----.

BIOGRAPHY
David Ives is probably best known for his evenings of one-acts, collected as All in the Timing (Vintage Books) and Time Flies (Grove Press). His full-length work to date has been collected in Polish Joke and Other Plays (Grove). He is also the author of two young-adult novels, Monsieur Eek and S crib. He lives in New York City with liis wife, Martha.

THE BUZZARD
A country house, toward evening. Cold winter light outside. Throughout the plqy, the lights graduallY dim around center stage to nighttime. At curtain, JENNY is onstage alone. JENNY. (Calls.) Neil? -Neil? -Neil! {'(NEIL enters.)

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The Blizzard was originally produced by The 24 Hour Company at The American Airlines Theatre as part of The 24 Hour Plays on Broadwqy on October 23, 2006. It was directed by Bennett Miller with the following cast: JENNY NEIL SALIM NATASHA Anna Paquin Fisher Stevens Aasif Mandvi Gaby Hoffman

NEIL. It's still coming down. Some of those drifts are a yard deep already. What's the matter? JENNY. Nothing. I just wonde~ed what happened to you. NEIL. Got scared, huh? JENNY. No, I wasn't scared. The food's all ready. Do you really think they'll
make it up here in this?

NEIL. Joe's got those new chains on the car. The ones that Sandy made him
fork out for? Just what you'd expect from Miss Rationality.

JENNY. Right. Mr. List Maker. Mr. My-Pencils-Have-To-Be-Laid-Out-In-

CAST OF CHARACTERS
JENNY NEIL SALIM NATASHA

The-Right-Order-On-My-Desk. NEIL. What about the TV? .

No, you're not rational. Sandy is rational.

JENNY. Nothing. Not a thing. NEIL. The electricity'S on. You'd think with a satellite dish we'd pick up
something.

JENNY. The telephone'S still out. NEIL. They've probably been trying us on their cell since they left the city. JENNY. There's no radio either. NEIL. No radio? JENNY. Isn't itgreat?It's just like an Agatha Christie. NEIL. Thanks for that. I'm still not used to it. Being so remote. Nature's always scared the living hell out of me. Now I'm living in it. Or visiting it on weekends, anyway. Y QU know I saw a bat flapping around out there? I didn't know there were bats in snowstorms. No radio? This play isfor Walter Bobbie. The world could be ending out there, for Christ's sake. And we'd be the last ones to hear about it. No radio ...

JENNY. We have no radio and a beautiful blizzard and a house and woods
and a mountain that are allpurs. NEIL. All ours in 29 years and three months.

JENNY. I kind of wish they weren't coming up tonight. It's so cozy. I

wouldn't mind curling up with a book.

1
.11

NEIL. I wish you hadn't said "Agatha Christie." 60

61

I
t