HOLLOW IS THY NAME
Lorenzo Buford
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Sue Ann young woman in her twenties
Roger 30ish male
Place: Hell
Time: Present
SYNOPSIS
Is the story of a killer facing his victim in a hell that has been created by
both of them to resolve their differences, their karma and face the lies that
have been their personal truths they have build their lives upon.
© 2006 Lorenzo Buford
All Rights Reserved.
HOLLOW IS THY NAME
SCENE ONE – HELL – PRESENT TIME
A gospel song is heard as the lights come upon two church pews set a distance
from each other. Sue Ann is sitting on one of the pews. Roger walks in and is
carrying a shotgun. He aims the shotgun upward with a threatening gesture to
shoot and the music stops. Roger sits on the other church pew.
ROGER
How many goddamn times must I hear that damn music?
SUE ANN
(Crying to herself) The Lord is my shepherd.
ROGER
Women…Butchers of men. That’s why God hates you. Didn’t he
despise his own Mother?
SUE ANN
(To herself) I shall not want.
ROGER
You want, you beg, you cajole, you scheme. You are always eating away at a man.
You are always finding something wrong.
SUE ANN
Stop it! Haven’t you damaged the house of the Lord enough?
ROGER
It’s still standing in spite of you.
SUE ANN
God says to forgive you and I’m a good church goer. (To herself as she
begins to walk around) God is testing me, and I’m going pass his test
because his son died for me and I died for him.
ROGER
This isn’t God’s house. This is my house!
SUE ANN
(Trying to convince her self of being righteous) God has a divine purpose for
me. I don’t understand it yet but God moves in mysterious ways and I know
he’ll see me out of this. (Questioning tone) He wouldn’t just leave
me here?
ROGER
So you doubt God too.
SUE ANN
(Screams) Murderer!
ROGER
We both kill in our own way.
SUE ANN
I should be in Heaven not here with you.
ROGER
Where is God now? Where has he been? I think he’s on vacation and forgot
to send a postcard.
SUE ANN
Suppose to be angels, bright lights, hallelujah chorus, grandmother, grandfather,
my baby brother Joseph.
ROGER
Man chooses God when it is convenient. (Holds up shotgun) This is God. This
is life, this is death!
SUE ANN
(Turns to him) You’re a killer. You will burn in hell for eternity.
ROGER
I should shoot you again. Maybe you’ll stay dead this time. (Aims gun
at her)
SUE ANN
(Afraid) No wait.
ROGER
(Gets up in her face) He promised you resurrection.
SUE ANN
You don’t have a god. You have Satan.
ROGER
(She turns and makes a move away from him but he grabs her.) God is as dead
as you will be.
SUE ANN
You fucking freak. (Shakes him off her and runs to the other edge of the stage.)
ROGER
(Sits on church pew and has an air of despair about him.) I woke up still seeing
my father’s face snarling at me, no voices of angels calling me, only
my mother crying because he didn’t come home, hit her when he did.
SUE ANN
Why didn’t you just shoot yourself and leave us out your craziness?
ROGER
Her face always launched him into anger.
SUE ANN
My mission in life was not to resolve your problems.
ROGER
Wouldn’t you die for your God?
SUE ANN
Talk tough with a gun. Let me hold it. Let’s see who is the man then?
ROGER
This time I’ll put a hole in your head instead of your heart.
SUE ANN
How can you kill someone that is already dead?
ROGER
You talk to damn much.
SUE ANN
Excuse me, weren’t you the one walking through the neighborhood talking
to him self?
(Pause) I don’t belong here.
ROGER
Somehow I have this feeling; you and I have been in hell over and over again.
SUE ANN
Stop with the crazy talk!
ROGER
I tried to silence the voices so I could talk to you.
SUE ANN
I’m not like you.
ROGER
I thought killing you; I’d be rid of you.
SUE ANN
Though I walk through the valley of death I will fear no evil, (Looks him in
the eye and shouts at him)…no evil.
ROGER
(Imitates his mother) You’re not growing up like your father. I’m
not going to have another wannabe man in this house. You think this is the way
to treat women. Your father is sick. When you marry someone, you marry them
for better or worse, it’s the fate of a woman. A woman’s lot in
life is to keep a man on track, their over grown babies. You see the evil that
is in your father, you will not be like that. Women don’t like it, don’t
need it. You need to respect women. A woman gave birth to the son of God not
a man. Like to see him pass a watermelon through his ass, than he’ll know
what pain is. (Imitates his father) You must understand a woman is God’s
mistake, an experiment that went haywire. Man is here to help woman get back
on track, get back to God but her head is confused, she hears voices, it’s
her own evil coming back at her, sometimes you have to raise your voice, your
hand so that women know there is only God in this house. (Imitates his mother)
Better be glad I didn’t beat the life out of you. Should have waited until
your father got home but I ain’t having no child of mine back talk to
me. You think you’re grown, well thing again Mister, you’ll go to
bed with out supper tonight and tomorrow night. When you start bringing a check
into this house, I think then you got something to say. Up until then, you will
respect me. (Imitates high school friend) Man, she’s easy; she’ll
fuck the track team. This girl will suck dick quicker than she breathes. (Imitates
Preacher) God sees all you do. Don’t think you can hide from God. Don’t
think God doesn’t know what is going on in your head. Don’t think
God doesn’t see the wickedness you do with your hands, the drunkenness
in your mouth, the filth that lies in your bed, the devil that rules your flesh.
