Game 6 Page #7

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NICKY:

I was all noise. Played the radio

loud. Battled constantly with my

brother and sister. Here I am,

world.

PAISLEY:

I hear good things about the new

play.

NICKY:

So do I. Over and over.

PAISLEY:

Peter Redmond is an actor I admire

enormously.

NICKY:

Would you like to meet him?

PAISLEY:

He doesn't want to meet some out-of-

work ingenue.

NICKY:

I'm trying to prolong our

afternoon. In case you haven't

noticed.

PAISLEY:

The fact is, I have to get going.

NICKY:

Is it true?

PAISLEY:

Is what true?

NICKY:

He wears a disguise.

PAISLEY:

Steven goes to extremes to protect

his privacy. No friends. No phone.

NICKY:

But you're his friend.

PAISLEY:

Sort of. Sometimes. You're not

building an obsession about Steven,

are you? Look. I understand opening-

night jitters, but you've got one

of the great actors in American

theater starring in your play.

EXT. THE BARRYMORE THEATER

47th Street between Broadway and Eighth Avenue.

INT. THE BARRYMORE THEATER - STAGE ENTRANCE

Nicky has been cornered just inside the entrance by the stage

manager, a small, fierce woman named RENEE SIMON.

RENEE:

I can't take this anymore. He

forgets simple lines. He forgets

where to stand. We tell him and

tell him and tell him. I know he's

a sweet man. I love Peter. It's not

his fault. But I've never worked in

a show where the leading man has

4parasites in his brain.

INT. THE BARRYMORE THEATER - THE ORCHESTRA

Nicky sits down in the orchestra, looking darkly into space,

brooding. He surveys the set, a working class kitchen, behind

it a backdrop of dark streets and looming tennaments. A

portly well-dressed man appears, moving along the row toward

Nicky. This is SIDNEY FABRIKANT, the producer.

NICKY:

aybe we ought to postpone the

opening.

SIDNEY:

Joanna loves this play. She has

sunk tons of money. She is

completely Ncommitted.

NICKY:

appreciate that, Sidney. But our

leading man can't remember his

lines. And his understudy can't

carry the play.

Nicky looks out at the rehearsal in progress on stage. The

director, JACK HASKINS and the actor PETER REDMOND

(50)confer, move about gesturing and blocking.

SIDNEY:

I had lunch with Joanna. She said

she told you about Peter. You

weren't concerned, she said.

NICKY:

hat was this morning.

SIDNEY:

So what happened since? You're

worried about this kid who writes

these reviews?

Nicky looks across the theatre. Paisley Porter sits alone,

tenth row center, watching rehearsal with rapt attention.

NICKY:

'm not worried about this kid.

SIDNEY:

Well I am. Worried sick. Everybody

quotes Steven Schwimmer. He's here

to announce the death of

civilization. He kills a play every

time he farts.

NICKY:

Postpone. We have every right.

SIDNEY:

Too late. All the elements are in

place. Delay the opening and we

lose the theater.

NICKY:

I've had three straight washouts,

Sidney.

SIDNEY:

(deliciously)

You're dangling from the last

letter of your last name.

INT. THE BARRYMORE THEATER -THE STAGE - NICKY AND PETER

REDMOND - A LITTLE LATER

The actor sitting on the sofa. Nicky on one knee, leaning

towards him in intimate conversation.

NICKY:

Sidney remains optimistic.

PETER:

Sidney.

NICKY:

Sidney Fabrikant. Our producer.

PETER:

I was educated by nuns.

NICKY:

Yes.

PETER:

I have excellent long-term memory.

NICKY:

Yes.

PETER:

I kissed Shirley Felder on the

teeth.

NICKY:

Yes, Peter.

PETER:

But my parasite is consuming all

the new memories. Eating my lines.

NICKY:

You have to see the words. Try to

build a mental picture of the

script. Imagine your lines high-

lighted with a felt tip pen.

PETER:

What color?

NICKY:

What was your favorite color

crayon, growing up?

PETER:

Burnt sienna.

NICKY:

Mine was cobalt blue.

PETER:

This is your history, isn't it?

Nicky? All around us. And my

parasite is consuming it.

NICKY:

Yes.

PETER:

I kissed her while she was

laughing.

NICKY:

Yes.

PETER:

I can see her face so clearly. Dear

God. My heart was flying out of my

chest with love.

INT. THE BARRYMORE THEATER - THE WINGS

Jack Haskins and Renee Simon

RENEE:

I hear he got the parasite in

Burma.

JACK:

I heard Borneo.

RENEE:

Why do we blame the Third World for

our parasites? Maybe he got it in

Denver or Minneapolis.

JACK:

Maybe he got it in Borneo.

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