.
ANIKA PUTZEN
I was sniffing the floor in my quest for dust!
TATIANA EISKALT
Morons! Go to the kitchen and scrub the pots! And do a better job than you did on this room!
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
(curtseying)
Yes, Frau Eiskalt!
(They exit on the run as THERESIA EISKALT enters.)
THERESIA EISKALT
Mama! Mama! The Princess and Countess are coming!
TATIANA EISKALT
The room is unclean.
THERESIA EISKALT
And that clumsy Ermentraude spilled gravy on the Princess’s napkin!
TATIANA EISKALT
If the Princess doesn’t like dust, the Countess won’t get a single pfennig from her.
THERESIA EISKALT
There, there, Mama, it’s not so bad. You worry too much.
TATIANA EISKALT
Perhaps, perhaps. Oh, Theresia, how I yearn for better days.
THERESIA EISKALT
Come along, Mama; we must not be here when the Princess enters.
TATIANA EISKALT
Yes, yes, I must see to it that the hot bricks are placed in her bed.
(They exit.)
(COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL enters with PRINCESS SOPHIA VON VORNEHMBERG and SASKIA HOFLING, her lady-in-waiting, DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT, and DOKTOR GEISTEGE. CORPORAL LADESTOCK and PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
enter and stand on guard.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
What a delightful banquet, my dear Countess. I can’t remember when I last ate venison.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I felled the beast myself, Princess Sophia, in the forbidden forest.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Why is it forbidden, Countess?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
It is a proving ground for my experiments, Doktor Hirncraft.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Are your experiments dangerous, then?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
To go beyond the frontiers of human knowledge is always dangerous.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
That is why Doktors Hirncraft and Geistege have accompanied me to your castle. I trust their judgment in scientific matters.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Don’t worry, Countess; Doktor Geistege and I will not interfere with your work.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
We wish only to observe. Rest assured, our curiosity is purely scientific.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I daresay it is. But even seasoned veterans such as you may be shocked to the very marrow by the sort of scientific discoveries I seek to make.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Why Countess, I do believe you’ve frightened my lady-in-waiting. Are you frightened, Saskia?
SASKIA HOFLING
I should not care to venture into the forbidden forest.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
And I shall see to it that you never shall, my dear Saskia. I would not have you torn to bits by some sort of infernal machine.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Infernal, Princess? Perhaps. But even the most infernal machine can be made to submit to the human will.
SASKIA HOFLING
I distrust all machines, Countess. Think how many have died in this war because of them.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
They say three men with a machine gun can kill an entire regiment in three minutes.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
A simple task for a gun that fires three hundred rounds a minute.
SASKIA HOFLING
A weapon such as that is the work of the devil.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
No, it is the work of man.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
A machine gun punches holes in soldiers…
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
…a sewing machine punches holes in fabric.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Both are indifferent.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
It is their masters who decide how to use them.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Quite so. If our enemies bring machine guns to the battlefield, we must protect ourselves with machine guns of our own, no?
SASKIA HOFLING
But for every weapon our enemies invent, we devise something even more deadly.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
It is a simple matter of survival, Saskia.
SASKIA HOFLING
One day the whole world will be destroyed by some sort of terrible weapon.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
That’s enough, Saskia. We are the guests of the Countess. Do not bore her with your pacifist rhetoric.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I’m not bored, Princess Sophia. I find Saskia’s comments provocative.
SASKIA HOFLING
I do not wish to provoke anyone.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Saskia, do you not wish for the victory of the Fatherland?
SASKIA HOFLING
I wish for peace.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Even if it means enslavement by the French and English?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Countess Von Sundenfall, I can assure you that Saskia is loyal to the Fatherland. I would not have a traitor as my lady-in-waiting.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Forgive me, Princess Sophia; I have offended you.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
On the contrary, you have reassured me of your devotion to the Fatherland. Now to business. What do you wish me to do for you?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
With your permission, I would like you to meet my sister Hella.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
I thought you wanted money. That does not sound very expensive.
SASKIA HOFLING
Is your sister in need of the Princess’s help?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
The only one who can help her is me, and in so doing I hope to help the Fatherland.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Then let us meet this sister of yours without further delay.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Should these two soldiers remain present?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
I selected them myself and had them swear an oath of secrecy. Corporal Ladestock, Private Schlactuhaus, what is your duty?
LADESTOCK and SCHLACTHAUS
(with absolute military firmness)
The Fatherland before all!
PRINCESS SOPHIA
You see? Their loyalty is authentic.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
(calling)
Manuela! You may enter now.
(MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL enters with HELLA VON SUNDENFALL.)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
This is my sister’s nurse, Manuela Schutzengel.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
(curtseying to the PRINCESS)
Princess Sophia, it is an honour to meet you.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
And this is my sister Hella.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Hella, say hello to the Princess.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
(going to SASKIA HOFLING)
Why have you entered the cage, gentle bird?
SASKIA HOFLING
I did not know that this was a cage.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Oh, but it is, and you are trapped in it. See how you have lost your wings?
(She touches SASKIA’s arms with her fingers; then she goes to the two doctors.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
What sort of strange birds are these? I do not think they could fly even if they had wings.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Hella, where are your wings?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Gone!
(holding up her arms to show them)
All I have now are these two awful, featherless sticks!
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Hella, what happens to you at night?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Why, you know perfectly well what happens to me at night, nurse!
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Tell the Princess. She does not know.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
How could she be a Princess and not know something so simple?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
She has never met you before.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Then I shall tell her. Princess, at night all my fingers and toes fall off.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
And then what happens?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
By morning, I have grown new fingers and toes.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
And why does this happen?
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
I am trying to make my wings grow back, but I have had no success.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Come sit with me, Hella.
(Hella goes to her and sits.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Countess Von Sundenfall, I have met your sister, but to what purpose?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
There is truth in what Hella says. On one night some months ago, she found a very sharp knife and cut off her own little fingers.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Two little fingers, two little fingers, neither worth a single feather.
SASKIA HOFLING
But she has all her fingers, Countess.I saw them when she touched my arms.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Somehow, my sister was able to regenerate the missing fingers.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
You mean new fingers grew in place of the old ones?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes, perfect fingers just like the ones she severed.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
But surely that’s impossible?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I kept the original fingers, of course, in the interests of science.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Did you freeze them?
