Monologues That Kick Ass Excerpt
Monologues That Kick Ass Excerpt
Monologues That Kick Ass Excerpt
Available Titles by
David-Matthew Barnes
From Brooklyn Publishers
Somebodys Baby
Temporary Heroes
Unrequited
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many, many thanks to the companies who have helped give my
words a home by making my plays available to readers:
Brooklyn Publishers, Playscripts, Inc., and Lulu Press, Inc.
I am very grateful for the continued support unconditionally
bestowed upon me by the following individuals, each of whom
kick ass in their own way: Aaron Michael Martinez, Billie Parish,
Carmen Gomez-Barnes (for being such an awesome step-mom),
Carmel Comendador (for insulting innocent children), Dawn
Towle, Debbie Otto, Debra Garnes, Dr. Anne Rosenthal (for
renewing my faith in the English language), E. Draven (for being my
other favorite Mexican), Elaine Hesse, Elizabeth Newman,
Elizabeth Warren (for always making sure I had something to write
with), Elizabeth Yokas, Florence Pape, Frank Blocker, Frankie
Salinas, Haldi Kranich (for reminding me what its like to be cool and
seventeen), John C. Cunningham (and everyone at The Hudson
Exploited Theater Company), Jackie Corley, Janet Milstein (and
everyone at Smith and Kraus), Jill McMahon, Jim Vita (and everyone
at Actors Scene Unseen), Julia Darling, Kelly (Kinghorn) Hurtado,
Killian Edwards (for teaching me how to write a decent research
paper), Linnea Lindh, Lisa Cooper, Logan Hesse, Marcia
Gonzales, Mark and Joey Jones, Melinda Morgan (for being
trashier than I could ever be), Michelle Thorson, Nance Haxton,
Nancy Nickle (for being my Mom), Natalie Vincent, Nea Herriott,
Nick A. Moreno (for being my partner and sharing his life with me),
Pat Billmire (for being from New York and for keeping me real),
Robert Esquivido (for reminding me where I come from), Sam
Barnes (for being my Dad), Sandy Gunar, Steve Sheffler, Susan
Damberger, Susan Madden (for allowing me to put her in the
tackiest costumes in the history of theatre), Tara Henry (for being my
muse), Therease Logan (for twenty years of friendship), Todd Wylie
(for giving me faith when I had none), Trish DeBaun, Vanessa
Menendez, William Slater Vincent (for being an ass-kicking
attorney) and Yovania Rosa (for being my step-sister). xoxo DMB
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BETTER PLACES TO GO
Comic
Candace, late twenties, is late to her wedding. Stuck in a
roadside diner in Grand Island, Nebraska, she unloads
about the horrible time she has had trying to get to the
ceremony. She barely takes a breath, fueled with anger.
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BETTER PLACES TO GO
Dramatic
Rosie, an embittered waitress in her early twenties, confides
in her co-worker her secret to earning big tips in the roadside
diner that they work in.
ROSIE: People like me. They give me tips. (Beat.) Its part
of the job. I tell people what they want to hear. I pretend to
be someone that Im not just to make them happy. It makes
people feel better about themselves if they think theyre
helping someone who is less than them. Like theyre doing
some good deed for the white trash of the world. Dumb
fuckers dont realize that Im smarter than them. I get them
their drinks. I bring them plates of food. I tell the wives
they look young and I flirt with the husbands. I touch their
ugly babies, pat their heads, kiss their cheeks. Its their
money that I really want. They always leave me a little
extra, because Im so sweet. (She pretends that she is waiting
on a customer; very convincing:) What a beautiful family you
have. Its always nice to see people so happy together.
Really, it warms my heart. (The faade is gone.) I know how
to get what I want. (Beat.) Yeah, I got big plans tonight.
You just dont know, Ricardo. Im so sick and tired of this
place. Id love to set it on fire and watch it burn to the
ground. (Beat.) You got any matches on you? It gets to a
person after awhile. It crawls all over me like a rash. Like
poison fucking ivy. (Beat.) How in the hell did I get stuck
in Nebraska?
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CHIMERA
Dramatic
Jennifer, a journalism student in her early twenties has landed
a career-making interview with a sexy television reporter who
was the first person to discover the murdered body of an
international film star. Here, she assures him that she has
done her research.
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FROZEN STARS
Dramatic
Amy is a college student in her early twenties. Here she tells
her mothers boyfriend why she is frightened for him and for
his future.
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FROZEN STARS
Dramatic
Lisa is a seventeen-year old high school student. Here she tells
her boyfriend that she has been accepted as a student at
Harvard University.
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PENSACOLA
Comic
Marie is eighteen. On her first date with a Cuban pizza
delivery man, an exuberant, fantastical and very
Southern Marie confesses her strategy to become the next
Miss Florida.
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SKY LINES
Seriocomic
Fed up with her snobbish and bigoted neighbor, Maggie, who
is nineteen, confronts the woman face to face. The year is
1965.
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SKY LINES
Seriocomic
Angered over gossip she has heard about herself, Sarah
attempts to put her two neighbors, Maggie and Venita,
in their place. The year is 1965. She is standing on her fire
escape. She is nineteen.
