Shakespeare in Love Page #4

WILL turns to see HENSLOWE approaching.

BURBAGE (CONT'D)

(to WILL)

Here is two sovereigns--I'll give you

two more when you show me the pages.

WILL:

Done.

HENSLOWE:

(arriving)

Burbage, I will see you hanged for a

pickpocket.

BURBAGE:

The Queen has commanded, she loves a

comedy and the Master of the Revels

favours us.

HENSLOWE:

And what favour does Mr. Tilney

receive from you?

BURBAGE:

Ask him.

The Master of the Revels (TILNEY) comes through the

curtain officiously.

TILNEY:

She comes!

He disappears back through the curtains. The hubbub falls

silent, rather dramatically, and all the busy PLAYERS

know what that means: they all crowd to the curtain and

find places to peep through.

INT. WHITEHALL PALACE. BANQUETING HALL. FRONT OF

HOUSE/STAGE. DAY.

THE POV OF THE PLAYERS.

The arrival of QUEEN ELIZABETH, aged sixty, coming to

take her place in the audience at front centre. The hill

is crowded with lords and ladies, bowing ELIZABETH to her

seat, which is raised high on a pedestal, affording the

QUEEN an uninterrupted view of the play, and the audience

an uninterrupted view of the QUEEN. Trumpets sound.

Close on a small piece of paper: a quill is writing "W.

Shakespeare." WILL rolls the paper up carefully and slips

it into the mouth of the snake bangle.

The curtain draws back and CONDELL as "VALENTINE" and

BURBAGE as "PROTEUS" begin the play.

CONDELL AS VALENTINE

"Cease to persuade, my loving Proteus;

Home-keeping youth have ever homely

wits…"

INT. WHITEHALL PALACE. BANQUETING HALL. THE

WINGS/BACKSTAGE. DAY.

With BURBAGES'S presence accounted for on stage, ROSALINE

curls an arm around WILL'S neck. They kiss hungrily.

After a moment, WILL pulls back.

ROSALINE:

When will you write me a sonnet, Will?

WILL:

I have lost my gift.

ROSALINE:

You left it in my bed. Come to look

for it again.

WILL:

Are you to be my muse, ROSALINE?

ROSALINE:

Burbage has my keeping but you have my

heart.

WILL takes the snake bracelet and slips it onto her arm.

ROSALINE looks at it, then at WILL. Then they kiss again,

but WILL is distracted by the sound of coughing from the

auditorium.

WILL:

You see? The consumptives plot against

me. "Will Shakespeare has a play, let

us go and cough through it."

INT. WHITEHALL PALACE. BANQUETING HALL. STAGE. DAY.

"VALENTINE" is on stage with "PROTEUS."

CONDELL AS VALENTINE

"To be in love, where scorn is bought with groans: Coy

looks with heart sore sighs; One fading moment's mirth

With twenty watchful, weary, tedious nights…"

As the scene continues, WILL appears at the back of the

hall and finds himself next to HENSLOWE.

WILL:

I feel a scene coming on.

HENSLOWE:

Is it about a pirate's daughter?

INT. WHITEHALL PALACE. BACK OF THE BANQUETING HALL/STAGE.

DAY.

Laughter. It is later, and KEMPE is now on stage with his

dog. The audience is roaring.

HENSLOWE:

You see? Comedy.

QUEEN ELIZABETH'S idiosyncratic laugh rises above the

others.

QUEEN:

Well played, Master Crab, I commend

you.

She throws a sweetheart on the stage and the dog wolfs it

down. Everyone applauds.

HENSLOWE:

Love and a bit with a dog, that's what

they like.

Now we meet VIOLA. VIOLA DE LESSEPS is twenty-five and

beautiful, and she is laughing with great natural

enjoyment. She sits slightly apart from her small family

group--her parents, SIR ROBERT DE LESSEPS and LADY

MARGARET DE LESSEPS. Part of the group but seated behind

as befits her lower status is VIOLA'S NURSE.

Elsewhere is LORD WESSEX, our villain. WESSEX is in his

forties, dark cruel, self-important. He has noticed

VIOLA. The nurse notices him.

INT. WHITEHALL PALACE. BANQUETING HALL. FRONT OF

HOUSE/STAGE. DAY.

LATER. "VALENTINE" is on stage alone. He is speaking the

speech rather more coarsely than the version we hear

later.

CONDELL AS VALENTINE

"What light is light if Silvia be not

seen?

What joy is joy, if Silvia be not by?

Unless it be to think that she is by

And feed upon the shadow of

perfection…"

Now we see that VIOLA knows the speech by heart, and is

silently mouthing it with the actor.

HENSLOWE:

There's a lady knows your play by

heart.

But when he turns to WILL he finds that WILL has gone.

INT. WILL'S ROOM. DAY.

WILL comes into his room, goes straight to his table in

the window, and arranges pen, ink, and paper. Now he has

his ritual:
he spins round once in a circle, rubs his

hands together and spits on the floor. Then he sits down,

picks up his pen, and stares in front of him. PAUSE. Then

he begins to write.

INT. DE LESSEPSES' HOUSE. VIOLA'S BEDROOM. NIGHT.

The NURSE is undressing her, though VIOLA tries

intermittently to push her away. She is still bright with

excitement.

VIOLA:

Did you like Proteus or Valentine

best? Proteus for speaking, Valentine

for looks.

NURSE:

I liked the dog, for laughs.

VIOLA:

But Silvia I did not care for much.

His fingers were red from fighting and

he spoke like a schoolboy at lessons.

Stage love will never be true love

while the law of the land has our

heroines played by pipsqueak boys in

petticoats! Oh, when can we see

another?

Rate this script:3.0 / 2 votes