SOMETHING STRANGE IN MARSHALL

MANSION

Aira Ujioka as STACEY

Aliya Zoubida Katarina Darfalou Fisseau as JENNA
Caelyn Grace William as CALICE
Cheryl Hodiono as CHIYO
Elana Nasyaputri Abdullah Widjaya as CHLOE
Emily Victoria Lauw as JEZELLE
Erika Nayara Vallrain as STELLA
Jeeza Mahamunkar as OLIVIA
Lori Liang Zhu Chen as JENNIE
Raphaella Callista Hendarson as LILA
Shakeela Eleanor Ameera as HAERIN
SCENE 1
The weatherman said to expect a clear sky tonight, perfect for
stargazing, but don’t forget to bundle up as tonight will be the
coldest summer night of the year. The kids of Farfield Summer
Camp sit around the crackling bonfire, they are covered in
blankets and cardigans, holding their warm beverage.

The first 2 weeks of camp have run somewhat smoothly. Many of

the kids come from metropolitan cities, they are used to the
sound of a sleepless city, serenaded by car horns and bustling
crowds not hooting owls and rustling of leaves. But these are
resilient kids. They’ve made friends with mother nature.

Tonight, the camp counselors have scheduled for a quiet night

around the bonfire. Let the kids delight in the night sky and
bond with each other. An uneventful night. Or so they hope.

CAMP COUNSELOR
(Offstage)
Enjoy your night guys, I’ll leave you to it!

ALL KIDS
Good night!

CHIYO
(points at the sky)
Oh, look at that one! What constellation do you think that
is?

JENNA
Oh! Oh! I know! It’s um… Yes! I think it’s um…

OLIVIA
It’s okay that you don’t know. I’m pretty sure none of us
cares.

JEZELLE
All stars look the same anyways.

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 LILA
That’s not true. Like that one, and that one, that is um…

STACEY
You were saying, Lila?

LILA
Fine I don’t know either.

CHIYO
In some cultures, sailors used stars to navigate. So no,
not all stars look the same, Jezelle.

CHLOE
So? We don’t sail.

JENNIE
Oh drop it you guys. The sky looks cool tonight but we
can’t tell the difference between that star or that star.

Suddenly, the kids can hear rustling behind them.

CALICE
What was that?

JENNA
Probably a wild rabbit. I see them everywhere here.

HAERIN
Or maybe… It was a GHOST!

JEZELLE
Stop it, Haerin! Ghosts aren’t real.

STACEY
I don’t know, maybe Lila is right. I’ve heard rumors from
seniors that this campsite is haunted.

HAERIN
That’s what I’ve heard too! My older sister had so many
ghost stories after she got back from this camp.

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 CHIYO
I drove past a big, creepy, old house on my way here. Is
that where the ghosts live?

STACEY
Exactly!

LILA
Stoooop! I don’t want to hear about this. I want to sleep
in peace tonight.

STELLA
No! Don’t stop, do tell.

HAERIN
(Clears throat)
Around 3 miles east outside of camp, there is an abandoned
mansion called Marshall Manor. It wasn’t always abandoned.
The family that built and lived there went missing 10 years
ago.

The kids listen more attentively, they subconsciously lean

forward.
STACEY
Apparently, some seniors tried to sneak out to see the
mansion for themselves. And they found it. And saw the
family standing in the front door. But…

HAERIN
THEY HAD NO LEGS!

STACEY
A GHOST FAMILY!

All the kids scream in terror.

JENNIE
Ugh! Why did you tell that story?

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 JENNA
Great, now I’ll be thinking about that when I try to close
my eyes. Thank you so much, Lila and Stacey!

STELLA
Oh please, the ghosts won’t float to your room and watch
you sleep, Jenna. They’re probably busy guarding the family
treasure inside the house.

CALICE
Don’t add details!

OLIVIA
You said it was 3 miles east? That’s not that far.

LILA
I think you mean not far enough.

JEZELLE
Oh, come on. It’s not real, probably just a bunch of bored
seniors making stuff up.

CHIYO
But what if it’s real? How big is the mansion? Where did
the family go? I’m gonna think about this all night.

OLIVIA
Well, I think there’s only one way to get this out of all
your minds…

CHLOE
I don’t want to ask this. But, how?

STELLA
(Looks at Olivia and smirks)
To check it ourselves of course. We’ll just have to confirm
on our own that there is no haunted mansion near Farfield.

JENNIE
No! No! NO! No way! Not happening!

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 HAERIN
But we have 2 weeks of camp left. Surely you can’t just
forget about this in one night.

LILA
No way we can sneak out! They’ll notice if somebody’s
missing. Our schedule is packed.

OLIVIA
Yeah, only during the day. So I guess we’ll have to go
tonight!

