1. NANYANG TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY
I HAVE NOWHERE,
EVERYWHERE TO GO
Written by Geraldine Tan, Copyright 2011. (Supervisor: Dr Daniel Jernigan)
2. Tan 1
I HAVE NOWHERE, EVERYWHERE TO GO
Written by Geraldine Tan
Number of pages: 40
Last edited on: 12 November 2011
3. Tan 2
Characters
Joyce, a single mother in her late 20‘s with a son – looks haggard, rushed, worried look with
her hair loosely tied with loose strands of hair hanging out
Marlene, a married, successful career woman in her 30‘s – impeccably dressed in a suit, hair
up in a chignon/high ponytail
Bree Warren, or Mrs Warren, a homeless woman in her 70‘s – eclectically dressed in hand-
me-downs, slouches slightly
Settings
Outside Mrs Warren‘s rented place
Joyce‘s workplace
Marlene‘s office
Platform at the train station.
- Crowded, but only the characters are seen. Crowd to be represented by criss-
crossing strips of black cloth, giving a fragmented, claustrophobic feeling.
- Rumbling sounds of trains in the background to accompany PA announcements.
No reference to any particular period.
4. Tan 3
The stage is dark as a screen displays this: HERE COMES BREE WARREN, OR MRS
WARREN IF YOU LIKE (ALTHOUGH SHE HAS NEVER BEEN MARRIED), A WOMAN IN
NEED.
Stage in total darkness. Mrs Warren’s clothes and what little possessions she has are strewn
across the stage.
Mrs Warren: (Enters stage and scrambles/stumbles across it. Cries out.) Please!
Only one more day! (Pause. Light comes on. Struggles to collect her
belongings.) Please… Yes, yes, I know, but please, just one more day?
The economy is so bad, they have been firing the older workers, please
understand! Mr Young, one more day please! (Desperate) No, please!
(A door slams offstage) You know I have nowhere to go! Mr Young,
one more day, please!
(Turns to spectators, slowly gathers belongings)
So, as you see, my landlord throws everything out, everything, me too.
Maybe I do not know as many words as he, but that does not make me
stupid. He says things like, what is that, ―economic depression‖ and
―widespread recession‖, so he cannot have ―freeloaders sponging off
him‖. I understand. Everyone is affected by bad times. But, cannot he
have a bit of heart? People… Is it because I am old?
Now, where can I go? No one wants to hire an old woman like me, no
one wants to… (Trails off, sad. Gathers rest of her belongings into a
bulky bag as she mutters to herself.) Always about money… No job…
No money… No place to stay… Always about money…
5. Tan 4
Lights dim as Mrs Warren drags bulky, heavy-looking bag across the stage. Pauses and
pants every few steps as though baggage is too heavy for her to move alone. Abruptly stops,
turns to face spectators.
Mrs Warren: What will you do to survive? What will you, as a woman, do? Would
you like to know what my circumstances were? But I am getting ahead
of myself… (Turns away, muttering with her head down low.) Another
day maybe, another day…
Lights fade as Mrs Warren exits.
There are a small, narrow desk and a chair in the centre of the stage. Stage in total darkness.
A screen displays this: JOYCE, A WOMAN IN DESPERATION. A phone rings amidst the
clattering sound of files falling to the ground. Lights come on.
Joyce: (As lights come on, looks frustratedly at files on the ground) Fuck!
(Breathless) Hello? (Pause. Bends to pick scattered files up off the
ground.) Yes, this is Liam‘s mother speaking. (Wary, fatigued tone
now.) It‘s not possible that he wasn‘t in school in the morning. (Abrupt
pause) I saw him walk right through the school gates this morning, Mrs
Stalmann. (Coldly) What do you mean, am I sure? Of course I‘m sure.
He‘s my son, for goodness sake! (Pause) So you‘re saying that I may
have neglected my son, that‘s why he‘s rebellious? (Pause. Indignantly)
Look, Mrs Stalmann, just because Liam‘s only got me doesn‘t mean he
isn‘t getting enough care and attention! (Barely controlling fury, pauses.
Takes a deep breath, fiddles with the files she is now carrying) Yes,
that‘s fine. I‘ll come down to the school as soon as I can. (Walks to
desk, sets files on desk) May I speak to Liam for a bit please.
6. Tan 5
Joyce: Where have you been? (Pauses) I‘m asking you a question, Liam.
Where did you go? Now don‘t you ―whatever‖ me! You know very
well how many times I‘ve been asked to your school this month alone.
I thought we talked about this behaviour of yours – Liam? Liam!
(Puts phone on desk and stands up. Turns to spectators) This happens
almost every other week. And every other week I have to make my
skin a little thicker than it already has to be, to tell my boss that I need
to go to my son‘s school. Again. I only just got this job a few months
ago. I used to work four jobs, administrative assistant, cleaner…
Finally a job that manages to cover the crazy rent I have to pay every
month, because I can‘t get a place! I keep applying for subsidised
housing, but every time I do that I‘m always rejected because I‘m not
married. It‘s always, (Puts on telephone operator voice) ―I‘m sorry
Ma‘am, these are the guidelines. Yes Ma‘am, even if you have children,
but are unmarried, we regret to inform you that you‘re not eligible to
apply. Yes Ma‘am, we apologise for your inconvenience, but we‘re
unable to do anything.‖ So, finally, a job that leaves at least a little
money every month after all the endless bills, bills, bills! But I can see
my boss‘ patience wearing thin. Don‘t get me wrong. My boss is quite
nice. But I can tell… Just the other day when Liam got into a fight at
school and I had to leave work early again. My boss reacted with,
(Joyce steps to another side, squares her shoulders, adopts a gruff
voice) ―Again, Joyce? That‘s the third time this month (Raises
eyebrows)‖. (Steps back to her original position)
7. Tan 6
Joyce: Uhm, Boss? Here are the documents you wanted. And I‘ve made the
lunch appointment with the marketing department of Rise. Also, the
minutes of the last meeting are done, in this folder. (Puts stack of files
and documents on desk.)
(Embarrassed) Thanks, Boss. Just doing my job… Uh, Boss? Can I
take the rest of the day off? (Pause) Sorry Boss, I know… But, I need
to – yes, my son – no Boss, no one else I can call – I‘m sorry –
(To spectators) So, my Boss just sighed and asked if I needed to leave
right away. Well, what could I say? What could I say besides ―Sorry
Boss, my son‘s in some trouble again‖? My son, or the job that keeps
him fed, clothed, educated and housed? (Looks worried) I can‘t afford
to lose this job. I haven‘t got many choices, not like others who are
graduates… Bills to pay, son to take care of… But, I guess it‘s all right?
It‘s only a couple of hours till the end of work, right? (Mutters, shakes
head, packs bag, lights off)
Stage is lit but empty except for a large, beautifully carved wooden table with a matching
chair, flanked by screens on either side (Marlene’s office). A screen shows this: HERE
MARLENE REIGNS, AN EXTREMELY CAPABLE WOMAN. Marlene’s voice is heard
offstage.
Marlene: (Offstage) Morning – Definitely, pass it to me later before the meeting
–(Strides confidently across the stage to her “office”. Places coffee
mug down on desk. Walks out of office. Briskly barks out instructions.)
8. Tan 7
Marlene: Ellen, have you gotten the storyboard ready? Great. Double check. Jeff,
you? Typed out and printed the finalized proposal? Get it done ASAP.
Ray, Anna, Tim, follow me.
(Turns to spectators. Speaks in confident tone, gesturing as she speaks)
Important meeting later, with what could possibly be our biggest client
yet. (Smiles widely) This will definitely cement my place in this
company, making me the only woman, no, no (Laughs), the only
person here who has achieved this much in the six years I‘ve been here.
No one, honestly, can now ever tell me that I‘ll never match the success
of men, because I‘m a woman and I haven‘t (Sarcastically) got the
brains of men. Well, (Casts sidelong satisfactory glance) this project,
when I seal the deal, might just shut them all up once and for all.
