Under Pressure

CL: Bess
CL Mom: Sam
AJ: Rina
AJ Mom: Anastasia
Counselor: Marina
Student: Anastasia
Jenna: Rina

Scene I
Counselor on stage alone
What is success? According to schools, it’s getting a good education and a college degree.
According to some parents, it’s perfect grades and a top notch job. To others, it’s simply to be
happy. Children are easily influenced, and spending 6 hours a day in school leaves each with an
image of the perfect student. That student is what they strive to be. But is striving for perfection
really what will grant us success? Take a deep breath and think, what does success mean to you?
What are you willing to risk in order to attain it?

EXIT

Scene II
AJ Mom sitting and reading newspaper, CL Mom is cleaning a kitchen-split stage.
AJ: walks through a pantomime door, STAGE LEFT Hey mom, I’m home.
AJ Mom: Hey! How was your day?
Cl and mom walk in STAGE RIGHT
AJ: It was fine.
AJ Mother: Dinner will be ready at seven-thirty, ok? Let me know if you need any help.
CL Mom: (enthusiastically) Hey! How was school? How was soccer?
CL: It was fine. I got to play goalie, that was cool I guess. How was your day? *clearly not
interested*
CL Mom: Well honey, my day was great. I saw Kathleen at the grocery store, and did you know
that her daughter Aiden, you remember Aiden, don’t you? Aiden is doing an internship with NIH
this summer. Didn’t you apply for that internship? What happened to that?
CL: It would have overlapped with my soccer camp, so I didn’t end up applying. We talked
about this months ago.
CL Mom: Mhm, I see. Aj and mom walk out STAGE LEFT Ok. I need to take your brother to
piano later, and you have your violin lesson at six thirty. Make sure to finish before then. By the
way - are you hungry? There are some leftovers in the fridge from my happy hour.
CL: No thanks. I’m fine.
All Exit
Scene III
Enter Counselor: standing center stage: other actors come out with charts behind
Counselor: Most days, high school students spend much of their afternoons and evenings
participating in extracurriculars, working part time jobs, and doing homework. High school kids
spend an average of 3.5 hours per week night on homework. In addition, most children have
other after-school activities which take up even more time. This pushes many students to work
late into the evening, causing them to become stressed and sleep-deprived. It’s a never ending
cycle of not understanding the material and then not being able to complete the work in and out
of class.

Exit stage right

Scene IV
CL walks in STAGE LEFT and is holding her schedule and backpack, goes up to lockers, friend
walks on as well.

Jenna: Did you get your schedule yet? What classes do you have?
CL: They put my AP organic chemistry in the first block. It’s gonna suck having it so early.
Jenna: Yikes.
CL: Well, what’s your first period?
Jenna: Haha. Ceramics.
CL: Sounds fun, my mom would kill me if i took a class like that-can you hold this
ands Jenna schedule, opens locker
Jenna: *Looks over it in astonishment and pauses like she is reading* Jeez, you’re taking four
AP classes? Isn’t that kinda... a lot?
CL: I mean, when it gets me into a good college it’ll be worth it. My parents want me to go to
Yale like they did.
Jenna: What other schools are you looking at?
CL: Well, Yale is what my family wants, but UNC Chapel Hill had a beautiful campus, and
Texas A&M was nice too.
Jenna: Cool, uh, good luck, I guess. I think I want to take a gap year or something. I just want to
experience life without school. To be honest, I’m kinda scared of college. It’s so much
independence.
CL: I’m sure you’ll figure it out.
Jenna: Well, what about you? What are you going to do?
CL: Well, I gotta get into Yale first…
bell sounds
both girls close their lockers
Jenna: Well, I’ll see you later.
Exit STAGE RIGHT
Scene V
Roll on a desk+computer+chair?
Counselor walks on stage, sits down at computer and desk

Counselor: Wheeling around to look at student coming in. Hi, how are you? Do you have a
question about your schedule for next year?
Student: No, it’s about college. I’ve been trying to think about what I’ll need in terms of
applying to them this year.
Counselor: How can I put your mind at ease?
Student: I don’t know what classes I should be taking. Lots of my friends are taking a bunch of
AP classes, should I be?
Counselor: You do have to take care of yourself. There’s no question about that. However, it’s
important to make sure to challenge yourself in school to show you can handle the pressure of
college. Colleges look for outstanding students, so creating a sort of resume early is important to
make yourself look more desirable.
Student: I know, but it all seems like a lot. I don’t know how much is too much. I have hard
classes this year and I have practices for sports and I also play an instrument. But everyone’s
stressed... right?
Counselor: Are you having trouble finding a balance?
Student: I guess so.
Counselor: Finding the right balance between school and after school activities does vary from
student to student. Bell rings We’ll talk later, ok?
Student: Yeah. Thanks.
Student exits STAGE LEFT. Pause for a second. Counselor gets stuff together and exits after.
Deep like the corruption in our government
Scene VI
AJ sits alone studying vocab on bench-couch.
AJ Mom: Hey sweetie! What’s up? Do you need anything?
AJ: Yeah actually will you quiz me?
AJ Mom pops her head in from STAGE LEFT`
AJ Mom: For what?
AJ: SAT Vocab section.
AJ Mom: Ok. AJ Mom walks in, AJ hands her the cards, squints. “Overwrought.”
AJ: Worried…?
AJ Mom: Mhm. “Despondency.”
AJ: Um… A state of depression or despair.
AJ Mom: *squints* “Woebegone.”
AJ: Oh, um, like forlorn, hopeless.
AJ Mom: “Platitudinous.” Are you nervous for the test?
AJ: I mean, yeah, a little. Good schools care a lot about SAT scores. Can you repeat that last
one?
AJ Mom: Platitudinous.
AJ: Used too often to be interesting or thoughtful; burnt-out.
AJ Mom: You’ll let me know if you have problems with homework, right? I don’t want you to
get *checks paper* platitudinous.
AJ: Why would I have problems with homework?
AJ Mom: Because kids your age are always saying that homework is killing them.
AJ: I think that’s a bit over the top.
AJ Mom: *eye roll* You know, the reason I push you so hard is so you can have the
opportunities I didn’t have.
AJ: I know, mom (obviously wants to end the conversation)
AJ Mom: (definitely is continuing the conversation) I’m just trying to help, you know.
AJ: I know, mom.
AJ walks off STAGE RIGHT

