Grounded: A Comedy of Airers __________________________ A full-length play By Chadwick A.

Harman

Contact: Chadwick A. Harman 601-692-6966 chad.harman@depagemedua.co

ii. CAST OF CHARACTERS

iii. SETTINGS

iv. PRODUCTION NOTES

v. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

SCENE ONE Toblach, Italy, early-2000s. An empty airport terminal. One service desk and a gate are all this small terminal have. MARIA , a young Italian, stands behind the service desk. The desk is lightly adorned, a globe sits prominently. TRISTAN RUSSEL, a roguishly handsome man, stands at the terminals only pay-phone. He waits anxiously for a moment while: P.A. SYSTEM (in Italian/German) Flight 604 from Rome to Toblach has experienced delays due to a storm system south of South Tyrol. Please expect unacceptable delays. TRISTAN Derek? Its Tristan again. This isnt funny I need you to call me back... Never mind, you cant call me back, just answer the phone, please. Everythings gone cold, and Im certain things would have gone smoother had you been present, like I paid you to be. Derek, Ive been stuck in this airport for four days waiting for you. And I... Ill tell you this. (beat) If you dont call me back, Ill sue you for every dime, Mr. Sims. You have my word on that.... (beat) Wait, never mind. I didnt mean that. I just really need you to-TRISTAN stops. He looks at the phone. TRISTAN Scuzi, Maria. MARIA Si, Mr. Russel? TRISTAN A flight hasnt landed in the last hour has it? MARIA No, sir. A flight hasnt landed in exactly four hours and thirty minutes.

2. TRISTAN Thats just great. MARIA Youre expecting someone? TRISTAN You could say that. Im... well Im in a bit of a tight spot, Maria. Nothing some positivity cant fix-- positive thinking, Maria. Before you know it-- Ill be leaving this airport in no time at all. MARIA Leave? You might not ever leave. This airport... its-- how do I say it-- temperature. TRISTAN You mean temperamental. MARIA Si! Temperamental. Toblachs airport has a history of taking prisoners, and never letting them go. I could tell you story after story of men and women who have fallen prey to Toblachs curse. TRISTAN Surely curse doesnt mean what you think it means. MARIA The airport is typically fond of Americans. Trapping them here and devouring their will. Slowly, day by day, their spirit fades into an abyss of nothingness. A dark gaping hole in the mass off humanity! TRISTAN Now youre just being dramatic. MARIA You tell that to the book. TRISTAN The book? MARIA pulls out a book. MARIA Si. The book. These pages contain the stories of the hundreds of lives this airport has taken hostage.

3. Some go missing for ever and always-- others lose the love of their lives-- Ive seen mens mind turn to mush-- Women have abandoned their children in hopes of escape-- and worse, some end up working here. TRISTAN Alright, youre starting to scare me a little, but surely youre taking artistic liberty. MARIA MARIA (ENGLISH) I wouldnt know how to do that in English. I wouldnt know how to do that in English. But in italiano? Potrei parlare di maestosa But in italiano? I could talk about majestic bellezza attraverso tutte le lunghe notti beauty all through the long winter nights. I invernali. Potrei descrivere la meraviglia could describe the wonder newborns life. della vita di un neonato. Un tuffo nel Plunge into the mystery of a first kiss. In mistero di un primo bacio. In italiano, sono Italian, Im unstoppable! inarrestabile! TRISTAN Right. So youre saying that this book contains the story of ever person this airport has supposedly taken hostage? MARIA I am. Including the ways they were taken. A chair in the distance crumbles. TRISTAN You mind... if I hold on to this... just in case. MARIA Of course! We sell copies of it in the bookstore. No one buys them. Oh! But there are great stories, Mr. Russel. The one of Walter Walsh Williams comes to mind. He was a great man, a family man, he had two kids back home in America. He loved them dearly. James and Julie. His wifes name... something beautiful like a flower... Rose! Her name was Rose. TRISTAN Rose is the name of a flower. MARIA He came in on business. Businesses love the exotic scenery Toblach provides. He stayed at a local hotel-- a charming little villa-- with the loveliest of names, Best Western, it was called. He had a wonderful stay there and his business went by so smoothly. He told me it felt like vacation! Oh that every work day felt like this, he said. But the airport would soon take everything from him... He ate at the food at our food court and got food poisoning.

4. TRISTAN Thats not so bad. MARIA That same day all the hospitals in the area closed down and the roads were blocked out of the city. He died in this very room. TRISTAN Got it. Stay away from the cafeteria food. MARIA You dont believe me? TRISTAN I think these are ghosts stories used to make this airport more valuable. Theyre cute, Maria, thats all. I dont plan on dying in this airport. MARIA Then I assume you want to purchase a ticket out of here? Youve already been here four days and three hours. Prove me wrong-- leave. TRISTAN Im... uh... waiting to purchase a ticket. And while I wait I will stay positive. Even though I cant leave now-- and will soon-- theres something wonderful about spending some time in an airport. It reminds me of... its so full of... whats the word Im looking for-MARIA Hopelessness? TRISTAN Adventure! Thats it. So full of adventure. Cant you see it? Look all around you. Surely you see the appeal of a good adventure. Youre whole life could be an adventure with the right outlook. MARIA Mi dispiace, signore. I simply work here. Nothing adventurous about that. TRISTAN Thats where youre wrong. Think of all the people you get to meet. This book thats filled with such... interesting stories. All of them stories you get to be a part of. MARIA Dont remind me.

