sou: 4 I took the open door for un invitation. The Gulf wind blowing tonight, . . cools things off w Hitle. Bat my on fire... . (dima savs notilng, John moves a few sta foward her.) The silence? [Almu’ sinks onic the love cloving her eyes.) Yea, the enormous silence. [He goes fo er] 1 will go in & minute, but first I want you to. your bands om my face. . . . [He crouches beside hard] nity and. Miss Alma have uch cool hands. (He buries face tn her lap. The atiude suggests @ sione Piets. Alma ‘eyes remain closed.) {On the orker site of the stage Dr. Buchanan eniere hoture aiid the Hight builds a litle as ke looks around the door of his office. The love theme music fader out and the Mexicar music comer up strongly, with a defini ‘ominous quality, ax Rosa enters the office from she ot side] ROA: Tohnny! [Ske carcher sight of Dr. Buchanan and checks fi elf in surprise,] Obil T thought you were Johnny! . . « you are Jobnay's futher, .. . I'm Resa Gonzales! DR, BUCHAKAN: T know who you are, What's going on in my house? oss [nervous]: : John’s giving a party becwuie we're leaving tomorrow, [dee flanity] Yesl Together! T hope you Uke the idea, bat if your sion't, it doa’t matter, because we like the idea end my father likes tho idea, GONZALES [drunkenly sitting up on the couch) ‘The aky ia the limit! [Pr. Buchanan slowly raises Als silversheaded came in threatening gestae.) DR, BUCHANAN: Get your—swine ont of—my howe! [Efe sites Gonzak ‘with his cate.) GONZALES [staggering up from the couch ix pain and sure Aiseeee! oss (breathlessly, backing against the chart of azsatovn Nol No, Papal DR, BUCHANAN (striking ar the chest of the bull-tke man wlth its cane}: Get your swine out, C said! Get them out of my houset [He repeats the Blow. The drunken Mexican roars with ain and wvyriee, He backt up ard reaches ser Als coat. oma [wildiy and despalringty]: No, no, n9, no, n0, no! [She covers her face against the chart of anatonry. A re volver is fired. There ts a burst of light. The cane drops. The music srops shart. Everything dims out but @ spot of Aight on Rose standing agaist the chart of anatomy with closed eyes and her face twisted like that of a tragie ‘mark. Rosa [senselesrly]: Asanaabbbhbh ., Asazaahbbbbh . , « [tke theme music ix started! faintly and lighy disappears from everything bur the wings of the stone angel) _.-...seene eight The doctor's office, The sone angel is dimly visible above, Jokn is seated in a hunched position at the rable. Alma caters with « coffee tray. The sounds of @ prayer come through she inner door. sound: What is that mumbo.jumbe your father is spouting in. there? LMA: A prayer, 93souN: ‘Tell bim to quit, We dew't want that worn-out maglo Ave: ‘You may not want i, but it's not a question of what youl want any more. I've inade you some eafles. JouN: i ‘1 don't want any. ALMA: Lean buck and lot me wash your face off, Joba. [She pransaa @ towel fo the red marks on dis face.) Is such a fine fuca, fa fine and sensitive face, a fnce that has power in it chat shoulda't be wasted. Jour: Never mind that. (#fe puntes her hand away.) ALSAE ‘You have to-go in to eee him, son: ‘couldn't, He wouldn't want me, ALMA: j ‘This happened because of his devotion to you, oun: Tt happened because some meddleswme Mattie calted him back bere tonight. Who vas it did that? aus I did. souN: Bi war you then! ALMA I phoned him at the fever clinic in Tyon as soom as. 1 learned what you were planning to do I wired his to coum here and. stop it, JOHN ‘You brought him bere to be shot, ALM ‘You can't put the blame on anything but your weakness, 96 Jou You call ae weak? ALMA: Sometimes it takes a tragedy like this to make a weak per- won strong, aout: ‘You—white-blooded spinster? You so right people, plows pompous mumblers, preachers and preacher's daughter, all mafiied up in a lot of worn-out magic! Amd I wis supposed minkter to your neurosis, give you tables for sleeping and tonics to give you the mrength to go on mumbling your worn-out mumbo-jumbot Aneta: Cull me whatever you your drunken. shouting. , bot dew let your father hear the tries to break away from him] rou: Stay hate! 1 want yoo to look at something. [Ae mums her chou.) This chart of anatonty, 100k! ALMA: I've seem it before, [She murne away] sOEN: ‘You've nevér dared to look at it, ALBA: Why shoold 1? sor ‘You're scared to, Anan: ‘You must be out of your senses, sort ‘You talk about weakness but can’t even look at a picture of human insides, ine ‘They're not important. Jor: ‘That's your mistake, You think you're stuffed with roses oFJeaves, Turn around and look af it, it may do you good! ALMA: 3 : How can you behave like this with your father dying and you vo. SOHN? ‘Hold stilt ALBA? «130 much to blame far it sou: ‘No more than you are! ALMA ‘At least for this title whille SouN: Leek heret ALMA ++» You could feel some shame! s0nM [with crazy, grinning intensity] : Now listen here to the anatomy fecturel This upper story's the brain which la hungry for something called truth and doesn’. get mush bot keeps on feeling hungry! This mi le'a the belly which is hungry for food, This part down hhere is the sex which & bungry fer love because It is somo- times loneiome. I've fod all three, an much of all three ws Tcould of a much a8 [ wanted— You've fed nome —nothing. ‘Well—maybe your belly a little—watery subsistance— But love or truth, nothing but—nothing but band-medowi notions|—attitudes!