God knows you. He knows you. (Himself) I’m not evil. I’m not a woman.
I am a son of God. I am God. I am not evil, not a woman, who choose Satan over
God. (Imitates Father) Mother says your report card says your failing. (Imitates
friend) Man, I can believe you couldn’t find it. (Imitates Mother) I smell
liquor on your breath. (Imitates Father) I am not supporting no grown man in
my house.
SUE ANN
(To herself) I can’t believe this is my salvation. What have I done God
to piss you off?
ROGER
Remember when you and your friends sat in the tree and spit on me when I passed
underneath.
SUE ANN
We were kids. (Beat) We saw you hit your father, he fell down and you walked
away.
ROGER
I didn’t mean to make people uncomfortable.
SUE ANN
So killing those other six people in church was the answer to your bad attitude?
ROGER
I tried odd jobs in the neighborhood but everyone kept laughing at me.
SUE ANN
This is what you did with our charity?
ROGER
I saw when you turned the light on in your bedroom.
SUE ANN
(Interrupts) You are disgusting.
ROGER
You looked at me through my bathroom window at night.
SUE ANN
Stop it.
ROGER
I wanted what my hand could not give me.
SUE ANN
Stop it.
ROGER
What’s wrong with me wanting what you want?
SUE ANN
I couldn’t help it that my bedroom window looked into your bathroom window.
You didn’t have the decency to close the curtain.
ROGER
Did you touch yourself when I was touching myself?
SUE ANN
Eh, gross.
ROGER
You didn’t stop watching.
SUE ANN
You should be burning in hell instead of having a conversation with me. (Cries
out) This isn’t fair.
ROGER
When man makes God, God is never fair. (Imitates Friend) Your problem Roger
is you let women be a mystery to you. Let me help you solve the problem. You
have to understand how to please a woman. I can show you. We can pretend. I’ll
do it to you as if you were a
woman then me as if I was a woman. We’ll just practice like for a game.
SUE ANN
You are a sick fuck!
ROGER
Hollow is thy name.
SUE ANN
You made a lot of people cry. (Beat) I will not be able to go to my senior prom.
I will not be able to go to the movies on Saturday, go to the mall with my friends.
I can’t go camping anymore with my father. God how I loved to shot animals,
always got them on the first shot, better shot than my father. I just play the
daddy’s girl role and he’d get over it. I could run faster than
my brothers. Wanted to go out for track but my parents said it was a lesbian
thing. But they were going to let me go to Europe with the church choir. We
were going to take God’s word to the heathen people and let them know
about God’s love. (Pause) You fucked up my life you dick head. I had potential,
a future. (Beat) Shit, I hadn’t even planned on going to church that night
but Billy was there. I thought if we could sneak away maybe we’d go all
the way. God had it out for me. No Billy. No sex. I died a virgin because of
you!
ROGER
(Imitates Sue Ann’s Mother) Sue Ann, stop looking out that window at Roger.
You’ll give that crazy boy the wrong thing to think about.
SUE ANN
You’re sick. Sick!
ROGER
(Continues imitating Sue Ann’s Mother) Don’t ever look him in the
eyes Sue Ann. That’s a good way to invite crazy into your life when you
look crazy people in the eyes.
SUE ANN
I never looked you in the eyes.
ROGER
God and I have been standing outside the church for years waiting to get in.
Figured if we’re not welcome, there was too much sin in there.
SUE ANN
You are a spawn of Satan.
ROGER
Did you know that Satan was believed in ancient texts to be a woman?
SUE ANN
You’re full of shit.
ROGER
(Reaching for his rifle) It will be finished this time.
SUE ANN
Where is heaven?
ROGER
God is dead.
SUE ANN
Why are you doing this?
ROGER
I killed the Seven Sins. I will wash myself in the blood of my victims and be
cleansed.
SUE ANN
I’ll kill you. Kill you. (She lunges for him but he pushes her away.)
ROGER
I knew you in my head and I can’t let go.
