Characters:
Summer…………….Playing herself
ML……………………Playing Summer’s “rebel” impulse

The target…
…is to explore Summer’s desire to organize and have order/comfortable routine in her life in opposition with her rebel impulse that always tempts/forces/persuades/invites her to trespass / blur / even destroy some of the self imposed boundaries. We maintain that there is a continuously negotiated tension between the need to be efficient that is translated in “life compartments” and the need to be true to one’s self that is translated in a rebel impulse which is supposed to keep us healthy by questioning our habituated choices.

Intro:
While ML is sleeping in the audience, Summer marks the boundaries of her daily roles: the space for her motherhood, the space for her career, the space for her social life, the space for her art, the space for her love life… This is the story of her struggle to keep in line with her roles while being confronted by her rebel impulse. All lights are on.

1.THE MOTHER SCENE:

Light spot on the central space
Soundtrack: Tick-tock /  Alarm / Beatles’ song “Lady Madonna”
Props: Kitchen table, a cube, a cutting board, a knife, coffee cup, bread, lunch bag/box, the kid’s back pack, toothbrush, watches (a lot of them), jewelry, flask
Costumes: Summer – robe, slippers; ML – (permanent costume): light pants, a t-shirt
The nature of relationship between the two characters: The rebel impulse is angry for having to wake up. She is also angry to see Summer tracing the physical borders of her quotidian roles. Summer is annoyed by the impulse’s intervention in her arrangements.
Actions, simultaneously:

SUMMER: making sandwiches, cleaning, getting the kid out of bed. (she is in the central space), walking in and out of the kitchen
Brushing teeth, drinking coffee, looking at the time (constantly) and putting watches on,  yelling to her kid:
Dialogue/Monologue:
“Are you dressed?”
“Are your teeth brushed?”
“Homework in your back-pack?”
“Remember, Robyn’s picking you up from school today and she’s going to hang-out w/ you tonight.  I will kiss you goodnight when get home.”
ML: Starts in the audience, yawning, stretching, and resisting waking up. She is angry. Pushing the walls, rolling-over the compartments. She uses all spaces indifferently. She destroys the lines that Summer built.
Offers some liquor for Summer’s coffee  (Summer considers and refuses)
Mocking and imitating Summer; messing up with the kitchen table, glancing inviting toward the guitar

Transition: tick-tock;  school bell; crowd voices; preshow lights are on

2. THE CAREER SCENE:
Light on both the central and lateral space
Props: 3 cubes making a desk, a chair, books; laptop; toys in a toy box (the toy box is placed in the audience), cell phone, brief case or bag, stack of papers, a laptop
Costumes: Summer – Suit/professional attire.  Heels.  Hair-up or back. Glasses.
The nature of relationship between the two characters: ML tries to be playful while Summer wants to concentrate on her work. Summer is annoyed and does not get ML’s intrusions. ML is also annoyed because Summer does not pick up any of her cues. The anger is building up more and more powerful for each of them.

Action, simultaneously:

SUMMER: is in the office sorting papers, using the laptop, answering phone calls (she is in the far centre of the stage); anger.  Types on laptop and reads out loud what she is typing (it will be something directly from a paper she is writing about compartmentalization).  She will struggle with the writing, struggle to concentrate.  Goes back to some of her sources and reads (which will be directly related to theoretical grounding for this performance).
Struggling with her posture, with her body parts altogether.
Receives the phone call from ML and says:
“Could you please call me in the third scene? I’m working now. The third scene is my social life scene so I’ll have time for you then”.

