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 Our Place

By
TERRY GABBARD

Dramatic Publishing Company

Woodstock, Illinois ● Australia ● New Zealand ● South Africa

FOR AUTHORIZED DIGITAL USE ONLY

 *** NOTICE ***
The amateur and stock acting rights to this work are controlled exclusively by
THE DRAMATIC PUBLISHING COMPANY, INC., without whose permission
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at: THE DRAMATIC PUBLISHING COMPANY, INC., 311 Washington St.,
Woodstock, IL 60098.

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For performance of any songs, music and recordings mentioned in this play which are
in copyright, the permission of the copyright owners must be obtained or other songs and
recordings in the public domain substituted.

©MMXV by
TERRY WAYNE GABBARD

Printed in the United States of America

All Rights Reserved
(OUR PLACE)

ISBN: 978-1-61959-048-9

FOR AUTHORIZED DIGITAL USE ONLY

 IMPORTANT BILLING AND CREDIT REQUIREMENTS
All producers of the play must give credit to the author of the play in all
programs distributed in connection with performances of the play and in all
instances in which the title of the play appears for purposes of advertising,
publicizing or otherwise exploiting the play and/or a production. The name of
the author must also appear on a separate line, on which no other name appears,
immediately following the title, and must appear in size of type not less than
fifty percent (50%) the size of the title type. Biographical information on the
author, if included in the playbook, may be used in all programs. In all programs
this notice must appear:

“Produced by special arrangement with

THE DRAMATIC PUBLISHING COMPANY, INC., of Woodstock, Illinois.”

FOR AUTHORIZED DIGITAL USE ONLY

Our Place was original performed by students of Ardrey Kell
High School in Charlotte, N.C., at the 2014 North Carolina
Theatre Conference. The play was selected as “Distinguished
Play” and went on to be performed at the Southeastern Theatre
Conference where it was named “Best New Play.”

Original Cast:
JAKE...................................................................Parker Stone
HOLLY.......................................................... Maddie Coggin
ANNE............................................................ Devon Mandell
LYLE....................................................................James Clark
BETH............................................................. Kayla Rutledge
JONATHAN......................................................Clay Harrison
AL................................................................... Will Strickland
BRENDA.............................................................Haley Stone
NICKY.............................................................Jared DeChant
SHERRY....................................................... Alex Woodcook
COREY..............................................................Devon Bucey
LIBERTY............................................Mary Grace McKusick
STANLEY....................................................... Jacob Bollacke
SIDNEY............................................................Jamie Roberts

Director..........................Terry Gabbard and Brian Seagroves

Stage Manager.................................................. Joanna Zhang
Assistant Stage Manager................................ Emilie Osborne
Set Design...........................................................Trey Plunket
Technical Direction............................................. Eric Duncan

4
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 Our Place
CHARACTERS
(7m., 7w. Roles can be doubled.)
JAKE: 17 years old.
HOLLY: 17 years old.
ANNE: 17 years old.
LYLE: 17 years old.
BETH: 52 years old.
JONATHAN: 80 years old.
AL: 40s.
BRENDA: 40s.
NICKY: 13 years old.
SHERRY: 8 years old.
COREY: 20 years old.
LIBERTY: 20 years old.
STANLEY: 16 years old.
SIDNEY: 6 years old.

5
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 SCENES
Our Place is written in five scenes and an epilogue. All of the
scenes take place on a wooden dock that extends out onto a lake.

Our Place:
Jake, Holly, Lyle and Anne

Flick of the Wrist:

Jonathan
Beth

Famtime:
Al and Brenda
Nicky
Sherry

Tuna Fish:
Liberty and Corey

Stay With You:

Stanley
Sidney

Epilogue:
Entire cast

6
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 Our Place
AT RISE: There is a dock. The dock starts UC and extends
downstage forming a T shape. There is one bench on the R
side of the dock and a ladder on the downstage side leading
to the water. There is an old canoe on the L side of the dock.
It is nighttime. Other than the song of crickets and frogs, it
is very still and quiet.

Our Place
(After a moment, the stillness is broken by JAKE and HOL-
LY entering. They are a young couple on a date. JAKE is
leading HOLLY, who seems nervous and excited. She stum-
bles a few times as they make their way to the end of the
dock. JAKE is carrying a backpack.)

JAKE. Woah there, watch your step. This is it. Nice, right?
HOLLY. Yeah it’s nice.
JAKE. No one knows it’s here.
HOLLY. Really?
JAKE. As far as I know. I’ve never seen anyone else out here.
HOLLY. We aren’t trespassing?
JAKE. No, I heard an investor built it like 50 years ago when
they were going to develop all of this land. I guess they
never got around to developing it.
HOLLY. It’s nice. (She looks at him.) It’s in good shape.
JAKE. Well I repaired it.
HOLLY. Really?