JEZELLE
Wow, I didn’t know that nature can make someone go CRAZY.

STELLA
Look, Olivia is right. If we leave tonight we won’t have to
think about it for the rest of camp. Besides, it’s not that
far we’ll be back before midnight.

STACEY
Well tomorrow, we don’t have anything planned until later
in the day…

OLIVIA
See, it's meant to be!

CALICE
No it’s not!

JENNA
We can be the first batch to disprove this urban myth. We
will be remembered as legends. I’m in.

CHIYO
I’ll be awake thinking about this all night, might as well
do something about it.

OLIVIA
Haerin, Stacey, you guys told this story, i’m assuming
you’re also joining?

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 HAERIN
Yes, I’d like to fact-check.

STACEY
Finally, I’ll be a primary source.

JEZELLE
This is all a scam. So I want to join just so I can see
your face when you’re all wrong.

LILA
Stella, why do you have to be my bunkmate?! I don’t want to
sleep alone so I guess I have no choice.

OLIVIA
3 people left… Come on, you guys.

CHLOE
Fine. I’m in. I don’t care.

CALICE
What! No fair! I don’t want to be alone!

STELLA
Jennie?

JENNIE
I can’t believe this.

The girls try to convince Jennie to join the trip.

JENNIE
Okay! Fine!

STELLA
Perfect! We’ll meet at the entry 20 minutes after the bell.
Pack light. Don’t forget to bring water and wear
comfortable shoes.

A bell dings from a distance.

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 CAMP COUNSELOR
(Offstage)
Time for bed, kids!

OLIVIA
See you all in 20 minutes.

LILA
Unbelievable.

The kids put out the bonfire and walk to their rooms feeling
both terrified and excited.

[LIGHTS OUT]

The kids start to gather at the entrance, carrying a light bag

filled with minimum essentials. They try to make as little sound
as possible so as not to alert the camp counselors.

STELLA
Everyone is here. Okay let’s go.

JENNA
Chiyo and I will lead, since both of us got the highest
score during direction-finding.

OLIVIA
Then lead the way!

JENNIE
Can you also make sure to bring us back here ALIVE.

HAERIN
Cheer up, we’ll be fine. Right?

CHIYO gives a thumbs up. The kids of Farfield Summer Camp start
their reckless journey.

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SCENE 2
Though at the start the kids seemed nervous, ecstatic,
confident, annoyed in their journey to discovery, whatever
feelings they had in the beginning have now disappeared.
Replaced with exhaustion and homesickness. They’ve been walking
for ages it seems.

JEZELLE
We’re lost, aren’t we?

JENNA
No, no. We’re right on track

LILA
We’ve passed that tree twice.

JENNA
It’s a different tree.

STACEY
No… same tree. It had that weird branch.

STELLA
Oh yeah. The branch that looks like a hand.

The girls realize that they’ve passed this path before. A

collective “Ahhh”

CHIYO
Fine, we’re lost.

The kids grunts and sighs in frustration.

CALICE
You said you two had the highest score in
direction-finding.

OLIVIA
Well, the rest of us failed that task so the bar was pretty
low.

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The kids grunts and sighs in frustration. Now even more loud.

CHLOE
Now what?

HAERIN
Chiyo, you said something about navigating with the stars?
Use that.

CHIYO
Sailors, Haerin. Sailors did. I am not a sailor.

JEANNIE
I knew this would happen. Let’s just go back.

LILA
Assuming you know the way back.

The kids turn their gaze to Chiyo and Jenna. Chiyo and Jenna try
to hide their panic, as they also do not know the way back to
the campsite.

STELLA
Okay, everybody calm down. We’re not going back. We’re in
too deep. Let’s just…

OLIVIA
Split up. 2 groups. One group goes that way and the other
goes this way. We’ll meet back here in 15 minutes.

JEZELLE
This is where we all perish.

JENNA
Not with that attitude. I agree, let's split up. We’ll go
to whichever way is closer, mansion or camp.

The kids reluctantly divide themselves into two groups. They

walk in the opposite direction.

MUSICAL NUMBER.

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SCENE 3
The kids have stumbled their way around the forest. A large
mansion now looms over them. It’s the Marshall Manor. The
mansion is completely rundown, dark brick walls with conical
roofs. Untamed ivy covers its walls and wild grass pokes through
the concrete walkway. No light is coming from the inside.
Tonight, they were greeted with a clear and inviting sky. A
storm suddenly appears. They are now worried that the mansion
can smell their fear.

STACEY
We’re here?

CHIYO
Uh oh.

STELLA
We should go inside.

LILA
Should we?

JENNIE
We’re already here. Let’s just go in.

All the girls look at Jennie, confused.

JENNIE
I’m cold and tired. At least I’m getting something out of
this mess.

HAERIN
Well, okay. Time to go in.