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Or perhaps pickle them in a jar of fomaldehyde?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
No. The fingers lie on a simple black velvet tray of the type jewelers use to show off their gems.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
But you said your sister chopped off her fingers some months ago.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Surely they have decomposed?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
They are as fresh and perfect as the day Hella chopped them off.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Impossible.
DOKTOR GEISTEG
Such a thing is unheard of.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
You must see for yourselves. Manuela, the fingers, please.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Yes, Countess.
(She exits.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL One day my wings will grow back and I will fly far away from here.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
We all want to fly, my dear. It is a natural desire for earthbound things.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
(to SASKIA)
You too…your feathers will return. Perhaps you and I will fly together.
SASKIA HOFLING
That would be a wonderful thing, though I doubt it will ever happen.
(MANUELA enters with the fingers on a black tray.)
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Here they are, Countess, just like the day they were first placed on the tray.
(She hands the tray to Countess Von Sundenfall.)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Thank you, Manuela. Princess Sophia, you can see for yourself that the fingers are still very much alive.
(She hands the tray to PRINCESS SOPHIA; the two doktors move in to look.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
What do you make of this, Doktor Hirncraft?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
They appear to be freshly severed fingers.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Doktor Geistege?
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
I recommend that you compare these fingers to the ones on Hella Von Sundenfall’s hands.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Forgive me, Countess, but I must ask that you show me Hella’s fingers, so I can see if they match the ones on the tray.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Bring Hella here, Manuela.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Come, Hella, let the Princess see your little fingers.
(She leads Hella to the Princess and holds out Hella’s hand.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
If you like, I will chop of my arms and give them to you.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
No, no, Hella. It will not be necessary to do such a painful thing.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
It wouldn’t hurt at all. It’s just like cutting hair off your head.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
So you see, Princess Sofia, the fingers are identical.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Yes. May I touch them?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Of course.
(PRINCESS SOPHIA gingerly touches the severed fingers with one of her fingers.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
They’re warm!
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes.Thirty-seven degrees centigrade. Perfectly normal.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Remarkable.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Two little fingers identical to the ones on your sister’s hands…
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
And warm to the touch…the implications are staggering.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL Thank you, Hella, for helping us tonight. You’ve been wonderful.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
I’m tired, my sister.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Then off to bed with you. Manuela! Escort Hella to her room, please.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
As you wish, Countess. Come along, Hella. Soon, you’ll be dreaming you’re a bird again.
(They begin exiting.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Perhaps I shall wake up with wings.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Perhaps.
(They complete their exit.)
SASKIA HOFLING
Your sister’s such a gentle soul.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes. I love her dearly…perhaps too dearly. I would give my own life to return her to sanity.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
But the severed fingers…now there is something extraordinary.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I believe that, with sufficient capital, I can make these fingers grow.
SASKIA HOFLING
Into what?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
That remains to be seen, but the medical and military applications should be obvious.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
I concur. May I recommend that your sister be kept under strict quarantine?
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Every effort must be made to probe her physical abnormality and discover its source.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Of course. That is precisely what I have been doing for last several months.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
You shall receive all the capital you require, Countess, on one condition.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
I wish to remain here in the castle with my companions while you conduct your experiments. The stakes are too high for me to absent myself.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Of course.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
You will do your work in absolute secrecy. I will say I’m here with the two doctors due to poor health.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
As you wish.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
These soldiers will be stationed here as guards.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Certainly. And your lady-in-waiting?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Saskia will remain with me throughout, of course. Now, I shan’t ask to see your laboratory. I respect your right to privacy in your work. However, I would like to inspect the remainder of the
castle.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Do you wish us to accompany you on the tour, Princess Sophia?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
No, Doktor Hirncraft. You and Doktor Geistege remain here. I’m sure you’d like to have a private discussion about what you have seen. Now, Countess, do you approve of my requests?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I will endeavour to serve you and the Fatherland in any way I can.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Then onward, Countess! Let us explore this ancient pile of stones!
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Follow me, please.
(All exit except the two doctors.)
End of Act Two, Scene 1.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Two, Scene 2:
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
The Countess is quite possibly as mad as her sister.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
But the fingers?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Real enough, I’d say.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Then why do you think the Countess mad?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT I suspect she has come to believe that she and Hella are one. Hella is the heart, and the Countess is the mind.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
What do you make of Hella’s desire to be a bird?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
The Countess is convinced that Hella is her heart, and Hella is convinced the heart is a small bird seeking tidbits of truth in the cloudy skies of the mind.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
And so Hella tries to grow wings so she can fly in search of truth.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
So she chops off her fingers in the hope of growing feathers, but grows another pair of fingers instead.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
And the Countess seeks to grow the severed fingers into new and healthy versions of Hella.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Yes, in her subconscious compulsive desire to know her own heart.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Then we can conclude that Hella and the Countess are both in the grip of a madness so powerful it alters the laws of physical reality.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Yes. Their madness has made the impossible possible.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Should we report our conclusion to Princess Sophia?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Not yet. We must gamble on the Countess’s work yielding something of use to the Fatherland.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Yes. The war goes badly and so we must risk everything.
(They exit.)
End of Act Two, Scene 2.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Three, Scene 1:
(One month later. The TWO SOLDIERS enter.)
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
I thought this duty would be a picnic compared to the front, but now I’m not so sure.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
You’re still alive, aren’t you? That should count for something.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Alive? Yes. But I don’t know whether to be bored or frightened.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
The nights are difficult; the days are dull.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
How can I sleep with those sounds coming from that laboratory?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
It’s worse than the shelling at Verdun.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
My nerves are on edge, I can tell you.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Shrieking and moaning…and the sizzling. You can bet the buttons on your tunic it’s not bacon.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
What’s she doing in there? It can’t be pretty.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Something’s going to come out of that laboratory, and it won’t be your mother’s sweet love.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
I’m glad I’ve got this rifle.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
You think a rifle would be any good against something she’s cooked up in Hell’s kitchen?