7
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8 Our Place

JAKE. Yeah. Well I come out here a lot. Swing the hammer
around. It’s no big deal. I love to fix things. It helps me
clear my head. I come here to think.
HOLLY. What about?
JAKE. Really? You care what I think about?
HOLLY. Yeah.
JAKE. You want to know what I think about when I’m out here?
HOLLY. Uh huh.
JAKE. Do you ever feel like no one gets what you’re about?
Like, no one can even really see you.
HOLLY. Yeah.
JAKE. Like, what we are all doing. What is the point?
HOLLY. Yeah.
JAKE. Like at school. Mr. Forrester … who needs it? You know?
HOLLY. Yeah.
JAKE. I don’t need that.
HOLLY. You don’t.
JAKE. I guess maybe I’m just lonely or something.
HOLLY. Really? Lonely?
JAKE. It’s hard. It’s like … is anyone out there for me?
Where’s my Romeo and Juliet?
HOLLY. Jake? I can be the one who gets what you are about.
JAKE. Really?
HOLLY. Yeah, like Mr. Forrester at school. You don’t need that.
JAKE. You do get me.
HOLLY. I do. I see you.
JAKE. You can see me?
HOLLY. I totally see you.
JAKE. I feel like this place … this old dock that I repaired
myself, is for us, you know … put here for us … for this
moment. This can be our place.

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 Our Place 9

HOLLY. You smell like the outdoors.

JAKE. You’re shivering.
HOLLY. I’m cold.
JAKE. Oh, I have something. Come here.

(They sit on the edge of the dock. JAKE pulls out a blanket
from his backpack.)

JAKE (cont’d). This is a blanket that my grandmother made

for my grandfather.
HOLLY. Really?
JAKE. While he was away at war.
HOLLY. Which war?
JAKE (panics a little). The Chinese one.
HOLLY. Oh.
JAKE. She called it the love blanket.
HOLLY (giggles). Really?
JAKE. No it’s dumb. It has a dumb name.
HOLLY. Seriously, go on.
JAKE. My grandmother told me that as long as she and my
grandfather held each other under the blanket, their love
would last forever.
HOLLY. Oh wow.

(They move in to kiss but are interrupted by the entrance of

LYLE and ANNE, who are also on a date. LYLE is blind-
folded and being led by ANNE, who doesn’t notice JAKE
and HOLLY. LYLE isn’t the brightest crayon in the box.)

LYLE. Are we almost there?

ANNE. A little further. Watch your step there. OK, here we
are. (Unties the blind fold.)

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10 Our Place

LYLE. Oh wow.

(ANNE notices JAKE.)

ANNE (first shocked, then angry). Oh wow.

LYLE. Yeah this … this is … really something.
ANNE (looking right at JAKE). This is really something.
JAKE (cover blown but trying to play it cool). Anne? What
are you doing here?
ANNE. This is just really something.
HOLLY (confused). Hi. Jake who is this?
ANNE. Hi. I’m Anne.
LYLE. Hey … I’m Lyle
ANNE. So you must be Jake’s girlfriend.
HOLLY. Yes.
JAKE. I don’t want to put a label on it or anything.
HOLLY. What?
ANNE. You guys are really sweet. I bet you really get each
other …
HOLLY. I’m not sure.
ANNE (mocking JAKE). This old dock is for us, put here for
this moment. Am I right?
HOLLY. Jake?
ANNE. I was here with him three weeks ago.
LYLE. Woah. This is gettin kinda heavy.
JAKE. Wait, why are you here with that idiot?
LYLE. We don’t want to put a label on it.
JAKE. Oh I see. (Laughs.) You are hilarious. You brought
him to our place and you are mad at me for bringing her …
HOLLY & ANNE. To our place!

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 Our Place 11

ANNE. You are unbelievable.

LYLE. Whose place is it?
HOLLY. Apparently it is everyone’s place. So I guess you
know about the love blanket.
JAKE. Holly just … oh man.
ANNE. The love blanket? (Realizes what the blanket is and is
suddenly furious.) This is my great grandmother’s blanket.
You stole my great grandmother’s blanket.
JAKE. She didn’t need it anymore.
ANNE. You stole my dead great grandmother’s blanket?
JAKE. I just borrowed it from that thing …
ANNE. Her wake?
JAKE. Yeah, I thought it was a door prize. It was sitting on
that table, by her dead body.
ANNE. That was a tasteful display of precious things she had
made in her life.
JAKE. Oh, I see where I might have went wrong there.
ANNE. I thought you came to Meme’s wake to support me,
but clearly you were there to pillage. You are sick.
LYLE. So I guess we aren’t going to see the ghost light.
JAKE. You told him about the ghost light? That was my story.
You stole my story and my place.
ANN & HOLLY. Our place!
ANNE. You are a lying, cheating, blanket stealer.
JAKE (yelling). I THOUGHT IT WAS A DOOR PRIZE.
ANNE. Why don’t you leap off a building?
JAKE. You first!