Scene VII
All parents on split stage, monologuing to the audience
AJ Mom: Did I say something wrong?
CL Mom walks in STAGE RIGHT
CL Mom: Is she angry?
AJ Mom: After everything she and I have fought for, she can’t be afraid.
CL Mom: She’s privileged. She can’t be angry.
AJ Mom: She doesn’t know what it's like to have nothing.
CL Mom: She doesn’t know what it's like to feel weak.
Both: I was grateful for what I had.
Pause
AJ Mom: She loved to sing as a kid.
CL Mom: She used to draw me portraits.
AJ Mom: I haven’t heard her sing in months.
CL Mom: I found her old sketchbooks in the attic. I didn’t want to tell her, she’d call me nosy.
AJ Mom: She’s so busy all the time.
Both: It’s my fault. I pushed her away.
CL Mom: She’s so young.
AJ Mom: So independent.
CL Mom: You know, I would give anything to go to school again.
AJ Mom: I work so hard to give her this life and all she has to do is go to school.
CL Mom: She used to look a lot happier.
AJ Mom: I went through the same stuff back in the day. I got through it.
Both: But I push her because I love her. I just want her to be happy.
AJ MOM exit STAGE LEFT, CL MOM sits down at kitchen table.

Scene VIII
*CL runs in STAGE RIGHT excitedly waving a thick packet*
CL: Mom! Guess what?
CL Mom: What? *looks up* Is that from Yale!?
CL: No, but it’s from UNC Chapel Hill! I think I got in!
CL Mom: You got into your safety school! Congratulations! But you’ll get into Yale too, so you
can turn that down.
CL: I mean, I got a letter from Yale too… It’s out in the kitchen still.
CL Mom: Well go get it! Aren’t you excited?
CL: I didn’t get in Mom.
CL Mom: *smile drops* Well you haven’t opened it yet. How do you know?
CL: I got a small envelope. It means that I didn’t get in.
CL Mom: I mean, we can always appeal, and-and-and
CL: No, Mom, stop.
CL Mom: What?
CL: I know you really wanted me to get in and I didn’t. But….(rushed, like a burst of words)I
don’t want to go to Yale.
CL Mom: But-- Why? Your father and I met at Yale…
CL: I just don’t want to go.
CL Mom: Why are you giving up?
CL: You want it more than I do, and UNC will be a good fit for me.
CL Mom: I just don’t understand why you’re settling for less.
CL: Yale is less. I would be unhappy and stressed all the time. I want to actually enjoy college.
CL Mom: Fine.
CL: Fine? What does that mean? You’ll let me go?
CL Mom: If you want to throw away all your hard work, go ahead. Forget Yale.
CL: I just wanted you to be happy for me.
CL exit STAGE RIGHT, CL MOM PUTS HEAD IN HANDS, exit STAGE LEFT

Scene IX
AJ mom enter STAGE RIGHT, on stage alone, talking on the phone but the audience doesn’t
hear the other side
AJ mom: Hi mom! How are you? Um, I wanted to talk to you for a bit. Oh, no it’s not bad-- no,
everything’s fine. It’s about Audrey. She got her letters today, her college acceptance letters.
Pause. She got into a good school, a really good school. Deep breath. Mom, I don’t have the
money to send her there. I know. I just don’t know what to do, even with the scholarship, it’s just
too much. It’s not your fault. If anyone’s to blame, it’s me. Pause It’s just… she also got a full
ride to a much smaller school, yeah, the one uptown. Mhm. And I want her to be able to go to the
school she wants, but… I just don’t know if we can make it work. I don’t know. Head in hands.
AJ: Mom! Dinner!
AJ Mom: I have to go, Mom, Audrey is calling me. We’ll talk later. Yeah. Bye. Hangs up
phone. To AJ Coming!
EXIT STAGE WHO CARES

Scene X
Counselor enter STAGE LEFT, all others come in wearing “student clothes”
Counselor:
Student writes and then puts head in hands
School counselors have firsthand experience watching bright, talented kids crumble under the
pressure put upon them every day.
One student holds up 100% paper, other student looks at them forlornly(?)
It’s hard work, having to show these kids that the world is probably not going to treat them right
if they don’t fit one specific mold: the perfect student. Now, what is the perfect student? That
student has amazing grades, is liked by the teachers, has high test scores, uses their time out of
school for extracurriculars and studying, and gets into a great college.
Student writing furiously on a piece of paper, writing a paper or something
Of course, this is what we all aspire to be, but is it realistic? Student after student strives to fit
this mold to please parents, teachers, peers, and themselves. But perfection isn’t just going to
happen overnight.
Counselor walks forward, students exit in perfect prisoner line
So, starting from an early age we are told that perfection is in fact attainable, and it’s what we
need to succeed in the world. And we believe it.

End of play. Curtain call.

 Works Cited

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www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/may11/vol68/num08/The-

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