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Whatever she’s making, at least it’s on our side.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
You’ve forgotten the gas.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
The gas?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
We dumped poison gas on the Frenchies, but the wind changed and blew it back to us. And how many were killed by our own weapon?
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
She better know what she’s doing, that’s all I can say.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
She’s mad.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Then why would the Princess give her money?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
The war goes badly. The Fatherland is desperate.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
So we guard a madwoman who might be making our own deaths.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
It’s a soldier’s duty to face death, unless you’re a general or the Kaiser.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
They send us into Hell while they eat caviar and drink cognac.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
So trust your luck and do your duty.
(ILSA KIRSCH and CLARA KUCHEN enter.)
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Well, well, what have we here?
ILSA KIRSCH
I should think it’s obvious.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Two frauleins from the village, eh?
CLARA KUCHEN
And what are you, a pair of gypsies in dead men’s uniforms?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Don’t get cheeky, miss, or I’ll put you over my knee.
CLARA KUCHEN
(making a fist)
Try it and I’ll give you a lump to remember me by.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Your friend’s already given me one.
ILSA KIRSCH
Naughty lads. We’re here to deliver meat and vegetables.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
We’d be happy to handle your goods for you.
CLARA KUCHEN
No time for that.
ILSA KIRSCH
Our bosses will give us the sack if they catch us fooling around.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Later, then?
CLARA KUCHEN
Maybe. What’s in it for us?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
A cuddle and a kiss?
ILSA KIRSCH
A girl’s virtue is worth more than that.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
One thing leads to another.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
A cuddle and a kiss could lead to the altar.
CLARA KUCHEN
You’ve got it backwards. The altar first, then the cuddling and kissing.
ILSA KIRSCH
I’d be happy to hold hands with a man who puts a ring on my finger.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
(to ILSA)
So let’s get to know each other, Sweetheart, and maybe I’ll be that man.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
(to CLARA)
I wouldn’t want you to feel left out, little Rosebud…perhaps there’s a ring for you as well.
(HEDWIG KOHLKOPF and GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF enter.)
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
What’s this? Flirting with the soldiers?
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Off to work with you, you lazy tarts!
CLARA KUCHEN
(quickly whispering to CORPORAL LADESTOCK)
We’ve got to get back to work.
ILSA KIRSCH
(also whispering)
Meet us by the pond in the forest after the sun goes down.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Stop that whispering and do your jobs!
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Off with you, at once!
(ILSA and CLARA exit.)
You two stick to your jobs, too.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Don’t tell us our duty, you old hen.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Show some respect for soldiers of the Fatherland.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
We know all about soldiers. When they’re not fighting, eating, or sleeping, they get drunk and chase women.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
And you’re not fighting, eating, or sleeping, so that leaves just one thing.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
But you’re not going to do it with a couple of silly girls from our village.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Take it easy, grandma, we mean no harm.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
We should report you to the Countess.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
No need for that.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Perhaps we could tell you a secret or two.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
We’ll open our mouths if you keep yours closed.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Well, now, what sort of secret?
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Is it about the weapon the Countess is making?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
First, promise you won’t report us.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
What do you say, Hedwig?
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
A deal’s a deal. We’ll tell you if you don’t tell on us.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
A deal’s a deal. Now what’s the secret?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
The rumours are that the weapon’s almost done.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Soon, the Countess will show it to the world.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK She works at night, and terrible cries come from her laboratory.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS …
and the sound of electric shocks and the smell of burning flesh.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
(impressed)
Go on with you….
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
You’re pulling our legs…
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
It’s as true as my dead uncle’s rotting corpse.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
The Princess wouldn’t allow such goings on!
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
It’s all in the name of the Fatherland.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
The Princess turns a blind eye because of the war.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
She’d draft the Devil himself if she could put him in a uniform.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Terrible cries…electric shocks…the smell of burning flesh…
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Did you ever hear of such a thing, Hedwig?
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
It’s the work of the Devil, all right.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Now you know the secret.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Don’t you dare tell another soul.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
We won’t report you to the Countess.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
But that doesn’t mean we’ll let you have your way with those two little virgins.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
We’re honourable men, grandma.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
We’ve sworn to protect the women of the Fatherland.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Who knows? Perhaps they’ll become our wives.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
And the moon might fall on my head. We’ve got to get on with our work.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with us.
(They exit.)
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
They’ll tell the whole village, Dieter.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Let them. By the time everyone knows, that devilish weapon will be out and about anyway.
End of Act 3, Scene 1.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Three, Scene 2:
(KATHERINA and DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN enter. The SOLDIERS immediately snap to attention.)
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Ah, Dorothea, here are our two handsome soldiers.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
What fine, strong lads they are.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
(to the soldiers)
My sister and I never married, and so we’re free to admire masculine beauty without shame or embarrassment.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
You stand there so stern and straight. Can’t you spare a smile for an old woman?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Dorothea, do not distract them from their duty.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
I only wish to see them smile, Katherina. What harm is there in encouraging a few smiles from the sorry souls who must live in this damp old pile of rocks?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Please don’t start complaining again.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
I’ll complain all I want. Our niece the Countess has disappeared into that awful laboratory, and none of us has had a wink of sleep ever since.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Soon she will finish her marvelous new creation, and then we will all retire to our beds to rest in peace.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Don’t be naïve, Katherina. The monster that comes out of that laboratory might put us to sleep forever.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Dorothea! How could you say such a thing? And right in front of these soldiers!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
I’m going to say what I think, and I don’t care who hears it. Why should I? We all walk about as if nothing has changed, but it has!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Hush, hush, dear sister. To speak out loud about the horrors of this world only makes evil grow bolder! Besides, we have these soldiers to protect us.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Sometimes, bravery is not enough. There is darkness in this castle, Katherina, and it seeks to send us all into oblivion!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Now you’ve upset me, Dorothea! I can hardly hold back my tears! Oh, oh, how awful everything is!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
There, there, my dear Katherina.I did not mean to make you cry. There, there.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
If only father was alive! He’d put a stop to our niece’s mad scheme!
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Yes, yes…he would never have let the Countess tamper with the sacred stuff of life, that’s certain! Corporal! It’s ice cold in here. Could you and Private Schlacthaus fetch two blankets?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
At once, Fraulein Altwerden!
