A New Year Playlet.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 1, 2 January 1937, Page 7 (Supplement)

A New Year Playlet.

| By P.M.F. {HHHt*HW*HHH«»^HHHHHHt»»«II IHHHHHHHr-

Characters: Old Year, New Year, To-day, To-morrow, Guy Fawkes, Three Resolutions, Week Days, Twelve Hours, One Minute. Costumes: Old Year wears a beard and trailing robes. New Year is dressed as a boy in sky blue tunic and knickers. To-day wears a loose full skirted frock of pale gold or grey transparent material. Guy Fawkes wears old clothes with a wide, long skirt. The Resolutions may be frocked in bright colour and wear patches of sticking plaster. The Week Days may be dressed in any pastel shades, each with her name marked clearly on a wide girdle. The Twelve Hours wear deep blue short tunics of fine material. Each has a clock face on the bodice marked at each hour of the 12. The Minute should be a small person in white. Scene: The Crossroads. Signpost with arms ma.-ked 1936 and 1937. Enter Old Year, carrying burden. (Looks up at sign): Only one more hour. Twelfth Hour (bobbing up from behind low wall): One of me! Minute (bobbing up beside her): And sixty of me! Voice heard singing. Hour: That's To-morrow. She's been singing all day. She's very pleased with herself Lcausr she says everybody's longing for and looking for her. Minute: And they will ne\er,never see her. Old Year: She ought not be so happy. To-night we part company after being good companions for 365 days. Hour: . Not exactly companions. You never fcould keep up with her, even in your youth. Old Year: That's true. But she's such a gay thing and she always sounds so fascinating that I can't help liking her better than to-day. Hour: To-morrow is cross-eyed! Minute: And she has a wart on her nose! Hour: And she's frightfully badtempered, sometimes, specially when she's marked "Examination" , t .

or "Account due" ... or "Library Overdue." And if you mention Guy Fawkes to her she just sulks. Old Year (wearily): Well, I don't believe it, but it matters nothing now. I'll soon be just a date and she'll not even think of me without a frown. Minute: Dates . . . ugh! Here comes New Year. Enter New Year, whistling. New Year: Who said dates: I'm going to have nothing. to do with them ever! Old Year (in horror): But you must. You can't be an unrecorded year. You'd put all the history books out! New Year (laughing): Yea . . . I'd put them out . . . throw them out . . . burn them! Old Year: O dear, I feel very weak ... I think I'll be going. To-morrow is heard singing: Goodbye, Old Year. The rose is red, the violets blue, vinegar's sour and so are you! Hour (in loud whisper): She used to call him sweet when he was a New Year like you. Do you really mean that you are going to be a different kind of year? New Year: I am. Variety . . . that's what . people want. They tired of the same old programme every week, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, like boarding-school meals. Every week starting off with Mondays laundering and ending with Sunday family tea. No, I'm not giving father a chance for the weekly lecture. Sunday's going to come plumb in the middle of the week. Come here, Days! Days enter in order. New Year: Now, Sunday, change places with Wednesday, and Monday you change with Thursday. Don't look so stupid. (Days change places with signs of reluctance.) Now, get on with your work, only remember, no school days! The seven Days run out in a panic. Sound of crying. New Year:. Who's that? No tears in 1937. First Resolution: It's me, New Year Resolution! I'm broken again. It's To-morrow's fault. She whispers to everybody: "Start good resolutions to-morrow. Never mind today." That always means another patch for me. New Year (business-like with notebook and pencil): Which Resolution are you I