ML: Using the central space (home), then moving back and forth between home and the office space: she goes to Summer first like a puppy, asking for attention; brings the guitar; then she runs back and forth the office and the toy box,  bringing and tempting Summer with one toy at a time;
Moves neat stacks of papers into disarray;   Types/deletes what Summer has written; writes while Summer is reading something like: fuck the system or shows her texts that seem counter to what she thinks she is supposed to be writing about; encourages her to throw some stuff away/disregard. / she writes for Summer to read out loud: “write freely, write or die, write to be free”
Calls Summer with a playful grim on her face, like she is convinced this is a sure way to disrupt Summer and orient her to something else than work.
Transition: Tick-tock / Watch beeping / light is lowered, audio clip with traffic noise

3. THE SOCIAL LIFE SCENE
Strobe light
Soundtrack: Techno music; disco lights
Props: Empty space. Glow sticks, audience members; other people dancing. At least two other people are on the stage: either brought by ML from the audience or two of our fellows. They don’t do anything but dancing and leave the scene once ML managed to pull Summer toward her guitar.
Costumes: Summer – More revealing/flashy blouse, hair is down, glasses are gone.
The nature of relationship between the two characters:  Provocation, attraction-rejection, disappointment.
Action, simultaneously:

SUMMER: dancing in a club in a very conservative manner. ML tends all the time to provoke her, to make her enjoy dancing. When ML is touching her, Summer reaches an anger peak. Summer does loosen up but in a way that exceeds the intention of ML.  She brings Summer her guitar as a way to get her back to listening to her impulse.
ML: Is pushing Summer to enjoy, is trying to make her shake her pelvis… ML  manages to make Summer loosen up but only for a few seconds at a time. ML is disappointed and seems to give up on Summer at some point… ML is using the guitar to lure Summer to cross the boundaries of the club. And she does, after she acknowledges for a second or two that she is stepping over a line. She brings Summer her guitar as a way to get her back to listening to her impulse.

Transition: sound of techno music fades and then we have perfect silence until she starts composing / singing her song

4. THE ARTIST SCENE
Light spot on the central space
Props: One chair, a guitar support holding the guitar
Costumes: Summer – Pants, T-shirt
The nature of relationship between the two characters:  At this point ML is not trying to divert Summer, but to join her in the creative wave. Summer is really fed up with the impulse because the impulse is still interfering with her. ML’s objection is that Summer’s composing is still guided by stereotypes. Struggle.
Action, simultaneously:

SUMMER: is playing guitar trying to compose a song. She is annoyed by ML’s competition. Angry, Summer is going to try to cover ML’s mouth, but ML doesn’t give up. Summer is pushing ML off the stage. Summer is going back to her singing but she hears the tick-tock.
ML: is also singing frenetically some non-sense music because the impulse is really happy to see Summer being creative. The impulse is also fed up with Summer because she doesn’t want to give in. When the struggle begins and Summer is covering her mouth, ML  is going to yell “Leave me alone! I can’t take it anymore! You should leave for good! Go back where you came from!!!!”.
When pushed off the stage ML is going behind the seats and will be coming around for the Lover scene.

Transition: tick tock and  the grand father clock

5. THE LOVER SCENE
Light spot on the central space
Soundtrack: Jungle drum; a ding dong
Props: One cube to be a table, two wine glasses, a wine bottle, a blanket
Costumes: Summer – A sexy robe
The nature of relationship between the two characters:  ML is eager to see Summer having sex, hoping that the sexual energy will set her free… But Summer fails exactly what she regards as the most important moment/role.
Action, simultaneously:

SUMMER: Summer is getting ready to welcome her lover so she cleans up; she is putting some make-up on. But she fells asleep and does not hear the door bell.

ML: gives her advices about how she should go into her “wild mode”. When Summer makes a pony tale, ML stops her.
Trying to wake up Summer yelling that she needs to have sex… She does not succeed so she tenderly covers Summer with a blanket.

Transition (soundtrack): tick tock/ shot down sequence; Summer muffles and restrains ML with a rope

6. THE MOTHER SCENE AGAIN
Light spot on the central space
Soundtrack: Tick tock same as in the first scene / Pink Floyd’s alarm intro
Props:  Same as in the first scene
Costumes: Same as in the first scene
The nature of relationship between the two characters:  The two start all over again with renewed energy.
Action, simultaneously:

SUMMER: Same as the first scene, with some alterations of movement and/or mimic…

ML: escapes from the restraint and vigorously starts all over again….

END