The god of hell: a play Read online

  EMMA

  : What in the world is he saying?

  WELCH

  : He’s just reprogramming, Emma. He’ll be fine. Up now, Haynes! On your feet! Front and center. Do the step. Look lively. Let’s see it. The step! The step! Do the step!

  (WELCH snaps the cord. HAYNES lets out a short yell, scrambles to his feet, and starts marching in place in some weird cadenced step. EMMA backs away with the glass of water.)

  Time to get down to brass tacks here. Now, explain to Frank exactly what we have in mind here, Haynes. Everything we’ve gone through down in the basement. Our little ordeal. Come on, speak up, speak up! Don’t be shy.

  (HAYNES staggers forward and speaks with some difficulty. He stops marching for a second.)

  Don’t give up the step, Haynes! We’ve got to maintain at all costs! The step! The step! There you go. Now tell Frank. Go ahead.

  (HAYNES picks up the march again and speaks to FRANK.)

  HAYNES

  : (

  marching

  ) We’re—what they want us to do—what they want is—we’re supposed to head back there. All the way back. At night—by train—(

  to

  WELCH

  ) Isn’t that it? Am I on the right track?

  WELCH

  : That’s it! That’s it! Keep going—keep in step! Give him a little water, Emma. Just a dribble.

  FRANK

  : Train? By train? What the heck is he saying?

  (EMMA gives HAYNES a small sip, then backs away. HAYNES stops marching for a second. WELCH is on him.)

  WELCH

  : Keep it up! Keep it up! The step, the step!

  (HAYNES resumes his little march in place.)

  HAYNES

  : We’re supposed to head back with the heifers. At night. By train. Across the Great Plains. The two of us.

  FRANK

  : Me? Not me.

  HAYNES

  : Me and you both. Across the Great Plains. Clack-ety clack.

  FRANK

  : No! That couldn’t be right. I’m supposed to be at the meeting!

  WELCH

  : Where, though, Haynes? Where exactly is “back there”? Be specific. Frank needs to know. You can do it. You’re a big boy. Tell Frank.

  (WELCH zaps him with electric shock. Blue light.)

  HAYNES

  : ROCKY BUTTES!!!!!

  WELCH

  : There we go. That wasn’t so hard, now, was it?

  FRANK

  : Rocky Buttes? I thought you told me they were going to be air-dropped into exotic foreign lands. That’s what you said. Palm trees! Desert oasis! Parachutes floating!

  WELCH

  : You just keep dreaming, Frank.

  EMMA

  : How are you going to explain Holsteins in the middle of the desert?

  WELCH

  : They snuck in from Canada. It doesn’t matter.

  FRANK

  : You told me my heifers were going to be glorified. Heroic!

  WELCH

  : You’ve got to drop all that for now, Frank. Leave the simple past behind. We’ve got to get a move on here. We’re dealing with a ruthless, diabolical, treacherous, despicable force. What’s the matter with you people? Don’t you get it?

  FRANK

  : No, this isn’t what I had in mind. You painted me a different picture. (

  coming down off sofa, tries to hand case back to

  WELCH

  ) Here, you take this money back. I don’t want it.

  WELCH

  : Too late for that, Frank. Way too late.

  FRANK

  : Take it back!

  (FRANK opens case and empties the money out.)

  WELCH

  : Things have already been set in motion. There’s no more thinking to do. It’s time for action. Look at your friend, Haynes. How committed he is. You don’t want to be left behind, do you, Frank? Out here in the hinterlands. Get in step! Get in step!

  (HAYNES keeps up his marching, getting more and more frantic, as FRANK looks on.)

  Things are going to start moving very, very fast now. Everything’s been building to this. You’ll see. The wonderful part is that the machinery is in place! All we have to do is climb on board now, Frank. Take a ride!

  We are going to deliver you to your Manifest Destiny! Just take a little test-drive. Get in step, Frank. Try it out.