Maybe. (Sarcastically) ―She‘s just a woman‖, ―Give her a smaller part,
that‘s more than enough for her‖, ―Who does she think she is, thinking
she‘s as smart as a man‖. And oh, here‘s my favourite one, overheard it
my first few weeks here. ―What does she know? She‘s just another
pretty face, she hasn‘t got the brains!‖ That was by a group of men who
wrote me off as easily as their arrogance and ignorance blinded them to
the fact that just because they were men did not make them smarter or
more capable than me. (Pause) We‘ll see! (Smiles)
This project, well, (Grins) it just might mean another promotion.
(Walks to office, gathers documents and briefcase. Phone rings,
Marlene answers, putting documents and briefcase back down again)
9. Tan 8
Marlene: (Distractedly) Hey Ben, what‘s up? Mmhmm… Yeah… Okay… Why
are you at home so early? Oh yeah… Mmhmmm… Listen, I can‘t talk
for long, there‘s a meet—Yes, of course I‘m listening, Ben, it‘s just
that there‘s a really important – Yes, I am listening, you said there‘s…
something on tonight, an event, right? (Winces) I‘m sorry, I‘m just
distracted, there‘s a really important meeting coming up and I‘ve got to
prepare, remember the project I told you about? (Pause) Okay, okay…
I‘m sorry. You were saying? (Pause. Silently mouths “Shit”) It
completely slipped my mind – come on, Ben, how can you say that? Of
course our wedding anniversary‘s important to me. (Defensively) You
forgot once too! (Pause) It‘s just that I don‘t think the meeting will end
in time for me to come home for dinner – No, Ben, of course not, what
makes you think work‘s more important than you – (Looks at her
watch) I‘ll come home as soon as the meeting ends, I promise, and I‘ll
make it up to –
(Sighs and picks up her documents and briefcase)
I – I just don‘t know what to do when it comes to Ben. He – I never
feel like I‘m enough, good enough for him. Damn this, at least there‘s
something else I‘m brilliant at. (Starts to walk away, but stops)
I guess there are fellas who like to be seen with a high-flying lady.
Shows they‘ve got something really good in their pants. But they can‘t
take the day to day. They‘re waiting – he‘s waiting – for me to turn into
the little woman. (Shrugs) Or maybe I‘m just horrible of course. (Exits)
10. Tan 9
Train sounds. Sounds of crowded station. Stage is lit. Mrs Warren drags baggage across
stage to the centre.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 9 arriving at the Present.
Mrs Warren: (Shuffles, shifts weight from foot to foot, ruffles through an old purse,
examines several coins, squints, checks purse vigorously, finds herself
a dollar short for a train ticket) Excuse me, Miss, have you a dollar?
No, no, no – (Desperate protest) I am not a beggar – Miss – (Turns to
another direction) Sorry, Sir? Do you have one dollar? – Excuse me?
Marlene enters, on the phone, looking worried.
Marlene: (Takes phone away from ear, looks at it. To herself) Damn it, why isn‘t
he answering – another one of his – I hope he‘s still at home – (Frowns)
Maybe he‘s still pissed off with –
(Bumps into Mrs Warren. Mrs Warren stumbles, loses balance and
falls as Marlene’s files and documents crash to the ground and Mrs
Warren’s possessions are scattered)
I‘m terribly sorry – didn‘t quite see you – are you – here – let me help
you –
Mrs Warren: It is okay, I am okay (Waves Marlene away) –
Joyce enters, on the phone, looking visibly upset.
11. Tan 10
Joyce: (To phone) What do you mean you don‘t want me to go to your school!
Liam, I don‘t think you‘ve got a choice here – you lose that tone, you
hear me? – Liam? Liam! (Liam hangs up) That –
Mrs Warren: (Still waving away Marlene’s efforts to help her get up) – I am fine, do
not –
Marlene: (Picks hers and Mrs Warren’s possessions up) Then at least let me
help you with your things –
Joyce accidentally steps on one of Mrs Warren’s scattered possessions.
Joyce: Dammit. (Distractedly to Mrs Warren, immediately starts helping Mrs
Warren gather her possessions) I‘m so sorry, I was on the phone with
Liam – my son – he, I don‘t know when he became like this – maybe
when they had that thing at school, some Father and Child thing. (Sighs)
What am I even talking about… I must be rambling again. (Hands Mrs
Warren some of her possessions) There you –
Mrs Warren: Thank you. (Embarrassedly now) Do you have one –
Marlene: (Puts Mrs Warren’s possessions neatly beside her) Here. Is there
anything miss—/No, it‘s all right.
Joyce: – go/Oh sorry, go ahead.
Marlene: I have to go. (To Mrs Warren) And Ma‘am, I hope you‘re not hurt. I‘m
sorry I bumped into you. I‘d better go now –
Mrs Warren: – do you have one – (Marlene has already turned away. Mrs Warren
turns to Joyce) Excuse me, Miss, do you –
12. Tan 11
Joyce’s phone rings. She answers, turning away from Mrs Warren.
Joyce: – Hello?
Mrs Warren: – Just one – for the train –
Marlene: (To herself while fiddling with her phone) Why is Ben still not
answering his phone –
Joyce: – What! He, what! A fight! No, no, that‘s not possible, my son may be
rebellious but, a fight! Impossible – Okay, not impossible, but Mrs
Stalmann, last week wasn‘t really – Look, I‘m trying to get there as
fast as I can, so don‘t you suggest to me that I don‘t care about my son.
Mrs Stalmann! –
Marlene: – I should just head home before Ben does, perhaps then we could –
Mrs Warren: – Just one – excuse me (No one seems to hear her, all preoccupied)
Marlene: – talk, work things out. Yes, we could do that, we could.
Joyce: – I will be there. As soon as I can. (Hangs up)
Marlene: (Straightens her suit, makes a call) Hello –
Joyce: (Mutters to spectators) As if I haven‘t been doing my duty as a mother
– makes it sound as if Liam hasn‘t got his own –
Mrs Warren: (Desperately) I only need one –
Joyce: – rebellious –
Marlene: – cancel all my evening conferences for tonight –
13. Tan 12
Joyce: – obstinate mind!
Marlene: – yes, that‘s right, push it all till tomorrow, I‘ve some things to settle.
Thanks. All right –
The rumbling of trains sound faintly in the background.
Joyce: (Startled) The train –
Train sounds get louder.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 8 leaving for Everywhere.
Mrs Warren: (Very desperately) Excuse me, please, I only need one –
Marlene: (To phone) – Got to go. (Exits, dodging invisible commuters)
Joyce: – (Sighs and mutters) Here I go. Again. To my son. Again. In trouble.
Again. (Exits, dodging invisible commuters)
Mrs Warren: (To the backs of the exiting women) I only need one dollar – the train!
When Joyce and Marlene exit, Mrs Warren slumps to the ground tiredly, clutching her
possessions tightly. Lights out, stage in darkness.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 7 arriving from Despair.
The stage is dark. Mrs Warren is sitting at the centre of the stage, still clutching her
possessions tightly.
Mrs Warren: (Spotlight on) I could have gone, anywhere… Just one dollar –
Marlene: (Spotlight on. Enters, briskly. Bitterly) I have nowhere I want to go –
not after that (Spats) unfaithful bastard –
14. Tan 13
Joyce: (Spotlight on. Enters slowly.) I need to be everywhere, all at once,
doing everything on my own –
Marlene: – where do I go now? I‘d rather be anywhere but
Mrs Warren: – but now, stuck here
Joyce: – everyone makes mistakes, and yet everyone judges. They don‘t even
know me
Marlene: – they don‘t know what it‘s like to be in my position, to be in a
woman‘s shoes
Mrs Warren: – now, I have nothing, absolutely nothing, after all that I have gone
through
Marlene: – nothing that he can really understand. (Pause) Why must I choose?
Ben accuses me of sacrificing our marriage for a career that, according
to him, a woman who is married doesn‘t need! How about all those
nights he left me having dinner alone just because he had things to
clear up in the office, without any calls or texts to let me know he‘d be
late. So why must I be the one to choose, just because I‘m his wife?