(ANNE exits fuming, followed by JAKE. There is a quiet

moment. LYLE sits next to HOLLY. They look at each other.
There is something there. )

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12 Our Place

LYLE. Woah.
HOLLY. Yeah.
LYLE. Woah.
HOLLY. Yeah.
LYLE. This is a really nice place.
HOLLY. Yeah it is.

(Lights fade. Music.)

Flick of the Wrist

(It is early morning on a summer day. The sun is just ris-
ing. BETH enters, helping her father, JONATHAN, walk to
the bench, DR. BETH carries a tackle box and fishing rod.
JONATHAN stares into nothing. He is in the late stages of
Alzheimer’s Disease. BETH is decked out in fishing gear.
JONATHAN wears a silly looking fisherman’s hat and vest
with his pajamas.)

BETH (with much anticipation). Here we go, Dad. Are you

warm enough? (She takes in the scenery.) This place hasn’t
changed a bit. (She busies herself getting the bait on the
hook of the fishing pole.) This is really something. There
is something about the sky here. It just makes you want to
jump up and sail on the wind. What a beautiful morning.
You always said that this is the best time to go fishing. The
water is calm, no ripples, still, smooth like a mirror. We
need to come out here more often. What do you think? I
know what you are thinking. Artificial lures? Live bait is
best, Elizabeth. Well I’m sorry, but I could never get com-
fortable taking a hook and spearing those little worms you
used to pick up at the bait shop. Real fisherman use live
bait. I know. I know, Dad. (Beat.) You remember this place,

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 Our Place 13

Daddy? Of course you do. You used to tell me this was our
place. (She casts. The lure doesn’t go far.) All right, don’t
laugh. It has been a while. I used to be really good at this.
Remember you used to pick a spot out there, a lily pad, a
stick, or a water bug or something and we took turns trying
to cast right to it. It’s all in the flick of the wrist, right Dad?
Do you remember the first time we came out here? It was
a disaster. I went to cast and hooked my leg. It hurt like
crazy. I tore my favorite stockings too. You had to bribe
me with a Barbie just to get me to come back here. Brib-
ery, the best way to a little girl’s heart. After that second
trip, coming here with you to our place became the bribe.
We’d get here early, fish all morning and swim all after-
noon. We’d always eat turkey sandwiches and Lays potato
chips for lunch and you let me drink Coke right out of the
glass bottles. Mom never let me drink Coke. On the way
home, we’d always stop and get ice cream for dinner. That
ice cream place is still open I think. Remember the one we
used to always go to? We can stop by there if you promise
to eat something. I won’t tell Nurse Jill. Oh, Dad look. Do
you see that? Oh he is beautiful. Is that an egret or a heron?
You were always so good with birds. How many people
these days know the names of all the birds on the lake? (She
casts again. The lure again doesn’t go far. She tries again
and fails.) What am I doing wrong? Well? Don’t just sit
there. Show me? I know you can get up. Jill said you were
walking around last week. She found you at the end of the
hall on the fourth floor. She said you were trying to pick me
up from preschool.

(Suddenly, JONATHAN comes alive. He begins to rummage

for his keys. He is lost in a moment when he is a dad picking
up his daughter from preschool. Then it fades away.)

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14 Our Place

BETH (cont’d). Don’t give me that look. She also says she
hears you talking in your sleep. She says you call out some-
times. What are you dreaming about? Come on, Daddy, it’s
me. Elizabeth. I’m right here. This is our place. We spent so
many summer days out here. You taught me to swim in this
lake. You made me leap off this dock. You would wait right
out here in the water and say, “Here, fishy, fishy.” I would
shout, “Geronimo.” Where are you? (She is now more de-
termined and pulls out some photographs she had stored in
the tackle box.) Your name is Jonathan Baker. You were a
firefighter for 42 years. You were the captain of Ladder 53.
The guys threw you the biggest retirement party. Bobby
from the station came by last week to say hello. You were
married to Gene Baker. You built the house that the two
of you lived in for 47 years. She died six years ago right
before you started getting sick.

(JONATHAN looks away.)