  (FRANK starts tentatively marching with HAYNES, trying to fall into step with him, but HAYNES has now cranked up the tempo. FRANK tries to catch up.)

  Emma, maybe you could clean the place up a bit. Get these plants out of here before the meeting.

  EMMA

  : Frank! Frank, don’t do that. Stop doing that!

  WELCH

  : I’ve got all my people coming, Emma. What are they going to think about our readiness? We’ve got to get the place cleaned up.

  (FRANK keeps on marching with HAYNES; the two of them getting more and more in sync. … EMMA rushes to FRANK and grabs his arm, trying to stop him from marching with HAYNES. Blue light flashes from FRANKs arm. EMMA jumps back.)

  EMMA

  : (

  grabbing

  FRANK

  ,

  who continues marching

  ) Frank! Stop it now! This isn’t you! This isn’t who you are! Frank! What have they done to you!?

  (FRANK and HAYNES keep marching in unison. WELCH takes each of them by the arm and leads them toward the door, knocking over plants on the way.)

  WELCH

  : You’re going to like Rocky Buttes, Frank. Whole different landscape. Wide open. Just like the Wild, Wild West. Not a tree in sight. Endlessly flat and lifeless.

  (WELCH opens door and escorts HAYNES and FRANK out to the porch. EMMA stands in the room, helpless.)

  FRANK

  : Have they got any pasture out there, Graig?

  HAYNES

  : Buffalo grass. That’s about it.

  FRANK

  : How are we going to feed my heifers?

  WELCH

  : Just keep making your way down across those frozen fields. My people will pick you up on the road. You see the headlights? They’re waiting for you. Keep in step now. Don’t forget to keep in step.

  (FRANK and HAYNES go off past the windows, maintaining their little pathetic march. WELCH comes back into the house and speaks to EMMA.)

  (to EMMA) Well, don’t act so surprised, Emma. What did you expect? You didn’t think you were going to get a free ride on the back of Democracy forever, did you? Well, did you? What have you done to deserve such rampant freedom? Such total lack of responsibility. Just lolling about here in the Wisconsin wilderness with your useless lumberjack of a husband, scraping the cream off the countryside. Sooner or later, the price has to be paid. Don’t you think? Our day has come. Now, be a good girl and clean the place up for our meeting. We need to put our best foot forward, don’t we? Get in step, Emma. Get in step. See you Tuesday.

  (WELCH turns and goes out the door, closing it behind him. He disappears past the windows. Pause. EMMA turns toward audience and walks extreme downstage, staring out. She just stands there, staring.)

  EMMA

  : (

  to herself

  ) Frank.

  (She just stands there awhile, then turns and runs upstage, goes out door, leaving it open, and starts ringing the bell. She keeps ringing it as the lights fade. As lights get dimmer, the plants begin to emanate blue flashes, which increase in intensity as lights go to black. Music over. Bell continues.)

  END

  A VINTAGE ORIGINAL, APRIL 2005

  Copyright © 2005 by Sam Shepard

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by Vintage Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto.

  CAUTION: This play is fully protected, in whole, in part, or in any form, under the copyright laws of the United States of Amer
ica, the British Empire including the Dominion of Canada, and all other countries of the copyright union, and are subject to royalty.

  All rights, including professional, amateur, motion picture, radio, television, recitation, and public reading, are strictly reserved.

  All inquiries for performance rights should be addressed to the author’s agent, Judy Boals, Judy Boals, Inc., 208 West 30th Street, Suite 401, New York, NY 10001.

  Vintage and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Shepard, Sam, 1943–

  The god of hell : a play / Sam Shepard.

  p. cm.

  “A Vintage original”—T.p. verso.

  eISBN: 978-0-307-49570-9

  1. Liberty—Drama. 2. Conservatism—Drama. 3. Right and left (Political science)—Drama. 4. Middle West—Drama. 5. Political plays. I. Title.

  PS3569.H394 G63 2005

  812′.54—dc22

  2004065122

  www.vintagebooks.com

  v3.0

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