Joyce: – This was not the path I had planned on, but I made my mistakes. This
was not what I wanted for my child. If I could have had my way, Liam
would have a father. But there‘s no use in what if‘s. I‘m doing the best
I can. If Liam only understands that I did not choose
Mrs Warren: – to have nowhere to go, no place to stay, no respectable job, no job at
all now
15. Tan 14
Joyce: – this life for him. Why does my son blame me for things I can‘t
change or control
Marlene: – to have to prove my worth, to constantly prove that I am just as
capable as any man, to prove that I am just as rational and efficient.
But why should I need to prove myself? I am what I am! (Pause) And
yet still, at the end of the day, there is no
Mrs Warren: – no family, no children, no certainty
Joyce: – no offers of help, no compassion or understanding, only prejudice,
having to put up with that stigma, with people like Mrs Stalmann. I
didn‘t choose for the father of my son to leave! I was young and stupid,
yes I was, but which 14 year old couldn‘t have, wouldn‘t have believed
all those sweet whispers of ―I love you, so pretty please…?‖ I should
have known better, yes, but
Marlene: – no one understands this struggle, and men continue to dictate the
rules of the game we are all forced to play, if we hope to achieve
anything, no, be anyone outside of the roles of wife
Joyce: – mother
Mrs Warren: – daughter
Silence.
Joyce: (Notices Mrs Warren and Marlene. Surprised) Have I – I‘ve seen the
both of you somewhere…
16. Tan 15
Marlene: Oh yes, yes… We had both – I think – bumped into (Gestures towards
Mrs Warren) Uh… Sorry. I must have missed your name. How should
I address you? What‘s your last name?
Mrs Warren: (Slightly taken aback at being addressed in such a formal manner) I –
uh – Warren, Bree War—
Joyce: (Interrupts cheerfully) Oh! Mrs Warren!
Mrs Warren: – no, no –
Marlene: I hope you weren‘t hurt when I bumped into you earlier, Mrs Warren?
Mrs Warren: No, no, not at all, but I‘m not Mrs –
Joyce: (Not hearing Mrs Warren’s protest) Mrs Warren, do you need help
moving your things?
Mrs Warren: (Hesitatingly) Uhm, I, it is okay, really.
Joyce: You sure? (Smiles) Anyway, Mrs Warren, I‘m Joyce. (Turns to
Marlene) And you are?
Marlene: (Extends hand to Joyce, shakes Joyce’s hand confidently) My name‘s
Marlene. (Hands out her name card to the other two women)
Joyce: It‘s nice to meet the both of you. Wow, Marlene, Creative director.
That‘s quite impressive! (Aside) at least there‘s some sort of escape
here, no possible pain in this conversation.
Mrs Warren: (To Joyce) Did you say something?
Joyce: Oh no, no, I was just mumbling about something unimportant –
17. Tan 16
Marlene: Where are the both of you headed? (No one answers) Okay… (Eyes
Mrs Warren’s array of possessions with confusion) Mrs Warren, are
you sure you don‘t need any help with all your bags? Mrs Warren,
your possessions are… (Surveys scene of messy possessions)
Mrs Warren: I – why, this is – not –
Joyce: (Kindly) Yes, Mrs Warren, we could help you, you know. That‘s an
awful lot of things to carry on your own. Where‘re you going?
Mrs Warren: (Haltingly) Well, I am not really – and – not Mrs –
Marlene: Are you lost, Mrs Warren?
Mrs Warren: (Gives up) No, no. Not lost, dear.
Joyce: Where are you going then? Let me help you! (Moves towards Mrs
Warren’s bags)
Mrs Warren: (Jumps up, alarmed) It is okay Joyce! (Joyce pauses. Marlene and
Joyce stare in slight alarm at Mrs Warren’s sudden movement) I – I do
not have anywhere – I am not going anywhere. (Slumps back to the
ground)
Joyce and Marlene sit. Lights out. All exit.
Train sounds.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 6 leaving for the Past, stop A.
Lights on. A visibly much younger Mrs Warren enters, in a dirty smock and an old, dirty
looking pink cardigan.
18. Tan 17
Mrs Warren: Hullo Mama, where is Papa? Where is Kitty? And Lydia and Mary?
Not home? (Excitedly) By the bye Mama, I just finish work for Missis
Long. Yes Mama, the rich Missis! (Pause) Why do you look so sad,
Mama? (Cheers up again) Look Mama! Missis Long paid me two
times more today! (Apprehensively) Maybe I can go to school now?
Like Robert and Peter? Is it enough for school? (Sits down) Mama?
Mama? ‗S there something wrong?
Turns to spectators, takes off pink cardigan.
My Mama did not speak to me. She kept her head down, crying. I did
not know what was wrong. But I did not think too much of it. You see,
she was crying a lot, since Papa lost his job at the factory. But, you see,
that year, many people were asked to leave the factory too. I think
there was, what is it, a recession then, too? First, Mama says that it will
be all right, that we can manage. But then, strange men came knocking
down our door almost every day, shouting for Papa. And Papa would
hide, and Mama would cry and scream at the men to leave. But the
strange men would just shout at Mama and throw furniture around.
And that was when Mama started crying every day.
(Puts pink cardigan back on)
Papa? (Runs to other end of the stage) Papa? Mama will not stop
cryin‘… What is wrong? Is Mama sick? Why are you not talkin‘ too,
Papa? (Steps back a few steps) Oh… (Stammers) Pa – Papa, they are
the st – strange men who were looking for you.
19. Tan 18
Mrs Warren: (Turns back to spectators, takes off pink cardigan)
Papa was standing so still, he did not even look at me. And Mama…
Mama just cried louder and louder. And then (calmly) the strange men
Papa came home with, the same men who came around looking for
Papa and made Mama cry – they grabbed me and took me away.
(Puts pink cardigan on, falls backwards violently, struggles) Let me go!
(Frantic) Mama, Mama!
(Takes pink cardigan off. Slowly gets up)
Mama did not look at me, and Papa stood by the side. I did not know
where my younger sisters and brothers were, and I wished that the
strange men who grabbed me did not take my siblings. I kicked, I
screamed – I screamed for Mama and Papa to help me but the men just
took me away.
They took me and brought me to more men, other men. Men, rich men.
With fat gold rings that hurt and left bruises where they grabbed. I was
scared, and cried often. Some were kind to me, but most others were
cruel. When I cried, they would tell me that they paid good money for
a pretty girl like me, that I should shut my mouth. When I refused to go
near them, they would hit me.
I was someone‘s daughter, someone‘s sister. Would they have
accepted all of that if it were their daughter, their sister?
20. Tan 19
Lights out. Marlene, Joyce and Mrs Warren all enter. The three women are lit up by three
different spotlights. The three women sit very still, facing the spectators.
Mrs Warren: What do you do when you are forced to become nothing more than a
plaything for men? What do you do when
Marlene: Your marriage falls apart, and
Mrs Warren: What do you do when your family would be willing to sell you so you
can sell your body and
Joyce: Your son blames you for everything even when you‘ve given up
everything for him
Pause.
Mrs Warren: In my time, working girls were paid very little, definitely not enough
for food and clothes. Girls who worked did not earn respectable wages.
What is any respectable girl brought up to do but to catch some rich
man‘s fancy and get the benefit of his money by marrying him? But
what do you do when you are sold into prostitution, the only profession
that would, in my time, earn more than enough? What would you do?
Joyce: And what do you do when the son you‘ve sacrificed your life for to
bring up single-handedly takes more, wants more than you can give?
Marlene: What do you do when you find your husband with another woman in
your bed?
Mrs Warren: What do you do
Joyce: What can you do
21. Tan 20
Marlene: What would you do?
Pause. Awkward silence.
Marlene: (To Mrs Warren, slightly awkward and uncomfortable) I‘m sorry to
hear that, Mrs Warren. (Pause) Are you all right?
Mrs Warren: (Weak smile) After so many years, I have to be all right, do I not?
Marlene makes a move as though to reach out to Mrs Warren, but retreats.
Joyce: I can‘t imagine how it must have been for you, Mrs Warren. (Pause)
Did you ever hear from your family after that?
Mrs Warren: No, I did not. You see… I was sent to another city, far away from the
people I grew up with, far away from my family. I never saw my
Mama, Papa, sisters and brothers again.
I was alone, very hungry, with no one but the strange men who took me.