BETH (cont’d). You have one daughter, three grandchil-

dren. Heather is pregnant, Dad. You are going to be a great
granddaddy. Where are you? There are people who need to
see your face. People who need to hear your voice. You’ve
got to fight the darkness that is closing in around you, be-
cause it is closing in around all of us. Your darkness is our
darkness. I need you to wake up. (She turns away to look
out onto the lake.) What do you want? Do you want to go
see Mom? Don’t give up. I still need you.

(She turns away. JONATHAN slowly stands and takes the

rod. He begins casting as if to instruct BETH. BETH sees this
and moves toward him. He hands her the rod, stands behind
her like he used to so many years ago and helps her cast.)

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 Our Place 15

BETH (cont’d). That’s right, Dad. Just a flick of the wrist.

(The lights slowly fade, and music is played.)

Famtime
(It is now the middle of the day. The sun is bright, it is hot,
and the mosquitos are swarming. AL and BRENDA enter
with their children, NICKY and SHERRY. AL is carrying
life vests and paddles and is very enthusiastic. BRENDA is
trying to be supportive of AL’s attempt at family bonding.
NICKY is an angry teenager. SHERRY is a dark little girl.)

AL. Here we are. Watch your step. Wow this is …

BRENDA. Really …
NICKY. Something …
SHERRY. Dad this place is so cool.
AL. Gold-star attitude, Sherry. Way to go.
SHERRY. It looks like one of those places where a murderer
is waiting to attack you and rip out your throat.
AL. What? No. This is quaint. This is a safe, quaint place.
BRENDA. It is really humid out here. Nicky did you bring
the mosquito spray?
NICKY. No.
BRENDA. But, I gave you a coupon.
AL. They won’t latch on if we keep moving.
BRENDA. Everyone keep moving.
SHERRY. If you don’t keep moving, the mosquitos will suck
out your intestines.
BRENDA. What? No honey. No intestine sucking. Really,
what are you letting her watch?
AL. Me?

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16 Our Place

BRENDA. Nicky keep moving so you don’t get encephalitis.

NICKY. Can we go now?
SHERRY. Watch out! Nicky, the encephalitis is going to turn
you into one of the undead.
NICKY. You are deranged.
BRENDA. Nicholas Lawrence Gilbert! No one is deranged.
Al tell him that his sister isn’t deranged.
AL. Apologize to your sister.
NICKY. Seriously? (Dripping with sarcasm.) I’m sorry for
calling you deranged.
AL. Nice. Great job, fam. Conflict resolution. Now Gilbert
clan, gather around. (With intensity.) This … is our new
place. (There is no reaction from the family.) Yeah, Dad!
BRENDA. What do you mean, dear?
AL. This is our place for famtime, hanging out, for summer-
time adventures.
NICKY. I didn’t sign up for summertime adventures.
SHERRY. Can we look for bodies?
AL. What? No more Hulu for you for like five months.
BRENDA. Where did you find this place?
AL. That is the best part. No one knows about it.
BRENDA. Are we trespassing?
AL. What? … No! No one technically owns this place, I think.
BRENDA. What are we doing here, Al?
AL. I’m glad you asked that. We are going on a great canoe
trip. (Silence) Yaaay!
BRENDA. The water is kinda murky.
AL. It is supposed to look like that.
NICKY. I can’t get in the water. I don’t want my phone get-
ting wet.

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 Our Place 17

AL. Just put it in a baggy.

NICKY. I didn’t bring a baggy. No one said I would need a baggy.
AL. Forget the baggy. Just don’t fall in.
NICKY. How am I supposed to forget about the baggy? That
is not an easy thing to forget, especially when you really
need one. Now all I’m going to be thinking about is—wow
I really wish I had a baggy.
AL. Forget I said anything about the baggy.
NICKY. I can’t now. The idea of how safe my expensive phone
would be nestled inside a baggy is burned into my mind.
AL. OK son, then remember. Remember about the baggy.
NICKY. I will remember about the baggy.
BRENDA. Is this boat seaworthy, honey?
AL. We aren’t actually going into the sea, dear.
BRENDA. Is it lake-worthy?
AL. Of course. Now the first thing that we all need to do is put
on our personal flotation apparatus.

(AL hands out the life vests, which are old, mildewed and
too small.)

BRENDA. Mine is too tight.

SHERRY. I’m the coast guard.
NICKY. Mine smells like butt.
BRENDA. Honey, I think they all kinda smell like butt.
AL. No, that’s the smell of … safety.
NICKY. That doesn’t make any sense.
BRENDA. Al? Have you ever been canoeing?
AL. How hard can it be? You just get in and paddle.
NICKY. Famous last words.