SUE ANN
I wish I could take that gun and shot you like a rabid dog.
ROGER
If I stop knowing a woman, I could know God.
SUE ANN
Pervert.
ROGER
Man made God to justify his evil intentions.
SUE ANN
Why am talking to you? Go sit somewhere and shut up. (Pause) You caused a lot
of pain.
ROGER
You never wanted me. You looked at me at night, you watched me, and I watched
you. Then you ignored me on the street. Am I only good enough when there is
darkness? (Beat) At least I died by my hands and not by your laws.
SUE ANN
You know freak, when God realizes I’m not in heaven, he will come looking
for me. You’ll see. He will burn your ass for sure.
ROGER
I don’t want to know you anymore.
SUE ANN
You think you know hell. I will give you hell. I will torment you for eternity
you perverted freak.
ROGER
(He talks to her as if he is recalling a memory. His demeanor is different.)
Just like in the garden. You always wanted things your way. I had to name things
your way. Had to see the world you’re way. You never talked to me just
at me. You never want the missionary position. You would lay with angels but
not me. That’s why I called you Lilith.
SUE ANN
I don’t know what nonsense you are talking, but I don’t want to
hear it.
ROGER
Why do you love God more than me, my father and I are the same?
SUE ANN
You’re twisting God around to suit your own needs.
ROGER
Why am I letting this woman drive me mad?
SUE ANN
I wish I could take that shotgun and ram it up your ass, and pull the trigger.
See how much you ‘cum’ then.
ROGER
I can love you anymore Sue Ann.
SUE ANN
(Consumed with rage) I will be God’s avenging angel. (Takes the rifle
from him without resistance) Now, I understand why I am here. I am his instrument
of death. This symbol of your dick shall be the instrument of your death.
ROGER
(Sue Ann puts the rifle to Roger’s head.) There is no womb here for me
to sleep.
SUE ANN
Let your hand guide me Lord.
There is a blackout than a gunshot. A gospel song is playing in the background. Lights come upon Sue Ann and Roger sitting on different church pews. Sue Ann’s demeanor is that of a woman with a hard edge to her. Roger has a milk toast persona.
SUE ANN
Wish they’d turn that goddamn music off. I’ve heard enough from
a man who has an issue with women.
ROGER
I didn’t mean to upset you dear.
SUE ANN
Can’t believe I married a weak man just like my mother.
ROGER
Being a nice guy doesn’t make you weak.
SUE ANN
Nice is the same as boring.
ROGER
You married me for love.
SUE ANN
You had a good job. You were an investment.
ROGER
I thought I was important to you.
SUE ANN
Want to hear me fake another orgasm?
ROGER
I knew what you were, I didn’t need proof.
SUE ANN
I wanted you to catch me with another man. Just didn’t expect this ending.
ROGER
I know you’re going through a lot of changes because you’re not
working, losing the baby.
SUE ANN
It wasn’t your baby. Your sperm was on crutches.
ROGER
What does hurting me prove?
SUE ANN
You fucked up my life.
ROGER
(Joking) Guess till death do we part doesn’t really work.
SUE ANN
Shut the fuck up.
ROGER
I’m tired of you telling me to shut up. Self-defense I’d tell the
cops. How’d it look, a man being abused by his wife? What would the world
say, I wasn’t man enough? You were my badge to the world, I was the man.
All the guys wanted you, but I had you. Seeing you with that gun, I thought,
this could be my ticket away from your mouth.
SUE ANN
I should have been born with a dick; I’d know what to do with it. (Shouts)
Turn that music off.
ROGER
I like it. Reminds me when I was a little boy singing in the choir. Thought
God and I would be the best of buddies.
SUE ANN
Your god is just another one with dick problems.
ROGER
Always bitter.
SUE ANN
Face it Roger, you and I are byproducts of a God’s nervous breakdown.
ROGER
We are in hell because we haven’t learned a lesson.
SUE ANN
We’re in hell because I didn’t kill you sooner. The sight of a man
whimpering and begging for his life disgusted me.
ROGER
Well, that distraction didn’t work for either of us. Guess till death
do us part didn’t work.
SUE ANN
Didn’t think you had the balls to fight back.
Roger rushes for the rifle. They struggle. Lights fade quickly to black. There is a gunshot. Lights come up. They are sitting next to each other. Roger has the persona of a child, Sue Ann, a mother.
ROGER
You should have given me a chance to be born. I’d been a good son. I could
have made you proud.
SUE ANN
I didn’t have time for a child. I had a fucking singing career. Then I
had to get pregnant. They said the abortion would be easy, no fuss, no big deal.
Shit. Bleed to death because of you.
ROGER
Momma.
SUE ANN
I will not talk to my abortion!
FADE TO BLACK
.
THE END