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SKY LINES
Dramatic
In 1965, Venita, who is black, has been ostracized by her
family and friends for marrying a white man, George.
Here she tells her neighbor and best friend, Maggie, what she
expected out of marriage.
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STAY
Comic
Rindy, an extroverted and thrill-seeking eighteen-year-old, is
giving her best friend a makeover. During the process, she
confesses about the wild night she has spent with her
boyfriend. Rindy lives in a small town in the South.
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alarm clock. Its huge and its got these gigantic digital
numbers and theyre blood red. I swear to you, Alison, I
have never seen a clock that big. Not even at Wal-Mart.
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THRENODY
Dramatic
Dana, early twenties, is trapped in a volatile relationship with
Jake. Here, she confronts him about the night that he raped
her. Both Dana and Jake are heavily addicted to speed and
have been up for three days.
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TRY
Seriocomic
Moments after giving her new boyfriend a key to her
apartment, twenty-four year old Janessa voices her concerns
over her decision.
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BETTER PLACES TO GO
Dramatic
Derek is twenty and extremely manic. In a roadside coffee
shop, he expresses his secret love for his best friend, a Mexican
bus boy named Ricardo.
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SOMEBODYS BABY
Dramatic
William is a young man dying of AIDS. Here, he tells the love
of his life why he does not want her present when he dies.
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the time we got drunk at that ski lodge and you kept
singing that song from Cinderella and you made up dirty
lyrics and I made you dance for me. So I tried to forget
about the song they were playing and I went up and down
the aisles, not really sure what I was looking for. I only
needed some milk. But ended up in the candy aisle and
they had all these bins of candy and I found these your
favorite. Butterscotch. I remember how you used to sit
there and eat these and play with the wrappers and the
sound would drive me crazy and I would ask you to stop
and you would tell me that when you were a kid your
grandfather said that he would leave you a candy factory
one day because you had such a sweet tooth. So I was
standing in the store and I couldnt help myself, Martin. I
bought five pounds. And two boxes of peppermint tea.
Remember how we would sit here and we would cuddle
and everything felt warm and safe and misery seemed ten
thousand miles away? God, I miss that feeling. If you were
still here, I would pour you a cup.
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THRENODY
Dramatic
Jake, early twenties, is trapped in a volatile relationship with
Dana. Here, he reminisces about the time they first met. Both
Dana and Jake are heavily addicted to speed and have been up
for three days.
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WENDYS HURRICANE
Dramatic
The night before he transfers to a new school, twenty-year-old
Anthony squares off with a young woman who has had an
obsessive crush on him.
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CONTACT INFO
Need a copy of one of these plays in print? Here is some
helpful information:
AND THE WINNER IS and ARE YOU ALL RIGHT IN
THERE? are available in print from Playscripts, Inc: P.O.
Box 237060, New York, NY 10023. Their website is located
at www.playscripts.com. Toll-Free Phone & Fax: 1-866NEW-PLAY (639-7529). The above number is for U.S.
customers only. Customers outside the U.S. may contact
Playscripts, Inc. via email, or via their international fax
number: 1-011-212-799-6708.
SOMEBODYS BABY, TEMPORARY HEROES and
UNREQUITED are available in print from Brooklyn
Publishers: 1841 Cord Street. Odessa, TX 79762. Toll Free
Telephone Number: 1-888-473-8521. Their website is
located at www.brookpub.com.
For all other titles, please visit the playwrights official
website at www.davidmatthewbarnes.com. This site is
constantly updated with current ordering and publishing
information.
If you perform one of the monologues in this collection, let
us know about it. We welcome your thoughts, opinions,
questions and suggestions. Send the editor an e-mail at:
[email protected].
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Recently, David-Matthews work was nationally selected by
The Hudson Exploited Theater Company for their acclaimed
series Where Theater Starts 2004 and for The 16th Annual
Chicago Directors Festival at The Bailiwick Repertory
Theatre. In addition, Actors Scene Unseen performed DavidMatthews critically-acclaimed Southern stage play Pensacola in
a live radio broadcast from Charlotte, North Carolina. He
also participated in The 24-Hour Plays Series at The Horizon
Theatre Company in Atlanta as part of The 6th Annual New
South Play Festival. In the New York area, David-Matthews
plays have been performed at The Creative Place Theatre,
The 13th Street Repertory Company, The John Houseman
Studio Theatre, The Chashama Theatre and The 32nd Street
Playhouse in Union City.
David-Matthews work is available in print from Playscripts,
Inc., Brooklyn Publishers, Lulu Press and Word Riot Press.
For his work, he has received awards from Writers Digest
Magazine, the Florida State Writing Competition and the
Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance.
David-Matthew received a national scholarship to study
playwriting at The Theatre School of DePaul University in
Chicago. In addition, he studied Writing for Television and
Fiction Writing at Columbia College Chicago and
Communications and English at Oglethorpe University in
Atlanta.
David-Matthew lives just outside of Atlanta where he owns a
home with his partner, award-winning producer Nick
Moreno.
For more information, visit his official website at
www.davidmatthewbarnes.com.
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