(He and PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS click their heels and exit smartly.)
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
They obey our commands and move so smartly, but I fear they will be powerless to help us.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
We must not give up hope, Katherina, no matter what happens.
(THERESIA EISKALT enters.)
THERESIA EISKALT
Excuse me, Fraulein Altwerden and Fraulein Altwerden, but have the two children Sepp and Fritzi been here? Their mothers want them.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
We have not seen them, Theresia, though I wish we had.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Their bright, cheerful childishness is just what we need.
THERESIA EISKALT
As did the poet Goethe at the time of his death!
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Whatever do you mean, Theresia?
THERESIA EISKALT
As Goethe lay dying in his favourite armchair, he called out, “More light!”, and expired.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Yes, Fritzi and Sepp are lovely little lights for my old sister and me, as we step ever closer to the grave…
THERESIA EISKALT
Would you like a poem, my poor, poor dears?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Goethe, Theresia?
THERESIA EISKALT
Yes, Goethe…his poems are well suited to this clammy castle.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Give us one, dear Theresia, and we will warm our souls with the poet’s words.
THERESIA EISKALT
Here you are then:
(reciting)
“And have I lost thee evermore,
Hast thou, oh, fair one, from me flown?
Still in mine ear sounds, as of yore,
Thine every word, thine every tone.
As when at morn the wanderer’s eye
Attempts to pierce the air in vain,
When, hidden in the azure sky,
The lark high o’er him chants his strain:
So do I cast my troubled gaze
Through bush, through forest, o’er the lea;
Thou art invoked by all my lays;
Oh, come then, loved one, back to me!”
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
That poem might well be spoken by our niece the Countess.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Yes, in quiet longing for Hella, who is lost in madness like a lark in the sky.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
“Oh, come then, loved one, back to me!”…yes, it might well be about Hella.
THERESIA EISKALT
Perhaps Hella is not lost. Perhaps we are lost.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
What do you mean, Theresia?
THERESIA EISKALT
I mean to say that madness is a sort of deliverance from the greater madness of the war.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Such a large thought from such a small girl.
THERESIA EISKALT
Soon, the war will draw something out of the laboratory; I think it will bring an ending.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
An ending, dear Theresia?
THERESIA EISKALT
Yes, something final for us all, though I don’t know what it is.
(The SOLDIERS enter with ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE, who each bear a blanket for the elderly aunts.)
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Your blankets, frauleins.
(He and PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS stand at formal attention again, clicking their heels and proffering the blankets.)
ANIKA PUTZEN
Allow us to help you, frauleins, with these woolly comforts.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
You will soon be warm again.
(They drape the blankets on the two old aunts.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
There, that is better.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Now we can ramble through the castle without those awful shivers.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Thank you, kind soldiers and maids, thank you.
(She and KATHERINA exit and the soldiers relax.)
End of Act Three, Scene 2.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Three, Scene 3:
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Those two old women are doom itself.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
The old are like soldiers; they can smell their own deaths.
ANIKA PUTZEN
Mummified old husks…they’ll outlive all of us, mark my words.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Anika! Don’t talk that way! The two old aunts are always kind to us.
ANIKA PUTZEN
But they boss us around, don’t they? “Anika, do this, please…Anika do that…” They think I’ve nothing better to do than run after them picking up the teeth dropping out of their old gums.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
It’s no wonder you’re not married, Anika Putzen.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Who’d have a grumpy goose like you?
ANIKA PUTZEN
Well, I certainly wouldn’t have either of you!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
And she wants to get married, too!
ANIKA PUTZEN
Be quiet, Ermentraude, or I’ll plant a boot in your arse!
(She stalks Ermentraude, who backs away.)
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Oh ho! Look out, Ermentraude!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
She’s more dried up than the old aunts. Who’d have her?
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Now we’ll see some fur fly!
ANIKA PUTZEN
I’ll knock your brains out, Ermentraude!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Try it and see what you get, you little sow!
(At that moment TATIANA EISKALT enters.)
TATIANA EISKALT
(loudly)
What is the meaning of this? Chaos in the castle? What are you doing, Anika Putzen?
ANIKA PUTZEN
Ermentraude’s telling my secrets!
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
I just said she wants to get married!
TATIANA EISKALT
Ermentraude, you’re cruel. You know Anika has little chance of catching a man.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
She’s not so bad-looking as all that, Frau Eiskalt!
TATIANA EISKALT
It’s her manners, not her looks. No man wants to marry a messy, bad-tempered thing who lies at every opportunity.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Frau Eiskalt, perhaps you are being mean now, no?
TATIANA EISKALT
Be quiet, Ermentraude. Now listen to me, all of you: the Countess wants to present the results of her experiment to the Princess in this room.
(They all look at each other heavily, aware of the gravity of this statement.)
TATIANA EISKALT
None of the castle staff are to be present.
THERESIA EISKALT
What about me, Mama?
TATIANA EISKALT
You of all people must not be present, Theresia. I could not bear to think of you witnessing the unveiling.
THERESIA EISKALT
There will be some sort of ending, Mama, whether I am here or not.
ANIKA PUTZEN
I shall be glad to be far away from this room. Brrrrrr…it’s as though I can feel the icy vapours from Countess’s awful creation already.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Stop it, Anika. It’s going to help us win the war.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
I’m glad the damn thing’s finally finished. Maybe we can get on with life now.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Best keep your rifle at the ready just the same, Gerhardt.
TATIANA EISKALT
That’s enough speculation. Anika, Ermentraude, finish preparing the evening meal.
ANIKA PUTZEN
But what if the Countess’s creation runs amok and tears Ermentraude’s head off?
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Anika! One day, I will cut off your head while you’re sleeping!
TATIANA EISKALT
You silly little fools! This is no time for your absurd games! Now off with you.
ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE
(curtseying)
Yes, Frau Eikalt.
(They exit.)
TATIANA EISKALT
Theresia, have you found those children?
THERESIA EISKALT
No, Mama.
TATIANA EISKALT
Then find them. Their mothers want to get down the mountain to the village before dark.
THERESIA EISKALT
I will try, Mama.