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18 Our Place

AL. Hey champ. Let’s cheer up, buttercup. Turn that frown
upside down. Come on! This is going to be fun! Think of
all the cool wildlife we might see and we can sing some
songs and stuff.
NICKY. Songs?
BRENDA. Al, I think this life vest is suffocating me.
AL. No problemo. I will loosen it for you.

(AL comically loosens the straps on BRENDA’s life vest.)

AL (cont’d). Better?
BRENDA. No
AL. Great. I think maybe we should stretch.
NICKY. Stretch?
AL. Get limbered up so we can paddle. We had a long car
ride. Let’s do it.

(AL and SHERRY enthusiastically stretch while BRENDA

and NICKY gives a half-hearted effort.)

AL (cont’d). All aboard, me hearties.

SHERRY. Dad? There are only two seats. We may have to
sacrifice one. (She looks at NICKY.)
AL. No … no … the two of you guys will sit on the floor of
the canoe.
SHERRY. I want to be the navigator.
NICKY. You mean we are supposed to sit where all that green
stuff is growing?
AL. Oh that? That is algae, or kelp, or something.
SHERRY. Radioactive ooze.
NICKY. This canoe smells like butt.

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 Our Place 19

AL. No it doesn’t. That is the safety smell, remember?

BRENDA. Honey? Can I talk to you? (She pulls him aside.)
You don’t have to do this.
AL. What do you mean?
BRENDA. This isn’t us. We are more stay-at-home, where
it’s safe, kind of people.
AL. This is safe and fun. This will be a safe and fun time.
BRENDA. Just because the Peterson’s next door go on all
those trips …
AL (the mention of the Petersons sets him off). Let me tell you
something, Heathcliff Peterson is a big jerk and if I have to
hear about one more of his outward bound excursions I’m
going to kick someone.
BRENDA. OK, I’m sorry. I was just saying you don’t have to
one up anybody.
AL. I want to do this because I want to spend more time in
the great out of doors. I don’t need to one up Heathcliff be-
cause first of all, he has a stupid name. Two, his shutters are
blue … I mean, really? Three, he has a freaky looking kid.

(SHERRY is looking off in the distance and has a strange

look on her face. AL and BRENDA notice this and sigh.)

AL (cont’d). Freakier looking kid.

BRENDA. OK.
AL. Come on, everyone, let’s load the canoe. (He has a hard
time but finally gets into the canoe.) OK great, now Sherry,
when I tell you to, hand me the paddles.

(AL turns around, and SHERRY goes to hand them to him

and accidentally smacks him in the head. He stumbles back
onto to the dock where SHERRY clocks him again. This time
he is out cold.)

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20 Our Place

BRENDA. God bless America!

(The family rushes to AL’s aid. After several moments of the

family trying to revive him, AL regains consciousness. He is
still very out of it.)

AL. Did everyone have a fun time on our canoe trip?

(There is a beat. The family realizes that AL thinks the trip

is over. BRENDA and NICKY ad-lib about how great the
trip was.)

SHERRY. But we didn’t …

NICKY. Not a word.
SHERRY. Five bucks.
NICKY. Fine. (Hands her five dollars.)
AL. So do you like our place?
BRENDA. Let’s go, honey. We need to get your head looked
at. Come on, kids, we are going to the hospital.
SHERRY. Maybe we will see a gunshot victim.
NICKY. Can we stop and get ice cream on the way? I saw a
place up the road.
BRENDA. Sure. Who wants a twisty cone?
AL, NICKY & SHERRY. I do.

(Lights fade. Music.)

Tuna Fish
(It is a pleasant afternoon. COREY and LIBERTY are sit-
ting down having a picnic. LIBERTY is off somewhere else.)

COREY. How is the tuna fish?

LIBERTY. Huh?

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 Our Place 21

COREY. I said how is the tuna fish?

LIBERTY. Oh it’s good.
COREY. I asked my mom how to make it because I know you
like the way she does it.
LIBERTY. You made all this?
COREY. Yeah.
LIBERTY. Well look at you, master chef, being all thoughtful
and stuff.
COREY. It has sweet relish in it.
LIBERTY. Pardon?
COREY. Sweet relish is the secret and a little lime juice.
LIBERTY. Oh, OK.
COREY. You’re quiet.
LIBERTY. Sorry I was just thinking about something I read.
COREY. What?
LIBERTY. Did you know that your personality doesn’t fully
mature until you are in your mid- to late-20s?
COREY. Huh.
LIBERTY. Yeah it is weird. Your likes, dislikes and every-
thing are really in flux until you are almost 30. The person
who I will eventually become may bear only the smallest
resemblance to who I am right now.
COREY. Really?
LIBERTY. Your taste buds too.
COREY. Taste buds?
LIBERTY. Your taste buds are constantly changing. Like this
tuna fish right here. In 10 years, I might hate tuna fish even
though I really like tuna fish right now.
COREY. You don’t have to eat the tuna fish if you don’t like it.