Then another man took me from them. He bought me and put me in a
brothel. I was passed around very much like a package.
Marlene: (Uncontrollably agitated) But – why – oh Mrs Warren! Why didn‘t you
run away, fight back – do something else rather than let those people
ruin you! You are not a piece of property to be traded, sold, bought,
used, just as black persons are not meant to be slaves – you are not, we
are not objects meant for quiet submission! Much less for carnal
entertainment! I can‘t –
Mrs Warren: (Interrupts) Marlene, you forget the time when women did not have
rights. A good marriage was the best hope any girl had. And my Mama,
22. Tan 21
she always said that I could not have been so beautiful for nothing.
Well, yes, I was beautiful then –
Joyce: (Interrupts) You still are beautiful now, Mrs Warren.
Mrs Warren: Maybe I was too beautiful? Mama had grand ideas of me getting a
good, rich man. I once found a copy of Pride and Prejudice, someone
must have lost it. But there was no one around who was looking for it.
So I took it, and brought it home. But Mama always laughed at me
wanting to read and write. So I kept the book hidden, Mama would
have thrown it away! I wanted to be like Elizabeth, so smart! But to
Mama, marriage was the only desirable profession I should have in my
head. Mama found the book, and gave me a real good beating, and
threw the book out. Education was a privilege only my younger
brothers enjoyed.
Marlene: Surely you didn‘t agree with your mother! Education for women, taken
so lightly! That shouldn‘t be the case! Women, in fact, no one could
ever expect to get anywhere without education! And a good marriage
as the only thing a respectable woman could hope for? (Paces angrily)
Mrs Warren, I wish you had insisted on going to school, or at least to
be taught to read and write –
Mrs Warren: – I did learn to read and write. (Proudly) I taught myself. But –
Marlene: – Why should a woman be stopped from learning? What gives men the
irrefutable right to education, what gives only men the respectability of
education?
23. Tan 22
Marlene: (Gesticulates indignantly) Let women be acknowledged as the
intellectual equals of men! On what grounds should we be denied
education or a successful career? Why should education or a successful
career be less important to us, just because of our sex! Why should
marriage be our only achievement? (Sits down, panting slightly) Don‘t
you agree, Mrs Warren? Joyce?
Joyce: Marlene, I‘m sure there were other reasons why Mrs Warren‘s mom
wanted a good marriage for her own daughter…
Besides, marriage isn‘t necessarily a bad thing. (Pause) I wish I was.
Then maybe it wouldn‘t be so hard to get subsidised housing, childcare
leave –
Mrs Warren: Oh, Joyce –
Joyce: – to be forced to rent a ridiculously expensive apartment because I‘m
not married. (Drily) And oh, that means my family, my son and I, isn‘t
really a family. Who comes up with policies like that?
Marlene: But marriage isn‘t a solution to that. Believe me, marriage isn‘t all that
great. And I should know. (Rolls her eyes)
Mrs Warren: (Quickly) Marlene, are you not too young to be – what is that word –
(Pauses just a moment to think) cynical? Yes, cynical about marriage?
Marriage can be beautiful.
Marlene: Or ugly –
24. Tan 23
Joyce: But is it fair to deny single-parent families, like mine, the benefits of
subsidized public housing, tax relief, extra leave – oh the list goes on!
I‘m already raising my child alone! Just because I‘m not married?
What‘s the logic in that? I take care of my son, feed him, clothe him
and well if that –
Marlene’s phone rings, interrupting Joyce.
Marlene: – Sorry, Joyce –
Marlene stands up, walks to the front of the stage, Marlene answers the phone. Spotlights on
Joyce and Mrs Warren dim.
Marlene: (To phone, coldly) Yes, Ben? What is it that you want? (Pause) Go
home? You want me to go home, go home to you? Home to you and
the woman you were in bed with? Are you fucking with me? (Pause)
No! You listen. You were the one who yelled at me over the phone,
telling me I‘m a terrible wife, when I told you I couldn‘t come home
early on our wedding anniversary. And yet you – What? Do you even
hear what you‘re saying? It‘s my fault now? It‘s my fault that you
betrayed my trust? It‘s all my fault? How dare you! (Pause) I made an
effort to end the meeting as early as possible and rush home to make it
up to you, to make things all right. And you? You switched off your
phone after hanging up on me! And headed straight to bed with your
secretary eh? (Pause) Yes, that‘s right Ben, carry on with your lame
excuses – You thought I didn‘t give a damn about you or us, so you
thought I would never be home early? Well, newsflash – you‘re just
incapable of accepting the fact that I am just as successful as you are –
25. Tan 24
Marlene: And how many nights have you called home to tell me you can‘t make
it for dinner, again? How many, you tell me, Ben! – No I‘ll tell you.
You feel threatened. You want to keep me as the little woman, your
dutiful wife who waits for you? – Oh, so that‘s why I found you in our
bed, fucking your secretary!
Marlene hangs up, throws the phone violently across the stage. Mrs Warren and Joyce stand
up in shock. Marlene sinks to her knees and sob. Train sounds come on.
Lights out. Train sounds fade. All exit.
Train sounds. Stage in darkness. Marlene is at the centre of the stage with her hair down and
spectacles on. There is a small table and chair, with an old typewriter/bulky computer and
some files and documents on the table.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 5 leaving for the Past, stop B.
Spotlight on Marlene comes on.
Marlene: (To spectators, taking off her spectacles) I started work in this
prestigious advertising firm the moment I graduated. Of course, I
started at entry level the assistant to the assistant of the Creative
Director. I loved my job and the financial independence it gave me,
and I still do love it all. I love my job so much that it‘s more of a
passion than a job. And of course, I loved, and do love, the fact that I
was showing my father and brother that I could hold my own in the
working world.
26. Tan 25
Marlene: So there I was, working twelve-hour days. But I could, and can,
depend on myself to feed, clothe and house myself, instead of waiting
for a man to take care of me.
But, (Carefully) at work, to my colleagues, I was merely a woman. A
woman under the tyrannical arrogance of and belittlement by most of
the men. (Scathingly) A woman, apparently, can never match the
rationality and intelligence of a man. And a woman who showed them
that she could be as good as them – well, they felt threatened.
And I thought Ben was different.
Marlene sits at table, puts spectacles back on, gets files and documents in order, occasionally
typing something. She reads through a document, frowns and proceeds to scribble something
down and type something.
Marlene: (Looks up suddenly) Oh! Howard, there you are. (Gets up) Here are the
documents needed for the meeting with Kellen‘s later. And here,
(Points to another file on the table) are the concepts for their latest
advertisement. And… (Apprehensively, holds up piece of paper)
Howard, like you told me to, I went through all the documents again. I
found a few errors, and I‘ve made some corrections. Yup, that‘s no
problem, I‘ve got it all covered. But there‘s one more thing, Howard. I
found some inconsistencies with the chronology and the concepts you
drew up in the proposal. I edited the chronology, the mistakes were
only very minor, take a look. As for the concepts for the Kellen‘s
meeting… Kellen‘s had explicitly stated in the last meeting what they
want and what they don‘t want in their new campaign. But what they
27. Tan 26
Marlene: want isn‘t here… So I came up with some ideas, take a look – No, no,
just take a quick look.
(Sits down in chair, turns to spectators, takes spectacles off) Well, how
do you think Howard took it? Even back when I was a fresh graduate,
there were talks of greater gender equality in the workplace. So, no, he
didn‘t put me down right on the spot. He could have, though. Instead,
he chose to patronize me, telling that he‘s pretty sure I had gotten it all
wrong, that what he had come up with were really what Kellen‘s
wanted. He laughed my concerns off, telling me that it‘s
understandable for me to over-react. And then he walked away,
handing back my ideas back to me, asking me to use that paper as
scrap paper. And then he laughed.
I was sure he was making a huge mistake that would jeopardise the
deal with Kellen‘s. Who would hire an advertising firm who doesn‘t
know what their client wants? I rushed out after Howard, only to hear
him telling the other colleagues that women are terrible at business,
unable to be rational and levelheaded. (Mockingly mimics Howard, low
gruff voice) ―That Marlene girl, over-reacting when I‘ve got it all under
control! (Laughs) Women, they should just stick to the kitchen and
leave the big stuff to the men eh!‖
And of course, Howard was fired for screwing up the Kellen‘s deal.