—poses. [He releares her.) Now you can go. The anatomy lecture is over, aM: So that is your high conception of human desires. What you have here is not the anntomy of a beast, but » man, And I =I reject your opinion of where love is, and the kind of truth you believe the brain to be socking!—There is some thing not shown on the chart TOWN: ‘You mean the part that Alma la Spanish for, do you? se sua: ‘Yeo, that's not shown on the anatomy chart! But it's thers, just’ the same, yes, there! Somewhere, not seen, but there, Ard it's tige that I loved you with—thatl Net what you mention!—Yes, did love you with, John, did nearly dié of when you burt me! (He sums slowly to ter and ipeaks gent. TOR T wouldn't have nuade love te you. ALMA [uncomprehending!y]: What? son: ‘The night at the Casine—I wouldn't have made love to you. Even if you bid consented 0 go upstairs. 1 couktn't have made love to you. [She stares af dim ar if anciparing some unbearable airs.) Yes, yes| Inu't that funny? Pin more afraid. of your soul than you're afraid of my bady, You'd have been’ as safe as che ‘angel of the fountaia—becanse 1 woulda’t feel deer enough to touch Fou. ,. (Mr. Hbnemitier comes in] Me. wivensnee: He's resting more casily now. ALO Oh... [She nads her head. John reaches for his coffee coup,] T's cold, 1 heat it, 0H Its all right, Mem, wonntriten: Alnia, Dr. John wanis you, ALMA DG man, WINES 3A, Hie asked if you would sing for him, ALMA T-couldn't—now, ooORD: s Go in and sing to-him, Miss Almat [Mr, Wtinerailiee wishatraws through che oxeter door. Alma looks back at John hunched over the coffee cup. He doem't return her took, She pastes into the blurred orange space beyond the inner door, leaving ir alizbrly open After a few minctes her valce rises softly withtn, singtmm. John suddenly rises, He cross to the door, shoves if slowly open and encers.] oun [softly and with deep tenderness: Father? [The tighs dime out in the house, but lingers om the sone angel] scone nine The cyclorama is the Jaint blue of a tate afternoon tn ate hun, There 1s band-musle—a Sousa march, dx the distance, Ai i grows sonrewhar louder, Alma encers the Rectory lnwerior in a dressing gown and with hor ir hanging loot She looks ax if she ‘hod been through a long iliness, she intensity drained, her pala face lstiess. She crosses 10 the ‘window frame bie the parade ix not in sight so sha returnd weakly fo the sofa and sics down closing her ayer witht exhaustion, The Rev. and Mrs. Winenidler enter the owter door frame off the Rectory, « grotesquelooking couple, Mrs, Winemiflen has on her phoned hat, at a rakish angle, and @ brilliant searf about her throat, Her face wears a rogutsh smile that seegasis a musical comedy pirate, One hand hotds the mins iiner's arm and with we other she 4 holding an ioe cream cone, BO, WINEROLLER: Now you may let go of my ann, het worst behavior, Stopped in you plense! She was on front of the White Star Pharmacy om Front Strest and stood there like a muleg 400. woulde't budge til 1 bought her an ice cream cone, 1 had ic wrapped in tissue paper because she had promised me that the wouldn't eat it until we got home, The moment I gave fe to her she tore off the paper and walked heme licking it every step of the way!—just—just to humiliate mel [Mrs. Winerniller offers Aim she half-eaten come, saying “Eick?"] om, WINK No, thank you ALMA: Now, mow, children, an: [Mr. Winernifier's irritation shifis to Alma] ae, WONDMILLE Almai Why doa't you get dressed? It hurts me to sec you itting around like this, day in, day out, like an invalid when there is nothing paricularly wrong with you, T can't read your mind, You may have had dome kind of disappoint. ment, but you must not make it am excuse for acting us if the World had come to an end, ALMAr 1 hive thace the beds and washed the breakfast dishes and phoned the markee and aent the laundry ont and pooled the potatoes and shelled the peas and set uhe table for launch, What more do you want? aa, WIvEMELLEN [sharply I want you to either get dremed or stay in your room, [Atma rises indifferently, thea her father spocks suddenly.) AL oight you get dressed. Don't you? Yes, I heard you alip- ping oot Of the house wt bwo in the morning. And thut wus hot the first tee, ALM. 1 don't sleep well, Sometimes I have te get up and walk for u while before I am able to sleep, Am, WIKEDIL ‘What am I going to tell people who ask sbout you? wa Tell them I've changed and you're wi way. ing to see in what Jol