(She exits.)
TATIANA EISKALT
Good luck to you brave soldiers. I will attend to the evening meal in the belief that all will be well, though god knows what will happen.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Good luck to you, Frau Eiskalt.
(She exits.)
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
They say she was once a prostitute.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
She must have been a real looker in her day.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
If she went back into the trade, I’d be her first customer.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
You won’t need a prostitute if those two girls meet us in the forest tonight.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
But we’d be deserting our posts.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
We’d say we were out on patrol.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Yes, searching for a couple of fresh pigeons for the pot.
End of Act Three, Scene 3.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Three, Scene 4:
(FRITZI and Sepp run in, hand-in-hand.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Look, Sepp…the soldiers.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Hey, soldier men, I can march too!
(He goosesteps around the room.)
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
The Kaiser’s looking for strong young fellows like you!
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
He’ll give you a gun and send you to the front before you can blink!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
He’d better or I’ll box his royal ears!
(He pretends to box the Kaiser’s ears.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Don’t, Sepp…the Kaiser will chop your head off!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I’ll chop his off first, Fritzi, and send it to you in a parcel.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
What a fierce lad. Perhaps we should surrender, Private Schlacthaus?
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
(putting his hands up)
Take pity on us, little man!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
But you’re Germans! Join me in the fight!
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Right you are, General. What are your orders?
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Storm the hill and kill the English dogs!
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Come on, Corporal Ladestock, the General has given his orders!
(They rush forward with their rifles at the ready and pretend to be shot.)
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
I am shot! But I die gladly for my general!
(He pretends to die.)
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
A bullet in my brain! I die for Germany and my general!
(He pretends to die.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp, Sepp, the English have killed your whole army!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Then I must avenge their deaths!
(pretending to charge the hill)
Bang! Bang! Bang! Die, you English dogs! No more bullets! I will use my bayonet!
(pretending to stab enemies with his bayonet)
Take that! And that! Just one more left! I will gut him like a fish! Take that! Victory!
(He parades about, marching like a victor.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
But Sepp, we must honour our dead!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Yes! A soldiers’ funeral!
(He and FRITZI stand solemnly by the “dead” SOLDIERS and sing.)
SEPP and FRITZI
Deutschland, Deutschland, uber alles! Uber alles im der welt!
(The two SOLDIERS stand to attention with their rifles and join in with the final two lines of the anthem.)
SEPP, FRITZI, CORPORAL LADESTOCK, and PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Deutschland, Deutschland, uber alles! Uber alles im der welt!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
How magnificent!
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
With Sepp as our general, Germany will one day rule the world!
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
What do you say, Sepp? Do you still want to chop off the Kaiser’s head.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Only if he loses the war.
(THERESIA EISKALT enters.)
THERESIA EISKALT
Sepp! Fritzi! Your mothers are looking everywhere for you!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I don’t want to go back to the stupid village!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
But Sepp, what about our supper?
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Let’s go hunt a rabbit in the forest, and roast it on an open fire!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Yes, yes, a rabbit! We’ll tuck some berries into its belly and have a treat!
THERESIA EISKALT
No, no, no! The forest is forbidden!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Who are you to tell me what to do? Your poems can’t stop me!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp does whatever he pleases, and I do too!
THERESIA EISKALT
The forest is not a game, children! Marching about with a wooden stick won’t do you any good there!
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I’m not afraid of anything! Come on, Fritzi!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
I’d jump into a volcano with Sepp if he asked me to!
(FRITZI pokes out her tongue at THERESIA and runs off with SEPP.)
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Let them go, Theresia.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
You’ll never catch them.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
They’ve got quick little legs and tricky little brains.
THERESIA EISKALT
I suppose you’re right.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
Whatever will you tell their mothers?
THERESIA EISKALT
The truth, of course.
(HEDWIG KOHLKOPF and GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF enter.)
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Well, Theresia, where are our children?
THERESIA EISKALT
They ran off into the forest!
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
The forest! God help us! That’s no place for children!
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Never mind. They’ll be back.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
That Sepp is a clever one. He knows his way around.
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
But we must be getting back to the village before dark.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
What are we to do?
THERESIA EISKALT
I will ask Mama…she always knows best.
(She exits.)
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
Come on, Gudrun, we better go and look for them.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
I don’t like that damned forest, but I better try to find my boy before he burns it down.
(They exit.)
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Damn! I hope they don’t spoil our rendezvous with those two virgins.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
A soldier’s luck always runs out just when he needs it most.
End of Act Three, Scene 4.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Three, Scene 5:
(The PRINCESS, SASKIA, the COUNTESS, and the TWO DOCTORS enter. The TWO SOLDIERS snap to attention, clicking their heels.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
So you are finally ready to show us something, Countess Von Sundenfall.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes, if you will permit me to do so.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Of course I’ll permit you. After all, that’s why we’re here, is it not?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
I am your servant in all things, Princess Sophia, and I would not want to do anything that ran counter to your wishes.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Come, come, Countess, don’t be disingenuous. You know we are your servants insofar as we are depending on you to help us save the Fatherland. Now please show us what you have made.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
We do not mean to be impatient, Countess, but the war drags on.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
We know you have worked hard, and we are interested in the results.
SASKIA HOFLING
I too am ready to see what you have devised, Countess, and I wish you well despite our differences.
(MAMUELA enters with HELLA.)
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Here we are, Hella, with your sister and the Princess.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
From one cage to another. Don’t you know that birds are meant to fly, nurse?
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
She’s been restless all day, Countess Von Sundenfall. I’ve done my best to keep her calm.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Dear Hella, I want you to see for yourself what I’ve done for you.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Did you make me wings from wood and canvas, my sister? How kind of you, but I need wings of bones and feathers.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
No, Hella, I did not make you wings.
(HELLA goes with MANUELA to sit far away from the PRINCESS and her party.)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Excuse me now, all of you, I will fetch my creation.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
By all means.
(Bowing slightly, the COUNTESS exits.)
Now I’ll see if my money’s been well-spent.