What can I say? (Shrugs) The deal was vital to the company‘s
expansion, and he screwed it up because he thought he was smarter
than me.
28. Tan 27
Marlene: (Stands up abruptly, straightens clothes) Morning Boss. Yes, I‘m good,
thank you. Yes, I heard about Howard. (Slight pause) Yes Boss, I did
come up with some ideas – Howard didn‘t want to use them. But yes, I
really think we could use them. (Pause) A possible promotion? Yes
Boss, thank you! I will do my best, Sir, I promise you that.
(Turns back to spectators, casts a satisfactory look) I worked my way
up. I worked to show that whatever men could do, I could too. If they
could come up with great ideas, I could come up with ideas that are
beyond brilliant. For every successful deal any man could seal, I could
seal two.
I climbed my way up. (Marlene starts to carefully pull her hair back
up into a chignon/high ponytail and removes her spectacles) And on
the day of my wedding anniversary, I closed yet another deal, gaining
the company an important project that would possibly allow us to
venture into an as yet unconquered market.
So yes. (Slowly) Yet another promotion. The meeting had gone very
well and ended much earlier than I had expected. (Slowly paces the
stage) I tried to call Ben, but I guess he had switched his phone off. I
reached the door, walked into the kitchen. Put down my things, opened
the fridge door. The same things I do every day when I reach home. I
took the chicken out of the freezer, and then I heard laughter and
sickening moaning coming from the bedroom. It was like a damn
movie. I opened the door, saw the beautiful, white embroidered sheets
29. Tan 28
Marlene: I had bought when we got married. The sheets were tangled up, soiled.
Two pairs of feet, that‘s what I saw. (Pause)
That fucking man. (Stands still, facing the spectators)
Lights out. Mrs Warren and Joyce enter. Spotlights on the three women come on.
Joyce: (Looks at Marlene with incredulity) I can‘t believe it! How could he –
Mrs Warren: Well, Marlene, that man is no good for you, not at all.
But are you certain that he… (Looks uncomfortable) Well, did he…
really?
Marlene: (Drily) I pushed open the door, he jumped out of bed, completely
naked too, might I add, while his secretary gave a sort of funny yelp.
She might have choked on her own shame and guilt. Who knows? She
was naked too. So what do you think Mrs Warren? And Ben, he just
stood there, gaping at me and all he could say was, ―What are you
doing here?‖ Asshole. That‘s my house, why shouldn‘t I be there?
So yes, I‘m fairly certain he was fucking his secretary behind my back,
just hours after he had the cheek to claim that I was a terrible wife.
Joyce: – how could he do that to you? What did you do after that? Did you
confront them, or like, leave straightaway?
Marlene: What do you think I did? (Laughs bitterly) I said nothing and walked
out as he ran out after me, shouting at me, and well, basically telling
me that it was all my fault that he cheated on me. Yup, none of it was
30. Tan 29
his fault, to be sure. That – (Pause) I can‘t even find a word to describe
someone like him.
Mrs Warren: My English may not be fantastic. But I suppose the word ―bastard‖
does it?
The three women laugh.
Joyce: (Laughs) Oh Mrs Warren!
The laughter subsides. Silence.
Marlene: I do feel so much like a failure, you know? (Pause, starts to cry quietly)
What do you do when your marriage falls apart, and it seems like it‘s
all our fault?
Mrs Warren: What do you do when you are sold into prostitution, when you are
forced to sell your own body in order to survive?
Joyce: What do you do when you take up multiple jobs, work yourself to the
bone, pay ridiculous, sky-high rent, endure people who think you‘re
cheap because you‘re a single mother, give everything up for your son,
but he turns away from you?
The three women move to comfort each other.
Mrs Warren: What do you do
Marlene: What do you do
Joyce: What do you do?
31. Tan 30
Marlene: When you‘re torn between your career and your husband resents the
fact that you spend so much time and effort at work, and perhaps,
perhaps he resents the fact that you‘re so damn successful, or perhaps,
perhaps, I‘m just never going to be good enough
Mrs Warren: When at 14 you are sold to a brothel and you have to do anything to
keep breathing, keep living, even if it breaks your spirit
Joyce: When your son blames you for the father everyone else seems to have
but him, and your son blames you for the disinterestedness of the
father he thinks you deprived him of, and he blames you for everything
you cannot be. Despite the fact that I‘m all he has, and I‘m the one
who will always be there for him. Because I‘m his mother.
Silence.
Mrs Warren: It must be difficult… Is it difficult?
Joyce: It could be easier, but I guess it could be more difficult as well?
Sometimes I feel like I‘ve lost who I really am in order to be a mom to
him, and yet, he doesn‘t appreciate it. All he sees and hears is that he
hasn‘t got a father.
Mrs Warren: Was your son always like that?
Joyce: When he was a young child he was an angel, the sweetest. He once
drew me a card that said, ―For my favourite Mom!‖
Marlene: So I take it he hasn‘t been an angel since?
Silence.
32. Tan 31
Joyce: I love my son.
Mrs Warren: Where is his father? Do you know?
Joyce: He could be dead, for all I care.
Marlene: But you seem to be having such a tough time with him… (Thoughtfully)
Joyce, why did you decide to keep Liam?
Joyce: (Stunned) What?
Mrs Warren: (Shocked) Marlene!
Marlene: (Carefully) You must have been very young when you got pregnant
with Liam, am I right? I mean, look at you now, I‘m sure all of us can
tell that you can‘t be over 30. And your son‘s, 15?
Joyce: Liam‘s 13.
Marlene: Right, so I figured, if you were so young then, why did you keep the
baby?
Mrs Warren: An abortion, Marlene? The child is quite innocent, you know.
Marlene: But, look at how much she‘s suffering, and probably has suffered, Mrs
Warren!
Joyce: I hadn‘t enough money, and my parents kicked me out of the house for
being a disgrace to the family and –
Marlene: How about Liam‘s father?
Joyce: – the guy who knocked me up ran away as fast as he could. The jerk.
And then I thought, why not? (Shrugs) I struggled between the idea of
33. Tan 32
Joyce: aborting my child and keeping him for some time. I could beg steal
borrow the money needed for the abortion. But I decided that if my
very own family wouldn‘t stick by me, I shouldn‘t be like them and
forsake my unborn child. I wanted to show them that I could survive
very well without them, even with a child, and that I‘m not a disgrace.
There‘s nothing disgraceful in being a mother. I was far too young, yes,
but I was determined to be responsible and make things right for
myself.
Mrs Warren: You are a very brave woman, Joyce. Even if your parents were not
proud of you, I am.
Slight pause.
Marlene: Would you like me to kick Liam‘s father in the arse for you? (Tries to
hide a smile)
Train sounds. Lights out. All exit.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 4 leaving for the Past, stop C.
Stage is lit with a desk and chairs at the centre of the stage. Joyce enters, walking briskly
towards the desk.
Joyce: (Standing facing the desk) Hi, I‘m Joyce, Liam‘s mother? Yes, Mrs
Stalmann is his form teacher. (Pause) Thank you. (Sits down in chair,
waiting)
(Stands up) Mrs Stalmann. (Nods in greeting) Where‘s Liam? –
Mmhmm, yes, I know he‘s been rebellious lately. But he really isn‘t
34. Tan 33
Joyce: all that bad, besides the tendency to ignore instructions and talk back
here and there. But which teenager doesn‘t? He‘s a good kid, kind-
hearted, Mrs Stalmann, so no, I don‘t believe that he‘d start a fight
with someone. (Pause) No, I absolutely don‘t believe that. My Liam
wouldn‘t hit someone for no reason. (Pause) Are you sure that there
wasn‘t some provocation on the other boy‘s part? – (Indignantly)
Excuse me! Don‘t you start making Liam out to be some punk. He‘s
my son and I think I‘d know best! Besides the fight he got into last
week was because some kid took his lunch money! That doesn‘t count!
