ABSTRACT
VENDETTA GOLDWOMAN: television personality in her late thirties; selfimportant, opportunistic, but a little resentful of the younger generation that pursues the crossover dream so unabashedly
BOB PARDU: offstage announcer; a wicked Howdy Doody TEEN BOMB: the game show “boy”; mute for the most part, but lots of eye
language Three women in their twenties: SPECIMEN NUMBER ONE: the “multi-
Culti”; worldly, but defensive SPECIMEN NUMBER TWO: the “mixed-child”; tough, but insecure SPECIMEN NUMBER THREE: a brown-skinned Diana Ross clone from
Detroit; seemingly spacey, but calculating QUEEN MAMA KING: of Specimen One’s mulatto nightmare GUARD: Queen Mama’s boy THE RARE COGNAC WOMAN: actress in commercials THE RARE COGNAC MAN: actor in commercials (The roles of QUEEN MAMA KING and the RARE COGNAC WOMAN
may be played by the same actor; same with the GUARD and RARE COGNAC MAN.)
A note about casting
This is a play about color and race. It uses skin color, without apology, to make its point. Hence, why the character breakdown Calls for SPECIMEN NUMBER THREE to be played by a brown-skinned actress; a woman who, according to stereotype, would not be physically recognizable as “mixed-race.” This is a choice integral to the climax and theme of the play
Time
The 1990s, heading toward the millennium
Set
Furnishings suggest a television studio. The stage is bare except for three golddraped cushions, a glittering “X” on the stage floor, and a billboard on which words and images are projected. Some of these words and symbols are familiar to game show viewers. Others are more elliptical references to the content of the play. Periodically we hear piped-in sound-effects that underscore the vaudevillian mood of a game show.