SASKIA HOFLING
Yes. They say gold can buy anything. I wonder if it can buy peace for Germany?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
We must prepare ourselves for the Countess’s creation.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Remember that what our senses perceive is not always what it seems.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
I know you think the Countess is mad, my good doctors, but genius is always eccentric. I for one will trust my senses. Never once have they failed me.
SASKIA HOFLING
What a strange existence we would have without our senses.
(The COUNTESS enters with FRIGGA and WOTAN. They are remarkably disciplined beings, displaying no emotion whatsoever to the watching humans. They walk to the centre of the room and stand
together calmly.)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
This is Wotan and Frigga. They are regenerated beings, built from my sister’s two fingers.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
If that is true, you and your sister have somehow created a new form of life.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Intelligent life. The cries you heard in the night were Wotan and Frigga learning the history of humankind.
SASKIA HOFLING
God help us all.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Can these two regenerate limbs just as Hella did?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes. They have the same wonderful gift.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Then they could be the first in a series of regenerative beings who will fill the ranks of our army, bring an end to the war, and lead Germany into a glorious future.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes, if that is what you wish. Once fully activated, they will be capable of anything.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
You say these two are regenerated from Hella’s fingers. Can you prove this?
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
We want to believe you, but we must have proof.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Manuela, bring Hella to me.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Yes, Countess.
(She leads HELLA to the COUNTESS.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Sister, what are these?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Don’t be frightened, Hella. They are the wings you’ve been waiting for.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
My wings? But they are not wood and canvas or bones and feathers, my sister!
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
No, but they will carry you back to me from the dark place that claimed you so long ago.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Countess, the proof. We must have proof.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Come, look at Hella’s little fingers again, and then look at the fingers on Wotan and Frigga.
(The PRINCESS and the TWO DOCTORS inspect the fingers. HELLA, WOTAN, and FRIGGA do nothing to interfere with the inspection.)
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
The fingers appear to be identical.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
And yet the regenerated beings look nothing like Hella. Why is that, Countess?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Wotan and Frigga are animus and anima, the male and female components of Hella’s mind. If they were to merge together, they would be an exact replication of Hella.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Nurse, I want to go to my room.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Perhaps that would be best, Countess Von Sundenfall.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Soon, Hella, soon. But first, you can help us all by speaking to Wotan and Frigga.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
But why, my sister? I have nothing to say to them because they are not alive.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
They are very much alive, Hella, and in a way, I am alive because they are alive.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
You are alive because of them?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes. And because of you. I could not live without you and Wotan and Frigga.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
I think you have stolen my wings, my sister. That is why I cannot fly.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Please, Hella, speak to Wotan and Frigga. Please. It is the one thing I must ask of you above all else. Speak to them.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
(to WOTAN and FRIGGA)
Wotan, Frigga…have you come to kill me?
(At this, WOTAN and FRIGGA for the first time show signs of uncertainty. Their postures relax slightly.Their eyes seek HELLA and they focus on her. Each of them reaches for HELLA with the right
hand and arm, as if to touch her. HELLA draws back. WOTAN and FRIGGA return to their formal, disciplined state.)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Again, Hella…speak to them again…your every word feeds them and helps them join us…
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
(to WOTAN and FRIGGA)
Are you the shadow that keeps the key to the cage?
(WOTAN and FRIGGA turn to HELLA, and now they move to her, one on each side, and each one of them takes one of HELLA’s hands, and looks at the little finger. Then FRIGGA embraces HELLA. Then
WOTAN embraces HELLA, and each of them stands holding HELLA’s hands again. HELLA now becomes inert, like WOTAN and FRIGGA were before she spoke to them..)
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Hella? Hella? Where are you?
(HELLA does not respond.)
Hella!
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Your sister is in a trance state, Countess.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
You are no longer with her, nor she with you.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Hella!
(She tries to pull HELLA’s hands out of WOTAN and FRIGGA’s hands, but is unable to do so. She steps away from them.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
You have lost control of all three of them, Countess.
SASKIA HOFLING
The room is growing darker.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
Some sort of energy is flowing through the air.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
Black energy. The energy of death.
SASKIA HOFLING
Flowing towards this room, towards Wotan, Frigga, and Hella…
(There is the sound of thunder and darkening of the room. When the lights come up, WOTAN and FRIGGA are gone, and HELLA is unconscious on the floor. MANUELA, the COUNTESS, and the TWO SOLDIERS
go to her.)
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Hella! Hella! She’s unconscious.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes. This is the outcome I most feared. I’ve failed her and I’ve failed the Fatherland. Wotan and Frigga are gone. There is nothing for me now…nothing at all.
(She stands and wanders downstage in a daze.)
SASKIA HOFLING
Countess. Countess!
(She goes to the COUNTESS as DoCTORS HIRNCRAFT and GEISTEGE go to HELLA.)
SASKIA HOFLING
How can you speak only of yourself while your sister lies unconscious and Wotan and Frigga are loose in the world?
(the COUNTESS does not respond.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Soldiers!
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
(formally snapping to attention with PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS.)
What do you wish us to do, Princess Sophia?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Warn the castle staff and the two old aunts about what has happened. Try to find those two creatures. Use whatever force is necessary to stop them, but try not to kill them.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
At once, Princess.
(He and PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS click their heels, exchange glances, and exit.)
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Well, doctors, what is wrong with Hella?
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
She is in some sort of suspended state, neither alive nor dead.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
There is no sign of breathing, but her pulse is strong.
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
It defies explanation.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
We must get her to her bed.
SASKIA HOFLING
What will we do if those two creatures return?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Accept our fate as the agents of their creation.
SASKIA HOFLING
And the Countess?
(The DOCTORS go to the COUNTESS, who stands impassive and limp.)
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
She is in a state similar to that of Hella.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
She is both conscious and unconscious…
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
…and incapable of registering any sort of sensory stimulation.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
We must take them to Hella’s room. It’s best if they are together. We must all stay together.
SASKIA HOFLING
What about the castle staff and the two old aunts?
PRINCESS SOPHIA
The peasant instincts of the staff will keep them well away from Wotan and Frigga. As for the old aunts, who knows?
(MANUELA and DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT help HELLA, and SASKIA and DOKTOR GEISTEGE help the COUNTESS, and with the PRINCESS leading, they exit.)