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22 Our Place

LIBERTY. No, I like it, but maybe in the future I will hate it.
I may even develop an allergic reaction to the fish or the
mayo. Sometimes people, without any warning, develop
food allergies they’ve never had before. It’s weird to think
that this tuna fish could actually kill me one day.
COREY. But, maybe you will like it even better.
LIBERTY. What do you mean?
COREY. Maybe in the future you will like the thing you like
now even more.
LIBERTY. Maybe.

(Beat.)

COREY. This is a really good sandwich.

LIBERTY. I have never eaten Somalian food.
COREY. Hmmm?
LIBERTY. Somalian food. I’ve never had it before.
COREY. Neither have I. It sounds weird.
LIBERTY. Maybe it is amazing. Maybe it is way better than
some old tuna fish.
COREY. I doubt it. My mom makes great tuna fish.
LIBERTY. There is that Somali restaurant over in that shop-
ping center with the comic book store. I’ve always wanted
to try it but, I never have.
COREY. We can go sometime I guess. I can just sneak in
some McDonalds or something. I doubt they’ll care.
LIBERTY. You don’t want to see if you like it?
COREY. No that’s OK.
LIBERTY. OK. Terrible idea.
COREY. Is something wrong?
LIBERTY. No, I’m sorry. I’m kinda freaking out about classes
starting again in a few weeks. Dad is really pushing me to

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 Our Place 23

“pick a direction.” A degree in philosophy was not part of

his master plan. Did you know that an alarming percentage
of people end up having a career unrelated to their course of
study in college?
COREY. You’ve been reading a lot.
LIBERTY. What’s more, most people change careers two to
three times.
COREY. Just relax. Everything is going to be OK.
LIBERTY. I don’t know who I am, Corey, and I guess I won’t
know who I am for at least six or seven years.
COREY. I know who you are. Your name is Liberty, at least
I think it is. Actually, I’m not sure I recognize you. Do I
know you? What have you done with my girlfriend?
LIBERTY. Don’t make me laugh. This is serious.
COREY. Sorry. I will try not to be any more fun for the rest
of the day.
LIBERTY. I think you should take your SAT.
COREY. Why?
LIBERTY. Because I think you haven’t given college enough
thought.
COREY. I haven’t given it any thought actually. I’m working
for my dad so I can take over when he retires.
LIBERTY. Is that what you really want to do? I thought you’d
change your mind after I started college. You could try it.
COREY. Nah.
LIBERTY. Corey?
COREY. I don’t like school like you do. My dad is going to
teach me everything I need to know. I don’t want to stay up
late writing papers and all that stuff. I really like working
with my hands. When you know what you like, why try
something else?

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24 Our Place

LIBERTY. Because you might like something else better.

COREY. That thing you said about your personality and your
taste buds changing until you’re 30, that isn’t going to hap-
pen to me.
LIBERTY. OK.
COREY. Are we fighting? This isn’t how I wanted to spend
today. I took you out to our place so you could relax.
LIBERTY. It’s not making me relaxed.
COREY. Why not?
LIBERTY. I’m antsy.
COREY. What can I do?
LIBERTY. Nothing.
COREY. Just tell me.
LIBERTY (losing her temper). There is nothing YOU can do.
Corey, I want to go to that Somali restaurant.
COREY. OK fine. (Sarcastic.) I’m full anyway from this de-
licious sandwich. We can swing by and you can pick up
some take out.
LIBERTY. No you don’t understand. I want to go with some-
one who wants to go. I don’t want to hang out on this nas-
ty dock eating your mom’s tuna. I want to sit down with
someone at that Somali place and have an intelligent con-
versation … (COREY is obviously hurt by this.) I’m sorry, I
didn’t mean that, Corey.
COREY. When did you become too good for our conversa-
tions? When did my mom’s sandwiches become not as
good as something you haven’t even tried before? What
is wrong with something you have loved for the past six
years? What is wrong with being out here, at our place?
That used to be enough.
LIBERTY. I lose sleep thinking about missing an opportunity
to find out that I might like something …

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 Our Place 25

COREY. Or someone?
LIBERTY. Or someone … more.

(COREY turns to leave then stops and turns to LIBERTY.)

COREY. What if after all this soul searching, after trying So-
malian food and Korean food and whatever else you decide
you need to taste, what if you decide that what you really
like the best, the thing that fills you up is … me?
LIBERTY. If that’s the case, then hopefully it won’t be too late.
COREY. It will be.