5. TRISTAN Someones blue. MARIA Its not my story-- you understand? Its not me in the book. TRISTAN You want to be in this book. Of all the books in the world, this is your first pick? MARIA I can't live through the lives of everyone that get's to pass through that gate. If that were true, I'd be content to stay behind my counter for the rest of my life. Two months ago I met a man named George Heckler. He was out exploring the world. He had just flown in from Roma and he talked of her beauties as if the great city had landed in the heart of Toblach. And just last week I met a family of eight traveling to Austria to visit some family. They were the Petersons. Troy and Amy and Barbra and Tony and Ryan and Troy Junior and Hannah and Baby Michael. TRISTAN Thats quite a memory you have. MARIA Its hard to forget the four-thousand one-hundred eighty and a half faces that have passed through this year. TRISTAN And if you could just see-- wait a half? MARIA All my life Ive waited for my turn to go through those gates, Mr. Russel. You want to know why I believe in the curse? I live it. Every day it keeps me here while the world around me continues to grow. One of these days, Im afraid the world will just leave me behind. Ive heard rumors that phones have no wires and mail is obsolete! I wont know when Pope Benedict XVI is no longer in the papacy, there might be more than one channel on la televisione. TRISTAN You do know the Iron Curtain fell. MARIA Uh...

6. TRISTAN Have you ever left this city? MARIA (beat) No. Im not lying when I say theres a curse. Were all fated for something. TRISTAN You believe in curses and fates? MARIA A curse, Mr. Russel, is just sour fate. TRISTAN Great. I needed a new throw-pillow. MARIA Scuzi? TRISTAN Sorry, in America we have a tradition where-MARIA You throw pillows? TRISTAN Yes. But thats not what I-(sighs) Pillows, fates and curses-- Ive found myself in the middle of either the most interesting conversation ever, or... Im stuck in an airport. HENRY (O.S.) Has anyone seen my bag? Its tan and has a blue handle. Its very important and I cant lose it. You understand? HENRY enters, frantic. MARIA Can I help you Mr. Henry? HENRY Yes, Maria, its seem Ive lost my bag from the previous flight. Has anyone found my baggage? MARIA Im afraid not.

7. HENRY Thats too bad. TRISTAN Im sorry, who are you? HENRY The names Henry O Harry. Im an entrepreneur. MARIA Mr. Henry came in on the flight from Germany. HENRY Yes and Ive been stuck here for the last four hours. TRISTAN The plane should be here at any moment, theres always hope. HENRY Hope, Mr... TRISTAN Sorry, Tristan Russel. HENRY Mr. Russel, hope is a luxury the finest airports are void of. TRISTAN Void? Airports are full of hope! Without hope, flying is pointless. I simple cant afford to believe flying is a waste of my time. HENRY Youre an optimist. TRISTAN Im broke. I cant afford much of anything these days... Honestly, Maria, thats why I havent purchased my ticket. There. My secretes out in the open. HENRY How poor? TRISTAN Very. I lost all my money to a guy named McMallory. The con told me he worked in foreign markets. Toblach real estate to be precise.

8. HENRY And you believed him? TRISTAN He didnt exactly wear a sign that read Hi, Im a larcenist if thats what you mean. HENRY What horrible luck youve found yourself in. Ive made a few bad investments... its like burning money. TRISTAN Gee, thanks. I was beginning to feel like I wasted my money. HENRY Technically, theres no such thing as wasted money. Just money you cant use. TRISTAN Youre very good at making feel good about my life choices. HENRY Dont blame me. It sounds like youre either cursed or youve angered God. TRISTAN What would God want with me? MARIA We all owe God something. TRISTAN That sounds about right. The Almighty debt collector breathing down my neck. HENRY This Mallory fellow, did he give you a business ID? TRISTAN He sure did. SEC approved trading and everything. He even checked out with the IRS. HENRY Sounds like a professional. What was the name of the business? TRISTAN Mallory Enterprises. It was suppose to be an oversea reality broker. He would use my funds to buy property with remote Italian vistas, wed rent them out for honeymoons, American business meetings... I was going to get fifty-one percent of the companys stock, just for fronting him the money.

9. HENRY Just like that, huh? TRISTAN Seemed to good to be true at the time. I hate that it was. MARIA How much money did you lose? HENRY Oh, thats not an appropriate question to ask a poor person. TRISTAN No. Its okay. Its hard times, thats all. If my mistakes can act as a warning for others, then let it be. Maria, I lost five-hundred thousand on the whole deal. HENRY Half a million? TRISTAN Yes. I spent the rest of my money on buying a ticket for myself and a private investigator from the SEC to get to Toblach. Now, Im broke and stranded in the Italian version of Mayberry. HENRY And this private investigator, where is he now? TRISTAN He never made it. HENRY Heres to hoping it works for out you. Oh! (handing an I.D.) Before I forget, I have a ticket for the three-forty flight to Switzerland. MARIA How exciting! Whats in Switzerland? HENRY Banks. TRISTAN Swiss banks? Arent those for shady people?

10. HENRY Yes. Im not going for the banks. Im going for the chocolate. Theres nothing shady about chocolate. TRISTAN Except the color... HENRY Youre a smart one, Tristan! I like you. MARIA hands HENRY his ticket. HENRY When will the flight be leaving? MARIA Your flight should be on-time. P.A. SYSTEM (Italian/German) Attention passengers, the flight from Rome to Toblach, Italy is delayed by fifteen minutes. MARIA (into a microphone) This just in. The flight from Rome to Toblach, Italy has been delayed by fifteen minutes. (to Henry:) Im sorry sir, but the flight has been delayed fifteen minutes. HENRY Then if youll excuse me, I think Ill have a cup of espresso over at the bar. Tristan, if you find yourself in need of company, you know where to find me. Ill even get you a drink. TRISTAN I appreciate it, Henry, good people like you are hard to find these days. HENRY exits.