What would you do if you were mugged, huh? And you haven‘t even
made sure that the other boy wasn‘t lying! (Pause, calms herself)
Please Mrs Stalmann, till you can prove for sure that my son hit
another boy without provocation, save your preaching. Yes, I did say
exactly just that. And stop dropping your not-so-subtle hints that I‘m a
terrible mother by virtue that I‘ve never been married. (Stands straight
and smoothens her clothes out) Now I‘d like to bring Liam home. He‘s
apologized and really, I don‘t see why you should keep him here and
not the other boy as well when you cannot prove that my son was
absolutely the only one in the wrong. (Walks away and then stops)
And you know what else, Mrs Stalmann? Stop undermining my
abilities as a mother just because you think I‘m a skank for having had
Liam when I was only 15. You have no right to judge the person or
mother I am just because of my past ill judgment.
(Turns to spectators) Okay, maybe I didn‘t say that to Mrs Stalmann‘s
face, but I did think it quite well and hard. And yes, I guess I‘m quite
35. Tan 34
Joyce: protective of my son. Which mother would stand by and watch that
witch attack her son?
So anyway, I tried to get through to Liam, ask him what happened,
what made him punch the other boy. And. Surprise, surprise! He said
nothing at all. Until we got home. And I exercised my right as a mother
to make him sit down and have a proper conversation.
(Turns away from spectators, pushes the desk away, pulls the two
chairs close to each other, sits in one and gestures to the other) Sit
down, Liam. That wasn‘t a question, it‘s an order, so sit down or else
you‘re grounded for the rest of your life, you hear me? (Pause) Thank
you. Now was that so difficult? (Thoughtfully) All right Liam, I want
you to be absolutely honest with me, okay? Maybe you didn‘t want to
talk about it when we were at your school, but maybe you‘ll talk about
it now. Did you, or did you not, throw the first punch? (Pause) Oh
Liam… Why did you do that? I‘m terribly disappointed, what have I
taught you, never do unto others – Liam, Liam, (Loudly now) Liam,
stop shouting! (Pause) It‘s okay, Liam, it‘s okay… Shush shush.
(Leans forward) Honey, there now, it‘s okay. Come on, take a deep
breath, and tell me what happened.
(Turns to spectators) For the first time in months, Liam spoke in
complete sentences to me. First thought through my mind was, holy
crap, I‘ve got my real son back! No grunts, no one-sided conversations
where the only sound was my voice – none of that. And I could see he
was trying to be brave, telling me that the reason he punched Lucas
36. Tan 35
Joyce: was ‗cause Lucas had, according to Liam, called me names and said
mean things about me. And called Liam a bastard. Where do kids even
learn such words? They‘re only 13 for god‘s sake!
But as Liam went on, describing how the kids at school would taunt
him for having no father, for being an illegitimate child, he started
asking me why why why did he have no father, why does his father not
want him?
(Turns back to talking to Liam) Liam... What do these kids know?
They couldn‘t possibly know anything for certain, right? – Oh, their
parents told them? And – What? Their parents tell them not to hang out
with you cause – Oh Liam, I‘m sorry they‘re so mean, but you don‘t
have to listen to – Now Liam, calm down and listen to Mom, I‘m sorry
you have to put up with all the bullying, I will talk to your principal
and get them to – Come on, Liam, at least now we know that Lucas
isn‘t a nice boy, but you still shouldn‘t have pun – Yes, I know that he
said bad things about you and me but – Yes, Liam, but – Liam, stop
and listen to me. I love you, you‘re my son, and who cares what others
say, they are not you, not me, how can they ever know – Liam! I‘m not
the enemy here, please!
(Turns back to spectators) Liam started blaming me again. If I could, I
would never deprive him of anything, or leave him vulnerable. I‘m his
mother, for goodness sake! It isn‘t my fault his useless father isn‘t here.
Yes it was my fault, my bad judgment for falling for the bad boy who‘s
37. Tan 36
Joyce: too old for me, yes it was my mistake for believing that he truly loved
me.
We all make mistakes. But I don‘t understand how people can be so
mean. I made my mistakes, but at the end, I feel like I did right by
myself, by my son, you know? (Pause) Oh I don‘t know… My own
parents, the people I grew up with…
(Looks directly at the spectators) But how can anyone be so mean to a
child as to call his mother a cheap whore and him a bastard in front of
him?
Lights out. Exit.
Train sounds. Marlene, Joyce and Mrs Warren enter.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 3 leaving for the Present.
Spotlights on Marlene, Joyce and Mrs Warren come on.
Mrs Warren: I am sorry your son keeps fighting with you, Joyce. (Shakes her head)
In my time –
Marlene: – Who was the guy who got you pregnant anyway?
Joyce: Are you sure you wanna know? He‘s a real –
Mrs Warren: – children would never dare to talk to their parents like that. If I ever
did that, I am sure I would not have been able to sit down properly for
days.
Joyce: – piece of work.
38. Tan 37
Silence.
Joyce: When I met Jason, I told myself it was love at first sight. How could it
not be? Those light brown eyes, and the devil-may-care attitude. The
way he looked at me so intensely, but then at the next moment he‘d
turn away and act as if I didn‘t exist. (Laughs sadly) I was hanging out
with my friends at the local grill, and you know, we were so young,
and we thought we were so cool ‗cause we – well, we just thought we
were so cool for hanging out like the big kids. And Jason was there. He
was a senior, with all the footballers. Who wouldn‘t like Jason?
Marlene: Joyce, Joyce… If I had known you then…
Mrs Warren: Was he good to you, Joyce? That Jason boy?
Joyce: Not really. Well, I guess he was nice at first? Some days he was real
sweet to me, but other days, he‘d just ignore –
Marlene: Let me guess, he only showed up with candies and flowers when he
wanted to get in your pants?
Mrs Warren: (Admonishingly) Marlene! How can you say that to Joyce?
Marlene: But it‘s –
Joyce: Oh it‘s okay dear Mrs Warren. (To Marlene, laughingly) It‘s true,
you‘re right. I was just too in love to see it then.
Silence.
Mrs Warren: Where‘s Liam now?
39. Tan 38
Joyce: He‘s at home… Probably still sulking and locked in his room.
Marlene: Where were you planning to go anyway?
Joyce: Well, my boss called and told me that there‘re some documents he
needs first thing tomorrow morning, so I had to go back to the office to
get it. And look, the weather tonight‘s just –
Mrs Warren: – beautiful. You can see the stars.
Joyce: (Smiles) Yes, and I guess I could use the peace and quiet.
Marlene: And maybe you‘d just like to run away for a bit? (Laughs knowingly)
Joyce: Don‘t we all?
Silence.
Joyce: (Looks at watch) I guess I should go home now, got to make sure
Liam‘s done all his homework. (Looks awkwardly at Mrs Warren and
Joyce) Maybe I‘ll see the both of you around, sometime? (Pause) I‘ve
got to get to my son now. (Laughs softly) He needs me, right?
Mrs Warren: (Softly) You have to, have to
Marlene: Need to.
Train sounds come on. Spotlight on Joyce switches off abruptly. Joyce exits.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 2 leaving for Courage.
Mrs Warren: Are you going to go home, Marlene?
40. Tan 39
Marlene: Home? (Smiles sadly at Mrs Warren) No, Mrs Warren, I‘m going back
to the office.
Silence.
Mrs Warren: When we are hurt, all we want is just to go home. When you are a
child and you fall down and skin your knees
Marlene: You‘d run back home, but
Mrs Warren: Where is home, for you?
Marlene: Somewhere you feel wanted, needed
Mrs Warren: Valued, safe.
Slight pause.
Marlene: Mrs Warren, I‘ve to go now. Got to go back to the office, since there‘s
time I might as well clear up some of my documents. (To herself) I‘m
going to keep climbing my way to the top, in spite of everything.
They‘ll see.
(Hands Mrs Warren some notes) Here Mrs Warren –
Mrs Warren: Why, Marlene! (Pushes Marlene’s hand away)
Marlene: – No, no Mrs Warren, just take it. It‘s not much. I‘d feel better too, if
you‘ve got some money on you. I don‘t know how I can help and I
can‘t bring you to the office with me, so… Take care of yourself.
You‘ve got my name card, call me if you need… anything.