End of Act Three, Scene 5.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Four, Scene 1:
(ILSA and CLARA enter.)
ILSA KIRSCH
My god, where is everyone?
CLARA KUCHEN
Those soldiers were all over us earlier, and now they’re nowhere to be seen.
ILSA KIRSCH
Do you think we really saw what we saw?
CLARA KUCHEN
It was dark. I don’t know for certain. Perhaps it was only shadows.
ILSA KIRSCH
But the screams…
CLARA KUCHEN
Yes, the screams were real enough.
ILSA KIRSCH
Like some innocent thing dying with fear.
CLARA KUCHEN
Or some evil thing being born.
ILSA KIRSCH
We must find someone.
CLARA KUCHEN No. I feel safe in here. I don’t want to go anywhere else.
ILSA KIRSCH
I wish those soldiers were here.
(WOTAN and FRIGGA enter. ILSA and CLARA clutch each other.)
CLARA KUCHEN
What do you want?
(WOTAN and FRIGGA just stand and stare at them.)
ILSA KIRSCH
We mean no harm.
WOTAN
No harm.
CLARA KUCHEN
We’re only waiting for someone.
FRIGGA
Someone.
(WOTAN and FRIGGA move towards them a few steps.)
ILSA KIRSCH
We don’t have any money or jewelry, if that’s what you want.
WOTAN
You want.
CLARA KUCHEN
We’re just two working girls from the village…
FRIGGA
The village.
ILSA KIRSCH
You’re wasting your time with us. We’ve got nothing for you.
WOTAN
(slowly and firmly)
You’re wasting your time with us…
FRIGGA
(slowly and firmly)
We’ve got nothing for you…
CLARA KUCHEN
Don’t tease us…it’s not funny…
WOTAN
It’s not funny. Your time with us.
FRIGGA
Not funny. Don’t tease.
(HEDWIG KOHLKOPF and GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF enter.)
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
(whispering)
Don’t say anything to them, Clara…
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
We must try to live somehow.
WOTAN
We must try.
FRIGGA
To live.
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
Move away from them slowly, Ilsa and Clara…slowly…
(CLARA and ILSA back slowly away from WOTAN and FRIGGA, then turn and exit, as do GUDRUN and HEDWIG.)
WOTAN
We mean no harm.
FRIGGA
We’re just waiting.
WOTAN
We must try to live.
FRIGGA
We’re only waiting.
End of Act Four, Scene 1.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Four, Scene 2:
(DOROTHEA and KATHERINA ALTWERDEN enter. They see WOTAN and FRIGGA and stop.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Must we kneel before our niece’s creatures, Katherina?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Yes, we must, Dorothea.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Death is coming for us, isn’t it.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Yes, Dorothea, death comes for us all.
(She and DOROTHEA move closer to WOTAN and FRIGGA.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
You are the things our niece made.
WOTAN
Things.
FRIGGA
Made.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
You are the product of her madness.
WOTAN
Madness.
FRIGGA
Her madness.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
My sister and I are ready for you.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
We will not fight.
WOTAN Things made ready for you.
FRIGGA
We will not fight her madness.
(The TWO OLD AUNTS kneel humbly before WOTAN and FRIGGA but WOTAN and FRIGGA step away from them and back away into the shadows.)
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
They do not wish to take our lives.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
Then we must go on living.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Yes. Do you want to?
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
No. But if we must live, let us do so with dignity.
(The TWO OLD AUNTS rise, and exit.)
End of Act Four, Scene 2.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Four, Scene 3:
(ANIKA PUTZEN and ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN rush in. They don’t see WOTAN and FRIGGA in the shadows.)
ANIKA PUTZEN
Those soldiers left us to die, the pigs.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
My fear…it’s making me go mad, Anika…
ANIKA PUTZEN
Well, don’t go mad around me; I’ve got my own sanity to worry about.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
What do you think the beasts look like?
ANIKA PUTZEN
Like Hella Von Sundenfall of course, only huge and bloated, with fangs as long as daggers.
(WOTAN and FRIGGA appear out of the shadows.)
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Saints protect me!
ANIKA PUTZEN
(pointing to ERMENTRAUDE)
Take her! She’s juicier!
WOTAN
My sister and I are ready.
FRIGGA
We must go on living.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
No! Please don’t eat me! Take Anika…she deserves to die!
WOTAN
Take Anika.
FRIGGA
She’s juicier.
(WOTAN takes hold of ANIKA, as does FRIGGA. ANIKA screams. WOTAN and FRIGGA scream. ANIKA faints. WOTAN and FRIGGA step away into the shadows.)
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Anika!
(pulling ANIKA up)
Run, Anika, run!
(ERMENTRAUDE exits. ANIKA stumbles off after her.)
End of Act Four, Scene 3.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Four, Scene 4:
(THERESIA EISKALT enters.)
THERESIA EISKALT
(peering into the shadows)
There you are. I have a poem for you. It’s by Goethe, our great German poet.
(WOTAN and FRIGGA approach her.)
THERESIA EISKALT
(reciting)
“Over all the hilltops
is calm.
In all the treetops
you feel
hardly a breath of air.
The little birds fall silent in the woods
Just wait… soon
you’ll also be at rest.”
WOTAN
The birds fall silent.
FRIGGA
In the woods.
THERESIA EISKALT
Soon you’ll be at rest.
(TATIANA EISKALT enters.)
TATIANA EISKALT
Theresia!
THERESIA EISKALT
Mama, I must leave you alone with them.
(She exits.)
TATIANA EISKALT
You spared my daughter.
WOTAN
A poem by Goethe.
FRIGGA
The little birds fall silent in the woods.
WOTAN
Soon you’ll be at rest.
TATIANA EISKALT
Yes. Soon. Thank you.
(She exits and WOTAN and FRIGGA withdraw into the shadows.)
End of Act Four, Scene 4.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Four, Scene 5:
(FRITZI and SEPP run in. SEPP has a stick.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
I’m afraid, Sepp.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I won’t let anyone hurt you, Fritzi.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Those screams in the forest….