Resolution (tearfully): Late-at-the-Club. Mr. Fibber, again. (Laughs through her tears) . . . and he looks worse than I do this morning. Two more Resolutions enter, patched, but defiant. New Year: What, more or yon? Second Resolution: Tea, I'm Butter-and-Jam. Third Resolution: I'm SundaySchool -money • spent - on - acid-drops. Tommy Fibber broke us both. New Year: That Fibber family! Well, you'll just have to scout round and prick their consciences occasionally. No loafing through the rest of my year. Hour: I must work now. Minute: And I. They pause in leaving, as To-morrow is heard singing: "The rose is red, the violets blue, sugar is sweet and so are you." New Year: Good gracious! (Looking around him.) Who's there t To-morrow: To-morrow. Hour (looking back): See, she will get him as she has all the others. Soon hell be lecturing us about the future instead of minding his own time. New Year (running to and fro): Never have I heard so sweet a voice. Where are you? Show yourself! To-morrow: To-morrow. New Year: Now! To-morrow (coaxingly): To-mor-row. New Year: Very well, I shall be here when the Twelfth HoUr leaves. One o'clock will be here, but she is too small to matter. Tell me, what are you like? To-morrow: To-morrow. (Laughs.) New Year goes out and To-day comes in with the Hour again. Did you hear him? If he could only see her! Hour: I have a plan. He thinks To-morrow will meet him to-day. Let's persuade Guy Fawkes to disguise himself and wait here. I know it's not his turn, but things are in such a mix-up that I am sure he wouldn't mind. To-day: That's a lovely plan. Then, perhaps, hell be satisfied. But what if To-morrow should come and spoil it all? Hour: You know she can't come while you are here. You must stay here and hide, To-day. Well send One o'Clock back with Guy Fawkes. She's too small to understand it all. (Curtain.) Same scene next day. New Year, sitting at foot of signpost, asleep. The Twelve Hours are dancing. Hour: Why are you so quiet, To-day? To-day, who has been standing watching the dance: New Year forgets all about me. Most people do. They are either thinking about Tomorrow or Yesterday. Hour: Quick, he wakes. Hide, To-day! (To-day runs into hiding place.) New Year (waking): To-morrow! To-morrow! Where are you! |

To-morrow: I am here. I am here. New Tear: Where, tou elusive, fairy thing? I am in lore with jour voice. It tells me that your eyes are blue as skies, that your lips are anemones. To-morrow! Dear! To-morrow: I am coming. Enter Guy Fawkes, with One o'Clock, wbo sits down in front of stage at one side. During the following passages, the other Hours join her one by one until the 12 are seated in a row. New Year (in annoyance): Who are you? . Guy Fawkes (sweetly): lam Tomorrow. New Year: You! (Bursts into laughter). Blue eyes, anemone lips, indeed! Guy Fawkes (rolling eyes): The rose is red, the violets blue . . . New Year: Be off with you! I never want to see you again. Guy Fawkes: But you asked me to meet you here and you called me "dear." "To-morrow, dear," you said. New Year: Quiet, you old trickster. Out of my sight! Guy Fawkes shuffles out. Throws farewell kiss. New Year stamps hi* foot and turns his back, then site down with hands over face. To-day creeps out of her hiding place and tries to peep through New Year"* fingers. New Year (looking up): O! To-day: It's only me, To-day. New Year (frowning): It's only I. you mean. To-day (flustered): Oh, yes. 1 didn't say that last year. I wonder why. New Year: It's those schooldays. We'd better call them back. I can't be known as The Ungrammatical Year. To-day: The schooldays are rather jolly, really. New Year: Are they To-day? Yon know I make such mistakes about people. To-day: You won't if you'll let me teach you. You see. To-morrow and Yesterday never really do anything. I'm "the Doing Day. New Year (bending closer): I'm glad your eyes are brown. I don't think I like blue ones . . . and you're really rather pretty. To-morrow (singing): I am coming ... I am coming. New Year (jumping up in alarm ): Be off with you. I don't want to see you. Come, To-day, we're lot< to talk about, and we must find the ■school days. They run off, hand in hand. The Hours break into laughter and dance in a circle. Hours: It'a worked! It's worked' I bribed Guy Fawkes with a fine night for his bonfires, so do help me to keep my promise. Another Hour: It's going to be a grand year. He's the first one for ages who hasn't wasted hk life pining after To-morrow or Yesterday. Cheers for New Year and To-dav!*