a short play in one act

ACT 1.
the stage is empty, dimly lit.
enter c2677, dressed in all black,
wearing thin brass rimmed glasses.

c2677:"good evening ladies and gentleman,
this is the story of my life..."

enter dancing fools and clowns
one by one, two at first
then tree and more...
dancing around him.
dressed in tight body suits
their faces are painted but
the suits are bight solid colors
yellows, pinks and blues
also others in drab browns, grays
the dance and fight
and kick each other
they gesture, meaninglessly
all undulating and flowing
in a chaos that seems to have an order.
their form is perfect, the dancers move skillfully
and silently. eerie silence.
barely audible are the light scuffling of
feet and the heaving chests,
the breathing.
this continues for an hour,
until the dancers tire out
and collapse on top of one another
and are dragged off stage by
one by one
stage hands, dressed in black.

as the last exhausted dancer is dragged away,
revealed is the defeated, contorted, lifeless body
of c2677.

the cast of dancers return on stage,
lift him above their arms
and carry him to the front of the stage
and throw him into the orchestra pit
which if filled with a full cast of professional
musicians, fully prepared and rehearsed
to play beautiful music (the score, written,
rehearsed, but never played), but who are forced
to sit and sweat show after show, knowing
that their only purpose
is to have c2677 thrown upon them.
his body lands in between the percussion
instruments and the brass section
a horrible uproar of crashing, falling cymbals,
drums, triangles, and sticks. bending, cracking wood
and metal. the orchestra members scramble and abandon
their priceless instruments, as the cast of clown-like
dancers sacks the pit in a mad rush.
they disperse. lingering echoes of the
madness trail off, giving in once again
to the silence.

curtain closes, lights dim.

the audience roars.

FIN.