(Slow fade to a blackout. Music)

Stay With You

(It is a cold wintery day. STANLEY sits alone on the bench
wearing a jacket and headphones. He is listening to heavy
metal music. When his headphones are on, we can hear the
music he is listening to. SIDNEY, his energetic sister, ap-
proaches. He doesn’t notice her. She grabs onto him with a
big hug, which startles him. He jumps up, and when he pulls
the headphones off, the music stops.)

STANLEY. Jeez Sid, what are you doing here?

SIDNEY. I was worried because you said you were leaving
and you weren’t coming back and mom was crying and dad
was angry and I told them that I would go looking for you,
but they didn’t hear me, so I went looking for you anyway.
STANLEY. How did you find me? I’m three miles away from
the highway.
SIDNEY. You neglected to disable your GPS function on
your phone.

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26 Our Place

STANLEY. Go back home, Sidney.

SIDNEY. You first.
STANLEY. It is cold outside.
SIDNEY. You first.
STANLEY. You are going to get sick.
SIDNEY. So?
STANLEY. If you get sick, then you will have to get a shot.
SIDNEY. I’m not afraid of shots. Besides, you get a sticker
after.
STANLEY. You could get pneumonia and die.
SIDNEY. Then it would be your fault. You are killing me
right now.
STANLEY. Then die.
SIDNEY. Fine I will. (Beat.) I’m staying with you.
STANLEY. I’m leaving, stupid. I’m not going home. I going
to stay with Alex and his family for a while.
SIDNEY. I’m staying with you.
STANLEY. Well this is really something. I run away and my
6-year-old sister tags along.
SIDNEY (putting on a dramatic scene, coughing and choking).
Ugh help me I’m dying of knee-moan-eia.
STANLEY. What is your problem?
SIDNEY. What is your problem?
STANLEY. Right now my problem is I have this infectious
boil of a sister who won’t go away.
SIDNEY. You need therapy.
STANLEY. That’s what I’ve heard.
SIDNEY. Anger management problems.
STANLEY. Seriously go away.

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 Our Place 27

SIDNEY. I think it’s the music you listen to.

STANLEY. No it isn’t.
SIDNEY. Lisa J said that if you play that kind of music back-
wards, it has all kinds of demonic messages. It affects you
on a subatomic level. That’s why you are so messed up.
STANLEY. Well tell Lisa J that she is a moron.
SIDNEY. Lisa J is not a moron. Her dad is a doctor and her
older brother isn’t messed up like you. He was the val-
id-a-torian.
STANLEY. Great.
SIDNEY. Have you ever heard of Kidz Bop? It’s really good
and they take your terrible music and make it safe for kids.
So maybe if you listen to it, you won’t be so messed up.
STANLEY. My problem isn’t the music. My problem is that
I have to live in that house with her and him and you, the
mistake.
SIDNEY (after a beat, unfazed). I’m actually a surprise.
STANLEY. Go away.
SIDNEY. I’m staying with you.
STANLEY. Seriously, Sidney, go away.
SIDNEY. I’m staying with you.
STANLEY. I’m leaving. Don’t you get it? I’m not coming home.
SIDNEY. Why can’t you be nicer to everyone? Why do you
have to fight with everybody? Why do you have to be such
a jerk?
STANLEY. I DON’T KNOW!
SIDNEY. Maybe it’s too much caffeine or poly un-start-your-
rated fats.
STANLEY. Like you said. I’m messed up. Things are going
to be better when I’m not there. Now go home. They are
probably looking for you.

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28 Our Place

SIDNEY. You take me back.

STANLEY. What? No. You found me. You can find your way
home.
SIDNEY. You would send me out into the wilderness? There
are wolves out there.
STANLEY. No there aren’t.
SIDNEY. Yes. I saw a whole herd of them on the way and
they looked hungry.
STANLEY. Go!
SIDNEY. They are going to eat me.
STANLEY. You will be missed.
SIDNEY. You would let the wolves kill me?
STANEY. Yes. I would let the wolves eat you all up.
SIDNEY. You are deranged. You are going to miss me when
I’m dead.
STANLEY. No I won’t.
SIDNEY. You never taught me to swim.
STANLEY. So.
SIDNEY. You never taught me to swim. You promised to and
you never taught me to swim.
STANLEY. Well too bad.
SIDNEY. No not too bad. You told me you were going to take
me to this place and teach me to swim so you can’t leave
until you have fulfilled your oath. This is our special learn-
ing-to-swim place and you need to teach me.
STANLEY. OK, let’s do it right now. Oh wait you don’t have
your bathing suit.

(SIDNEY takes off her coat to reveal a bathing suit.)

SIDNEY. Problem solved.