41. Tan 40
Marlene’s phone rings. Marlene looks at it, waves goodbye to Mrs Warren, turns and walks
towards exit.
Train sounds come on.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 1 leaving for Loneliness.
Spotlight on Marlene switches off abruptly. Marlene exits.
Mrs Warren: But where am I to go? (Pause) I have everywhere I can be, but
nowhere to go.
Train sounds come on.
PA Announcement: Train at Platform 0 leaving for Nowhere.
Spotlight on Mrs Warren switches off abruptly. Mrs Warren exits.
END
42. Tan 41
Geraldine Tan
FYP Reflective Essay
Dr Daniel Jernigan
7 November 2011
Reflections on the Writing Process
I started on my Creative Writing Final Year Project (FYP) with several plays and
playwrights influencing my choice of theme, subject matter and style of writing – Haresh
Sharma‘s Model Citizens, Bertolt Brecht‘s ideology of the Epic Theatre, Stella Kon‘s Emily
of Emerald Hill, Bernard Shaw‘s Mrs Warren’s Profession and Caryl Churchill‘s Top Girls.
My play, entitled I Have Nowhere, Everywhere To Go, focuses on the lives of three very
different women – Joyce, a single mother, Marlene, a married successful career woman, and
Bree/Mrs Warren, a homeless woman. These three women meet under random circumstances
at a train station, drawn to each other with what they have in common: unable to decide what
to do next and where to go with regards to their respective circumstances. I Have Nowhere,
Everywhere To Go examines the relationship of each women to their society and their
personal problems, and through the combination of their individual narratives, these three
women represent the collective Woman‘s struggles in domineering patriarchal society. This
essay will expound on the play‘s major influences, the significance of the themes and subject
matter of the play, as well as my writing process and the decisions I have made pertaining to
the play.
Before I start explaining the impact of my influences, subject matter and writing
process, I will give a brief summary of the play in order to put things in a clearer perspective.
The play revolves around three women, Joyce, Marlene and Bree/Mrs Warren. Joyce is a
single mother with a son from a teenage pregnancy, who is struggling with their living
expenses (exacerbated by her ineligibility to apply for subsidised public housing) and with
43. Tan 42
her son‘s recent rebelliousness due to his questions regarding his biological father. Marlene is
a highly intelligent, motivated and successful career woman, who is also married. Marlene
faces gender discrimination in her workplace. Also, she faces problems with her husband
who is unable to accept that Marlene is career-oriented. Bree Warren is a homeless old
woman who was kicked out by her landlord when she is unable to pay her rent because she
was retrenched due to the economic recession. Joyce and Marlene mistakenly address Bree
Warren as ―Mrs Warren‖. Mrs Warren has no family and no children as she was sold into
prostitution as a teenager as a means to pay off her unemployed father‘s debts. I Have
Nowhere, Everywhere To Go is, at its core, a narration of these women‘s stories and their
struggles, the difficult situations and decisions they face, and what it means to be a woman in
a patriarchal and sexist society.
One of my most important influences in the writing of this play is Bertolt Brecht. His
ideology regarding a new revolutionary theatre, the Epic Theatre, heavily influences the
decisions I have made regarding the structure and staging of the play. Brecht‘s ideology of
the Epic Theatre revolves around the ultimate aim of transforming the passive consuming
audience into an active, critical-thinking spectator who possesses the ―capacity for action‖
(Brecht 37). How Brecht proposes this to be achieved is through what he terms as das
Verfremdungseffekt (the alienation effect), the alienation of the spectator through the use of
certain techniques, for example, the direct address of the spectator etcetera, in order to break
away from the consumerist culture of Dramatic/Realist conventions. I have applied some of
these alienation effects in my play via the use of multimedia, intertitles and direct address of
the spectator. I incorporated multimedia and intertitles into my play at the start of each scene
that (separately) introduces the three characters, where a projector screen displays brief
introductions for each character, for example, ―a screen displays this: HERE COMES BREE
WARREN…‖ (3). The characters‘ direct addresses of the spectators occur throughout the
44. Tan 43
play, where Joyce, Marlene and Bree/Mrs Warren speak directly to the spectators in the
narration of their stories. Another level on which Brecht‘s ideology of the Epic Theatre
manifests itself in my play is through my play‘s focus on being a narration rather than a
condensed plot (Brecht 37). Nowhere is a play that narrates the events in the three characters‘
lives. Instead of the play being the characters‘ lives (as congruent with Brecht‘s take on
Dramatic/Realist Theatre), the play is about the narration of the events in these characters
lives. Also, the scenes in Nowhere are essentially montages that are able to exist on its own
without existing for another scene (Brecht 37), further embodying the ideals of the Epic
Theatre and pushing away from the conventions of Dramatic/Realist Theatre that
incorporates narrative causality where each scene exists for the other. Technically, my play
would work and make sense if each scene stands on its own and if all the scenes are
rearranged. These are the aspects of my play that embody the Brechtian ideology of the Epic
Theatre. Like Brecht, I believe that all art should be political and incite active and critical
thinking, socio-political action and change. Thus, by incorporating Brechtian ideology of the
Epic Theatre in my play, I hope that my play will be able to distance the spectator from the
snares of mindless consumerism and inaction.
However, the issue of emotional identification with the character(s) in a play is what I
disagree with Brecht. Brecht believes that the emotional distancing of the spectator from the
characters is an enabling action, one that achieves activism and critical thought. But I
disagree. Without emotional identification with the characters, how will the spectator care
about what happens to these characters? How then, will the spectator rise to action and
thought? Contrary to Brecht‘s belief, I believe that emotional identification (sympathy and
empathy) when coupled with alienation techniques is more capable of achieving my goal of a
spectator who is not only capable of action and thought, but also capable of being human.
Therefore, I have tried to make my characters relatable to the average person by including in
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their struggles problems that the average person will face at some point in his/her life. Here
is where Haresh Sharma‘s influence exerts itself on my play. Haresh Sharma, specifically in
his play Model Citizens, creates well thought-out dialogues and monologues of the characters,
Wendy, Melly and Mrs Chua, that carefully reveal their respective backstories bit by bit, and
that simultaneously develops each character. For example, Sharma reveals Wendy‘s family
tragedy and her struggles through her monologues and her interactions (dialogue) with the
other two characters. He clearly defines his characters through their on-stage mannerisms and
speech, which tell us their individual stories without being unnecessarily winding. Through
this graceful manipulation of his characters‘ monologues and dialogues, Sharma creates
believable and relatable characters that spectators will be able to identify with. This is also
what I have applied in my play. Through my characters‘ monologues and dialogues with each
other, I reveal my characters‘ stories – their motivations, flaws, decisions, as well as their
unique traits, mannerisms and attitude. In short, I reveal my characters‘ humanity the way
Sharma slowly reveals his characters‘ bit by little bit.
A significantly large percentage of Nowhere consists of monologues by each
character. Essentially, monologues drive my play‘s narrative, these monologues stand on
their own, telling each character‘s story. These separate strands of monologues in my play
tend towards fusion, forming a larger continuous monologue – the voices of individual
women come together to form the collective voice of the Woman. My inspiration for the use
of monologues in my play comes from Stella Kon‘s monodrama, Emily of Emerald Hill. Kon
structures Emily such that Emily‘s monologues not only reveal her past and present, but also
the stories of the other characters. Kon makes use of Emily‘s monologues to provide
information on the idiosyncrasies, mannerisms, personalities, motivations and aspirations not
only of Emily herself, but of the other characters in the play, though they are never seen nor
heard by the spectator. What Kon has done with Emily‘s monologues is the revelation of the
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intricate layers of her character‘s interpersonal relationships and consequently, the revelation
of all the (seen and unseen) characters‘ individual characteristics. This interests me greatly
and I have attempted this in my play with all my characters‘ monologues. For example, in the
first scene where Joyce is introduced, in her telephone conversation with Mrs Stalmann (4),
her relationship with the antagonistic and prejudiced Mrs Stalmann is clearly illustrated.
Another way in which Kon‘s Emily has inspired me is the realization that through Emily‘s
monologues, Kon situates the spectator in Emily‘s subjective perspective. What Emily
experiences becomes the spectator‘s – what she sees and hears becomes the spectator‘s.