All the girls just look at each other. No one really wants to go
inside the supposed haunted house. Stella and Olivia step up
first, they open the front entrance.

They enter what seems to be the living area of the house. The
interior was once grand, but now it seems to have no value at

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all. Brittle wooden tables and water dripping from the holey
roof. Doesn’t smell great either, something surely died within
these walls. Hopefully it's a rat, nothing more.

CALICE
Hello?

CHLOE
Are you here, ghosts?

JEZELLE
Don’t call them!

The girls don’t want to leave each other’s side. They gaze lurk
around the room but at the same time averting their eyes in case
an apparition presents itself.

A loud bang. Sounds like something fell.

JENNA
Be careful!

JENNIE
That sound didn’t come from this room.

Sudden and fast footsteps. None of the girls are moving.

CHIYO
Who’s there?

Another crash. This time it sounds like glass breaking.

STACEY
Okay. That’s it we’re leaving.

UNKNOWN DEEP VOICE

WHO DARES ENTER MY HOME WITHOUT PERMISSION.

The kids are completely frozen in terror.

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 STELLA
Uh, guys…

UNKNOWN DEEP VOICE

YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE. LEAVE NOW AT ONCE. LEAVE. LEAVE.

All the girls scream. It’s the ghost. They’ve disturbed the
ghost of Marshall Manor. They rush to exit the mansion through
the front entrance.

HAERIN
We’re doomed!

LILA
Is that light?

JENNA
Yes!

CHIYO
The path looks clear! It looks like…

OLIVIA
It’s the camp! Run towards camp!

They all run towards the light. The path looks well maintained,
as if many go through here regularly. But the kids do not care.
They are running for their lives.

SCENE 4
After a long, unnecessary journey, they have arrived back in
camp. Exhausted and traumatized. They knew it was a mistake to
sneak out in the middle of the night, but all are too shaken to
point fingers. The kids collapse once they’ve reached camping
grounds. Most are on the verge of tears. Some are too stunned to
process what just happened.

The camp counselor enters.

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 CAMP COUNSELOR
Hello?

All the girls look at her still in a state of despair.

CAMP COUNSELOR
So how was your trip?

The girls can’t handle another shock.

JEANNIE
Bad.

JEZELLE
Ghosts are real, apparently.

CHLOE
So cold.

STELLA
Wait, why aren’t you mad at us? We snuck out. In the middle
of the night.

CHIYO
Were you even looking for us?

HAERIN
We could’ve DIED.

CAMP COUNSELOR
You guys went to the Marshall Mansion, right?

The girls all nod their heads in confusion.

CAMP COUNSELOR
Yeah, us counselors always set up a camera in the trees
near the mansion before every camp. We’ve been doing this
for the past 6 years. So I knew where you all were.

STACEY
If you knew where we were, why didn’t you save us.

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 JENNA
Now, we’re cursed. This will haunt us for the rest of our
lives.

CAMP COUNSELOR
You are not cursed, Jenna.

CALICE
But the ghost talked to us!

LILA
Told us to leave their property.

CAMP COUNSELOR
I know.

OLIVIA
What do you mean you know?

CAMP COUNSELOR
Didn’t you guys listen to me? The counselors set it all up.
All the weird clangs and clashes and voices, that was all
us.

CHIYO
But, why? What is wrong with you?

CAMP COUNSELOR
10 years ago, that property was seized by the bank because
of some mortgage issue, or something. The family that lived
there moved out. They did not go missing. I guess the bank
forgot about it cause they just left that big whole house
to rot. Like, really rot. That house is basically falling
apart. And every year, some kids would skip our planned
activities to just hang out there. So the camp counselors
decided to put on booby traps to scare off anyone who
enters. And it worked. Rumors of a haunted mansion spread
like wildfire and no one ever went there again. Well, we do
get some curious souls every now and again. So we decided
to open up a road straight to our camp in case they were
running for their lives.

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 JEANNIE
But, why?

CAMP COUNSELOR
That house is a minefield. It’s dangerous to go in. Not
because of ghosts, but because of the possibility of a
piece of wood falling on top of your head.

STELLA
We got that part. But why didn’t you just tell us to stay
away?

CAMP COUNSELOR
Well, where’s the fun in that?

JENNA
You traumatized us for ENTERTAINMENT!

All the girls yell at the counselor. Frustrated about how they
were scared because of some practical joke.

CAMP COUNSELOR
Okay, okay, okay. I’m- We’re sorry. But you all did
something wrong. You sneaked out in the MIDDLE OF THE
NIGHT. Thankfully we had those cameras set up so we knew
where you were. But you all broke the rules.

LILA
We know we’re wrong. We’re sorry…

They all collectively apologize

But still, how could you do this to us?!

All the girls continue to express their rage.

END OF PLAY

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