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
(brandishing his stick)
Just let anything try to frighten you, and I’ll crush its skull!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp, tell me again that we’ll be married.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Of course…in ten years…when I am a millionaire.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
And we’ll fly around the world in a balloon…
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
Yes, up in the blue, blue sky with the wind and the birds!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Oh, Sepp, Sepp…I love you so…
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
We’ll be sweethearts forever!
(WOTAN and FRIGGA step forward.)
WOTAN
Screams in the forest.
FRIGGA
Frighten you.
WOTAN
Hurt you, Fritzi.
FRIGGA
Crush its skull.
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
(raising his stick)
Run away, Fritzi! Save yourself!
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
No, Sepp…don’t try to fight them…
SEPP FLEISCHWOLF
I won’t let them hurt you!
(He tries to strike WOTAN, but WOTAN pulls the stick out of his hands.)
FRIGGA
Hurt.
WOTAN
Crush its skull.
(WOTAN strikes SEPP across the head with the stick, killing SEPP, who collapses. WOTAN throws down the stick. FRITZI runs to SEPP and cradles his body. WOTAN and FRIGGA look solemly at the TWO
CHILDREN. The TWO SOLDIERS enter and raise their rifles.)
FRIGGA
Tell me again we’ll be married.
WOTAN
Yes, up in the blue blue sky with the wind and the birds.
(The TWO SOLDIERS fire their rifles and fire. FRIGGA and WOTAN fall down dead. The TWO SOLDIERS lower their rifles.)
End of Act Four, Scene 5.
Sundenfall by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Act Four, Scene 6:
(COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL enters and sees all that has happened between WOTAN, FRIGGA, FRITZI, and SEPP, and the TWO SOLDIERS.)
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Sepp is dead, Countess. Your creatures killed him.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
The creatures were my brother and sister, child, though Hella and I are their mothers, for we brought them into the world.
FRITZI KOHLKOPF
Why did Sepp have to die?
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Wotan and Frigga did whatever was in the hearts of those who came near them. They did to the boy what he wanted to do to them. I am sorry, child.
(GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF and HEDWIG KOHLKOPF enter. GUDRUN rushes to SEPP, and HEDWIG to FRITZI. HEDWIG takes FRITZI away from SEPP, and GUDRUN cradles his body.)
GUDRUN FLEISCHWOLF
My child, my child…
HEDWIG KOHLKOPF
You are responsible, Countess. You are a murderer.
(MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL enters with HELLA.)
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
She wanted to see, Countess. I could not refuse her.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
The little boy has left the cage and flown away.
MANUELA SCHUTZENGEL
Yes, Hella, he has gone to the blue skies of heaven.
(PRINCESS SOPHIA enters with SASKIA and the TWO DOCTORS.)
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
My sister, I am you, aren’t I.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes, Hella. You are me and I am you.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Hella is dead and gone, isn’t she.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL Y
Yes. I kept her body alive and filled it with myself…with my heart.
HELLA VON SUNDENFALL
Then it is time for your heart to return to you, and for you to let Hella fly away to the blue, blue skies of heaven.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
Yes. It’s time.
(HELLA collapses, finally dead after years of being animate through the will of the COUNTESS.)
DOKTOR HIRNCRAFT
You have released Hella, Countess Von Sundenfall. Do not try to reclaim her.
DOKTOR GEISTEGE
You’ve seen the consequences of your defiance of the physical laws of life and death.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Doctors, do not judge the Countess too harshly. Her actions were the madness of unconditional love turned to unconditional grief.
SASKIA HOFLING
To love only one other soul and no one else leads to a tragedy such as this. We must love the world, all of it, and then perhaps we will no longer be slaves to such blind and selfish grief.
(ILSA KIRSCH and CLARA KUCHEN enter.)
CLARA KUCHEN
We have been spared, Ilsa.
ILSA KIRSCH
The monsters are dead.
CLARA KUCHEN
But so are two others.
ILSA KIRSCH
It is a lesson to us…
CLARA KUCHEN
We must stop waiting for the future to come to us.
ILSA KIRSCH
We must go forward no matter what.
(KATHERINA and DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN enter.)
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
The ones who were meant to die, died.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
The ones who were meant to live, lived.
KATHERINA ALTWERDEN
You and I are alive, Dorothea, though we were certain we were meant to die.
DOROTHEA ALTWERDEN
Yes. Our minds embraced death, but our hearts embraced life, and we were spared.
(ANIKA and ERMENTRAUDE enter.)
ANIKA PUTZEN
Forgive us, Countess.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
We have been bad servants.
ANIKA PUTZEN
In this troubled castle, we should have helped bring order, not chaos.
ERMENTRAUDE RAUMEN
Our selfish games made us blind to the needs of those around us.
ANIKA PUTZEN
If we had been thinking of others, perhaps we could have saved the little boy.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
My comrade and I saw the fallen child, and so we fired our rifles.
PRIVATE SCHLACTHAUS
We were judge, jury, and executioners.
CORPORAL LADESTOCK
Our fear made us act without thought, and justice requires thought.
(TATIANA EISKALT enters with THERESIA.)
TATIANA EISKALT
So this is the price of peace.
THERESIA EISKALT
The little birds have fallen silent.
TATIANA EISKALT
I will leave the castle now, and take Theresia with me. I shall try to keep my own house, my own heart, and not lose myself in the service of others.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Countess Von Sundenfall, you are charged with the murder of a child. The court will decide your guilt or innocence. As the soldier said, justice requires thought. The bodies of Wotan, Frigga, and
Hella must be burned at once. We are not ready for a race of beings who mirror our own hearts. The war continues, and Germany will lose. I have gambled and lost my own heart, but that is my burden
and mine alone.
COUNTESS VON SUNDENFALL
No one is worthy to wield such powers as I have within me. Perhaps it is best that I mount the scaffold and let the axe fall.
PRINCESS SOPHIA
Theresia, I will leave it to you to give us the poem we must have in this final moment before life moves forward again.
THERESIA EISKALT
(reciting)
“And when, as eve descended,
The hush grew deep and still,
And the setting sun looked upward
On that great castled hill;
Then far and wide, like lord and bride,
In radiant light we shone —
It sank; and again the ruins
Stood desolate and alone.”
END OF THE PLAY.