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Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Women in the Age of Trump: STAMINA

STAMINA by Donna Kaz is a semi-finalist for NYCPlaywrights project "Women in the Age of Trump."

DONNA KAZ is the author of UN/MASKED, Memoirs of a Guerrilla Girl On Tour, which follows her surprising 25 year journey as a survivor of domestic violence and subsequent member of the feminist activist group, Guerrilla Girls. 
Donnakaz.com, Ggontour.com, @donnakaz.


Thanks to Donna Kaz for allowing NYCPlaywrights to publish this excerpt from her monologue STAMINA.

   CLARA
 
What if you don’t want to be inspired? What if you just want to lay down and die? 
   SIMONE 
Help me get my foot out, Clara. 
   CLARA 
I can’t. I’m in the process of freezing to death. 
   SIMONE 
You are not. 
   CLARA 
Wiggle your foot back and forth. Back and forth and up and down and side to side. 
   SIMONE 
What a pair we are. 
   CLARA 
Feeble, octogenarian twins who miscalculated the final assent on Everest. 
   SIMONE 
Or two, women who are stronger because we’re together. I know that I got this far because
you urged me on back there when I was falling behind. I am here because you believe in me. I cannot do this without you.
 
 CLARA 
Hey. What’s that? 
   SIMONE 
What’s what? 
   CLARA 
Down there. Those lights. 
   SIMONE 
Head lamps. Those assholes from Altitude Expeditions are coming up now. This place is going to be a bottle neck in about ten minutes. 
   CLARA 
The same ones who nicknamed us the old hags of the Himalayas? 
   SIMONE 
The very ones. 
   CLARA 
I hate those guys. 
   SIMONE 
Forget them. We will beat them to the top. Then who will be old hags? 
   CLARA 
Unfortunately, we still will. We could still die on the descent, Simone. 
   SIMONE 
Who cares. The summit will still count! 
   CLARA
Someday, I hope women won’t have to prove anything. Every time one of us does something remarkable it will be, “Oh look, she just did that. Again!” 
   SIMONE 
Yes. But not before we pave the way. 
   CLARA 
We are so far from home, Simone. And so close to heaven. 
   SIMONE 
The view is spectacular up here. 
   CLARA 
Breathtaking. 
   SIMONE 
I’m sorry if I pushed you into this, Clara. 
   CLARA 
Oh no. I came this far of my own free will. 
   SIMONE 
So why not just a little further, Clara? 
   CLARA 
What about your foot? 
   SIMONE 
My foot is free.

   CLARA
 
You are strong. 
   SIMONE 
Thank you, Clara. Now, belay on. Climb ready. Clara? 
   CLARA 
Belay on. 
   SIMONE 
Climb ready? 
   CLARA 
Climb ready. 
   SIMONE 
Climb on, Clara. 
   CLARA 
Climb on, Simone.

   (CLARA and SIMONE put their oxygen masks back on)

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