Through this primary identification of the spectator with the character, the playwright is able
to make the spectator become the character on stage while maintaining his/her position as
spectator, achieving a connection between the two and creating a shared experience. Thus,
through my use of monologues in my play, I create a spectator that becomes my three
characters‘ confidante, sharing their lives and involved in their actions, strengths and flaws.
The spectator, while aware of his/her position as a spectator as Joyce, Marlene and Mrs
Warren each directly addresses him/her, in the process of being the three characters, achieves
my goal of an active spectator capable of empathy. For example, as Marlene struggles to gain
her husband‘s understanding and acceptance of her career-oriented self, the spectator shares
in Marlene‘s difficulties and desires, empathising with Marlene and her motivations, while
simultaneously retaining the position of an observer.
Discussed above are several playwrights‘ and plays‘ influences on the stylistics of
my play and my ideology behind it. In addition to the impact of my influences on the style
and techniques employed in the writing of my play, its themes and subject matter are affected
in the same manner. Two plays in particular have heavily influenced my choice of subject
matter in this play and they are Bernard Shaw‘s Mrs Warren’s Profession and Caryl
Churchill‘s Top Girls. My decision to write a play that examines the roles of women in
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patriarchal society was firmly nudged into action by Shaw and Churchill‘s socio-political
critique of the impact of Victorian sexism on prostitution and the dehumanising effect of an
overwhelming desire to succeed on women (in Mrs Warren’s Profession and Top Girls,
respectively). Shaw‘s critique of patriarchal sexism that confined women to the domestic
sphere manifests itself in the case of the character Mrs Warren, who, unable to secure a good
marriage, was forced into prostitution by circumstance in order to survive. In this, Shaw also
explores the social stigmatisation of prostitution, as can be seen from Vivie‘s initial reaction
to her mother‘s profession. The character of Marlene in Top Girls illustrates Churchill‘s
critique of the dehumanised working woman‘s desire to succeed in a masculine environment,
turning her into a ruthless woman able to sacrifice family and feeling in order to succeed.
These two plays served as inspiration for my play‘s critique on the effects of domineering
patriarchal society on women, as well as inspiration for my characters. With inspiration from
Shaw and Churchill‘s works, I decided to explore the role of (the lack of) education on the
prospects of women, possibly leading to prostitution/human/sex trafficking, as in the case of
Mrs Warren. With Marlene, I chose to explore her motivations to succeed in the workplace,
and what effect it has on her relationship with her husband. With Joyce, I explored the status
of her as a single, never married parent, what socio-political implications it has and how this
status affects her and her son. It was, and is, important to me to reveal the struggles of the
Woman resulting from patriarchal definition of gender roles and the discrimination and
prejudice that come with it.
However, my play was and is not meant to be an adaptation or re-telling of Shaw‘s
Mrs Warren’s Profession or Churchill‘s Top Girls. While the characters in my play have
some similarities to the characters of Mrs Warren, Marlene and Joyce in the two
abovementioned plays, they are distinctly different. The two Mrs Warrens are similar in that
they were both forced, by circumstance, into prostitution as a means of survival. But
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Nowhere‘s Mrs Warren has no family and does not end up rich or running a brothel. My
character of Mrs Warren also does not only aim to highlight the reasons for prostitution, but
also to exhibit the cruelty of sexual objectification and slavery, and later in life, the cruelty of
society towards an older person. Nowhere‘s characters of Joyce and Marlene share some
similarities with those in Top Girls, although in my play they are not sisters. Both Joyces are
single mothers struggling financially but in my play, Joyce has never been married and her
child is biologically hers via a teenage pregnancy. Both Marlenes are ambitious career
women in a masculine, male-dominated working environment. But the Marlene in my play,
unlike Marlene in Top Girls, is a married woman who does treasure the idea of partnership in
marriage and who does not forgo her humanity/femininity in her desire for success. My play
is not a commentary on prostitution alone, nor is it an analysis of the dehumanising effects of
individualistic feminism. My play is, at its heart, a play that reveals the cruelty of gender
discrimination in patriarchal societies.
As I started writing Nowhere, there were several questions I had to consider very
carefully: context and setting. My decision to anchor the play‘s setting to a train station stems
from my desire to create an atmosphere of tense frustration that leads nowhere. The
symbolism of the train station as a liminal space, as the essence of Limbo, contributes to the
major theme of frustration in my play. The three characters in my play end up at the train
station in their moment of frustration and indecision. They are unable to decide where or how
to proceed, they are able to go anywhere, but they end up going nowhere different. Just as
patriarchal society and its expectations and prejudice chain women to specified gender roles
and duties, these three women remain inextricably bound by their environment, one way or
another. Mrs Warren is unable to escape her past as a sex object, and she has no future to
speak of because of her lack of formal education. Marlene‘s ambitious nature does not set her
free from gender discrimination – she is unable to break free from expectations of how a
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woman should act, as embodied in her husband. Joyce, amidst all her financial and parental
struggles, remains mired in stigma. At the train station, Mrs Warren has, potentially, the
ability to go anywhere, but has no place to go. Marlene cannot face the idea of returning
home, and Joyce feels strained and taxed by both her workplace and her home. The train
station thus becomes an important symbol in the play with regard to its theme.
Another important decision I had made when writing the play was the decision not to
anchor the play in any specific context. There is (almost) no allusion to any particular context
or culture or historical or contemporary period. Except in the case of Joyce where Singapore
is alluded to, she mentions how she is considered ineligible for subsidised public housing by
government policies (21). The names of the three characters also do not allude to any
particular context. Bree/Mrs Warren, Marlene and Joyce may be names found in Anglo
culture, but in today‘s globalized world, these names signify almost nothing relating to social
or cultural context. Why I chose not to anchor the play in any specific context is because this
play is about the collective woman, the Woman, and not about a Singaporean woman, an
American woman or an Indian woman etcetera. By leaving the context open and
undetermined, my play would be better able to represent the collective. Also, gender
discrimination against women, manifested in many different ways, is present in all patriarchal
societies, and thus to restrict my play to any one specific context would be to diminish the
effect of the message I wish to convey. Gender discrimination does not happen only in Japan,
England or Vietnam or any other specific place – it happens everywhere.
Writing this play was at once taxing, frustrating and fulfilling – liberating almost. It
allowed me to explore the characters I had created, delving into their unique dreams and fears.
It also allowed me to give voice to the struggles the Woman faces every single day, and to
bring all my favourite plays and playwrights together in the conversation that is my play.
Jean-Paul Sartre once wrote that ―for one, art is a flight; for another, a means of conquering‖
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(20), and it is certainly true in many ways. In writing this play, it was for me an escape, but
an escape into my characters‘ worlds, enabling me to better understand their motivations, and
not an escape from reality as a whole. But in writing this, it was also a means of conquering
the hold patriarchal society has on the Woman. In exposing these chains of gender
discrimination in my play yet ending the play with the three women still bound by society in
one way or another despite their efforts, I expose the cruelty and Sisyphus-like situation the
Woman finds herself. In this, I conquer Patriarchy‘s silent power through exposure.
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Works Cited
Brecht, Bertolt. Brecht on Theatre – The Development of an Aesthetic. Trans. and ed. Willet,
John. New York: Hill and Wang, 1992. 32-99.
Churchill, Caryl. Top Girls. Great Britain: Methuen Drama, 1991.
Kon, Stella. Emily of Emerald Hill. Singapore: Raffles, 2000.
Model Citizens. By Haresh Sharma. Dir. Alvin Tan. Perf. Goh Guat Kian, Karen Tan, Siti
Khalijah Zainal. The Necessary Stage, Singapore. 2010. Performance.
Sartre, Jean-Paul. ―Why Write?‖. Everyday Theory: A Contemporary Reader. United States:
Pearson Longman, 2005. 20-33.
Shaw, Bernard. Mrs Warren’s Profession. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed.
Stephen Greenblatt. 8th ed. Vol. 2. 1746-1790. Print.
Tan, Geraldine. I Have Nowhere, Everywhere To Go. Singapore: (-), 2011.