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 Our Place 29

STANLEY. I don’t have my bathing suit.

(SIDNEY produces a bathing suit from her jacket pocket.)

SIDNEY. There you go.

STANLEY. No. This is ridiculous. It is 20 degrees out here.
Put on your coat and go home.
SIDNEY. I AM STAYING WITH YOU.
STANLEY. Go away, Sid. I don’t want you around me. You
make me sick. Get away from me.

(STANLEY puts on his earphones and blares the music. SID-

NEY continues to shout, “I’m staying with you!” STANLEY
increases the volume of his music so that eventually SID-
NEY is completely drowned out. SIDNEY moves around,
jumps up and down and keeps trying to get his attention.
Eventually, she stands up on the bench behind STANLEY
and continues her routine. She suddenly loses her balance
and falls in the water. She vanishes from sight. All we hear
is the loud music. After painful moments, STANLEY eventu-
ally notices that she is gone.)

STANLEY (cont’d). Sidney? (He looks around and moves up-

sage.) Not funny, Sidney. The joke is over. Where are you?
You left your coat. Come on, Sid, its cold outside. (Fearing
the worst.) Sidney? Sidney please! (He sees something in
the water.) Oh my God.

(STANLEY jumps in the water and pulls her back onto the
dock. Both are soaked.)

STANLEY (cont’d). HELP ME! Somebody. My sister is hurt.

PLEASE. (He pulls out his phone and tries to make a call,
but it is broken because of the water.) Please work. Please

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30 Our Place

work. It’s OK, Sid. (He begins doing chest compressions

and mouth to mouth. Clearly he doesn’t know what he is
doing. He tries his best for painful moments.) It’s OK.
SOMEBODY PLEASE! It’s OK, Sidney. (He continues to
try and revive her but begins to realize that she is gone.)
You are going to be OK. I am here, Sidney. I’m going to
come home and I’m going to teach you to swim. SOME-
ONE HELP ME! We are going to come back to our place
and we are going to swim. We are going to swim all day.
PLEASE! SOMEBODY! It’s OK. (He gathers SIDNEY in
his arms.) I am staying with you. I am staying with you.
I’m staying with you. (His voice trails off.)

(Lights fade. Music.)

Epilogue
(Music plays under the dialogue. STANLEY and BETH
stand C on the dock, and the rest of the ensemble surrounds
them. BETH is holding the fishing rod.)

LIBERTY. There are seven billion people in the world.

ANNE. If you were to ask each one of those seven billion
people if they had a special place …
HOLLY. A place that they shared with someone.
AL & BRENDA. Most of them would say …
ALL. Yes.
LIBERTY. The surface of our planet is 200 million square
miles. With such limited real estate it is no surprise that we
share our special places …
BETH. Where the water is calm.
COREY. Where the food tastes better somehow.

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 Our Place 31

SHERRY & NICKY. Where you try a little bit harder to connect.
ANNE. Where the air feels just right.
JAKE. The isolated places.
ALL. That no one else knows about.
BETH. It is those places that get the most traffic.
HOLLY. In those places … you can feel it.
ANNE. From those who have staked their claim.
SHERRY. Their memories coalesce here, become concentrat-
ed here.
NICKY. Memories becoming part of this place. Part of …
ALL. Our place.
BRENDA. Saturated into the soil …
AL. Infused into the water …
BETH. These memories are a part of the wind …
LYLE. Leaping through the sky …
COREY. Memories, and hopes, and dreams …
BRENDA. Seeping into the wood of an old dock …
LIBERTY. Clinging to its rusty nails …
ALL. This our place.
HOLLY. Where our hearts are.
COREY. Where we learn to live …
SHERRY & NICKY. Learn to laugh …
ALL. And sometimes, our place …
STANLEY & BETH. Is where we learn to say goodbye.

(The music continues to play as the cast begins to exit.

BETH places the fishing rod DC as if it was meant for some-
one else and then exits. SIDNEY appears and runs to em-
brace STANLEY, who doesn’t see her but can feel her pres-
ence. STANLEY is still for a moment, embraced by the spirit

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32 Our Place

of SIDNEY, and then slowly exits. SIDNEY looks around

the dock, and although she has been here before, it is clear
that she is in a new place. She picks up the fishing rod and
begins trying to cast with little success. JONATHAN enters,
healthy now. He walks as if he were a much younger man.
He sees that SIDNEY is struggling with the rod. SIDNEY,
now seeing JONATHAN, holds up the rod, looking for some
help. JONATHAN takes the rod and shows her the proper
technique. He then hands the rod back to her and stands
behind her, helping her cast. Slow fade to black. Curtain.)

The End.

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